Wisconsin, Illinois lawmakers renew request for 50% bump in presidential convention security funds

WASHINGTON – Federal lawmakers from Wisconsin and Illinois are renewing a request for additional security funds for the Republican and Democratic presidential nominating conventions this summer after a previous push for the funds stalled last year.

The bipartisan congressional delegations from the two states hosting the conventions sent a letter Thursday to the leaders of the House and Senate appropriations committees asking again for the additional $50 million in security grants that would be split between the two conventions. Those funds would be supplemental to the $100 million in federal money the conventions have historically shared.

Milwaukee will host the Republican National Convention from July 15-18. And the Democratic National Convention is scheduled for Aug. 19-22 in Chicago.

“Costs have risen sharply across all sectors in recent years, and security costs are no different,”  the lawmakers wrote in their letter, which was shared with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “As a result, it has become more difficult for host cities to absorb security costs in existing budgets and wait for federal reimbursement.”

Wisconsin’s delegation last April asked the government for the additional funds for both conventions, a request that came largely in response to rising costs. But that appeal went unaddressed as Congress struggled — and ultimately failed — to pass the 12 government funding bills in which the request would likely be included.

Members of both House delegations late last year attempted to tuck the funding into an amendment on the Commerce-Justice-Science spending bill. The amendment, however, was not included in the bill, and the measure ultimately failed to pass the House in a November vote, anyway.

Congress in December temporarily extended the deadlines for passing the various government funding bills to Jan. 19 for four of those measures and Feb. 2 for the remaining bills, including the Commerce-Justice-Science spending package. But disagreements among House Republicans could force lawmakers to again extend those dates.

The lawmakers in their letter Thursday asked the appropriations committees to include the $50 million in additional funding, as well as the base $100 million in security grants typically allocated to the two conventions, in the Commerce-Justice-Science bill they hope will eventually pass Congress. None of the funding has yet been approved.

Wisconsin Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson suggested lawmakers might end up putting the request in a standalone bill and passing it through unanimous consent — a procedure that allows lawmakers to bypass traditional processes and expedite a measure’s passage.

“This place is so dysfunctional, you have no idea how these things are going to play out,” Johnson told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “But that’s one option on the table.”

“I think most people have to realize that security costs are increasing for these conventions,” Johnson added. “In the scheme of things, it’s not even pocket change here for the federal budget. It’s spending that I think is necessary.”

If approved, the additional $25 million to both the RNC in Milwaukee and the DNC in Chicago would mean both conventions would receive a total of $75 million in federal grant money to help cover the security costs associated with hosting the events.

Since 2004, presidential nominating convention host cities have received $50 million in security grants. Wisconsin’s delegation last year noted that sum has never changed, including for inflationary adjustments, and called the additional funds for 2024 "vital" for ensuring safety.

In the Thursday letter, the lawmakers reiterated that concern and claimed both Milwaukee and Chicago anticipate spending all of that  $75 million “due to inflation, supply chain issues, increased public safety personnel and equipment needs. They also listed “higher insurance costs due to potential security threats” as another reason for the 50% increase in funds.

The convention in Milwaukee could include as many as 4,500 police officers from agencies outside of the city, though the exact number of law enforcement officers who plan to help protect the convention has not yet been finalized.

Every member of Wisconsin’s congressional delegation signed onto the letter.

Illinois Republican Reps. Darin LaHood, Mary Miller and Mike Bost were the only members of the Illinois delegation not to sign it. Their offices did not immediately respond to Journal Sentinel requests for comment by late Thursday afternoon.

Wisconsin Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, who led the delegations’ letter, said in a statement that she is "committed to ensuring that our law enforcement and first responders have the resources they need to keep Milwaukee safe" during the RNC.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Lawmakers renew request for more RNC, DNC security funds