The Business Journal: Wis. legislators could introduce venture capital bill next week

Wisconsin legislators are planning to introduce a venture capital bill separate from the state budget proposal, perhaps as soon as next week, according to advocates who have been meeting with legislators. Gov. Scott Walker’s biennial budget proposal, introduced last month, recommended at least $25 million over two years for venture capital to support early-stage firms. Walker likely left the language purposefully vague to encourage the state Legislature to hammer out the details and potentially devote a larger amount of taxpayer funds to venture capital investments, said Steve Lyons, president of the Wisconsin Growth Capital Coalition, a trade association officially formed in January that is lobbying for increased funding for early-stage companies. Read the full Business Journal story here.