Wisconsin suing over cuts to the service and volunteer agency AmeriCorps, Gov. Tony Evers says
Wisconsin is joining a multi-state lawsuit against sweeping cuts to AmeriCorps, the federal agency for national service and volunteerism, Gov. Tony Evers said.
"Once again, the Trump Administration is trying to cut federal funding that Congress already approved and Wisconsin is counting on to help kids, families, and communities across our state — all so they can pay for tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires," Evers said in an April 29 news release.
Dozens of nonprofits, municipalities and agencies across Wisconsin found out starting April 25 that their partnerships with AmeriCorps were terminated effective immediately. About 430 AmeriCorps members in the state who were working on issues like literacy, conservation, homelessness and health care will now be out of a job, Serve Wisconsin Executive Director Jeanne Duffy said.
The cuts are part of an effort to slash AmeriCorps' budget led by billionaire Elon Musk's U.S. Department of Government Efficiency. Close to $400 million in grants to the service organization were eliminated nationwide, according to the Washington Post.
AmeriCorps was created by President Bill Clinton more than 30 years ago. By 2023, more than 1.25 million Americans had served in the program, according to the group.
White House spokesperson Anna Kelly on April 28 pointed to recent audits of the AmeriCorps program and concerns about waste, fraud and abuse in response to questions about the cuts.
In mid-April, the federal government halted the National Civilian Community Corps program, stopping volunteers from coming to Wisconsin to work as home-builders and camp counselors.
Then the Evers administration was informed April 25 of the federal government's plans to end federal grants for all of the AmeriCorps programs administered by Serve Wisconsin, according to the news release. The cuts will end services at more than 300 sites across the state, the release said.
Duffy said Serve Wisconsin was "appalled by the immediate and illegal termination" of the federal grants.
She said the cuts were made "without any warning, causing incredible upheaval for programs and AmeriCorps members serving at hundreds of sites across Wisconsin."
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin suing over sweeping cuts to AmeriCorps, Gov. Tony Evers says
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