Wisconsin Budget 2023-25
Wisconsin’s biennial budget negotiations are underway between Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Republican legislative leaders. Wisconsin Examiner reporters bring you the details, breaking down the numbers and examining the proposals for spending the state’s record-breaking surplus. Follow along as we report on the budget process, follow the money and examine what it means for state residents with political stories, graphics, and on-the-ground reporting both inside the Capitol and out in communities around the state.
DSPS Secretary defends budget requests at committee hearing
Republicans on Wisconsin’s powerful budget writing committee expressed doubt about a state agency’s handling of an ongoing professional licensing backlog and proposed budget solutions at a Thursday hearing. Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS) Secretary-designee Dan Hereth defended the agency’s budget staffing requests, saying they would be essential for upkeep of recent improvements in […]
Wages, staffing struggles dominate discussion of state prison system budget
Nearly one-third of the jobs at Wisconsin prisons are vacant, and some facilities have only half the number of employees on their roster that they are authorized, the head of the Department of Corrections (DOC) told state lawmakers Tuesday. In the lead-off hearing for the state’s 2023-25 budget before the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee, DOC […]
Lawmakers consider how Wisconsin’s mental health policies could improve
State agency representatives and mental health advocates testified Tuesday about how Wisconsin could improve when it comes to addressing mental health issues, asking lawmakers to consider supporting different policies and additional investments, including certain items proposed by Gov. Tony Evers for the upcoming biennial budget. Rep. Paul Tittl (R-Manitowoc), chair of the Assembly Mental Health […]
Republican lawmakers reject Evers’ capital budget proposal
Republican lawmakers rejected Gov. Tony Evers’ entire proposed $3.8 billion dollar capital budget during a Wisconsin State Building Commission (SBC) meeting Thursday. Evers’ proposal — one of the largest state government building plans in at least a decade — includes $1.8 billion for building projects within the University of Wisconsin System as well as investments […]
Poor People’s Campaign takes Medicaid expansion advocacy to the halls of the Capitol
As both chambers of the state Legislature held floor sessions Wednesday, scores of Wisconsin Poor People’s Campaign activists rallied on the first floor of the state Capitol rotunda to draw attention to one of their top priorities in the state budget: expanding Medicaid, known as BadgerCare in Wisconsin. Poor People’s Campaign activists say Medicaid expansion […]
JFC Democrats host budget roundtable discussion in Milwaukee
Understaffed child care centers, Milwaukee’s looming financial crisis and needed investments in public education and the UW system are a few of the issues about 40 Wisconsinites brought to Democrats on the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) Monday morning. Sens. LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee) and Kelda Roys (D-Madison) and Reps. Evan Goyke (D-Milwaukee) and Tip McGuire (D-Kenosha) […]
Joint Finance Committee announces budget listening sessions
Members of Wisconsin’s Joint Finance Committee will travel across the state throughout April to hear from residents about what they’d like to see included in the next two-year budget. Rep. Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam) and Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green), co-chairs of the powerful committee, announced details of four listening sessions in a statement yesterday. […]
Analysis examines potential impacts of Evers budget proposal, GOP alternatives
Gov. Tony Evers’ proposed 2023-25 state budget shifts more of the cost for building and repairing roads and other transportation projects to general taxes as growth is stalling in the state’s transportation fund, according to a new analysis. The Wisconsin Policy Forum’s budget analysis also highlights the governor’s proposed boosts to education funding, including for […]
Democrats highlight Evers’ free school meals budget proposal
Department of Public Instruction Superintendent Jill Underly and Democratic lawmakers renewed calls on Monday for Wisconsin to provide free school meals to all students, which they say would improve student wellbeing and academic outcomes, ease financial burdens for families and support Wisconsin’s local economies. Underly, state lawmakers and other stakeholders highlighted the proposal along with two […]
Proposed budget ties Medicaid expansion to better pay for health providers
The Evers administration is proposing to increase Medicaid reimbursement to hospitals and other health care providers in the 2023-25 budget — but only if Wisconsin accepts the federally subsidized expansion of Medicaid that Republican lawmakers have repeatedly rejected over the last decade. The administration plans to meet with hospital industry executives in the coming weeks […]
Budget committee co-chairs on potential compromise and Evers’ proposals
The Republican co-chairs of Wisconsin’s powerful Joint Finance Committee (JFC) discussed potential areas for compromise in the upcoming two-year budget, while casting doubt on several of Gov. Tony Evers’ budget proposals on Tuesday. Rep. Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam) and Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) will spend the next several months leading Wisconsin’s budget writing process. […]
What’s in the Evers budget tax proposals?
In pushing back last week on Gov. Tony Evers’ new 2023-25 budget proposal, Republican lawmakers claimed it raises taxes — but left out of their statements who would bear those increases. For the average Wisconsinite, “this is not a tax increase budget, it’s a tax cut budget,” said Department of Revenue (DOR) Secretary Peter Barca […]
Wisconsin Budget 2023-25
Wisconsin’s biennial budget negotiations are underway between Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Republican legislative leaders. Wisconsin Examiner reporters bring you the details, breaking down the numbers and examining the proposals for spending the state’s record-breaking surplus. Follow along as we report on the budget process, follow the money and examine what it means for state residents with political stories, graphics, and on-the-ground reporting both inside the Capitol and out in communities around the state.
PATH TO A BUDGET
Gov. Evers’ proposal
On Feb. 15, 2023, Gov. Tony Evers delivered his biennial budget address and released his plan for the state’s next two-year budget.
Budget skepticism
Evers’ proposed budget increases spending by 23%, cuts income taxes by 10% for four out of five Wisconsin taxpayers and includes a record increase for public education, $2.6 billion, which the governor touted as “the largest increase in K-12 schools and education in state history.” Transportation, broadband, child care, health care and PFAS cleanup are among the other priorities that receive increased funding in Evers’ budget.
Republican legislative leaders have been quick to express skepticism about Evers’ plan. While they said there were some areas where they anticipate a bipartisan deal can be made, the leaders of the Legislature’s powerful Joint Finance Committee have said they intend to start from scratch and build their own version of the budget, rather than working from Evers’ plan.
The Joint Finance Committee
The Joint Finance Committee will hear from agency heads and other experts throughout the spring and early summer. When the committee finishes its work, the Legislature will vote on a spending plan and send it to Evers for his signature or veto. The Wisconsin governor also has the power to partially veto legislation. In the last budget negotiation, Evers managed to increase spending on schools using his partial veto pen. The deadline for completing the new budget is July 1.
