The State Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would allocate millions of dollars to the University of Wisconsin-Madison athletics department to pay down debt and set aside money for revenue-sharing with players, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.
The legislation passed by a single vote after clearing the Assembly last month nearly unanimously, with only one Republican voting against. The bill had been fast-tracked through committee and brought to the floor within two weeks of its introduction.
Several Republicans and Democrats voted against the bill in the latest vote, and only a last-minute change from Sen. Dora Drake, D-Milwaukee, prevented it from being killed.
Traditionally, loans taken out by the UW athletics department have been paid off through program revenue, not by taxpayers. The UW Board of Regents and its campuses require lawmakers’ approval to borrow debt.
The bill would provide $14.6 million per year toward maintenance costs, helping to chip away at the $20.5 million the university gave out to athletes in revenue-sharing payments this year.
