MADISON – The Democratic governor and Republican leaders of the state Legislature have talked dozens of times over the last four months to negotiate a spending package that sends nearly $2 billion of the state’s budget surplus to schools and Wisconsin taxpayers.
It’s the type of deal that has often eluded the three state leaders for many of the eight years Gov. Tony Evers has occupied the East Wing and Republicans have controlled which legislation is sent to his desk.
It gives Democrats a win in sending more funding to schools and gives Republicans the property and income tax reductions they have been seeking. And it comes at a time when the average Wisconsin resident is being squeezed by inflation and higher gas prices.
Even so, many on the November ballot hate it. Why?
In a word: politics.
While it’s not the only reason there is broad opposition to the deal brokered by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Republican legislative leaders Robin Vos and Devin LeMahieu, looming over the disagreements over the nuts and bolts of the proposal is a midterm election in November where the political balance of almost every inch of the Capitol is up for grabs.
Political observers say Democrats likely don’t want to give Republican lawmakers something to campaign on when control of at least one house of the Legislature is within striking distance. And Republican candidate for governor Tom Tiffany could make a better case for being the steward of property tax relief without the spending package in place.
Beyond being unhappy with the agreement not going further toward their respective policy priorities, both sides likely want to keep the money in place to be able to spend in case they take control after November’s midterm elections, the observers say.
“Do legislative Democrats want to let Vos try to build Republicans a campaign lifeboat using this stolen money six months before they could be flushed from power by the voters? I can’t see why they would,” longtime Democratic operative Scot Ross told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about the politics behind some of the feedback.
The deal delivers hundreds of millions of dollars to schools, lowers property taxes, eliminates taxes for tips and overtime and sends checks to each income tax filer.
To Tiffany, the tax rebates are a “temporary gimmick” that amount to “chicken feed,” he said.
Conservative radio host Dan O’Donnell, in an interview with Tiffany that aired Monday, signaled one reason for GOP opposition is for the sake of Tiffany’s campaign messaging: “A lot of Republicans have been telling me today, hey, this maybe politically undercuts you, that the message should have been, OK, you want property tax relief, elect governor Tiffany,” he said to Tiffany.
Assembly Republicans who support the deal brokered by Vos, LeMahieu and Evers said the contents of the deal reflect compromise under divided government.
“If Tom Tiffany were governor, we would have a much different bill before us, right? We would have a much better bill that we would all like a lot more, that would be better for the state of Wisconsin, better for taxpayers. But the reality is he’s not, and we have to work with the governor who’s here, because folks need help now,” Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, said in response to Tiffany’s criticism.
“These things are hitting our pocketbooks at home right now, and so we can’t wait for reinforcements. We can’t wait for a new governor. The surplus is here. The governor we have is here. We negotiated with him to help the taxpayers now. That’s what this bill does.”
Most Democrats running for governor signal opposition to the deal
In all, six Democratic candidates for governor, the Democratic minority leaders in the state Senate and Assembly, and the Republican candidate for governor all oppose the deal to varying degrees.
Both state Rep. Francesca Hong and Tiffany, the two candidates leading each major party’s respective primaries in recent polling, blasted the agreement as a “backroom deal.” Former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes said the agreement “does not fix the broken system that’s failing Wisconsin” but credited Evers for trying.
Sara Rodriguez, Evers’ current lieutenant governor who is running to replace him, offered tepid support.
Just one candidate for governor outright backs it.
“Compromise is hard, but it is what governing is all about,” former Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. CEO and Secretary Missy Hughes said in an interview about her support. “The challenge we have with the political reaction is it’s this knee-jerk, immediate, reflexive no, and the people of Wisconsin are so tired of that.”
“Governing can’t stop for politics,” she said. “We don’t know what’s going to happen in the next election, and we have to keep governing.”
Democrats in the Legislature have hinged their criticism on the fact that Evers, Vos and LeMahieu are all retiring at the end of the year.
“From my perspective, there is no deal: Three men who will not be in elected office next year have come up with this proposal which Senate Dems will be reviewing,” Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein said.
A duck print tie ‘in honor of three lame ducks’
Rep. Tip McGuire, D-Kenosha, wore a tie with ducks printed on it, “in honor of the three lame ducks that brought us here today,” when the Legislature’s finance committee met Tuesday afternoon.
Democrats on the committee, which approved the bill 12-4 Tuesday afternoon, praised the additional special education funding but criticized other elements.
McGuire focused on the tax rebate provision. Under the bill, individual income taxpayers would receive up to $300 or the equivalent of their tax liability (whichever is lower); that figure is $600 for married joint filers. McGuire argued the provision doesn’t do enough for the state’s most vulnerable.
“More funding for our schools is a win for Wisconsin, and when there is a win, we should celebrate a win. But a one-year tax break is not a long-term fix,” said Rep. Deb Andraca, D-Whitefish Bay. “This deal squanders our surplus without actually meeting our needs for the long-term.”
Sen. Kelda Roys, a Madison Democrat on the Joint Finance Committee who is running for governor and was the first to speak against the deal, invoked Republicans’ criticisms of the bill during the Tuesday hearing, including quoting Tiffany.
“I find myself shocked to be agreeing with Republican Tom Tiffany, shocked to be agreeing with Republican (state Sen.) Steve Nass, that this is a deal that does not help us fix the significant long-term structural problems we have,” Roys said. “If this is such a good bill and such a good idea, why are we treating it like a fish that is quickly rotting, that needs to be just pushed through the system?”
Democrats raise warning about a potential ‘Trump recession’
Democrats also raised concerns about external factors like the Iran war or other federal policies on the state’s economic forecast.
“We could be heading into a Trump recession in the next couple of months. Economic indicators are very worrying, and when you actually talk to human beings, you find that they are really nervous about their economic security,” Roys said.
Born said he’s “very comfortable” with the state’s financial position going forward with this proposal. Both he and an Evers spokeswoman this week have noted the deal does not spend down the entire projected surplus, and it does not tap into the state’s rainy day fund of more than $2 billion.
In response to Democrats’ arguments against the package, Born said Democrats seemed to be “having a hard time” criticizing the contents of the bill.
“You listen to the rhetoric, it’s been very little on what’s in the bill, in the big, beautiful, bipartisan agreement. But instead it’s been, ‘Oh, Trump, Trump’s economy. Trump’s doing this. Not talking about … the bill before us. It’s Trump, Trump, Trump,” Born said.
Ross said legislative Democrats “are asking themselves: What do half-measures avail us? I think the record shows again and again, the answer is nothing.”
Meanwhile, Evers toured the state on Tuesday promoting the deal. In a statement, he urged “Republicans and Democrats to work together and get this bipartisan plan across the finish line and do the right thing for the people of our state.”
“We spent months working together to find common ground that will get funding to our kids and our schools, lower property taxes, and get direct support for working families who are facing rising costs on gas and groceries – and, today, we have a bipartisan deal to do all three. So, let’s get it done,” Evers said.
Molly Beck and Jessie Opoien can be reached at molly.beck@jrn.com and jessie.opoien@jrn.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Why election politics loom over Madison deal on tax relief, school funds
Reporting by Molly Beck and Jessie Opoien, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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