WisconsinEye back on the air with temporary state funding; bill heard

(The Center Square) – WisconsinEye was back on the air broadcasting legislative hearings at Wisconsin’s capitol Tuesday, starting with a hearing on a bill to send long-term funding assistance to the private nonprofit that broadcasts Wisconsin state government meetings.

WisconsinEye received $50,000 in funding through the Joint Committee on Legislative Organization to go on the air during February.

Assembly Bill 974 would allow the network to receive the interest from a $9.75 million endowment each year, estimated to be between 4-7% or between $390,000 and $682,000. The network would have to continue raising the rest of its budget, which board chair Mark O’Connell said is $950,000 annually.

He spoke during a public hearing in the Assembly Committee on State Affairs on Monday before the bill passed the committee unanimously. A companion bill in the Senate is not yet filed.

“We’ll need some kind of bridge,” O’Connell cautioned, saying it will take time for the trust fund...