Paul A. Smith of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that “the Wisconsin conservation community is giving high marks to Gov. Tony Evers for his proposed 2021-23 state budget, especially for its call to reauthorize the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program.”
The governor’s budget, released on February 16, proposes renewing Knowles-Nelson for the next 10 years at a funding level of $70 million per year.
The article quotes Elizabeth Koehler, executive director of the Wisconsin chapter of The Nature Conservancy, saying, “The Stewardship Program is vitally needed. It has the overwhelming bipartisan support of voters and has been an incredible conservation, economic and outdoor recreation success.”
New Bridge Strategy and FM3 research conducted polling in 2020 that found that “92% of state residents supported reauthorizing the program for another 10 years and more than 75% support restoring the $86 million in annual funding it once had.”
Interested in advocating for Knowles-Nelson? Visit our Take Action page!
Featured image by Joshua Mayer, 2010.
