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Republican and Democratic leadership in the Wisconsin Legislature are eyeing a $4 billion budget surplus and what to do with that money, while also weighing how the state will interact with President-elect Donald Trump’s administration, pursuing policy priorities, and looking ahead to the 2026 election.
Associated Press
December 19, 2024
Mosaics of figures representing “Legislation” and “Government” are seen on the inside of the Wisconsin State Capitol rotunda on Oct. 11, 2017, in Madison. What to do with a $4 billion surplus will drive debate over the state’s 2025-27 budget process. (Credit: PBS Wisconsin)
By Scott Bauer and Todd Richmond, AP
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — When the Wisconsin Legislature returns to work in January, Republicans will still be in charge but will have the narrowest majorities since taking control in 2011. That’s giving Democrats, including Gov. Tony Evers, optimism that both sides will be able to work together better than they have since Evers took office in 2019.
Both sides are eyeing the state’s massive budget surplus, which sits at more than $4 billion. What to do with that money will drive debate over the next two-year budget, which will be written in 2025, while questions hang in the air about whether Evers plans to run for a third term in 2026 and how the state will interact with President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.
Here is a look at some of the biggest pending issues.
Democrats gained seats in the November election because of redrawn maps ordered by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. The Republican majority now sits at 54-45 in the Assembly and 18-15 in the Senate. Democrats have 10 more seats in the Assembly than last session and four more in the Senate and are hopeful about gaining the majority after the 2026 election.
“We have already seen a shift in the Capitol due to the new maps,” Assembly Democratic Minority Leader Great Neubauer told The Associated Press.
She and other Democrats predict it will lead to more pressure from rank-and-file Republicans in competitive districts to move to the middle and compromise with Democrats.
“Everybody understands, at least at this point, that we need to work together, pull together,” Republican Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu told the AP. “And it’s important to get some things done.”
Democrats say they have been talking with Evers and Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul about how Wisconsin can push back against the Trump administration’s plans for mass deportations. But Democrats say they are also looking at other ways the state can fight Trump’s policies on issues like abortion and LGBTQ+ rights.
“We’re worried about a lot of the things that former and future President Trump might do, especially when it comes to deportation and immigration,” Senate Democratic Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein said.
Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he would support Trump’s efforts to deport people who are in the country illegally and commit crimes.
Republicans passed a $3.5 billion tax cut that Evers gutted to just $175 million with his veto in the 2023-25 budget. With another large surplus, Republicans say they want to try again.
“People struggling to pay their bills,” LeMahieu said. “We heard that in our local races. And so we want to help help help families out there. We have the money to do it. And that’s going to be our number one priority.”
Both he and Vos said they would like a tax cut of around $2 billion.
Democrats say that they aren’t opposed to cutting taxes, but that they want it to be targeted to helping the middle and lower classes and families.
“We are not interested in tax cuts that primarily benefit rich Wisconsinites or corporations,” Neubauer said. “But we are certainly open to tax cuts that help those who are struggling to make ends meet.”
The state superintendent of schools, Jill Underly, proposed spending more than $4 billion on K-12 schools in her budget proposal, which is subject to legislative approval. That’s almost certainly not going to happen, both Republicans and Democrats said.
“We’re not going to spend $4 billion on education, I can guarantee you that right now,” LeMahieu said.
While Democrats say they are prioritizing education funding, “I don’t think we’re going to be able to match that,” Hesselbein said of the $4 billion request.
Leaders of the cash-strapped Universities of Wisconsin have asked for $855 million in additional funding in the 2025-27 budget, nearly an 11% increase. System President Jay Rothman says schools need the money to stave off tuition increases, cover raises, subsidize tuition, and keep two-year branch campuses open in the face of declining enrollment and flat state aid.
Evers has promised to include the request in his budget, but Republican leaders said they would not approve that much, and Democrats also said it was a goal that was unlikely to be met.
LeMahieu and Vos both said UW would not get what it wants.
“We’re going to need to see some substantial change in how they’re doing their programing,” LeMahieu said. “We can’t just keep spending more and more on a system that’s educating less and less people.”
Vos said he intends to create a state-level task force to improve government efficiency, similar to what Trump created at the national level dubbed DOGE. He also supports passing a bill that will allow for the processing of absentee ballots the day before Election Day, a measure that’s had bipartisan support in the past but failed to pass.
Democrats say they will continue to push for ways to expand and reduce costs for child care, health care for new mothers and prescription drugs. Both Republicans and Democrats say they want to do more to create affordable housing. The future of the state’s land stewardship program also hangs in in the balance after the state Supreme Court said Republicans were illegally blocking funding of projects.
Democrats also say they hope to revive efforts to legalize medical marijuana, an effort that was backed by some Republicans but failed to pass in the previous session.
LeMahieu predicted the slimmer Republican majorities will make it more difficult for any marijuana bill to pass because some lawmakers “are dead set against it.”
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Chancellor Michael Alexander on the finances of UW-Green Bay
Tyler Wenzlaff on the politics of extending the Farm Bill
Sen. Dianne Hesselbein on Wisconsin politics going into 2025
Rep. Greta Neubauer on Wisconsin politics going into 2025
US Rep. Mark Pocan on Medicare versus Medicare Advantage
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