The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling in early July, which determined the Joint Finance Committee’s role in Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program grant approval is unconstitutional, has re-energized the Wisconsin land trust community. The decision should streamline the program’s grant approval process.
Many land trusts and nonprofit organizations had previously limited their funding requests to avoid potential delays from the Wisconsin Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee, but conservation organizations across the state are now poised to submit more grant requests for larger, more impactful projects, reports Danielle Kaeding for Wisconsin Public Radio.
“I think what we’re going to see in the next couple of years going forward is so many conservation organizations really re-engaging with the Stewardship program and just utilizing it to its maximum potential,” said Charles Carlin, director of strategic initiatives for Gathering Waters.
To get caught up on the court ruling, read this blog post on our Team Knowles Nelson website.
Photo by Eric Preston.
