Wisconsin shared revenue deal averts Milwaukee fiscal crisis, boosts school funding

MADISON, Wis. - Last-minute negotiations, well into the night, have led to a deal on shared revenue in Wisconsin that will help Milwaukee avert a fiscal crisis. Gov. Tony Evers and Republican leaders in the Wisconsin Legislature found common ground that will pump $1 billion into public schools, while also boosting funding for private school vouchers, a deal both sides said was historic.

"We have great public school and this bill today makes a historic investment…over $1 billion in new revenues for public schools all across the state. But, it also makes an historic investment in the schools that are an alternative for some of the parents who believe that the public school that their kids go to isn't providing the education that they need," Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said.

"This compromise ensures we make a historic investment in this budget for K-12 schools and education," Evers wrote, "while also working to improve literacy and reading outcomes and support school-based mental health services statewide." 

Republican legislators and Evers struck the deal that will spend $1 billion dollars more on public school, $50 million on reading programs, $30 million for mental health in schools, and also more money for special ed. The governor argued for this money and celebrated that win.

The deal will also give Republicans a win: $1,000 more for each kindergarten through 8th grade student getting a voucher – and nearly $3,000 for high school voucher students. The Wisconsin program allows state money to pay for the students to go to private schools.

"We will have transformational school choice expansions. We will have money for public schools. We will have more money for all of the local government services that we know are priorities," said Vos. "I am proud today to thank Governor Evers for the leadership that he is working with us to have the largest investment in public dollars in private school choice in the history of the state."

One of the greatest sticking points on the shared revenue bill was: who should approve a sales tax for Milwaukee and an increased tax for Milwaukee County. Mayor Cavalier Johnson said without that extra money, the city would face a fiscal cliff in 2025, and be forced to make devastating cuts. 

SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News

Assembly Republicans earlier wanted the city and county voters to vote on a referendum; city and county leaders said instead, they wanted to be able to approve it. Now, this deal will require a ⅔ vote of the Common Council to add a city sales tax of 2%. Republicans estimate that will create $184 million a year. The deal will also allow a ⅔ vote of the Milwaukee County Board to add 0.4% to the county sales tax, which Republicans say would bring the county $76 million a year. 

"I think there is some heartburn in our caucus about getting rid of the referendum, but I think at the end of the day, when you balance the entire deal with the historic investment in school choice, making sure that we don't have any kind of DEI [diversity, equity, inclusion] being funded around the state, I think there are enough conservative wins, that while I would have preferred the referendum to be in there, I think it's a reasonable tradeoff and I think we'll end up getting the votes," Vos said.

"One of the most important priorities in my conversations with Republican leaders has been not only investing in communities of every size statewide, but also the importance of ensuring the city of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County do not face an imminent fiscal cliff—something that would have devastating consequences for communities in every corner of our state and our state economy as a whole," Evers wrote in a statement.

That money will be used to fund the ballooning pension obligation and public safety. It would ban things like using the money for the streetcar – and it would require Milwaukee Public Schools hire 25 school resource officers, putting police officers back in the Milwaukee school district for the first time in years. 

FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX6 News app for iOS or Android

The deal will also boost shared revenue to every community. Communities smaller than 110,000 people would see at least a 20% boost in shared revenue. That is up from when negotiations started. It must be spent on police, fire, EMS, public works, and transportation.

Official statements

Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu

"Today Legislative Republicans are proud to announce a package of bills that will provide historic investment into local governments and the Wisconsin School Choice program. When these bills become law, every local government and school in the state will see a significant increase in available resources. Wisconsinites will benefit from better roads, increased school funding and enhanced public safety – including required investments from local governments in police, fire and EMS."

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos

"Republicans won the argument, and the bill guarantees that new state revenue may only be used for police, fire, and EMS services and for the thousands of parents in the School Choice program who are worried about the ability of their child to continue receiving a fair education, we’re proud to say the program will grow, thrive and prosper."

"There are strict prohibitions on the use of funds for the Milwaukee sales tax funds, guaranteeing that they cannot spend on frivolous things such as street cars and woke diversity and equity initiatives. Instead, they will be required to use the money to defray the costs of their failing pension system and increase the number of police officers on the street keeping their community safe."

Gov. Tony Evers (D-Wisconsin)

"For too long, our communities have been asked to do more with less, and this agreement is critical to ensure our local partners have the resources they need to meet basic and unique needs alike. After working through much of last night, I have reached a tentative agreement with both Majority Leader LeMahieu and Speaker Vos on major provisions of a compromise on shared revenue that will mean historic increases in support for our local communities across Wisconsin. This compromise will be transformative for our communities and our state, and coming to an agreement in principle on major parts of this proposal is a significant milestone in my negotiations with Republican leaders over the past few months."

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson

"I appreciate all the hard work that has gone into this legislation.  As we approach the finish line, our top objective is within sight.  We have a proposed remedy to the fiscal challenges Milwaukee faces.

"There are aspects to this legislation that I strongly object to.  However, through the give-and-take, no party to these negotiations is completely satisfied with final product.

"The Governor has played an essential role in bringing the legislation to this point, and legislative leaders deserve significant credit.

"To be clear, there are steps ahead before the city’s top concerns are fully resolved.  I will work with the members of the Milwaukee Common Council to address their questions and encourage their approval.

"Ultimately, I look forward to signing the appropriate city ordinance to move this forward so that Milwaukee can improve public safety services, fire department response times, and innovative library services for all our residents."

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley

"There is too much at stake for Milwaukee County’s future, and the future of our entire state, to keep kicking this can down the road. The time is now to address local revenues and give communities across Wisconsin the resources they need to keep their constituents healthy and safe.

"Milwaukee County has unique financial challenges that other communities across the state don’t have in terms of scale, cost, or impact across the state. I am grateful for the Governor and leadership in both the Senate and Assembly for learning about our challenges, understanding the devastating impact that would have our residents, and working diligently with Milwaukee County to identify tools to address them.

"When you work on a bill as historic and far-reaching as this one not everyone will get everything on their wish list. Nevertheless, this deal helps our organization avoid the single biggest threat to achieving its goals and sets our region up for long-term success.

"Anyone who wants to see Milwaukee County avoid the reported service cuts or staff reductions and continue its journey to achieve race and health equity should support this deal."

Senate Democratic Leader Agard (D-Madison) and Assembly Democratic Leader Neubauer (D-Racine) 

"Our local communities have been starved of shared revenue funding for years, impacting their ability to provide essential local services to their residents. We appreciate that our Republican colleagues have finally recognized the importance of this issue after their years of inaction.

"Every community in Wisconsin is impacted differently by this proposal. For some, this is progress, for others, it doesn’t cut the mustard. What we know for sure is that our work is not complete — we must continue to pursue legislation that empowers local governments and creates communities where people want to grow, live, and work."