Vos tells ‘UpFront’ he’s open to deal with Evers to use surplus for property tax relief

Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says he’s open to a compromise with Democratic Gov. Tony Evers to use some of the state’s projected surplus for property tax relief.

“That’s definitely one of the things we’re looking at,” Vos said on WISN 12’s “UpFront,” which is produced in partnership with WisPolitics-State Affairs. “I assume we’ll use a substantial part of that for additional relief, and I hope Gov. Evers agrees. I mean, he came out and said he was wanting, I think, $1.3 or $1.4 billion in property tax relief. It seems like a reasonable number to me. Maybe we could even get there.”

Vos, though, said Republicans will also continue to push to reverse Evers’ 400-year veto, which allows school districts to increase their per-pupil spending limit by $325 each year for the next 400 years.

“I want to work on that first because filling a bucket that has holes in it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me,” Vos said. “We’ve got to first plug the holes in the bucket. Then you begin to refill it, so I want to have those conversations before I make any kind of promise.”

As lawmakers continue to wrestle with how to regulate the boom in data centers across the state, Vos called them a “necessary evil.”

“I don’t think any of us predicted this massive boom in infrastructure that’s necessary for data centers,” Vos said. “Look, I think data centers are kind of a necessary evil. I don’t think they’re fantastic for Wisconsin, but I think they’re fantastic for society. So in my mind, I want to make sure we have the protections in place that guarantee that no one pays more because a data center is coming for lower electric rates, nobody has to worry that the land is going to be turned back into something else that it wasn’t promised to be. We’re going to have less water usage than promised, and most importantly, it’s going to be done in a way that’s friendly to the environment but not requiring renewables to be spread all across Wisconsin.”

Assembly Republicans passed their version of legislation last week with the support of two Democrats, and Evers has said he’ll likely veto the bill.

“Yeah, that’s still bipartisan,” Vos said. “I’m an optimist, right?”

On other legislation, Vos said he’s hopeful the bill that would legalize online sports betting through Wisconsin tribes receives a vote this session.

“We haven’t done a vote count, but I’m pretty optimistic that in the end people will look at the facts,” Vos told “UpFront.” “Look, let me start by saying this. I don’t think online gambling is good for anybody, right? If it were up to me, and I could wave a magic wand, we wouldn’t have it. But that’s not the reality of where we are in the world.”

“So if it were up to me, it would be banned everywhere,” he added. “But it’s not, and we can’t, so why would we not want to make Wisconsin at least competitive so some of the taxes come here, and the tribes have a right to offer the same product that people are already getting in Wisconsin, but probably nowhere as regulated.”

Vos also said it’s possible the Assembly would vote on bipartisan legislation that would extend Medicaid postpartum coverage to 12 months, as 48 other states have, but quickly reinforced his opposition.

“Sure, yeah,” Vos said when asked if he’s responsible for holding up the legislation. “I think it’s a bad move.”

As for his political future, Vos will announce in February whether he’ll seek reelection in November.

“I’m talking about that. I’m going on vacation and take some time with my family and talk that through,” Vos said. “I do go back-and-forth.”

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