[ad_1]
Madison, Wisconsin (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers met behind closed doors with the mayors of five of Wisconsin’s largest cities for about an hour on Wednesday.
What you need to know
- Gov. Tony Evers held closed-door meetings with the mayors of Wisconsin’s five largest cities for about an hour on Wednesday.
- The meeting comes at a time when Evers and Congress are considering drastic changes to how local governments, including cities, are funded.
- Cities, counties, towns, and villages say a record budget surplus of nearly $7 billion will give policy makers more money and the freedom to change the formulas used to determine how much local governments get from the state. want to give
- Mayors of Milwaukee, Madison, Racine, Green Bay and Kenosha all met with Evers personally
The meeting comes as Evers and Congress consider making significant changes to how local governments, including cities, are funded. Cities, counties, towns and villages are facing record budget surpluses approaching $7 billion, prompting policy makers to increase funding and changing the formulas used to determine how much local governments receive from the state. I hope that I will have the freedom to
The mayors of Milwaukee, Madison, Racine, Green Bay and Kenosha have all met privately with Evers. Mayors like Evers are all Democrats.
Racine Mayor Corey Mason said he was encouraged that no one at the conference was locked into a single plan, but instead everyone was united in the need to raise funds.
“We are all trying to achieve what is possible in the real world,” Mason said in a phone interview.
Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes Conway said in a statement that the talks were productive but did not give details.
Evers spokesperson Britt Coedabuck did not elaborate on what was discussed, only referring to a tweet issued by the governor’s office that indicated that the mayor had met with Evers in his office. According to the message, Evers and the mayor discussed “improving how we invest in and keep our communities safe so that we can meet basic and unique needs alike.”
Evers, who took office Tuesday, will present a two-year state budget to the Republican-controlled Congress next month. I’m here. This makes him an increase of $91 million. His plan includes his $10 million in funds specifically for police, fire and emergency services, with the funds distributed based on population.
Republican House Speaker Robin Voss and Senate Majority Leader Devin Lemmahue discussed an alternative approach to substituting 1% of state sales taxes for shared revenues. The idea is that more sales tax means more money for local governments.
Evers told the Associated Press last month that he was open to the idea of a sales tax but not committed to his own plans.
“All I know is that whatever the sales tax goes, there are resources available to give more money to local governments,” he said. “And that’s where I am.”
Rhodes-Conway said he appreciates Evers for raising its fundraising priority, stating that “all local governments, large and small, have the resources they need to keep their communities thriving. We asked the parties concerned to cooperate.”
Mason said it was encouraging that Republicans were discussing increased fundraising, but he had yet to meet with Republican leaders to discuss ideas.
Local governments have asked voters to approve tax increases more frequently in recent years as they claim state funding is not keeping up with demand for services. According to the nonpartisan Wisconsin Policy Forum, the Shared Revenue Program, created in 1911 to fund local government, has remained largely unchanged for nearly three decades despite overall increases in tax revenues.
County and local government revenue sharing was cut in 2004, 2010 and 2012 and has remained relatively flat since then. Nearly 30 years ago he was 12.5% of the state’s General Fund budget, according to the Office of Legislative and Finance, now he is less than 5%.
Mason denounced property tax limits imposed on local governments by state governments, which he said made it impossible for Racine to keep up with inflation.
[ad_2]
Source link