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UW-Madison engineering building funds denied by State Building Commission

Republicans say 'lack of transparency' stopping UW projects

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A new 395,000-square-foot facility that would replace the 64,000-square-foot building at 1410 Engineering Drive would give the College of Engineering the modern space to educate many more engineering students and position the College to stay competitive with its peers nationwide. Photo courtesy UW-Madison

The State Building Commission denied a motion to allow $70 million in underspent funds to be used for a series of planned Universities of Wisconsin projects including the new engineering building at UW-Madison.

The UW system asked the Building Commission to decrease the UW-Eau Claire sciences building project by $70 million and reallocate part of the money to the UW-Madison engineering building, bringing that project’s total to $419.8 million.

The project cost has increased to add an additional story to the building, which will serve more students, according to UW.

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The UW system also asked the commission to reallocate money for projects at UW-Whitewater and UW-Stout.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said the decision not to approve the requests was based on the UW system’s “lack of transparency,” despite the engineering building being a long-term priority for Senate Republicans.

In a letter to UW President Jay Rothman, LeMahieu said “refusing to answer questions creates an adversarial relationship between the UW and legislature.”

“The UW-System has requested nearly a billion dollars in new taxpayer resources despite shrinking enrollments and the closure of campuses,” LeMahieu said. “Taxpayers will rightfully demand transparency and candor from you and your representatives moving forward.”

UW spokesperson Mark Pitsch said they will “continue to work with the Legislature to address concerns that might remain regarding the project that is so critical to developing engineering talent for Wisconsin.”

In March, Gov. Tony Evers released more than $400 million in funding for the engineering building and other projects, including renovations for two academic buildings at the UW-Whitewater and system-wide utility upgrades. That funding was debated for months and  tied up in a deal that included pay raises for UW employees and diversity, equity and inclusion staffing positions.

The money continued to be nixed until it was approved in December 2023 by the UW Board of Regents.

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