Governor Tony Evers Official Portrait
The 2023-25 state budget has been signed into law, but not without some changes.
Governor Tony Evers used his veto pen to change 51 sections of the budget, including a section that now allows school districts to add $325 per student every year through 2425 instead of 2025.
One part that Republican legislators are not pleased with is the section on income taxes.
The original document cut $3.5 billion in income tax and made massive changes to the tax brackets.
However, Evers’ vetos cut income tax by $175 million and left the lower two tax brackets unchanged.
Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu was not pleased with this, noting “The Governor had a chance to sign the largest tax cut in Wisconsin’s history…Instead, he chose to keep more than $2.7 billion in Madison rather than in the pockets of hardworking families.”
The Oostburg Senator also pointed out that the changes “will raise taxes on individual income tax filers making more than $25,520 compared to the plan the legislature approved last week.”
Representative Terry Katsma, also of Oostburg also voiced his displeasure, saying “We put forward a responsible budget that returned taxpayer dollars to you, the taxpayer. Governor Evers thinks it is better to keep your money here in Madison so that he can pay for the items on his liberal wish list.”
However, it’s not just legislators that are upset.
Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) President & CEO Kurt Bauer released a statement, where he said the changes will “hurt the state’s competitiveness for attracting and retaining both employers and a talented workforce…. Reducing and flattening the state income tax would have brought us more in line with neighboring states – almost all of whom have a flat income tax of less than five percent.”
You can view the entire budget and all of the changes made on the Department of Administration website.
