In unusual move, UW-Madison officials apparently asked legislators to remove a $47 million School of Nursing building from the state budget, said Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison.

Assembly Democrats voted to cut funding for the project during a closed-door meeting Wednesday night, following a motion sponsored by Black.

“It was great that it was put in because nursing was a high priority,” said Julie Underwood, interim provost at UW-Madison. “We also understand with the state’s fiscal situation, it’s hard to get all sorts of things. We understand the balance.”

The project was inserted in the middle of the night by Sen. Judy Robson, D-Beloit, during a meeting of the Legislature’s budget committee.

It was not part of UW-Madison’s capital budget request nor was it included in Gov. Jim Doyle’s original budget.

Robson, a former nurse, said Thursday she was very disappointed by the project’s removal and said that the university “lobbied heavily” against it. She said the new building was necessary to increase capacity to train nurses.

“It’s very short-sighted of them to not look at the big picture,” she said. “I think they’ve strayed away from the Wisconsin Idea to improve people’s lives outside of university.”

Robson said she is planning to try to re-insert the project in this budget.

But Underwood said waiting two years for the next budget cycle would allow the university to fully understand the size and scope of the building, as well as give them more time for fundraising. For instance, they would like more instructional space than the current plan allows.

“We were concerned about the process,” she said. “It had gone through the campus planning committee but it was slated for the next biennium. That means we hadn’t fully developed the materials.”

She said the university is “committed to getting a building built for nursing.”

The building would require the state to borrow $28 million. The rest would be paid through private funds and fees.

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