It may have been a little tardy, but you will see the significant increases in funding for K-12 schools, the University of Wisconsin System, and child care costs after Governor Tony Evers and Wisconsin Legislature leaders reached a tentative bipartisan deal on a new state budget Tuesday morning.
The Governor’s office released the details on the agreement early Tuesday morning, highlighting nearly $1.4 billion in spendable revenue for K-12 schools with the largest increase to the special education reimbursement rate in state history, the biggest increase to the UW System in over two decades, and over $330 million to support Wisconsin’s child care industry.
When Evers announced his version of the budget earlier this year, he called it the “Year of the Kid,” and he touted the spending bill as a pro-kid budget. “I am grateful for the months of work that’s gone into getting us to this point today,” Evers said in his statement. “I want to thank Majority Leader LeMahieu, Speaker Vos, and Leader Hesselbein for being willing to come to the table so we could get a real and meaningful bipartisan budget done for Wisconsin. I look forward to signing a bipartisan budget that makes these critical investments in our kids, families, and communities across our state.”
Also, a part of the tentative agreement is $1.3 billion in income tax cuts that will help approximately 1.6 million people save an average of $180 annually. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos told the Associated Press that the budget delivered on their to priorities of tax relief and government accountability. At the same time, Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu praised its ability to cut taxes while strengthening the state’s child care and school systems.
The budget still needs to be finalized and approved by the Wisconsin Legislature before Evers officially signs it into law. This marks the first time since 2017 that the budget was not signed before July 1st. We will have reactions from State Rep. Joel Kitchens and State Senator Andre Jacque later this week.
