Madison, WI – Today, Wisconsin Assembly and Senate Democrats introduced a bill that would reauthorize the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, including $72 million of annual funding. Representative Shelia Stubbs (D-Madison) released the following statement:
“Today I am proud to stand beside my Democratic colleagues in introducing a bill which would reauthorize the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program after its removal from the state budget and include all of the proposed changes put forth in Governor Evers’ 2025-2027 Executive Budget, including $72 million that may be obligated to the Stewardship Program each fiscal year, a Stewardship Council/Board that will provide oversight, a grant program for nonprofit conservation organizations to support wildlife and habitat management, and a tribal co-management program that would require coordination between the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and our federally recognized tribes or bands in land management and education activities on DNR land.
Since I was first elected to the legislature, I have been a strong supporter of the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship program and have advocated for these necessary investments in the health of our environment, wildlife, and recreation sites. We must continue to fund Knowles-Nelson if we want to ensure that our children, grandchildren, and generations to come have access to clean water, green space, and thriving natural ecosystems. I am hopeful that we can gain bipartisan support for reauthorizing the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program and guaranteeing protection for the diverse plant and animal species that call Wisconsin home, as well as the beautiful places where Wisconsinites hike, bike, hunt, and fish.
In the words of Wisconsin conservationist and writer Aldo Leopold, ‘When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.’ Let us continue our proud Wisconsin tradition of conservation by restoring the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program and empowering our constituents to enjoy the natural wonders around them.”
