MADISON – Senator Eric Wimberger (R-Oconto) issued the following statement after testifying on Senate Bill 280, his bill that would return $172 million in interest gathered on unspent federal Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (CSLFRF) dollars to the state’s General Fund, during a hearing of the Senate Committee on Government Operations, Labor, and Economic Development:
“State law is clear: The Governor’s illegal $170 million slush fund must be returned to the state treasury. For every week he refuses to hand over this money, the Governor is committing a misdemeanor, and holds himself personally liable to repay the missing interest. Governor Evers and his administration cannot classify this interest as federal funds.
Senate Bill 280 will uphold the power of the purse given to the Legislature under our State Constitution, and do what the Governor fails to do – follow the law. These funds deserve proper legislative oversight, and should not be set aside so the Governor can spend them any way he wishes.
The Evers Administration’s refusal to participate in today’s hearing indicates they know their position is indefensible and runs counter to state law.”
During the Covid pandemic, the federal government advanced the State of Wisconsin $3 billion through the CSLFRF program to assist in the state’s economic recovery. During its annual audit of the state’s finances in 2023, the nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau discovered that Wisconsin’s remaining CSLFRF funds had collected significant interest. As of May 2025, the collected interest totals $172 million. Wis. Stat. § 20.906(1) requires that “all moneys paid into the treasury are to be credited to the general purpose revenues of the General Fund unless otherwise specifically provided.” While CSLFRF funds were originally issued to state and local governments to “support their response to and recovery from the COVID-19 public health emergency,” no specific intent is provided for how the interest must be spent when collected by the state, meaning the funds must be returned to the treasury and incorporated into the state’s General Fund.
