Madison, WI – Today, the Wisconsin State Senate convened for a special session to take up legislation drafted by Governor Evers and Republican leadership in the Senate and Assembly that would result in a $2.9 billion structural deficit by the end of the 2027-29 budget cycle.
“I support lowering property taxes. I support public schools. I absolutely think we need to provide more funding in general school aids and special education reimbursements to start providing some property tax relief, but relying on a projected surplus based on an economic growth rate we haven’t hit in years and creating a $3 billion deficit that Wisconsin will have to deal with down the line is not the way to do it,” said Senator Dassler-Alfheim.
“First of all, this is an aggressive projected surplus we’re talking about here. This is not money in the bank. We currently have $2 billion in the rainy day fund; by all means, let’s use that to cover one-time spending. Second of all, this does not solve any of the structural issues that are forcing public schools to repeatedly resort to referenda. This does not fix the funding formula, it does not provide a permanent increase in general school aids, it does not change special education reimbursement from sum certain to sum sufficient. These are all issues that we need to address to stabilize our public schools.
“We have to be thinking long term here. This bill would be a bandaid and an aspirin. I’m not creating a $3 billion dollar deficit without a plan to secure the revenue needed to pay for it. In the future, I look forward to lengthy, productive meetings between both parties to craft legislation to take to the Governor that thoughtfully addresses the concerns of our constituents,” concluded the Senator.
The bill saw bipartisan opposition on a 15-18 vote. Sen. Dassler-Alfheim, Senate Democrats, and three Senate Republicans voted against passage.
