Rep. Ryan Clancy, Rep. Francesca Hong, Rep. Darrin Madison, Rep. Christian Phelps Will Vote No
MADISON, Wis. – Today, the Wisconsin State Assembly will convene to consider the Wisconsin 2025-27 state budget proposal negotiated by Governor Tony Evers and Speaker Robin Vos and approved in a 12-4 party line vote by the Joint Finance Committee yesterday.
The Wisconsin Legislative Socialist Caucus (Rep. Ryan Clancy, Rep. Francesca Hong, Rep. Darrin Madison, Rep. Christian Phelps) released the following statement:
“Crafted without transparency and excluding both Assembly Democrats and the public, this budget represents a catastrophic failure of leadership that surrenders to Republican austerity and abandons the people of Wisconsin.
This budget offers no increase in new general aid to public schools for the first time since the Walker Administration and Act 10. It promises only minimal increases to special education funding – ‘up to’ targets that will likely fall short due to inflation and demand – while increasing funding to voucher and charter schools. If passed, this will cause school closures and another wave of statewide property tax referendums.
On healthcare, this proposal is equally disastrous. It fails to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, a commonsense move embraced by nearly every other state to bring in billions in federal dollars. Instead, supporters are rushing this vote to avoid delayed handouts to hospitals. The real crisis isn’t the delay, it’s the abandonment of Wisconsinites who rely on BadgerCare and other essential services. The austerity of this budget will only be compounded by federal uncertainty and the harmful cuts to our safety net promised by the Trump Administration.
The Wisconsin Legislative Socialist Caucus will vote against this budget. It is a betrayal of Wisconsin’s future, gutting the public systems families rely on while bending to Republican demands. Instead of investing in education, healthcare, and the working class, this budget protects tax breaks for the wealthy and continues the steady dismantling of our public institutions. We will not endorse a document that cements the privatization of our schools, denies care to the most vulnerable, and raises property taxes to make up for a state government unwilling to tax the wealthy and adequately fund public needs.
This is not a compromise, this is capitulation. The Legislature should reject this Republican budget outright. Governor Evers must use the full power of his office to fight for a budget that reflects Wisconsin’s values: equity, dignity and public investment. Not just dressed up Republican priorities.
The people of Wisconsin deserve better than this.”
