As the Wisconsin Legislature adjourns for the 2025–26 session, no action was taken to reauthorize the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program. The program is now on track to expire in June, after being left out of the most recent state budget and failing to advance through standalone legislation this session.
In a press release following the Senate’s final session day, Sen. Sarah Keyeski (D-14) pointed to Senate Bill 436, a Democratic proposal to continue Knowles-Nelson, as one of many bills that never received a vote.
“There is so much more work to be done for our constituents, and we absolutely should not be adjourning our general session today,” she said in her statement.
For more than 30 years, Knowles-Nelson has funded land acquisition, trail development, habitat protection, and local park improvements in communities across Wisconsin. Its future has been tied up in ongoing debates over funding levels and legislative oversight, with no agreement reached before adjournment.
With the session now concluded, any path forward will require lawmakers to return. Without action, Wisconsin’s flagship conservation program will lapse this summer, putting future projects and funding across the state at risk.
