Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu
9th District State Senator Devin LeMahieu Monday (August 2nd) expressed harsh criticism of the recent findings from the Legislative Audit Bureau’s regular audit of the State Department of Workforce Development.
The Republican from Oostburg and Senate Majority Leader reacted to Friday’s report which details the DWD’s failure to comply with federal Unemployment Insurance regulations.
LeMahieu explained, “In the Spring of 2020, hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites lost their jobs in the wake of government shutdown orders. (Now) Another shocking legislative audit reveals Governor Evers and DWD not only failed to anticipate and effectively respond to the emergency needs of families in 2020, but have failed to comply with federal regulations for timelines for nearly a year.”
According to the LAB Audit, the department under former Secretary Caleb Frostman and current Secretary-designee Amy Pechacek did not comply with regulations to issue appeal decisions in a timely fashion from June 2020 through May 2021.
Senator LeMahieu said, “Our neighboring states were able to help struggling residents in their time of need. Both Illinois and Minnesota issued timely decisions in over 70% of cases. Wisconsin DWD’s 17.5% compliance is an embarrassment, and worse, has harmed people struggling to deal with the negative effects of government shutdowns.”
