We want to offer a heartfelt thanks to all of you who have helped advocate for the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program this year. From postcards and lobby days earlier in the year to urgent calls to action over the last couple weeks, Team Knowles Nelson showed up in a big way.
Consider the numbers:
- 170+ Knowles Nelson Lobby Day participants
- 2,700+ postcards mailed to the capitol
- 42,000+ emails and thousands of phone calls to legislators, committee members, and the Governor
Together, you made sure that Knowles-Nelson is a top issue that can’t be brushed aside.
Unfortunately, the Joint Finance Committee chose to include no funding for Knowles-Nelson in the budget they are sending to the legislature for a vote. This leaves the future of the program in a precarious position.
Representative Tony Kurtz and Senator Pat Testin, Vice-Chairs of the Joint Finance Committee and co-authors of standalone legislation to renew Knowles-Nelson, issued the following statement:
“Today, the Joint Finance Committee will be taking action on the budget for the Department of Natural Resources, but we will not be including the reauthorization of the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program in those actions. After discussions with our caucuses and several stakeholder groups, we feel it is best to focus on the reauthorization of Knowles-Nelson separately from the budget. We are committed to getting something done and not taking action today gives us the best opportunity to ensure the bill for the program has the time and attention it needs for future success. We look forward to continuing the conversations throughout the next several weeks.”
Representative Deb Andraca, another member of the Joint Finance Committee, had this to say during the late-night hearing Friday night when JFC voted on the DNR’s budget:
“[Knowles Nelson] is an environmental program that is the envy of other states, and just imagine what this kind of cooperation could look like. We could have conservation programs that are prioritized based on how much good they can do for the state, not the whims of one or two committee members hiding behind anonymous objections. We could have hunters, anglers, hikers and campers enjoying the Wisconsin outdoors and spending money in our small resort towns, creating green spaces where young kids can hike and hunt instead of scroll online. And these are values that I know, that we all share.”
This is a program that we could save right now, and that we can come together around making sure that our parks, our outdoor areas, our streams and areas that need to be conserved are not just here for us to enjoy, but here for the next couple of generations to enjoy.”
What now?
The Joint Finance Committee is scheduled to meet again Tuesday, July 1 to take up the remaining budget items. The co-chairs have indicated they intend to finish their work on the budget on Tuesday, and the full legislature may take it up in their respective chambers as early as Wednesday, July 2. The budget could reach the Governor’s desk as soon as Thursday, July 3.
Since it appears that Knowles-Nelson will not be reauthorized as part of the budget, our attention now turns to the standalone legislation introduced by Rep. Kurtz and Senator Testin. They have indicated they will return to work on that bill later this summer.
For Team Knowles Nelson, that means we get back to work educating legislators on the value of the program, the importance of caring for our land and water, and how vital outdoor recreation is to our Wisconsin way of life. There will be plenty of work for us all to do together.
We wish we were celebrating a win for Knowles-Nelson today. But we’re grateful to be part of such a strong, committed advocacy community. We’ll keep working to ensure the best future possible for Wisconsin’s land, water, wildlife, and our outdoor way of life.
This week, we hope you all enjoy the July 4th holiday. Next week, we get back to work.
Featured image by Gathering Waters staff, 2025
