It's Budget Season!

March 4, 2025

Budget Address

In his budget address on February 18th, Governor Tony Evers proclaimed 2025 the “Year of the Kid” and unveiled a plan that prioritizes the well-being of Wisconsin's children and communities. As a member of the Joint Committee on Finance, I will be working with my colleagues across the aisle to create a state budget and advocate for many of Governor Evers’ budget proposals. Here are just a few that are of interest to constituents in the 23rd district:

K-12 Education

Parents should not have to choose between raising their taxes and having quality public schools. After more than a decade of under-funding and state investment lagging inflation, Governor Evers is proposing the largest investment in K-12 education in state history. More than $3 billion would bring special education reimbursement up to 60%, raise the per-pupil revenue limit, provide $300 million for in-school mental health services and $80 million for improving literacy outcomes.

UW and Technical Colleges

The budget also prioritizes higher education. $856 million would support the UW system statewide, including $128.9 million to help make college more affordable, $166 million for faculty wage increases, and $22 million for student mental health services. 

Child Care

Child care is so expensive that it costs more for a family to have an infant in child care than it does to send that child to the University of Wisconsin. To help more families afford care, Governor Evers proposes making the Child Care Counts program permanent. This $500 million investment would help reduce child care costs for families, support child care providers in hiring staff, and decrease waitlists at providers all across the state. 

Tax Cuts

The Governor is proposing holding down property taxes by investing $1.1 billion in local governments and direct property tax credits. Veterans, seniors, those with disabilities and others will benefit from new or expanded tax credits over the biennium, including increasing the personal exemption from $700 to $1200 and increasing the homestead tax credit eligibility. 

Public Safety

Earlier in January, Governor Evers announced the creation of a new Office of Violence Prevention. The office will support threat assessment training, evidence-based crime reduction strategies, school-based suicide prevention programs, and programs to help prevent domestic violence. Funding for this office is included in the state budget, along with common-sense gun safety measures such as background checks on every gun sale, extreme risk protection orders, and safe gun storage requirements.

Infrastructure

Lead laterals on the North Shore are not only dangerous to our health, but in places like Whitefish Bay the aging pipes are also causing dangerous (and expensive!) sinkholes. I personally spoke to Governor Evers about the need to help our municipalities invest in major infrastructure projects. The Governor is creating a $200 million fund for communities like Whitefish Bay that have urgent projects but do not qualify for Federal lead-lateral replacement funds.

North Shore Library!

I also asked the Governor to include funding for the North Shore Library project as part of the state budget, and I am thrilled that $4.1 million has been allocated to help the project meet its goals.

There is a lot in the 1,917-page budget bill, too much to list in our newsletter, which is why I will be holding in-person Budget Listening Sessions in the district! If there is a particular budget area of interest, you can also sign up for constituent office hours at RepAndraca.com.