(The Center Square) – Wisconsin state government agencies spent $2.4 million on the salary and costs of 47 employees related to diversity, equity and inclusion in fiscal year 2023-24, according to a new state audit.
A separate audit of the University of Wisconsin system showed that $40.2 million was spent on offices with duties related to DEI, though the amounts spent specifically related to DEI were not specified.
The state government employees worked at 12 state agencies while $705,300 was spent on salary and costs related to 23 agencies conducting DEI training while eight agencies spent $444,300 on actions related to DEI checklists, the audit showed.
State agency staff spent 4,990 hours attending DEI committee meetings.
“Taxpayers are spending vast amounts of money on programs that barely get started or are rarely completed,” said Rep. Robert Wittke, R-Caledonia. “The ‘action steps’ by agencies brought forward in this report are incomplete, and no one at the top seems to mind at all. We will continue to dig into the findings and look to hold agencies and the UW System accountable to resolve the issues that continue to appear in these audit findings.”
The UW System spent $12.5 million related to salaries and compensation for roles that have DEI functions while an estimated $7.9 million was spent working on DEI activities related to a DEI checklist.
“Today’s new audit shows us the extent to which DEI grifters profiteer off Wisconsin taxpayers,” said Sen. Eric Wimberger, R-Oconto. “Wisconsin should not tolerate, much less propagate, race-based discrimination masquerading as equality in its halls of government. This report shows that taxpayers spent millions of dollars on DEI with very little to show for it. Thanks to these findings, we can now more clearly identify wasteful and abusive spending by our agencies and end it for good.”
The audits were requested by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee to investigate the costs of a November 2019 executive order signed by Gov. Tony Evers requiring each state agency to develop a DEI plan.
The audit found that 21 state agencies completed DEI action plans between January 2020 and April 2024 with 1,212 combined DEI actions taken in those agencies.
A separate recent audit showed that the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Division of Diversity, Equity and Education Achievement gave lump sum awards to 85% of staff in late 2023 amounting to $218,750 without consultation, according to a new audit of the department’s expenses, something that audit called “an extremely concerning example.”
That new audit showed that, in the UW System, 403 of the 1,263 planned DEI activities focused on students, amounting to 32% of actions.
The Legislative Audit Bureau made 21 recommendations to be implemented, suggesting that agencies report to the committee by June 13 on their response to the recommendations.
