Wisconsin’s latest budget projections brought good news, with the state now projected to end the 2021-23 fiscal biennium with a $3.8 billion surplus. As we reported in January, Wisconsin ended its most recent fiscal year with a balance of $1.18 billion, its largest positive balance ever as calculated using Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). The […]
Governor and Legislative Leaders Differ Over State Surplus Plans
Date Wed, Feb. 2, 2022 - 4:17pm By Hamilton
State Budget Update: GAAP Balance; Withholding Tables; Lottery Credit
Date Thu, Jan. 13, 2022 - 11:23pm By Hamilton
State Records Large Positive GAAP Balance According to a press release from Gov. Tony Evers (D), Wisconsin’s General Fund recorded its largest positive balance ever, as calculated under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), at the end of the 2020-21 fiscal year. The state ended the most recent fiscal year with a balance of $1.18 billion. […]
President Biden Signs Infrastructure Bill Including Billions for Wisconsin
Date Thu, Nov. 18, 2021 - 5:54pm By Hamilton
On November 15, President Joe Biden (D) signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bill in early November by a vote of 228-206, with most Democratic members supporting the bill and most Republican members opposed. The Senate had passed the bill in August on a 69-30 […]
State Ends 2021 With Record Surplus; Withholding Tables Updated; Bond Ratings Upgraded
Date Fri, Oct. 22, 2021 - 8:42am By Hamilton
The Wisconsin Department of Administration (DOA) announced October 18 that the state ended its 2021 fiscal year with a balance of $2.58 billion, a record surplus and more than double the $1.17 billion balance Wisconsin had at the end of the previous fiscal year. Wisconsin’s fiscal year ends on June 30. The budget numbers released […]
Legislative Update: Senate Confirms Several Agency Heads; Democrats Propose Personal Property Tax Repeal
Date Thu, Oct. 7, 2021 - 9:38pm By Hamilton
Both houses of the Wisconsin Legislature met on September 28 to vote on a variety of matters. We covered the Assembly’s agenda here and the Senate’s agenda here. The Senate voted to confirm nearly 40 of Governor Tony Evers’ (D) appointments to various state agencies, boards, and commissions, including six agency heads: Joaquin Altoro, Executive […]
State Tax Collections $319 Million More Than Expected For 2020-21
Date Thu, Sep. 9, 2021 - 3:24pm By Hamilton
A new report shows the state of Wisconsin collected $319 million more in general fund taxes than previously expected for the 2020-21 fiscal year, which ended June 30. A memo released September 2 by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB), a nonpartisan government agency that serves the Wisconsin Legislature, summarizes preliminary tax data from the Department […]
Legislative Update: Special Session and Veto Override Attempt End Without Changes
Date Fri, Aug. 13, 2021 - 11:15am By Hamilton
On July 27, the Wisconsin Assembly met in extraordinary session to vote on a veto override of Assembly Bill 336. The bill would have ended Wisconsin’s participation in federal programs to provide or supplement unemployment benefits. It also would have prohibited the state from waiving the work search requirements for unemployment benefits for any reason […]
Governor Signs State Budget With 50 Partial Vetoes
Date Fri, Jul. 16, 2021 - 12:37pm By Hamilton
On Thursday, July 8, Governor Tony Evers (D) signed 2021 Act 58, the state budget for the 2021-2023 fiscal biennium, which began July 1. The Wisconsin Assembly approved the budget bill (Assembly Bill 68) on June 29, with the Senate concurring in the bill the following day. The two-year budget, assembled by the Republican-led Joint Finance […]
After State Budget, Governor Signs 15 Bills Into Law
Date Fri, Jul. 16, 2021 - 12:05pm By Hamilton
Since signing the 2021-2023 state budget into law on July 8, Governor Tony Evers (D) has signed 15 other bills, including the following notable acts: Assembly Bill (AB) 406: Requires the lowest schedule of unemployment insurance contribution rates to remain in effect through the end of calendar year 2023, regardless of the cash balance of […]
Governor Vetoes Personal Property Tax Repeal, “Mill Bill,” and Legislative HR Office
Date Fri, Jul. 16, 2021 - 11:50am By Hamilton
On July 8, the same day he signed the 2021-2023 state budget into law, Governor Tony Evers (D) vetoed four bills sent to him by the Legislature: Assembly Bill 191: Exempts all remaining business and manufacturing personal property from personal property tax assessments, effective January 1, 2022. Veto message Assembly Bill 367: Requires the governor […]