on on this budget bill. >> All right. Charles
Franklin, thanks very much. >> Thank you.
>> The issue of trying to hold down property taxes
while also being able to fund services pertains not
just to schools, but to things like fire
departments and EMS, like schools. Cities also pass
referendums, asking local voters permission to raise
property taxes to pay for basic services. Now, this
has become more common in recent years, as state
funding for local government continues to
fall behind the cost of inflation. In our ongoing
series looking at the biggest issues in the race
for governor "Here& Now", senior political reporter
Zac Schultz asked the candidates if they want to
see any changes to how the state shares revenue with
local government. >> In 2023. Governor Tony
Evers and legislative Republicans celebrated a
bipartisan compromise that boosted funding for local
governments by nearly 20%. But after more than a
decade of property tax freezes, local governments
around the state have still been forced to go to
referendums since then to ask the voters to raise
their own taxes to cover the increased costs of
basic services like police and fire protection. We
asked the candidates for governor if they want to
see changes to how the state shares revenue with
local governments. >> I served two terms as a
locally elected official. I think we need to make sure
that they are well funded. I think, especially on the
infrastructure side in regards to roads, because
that's oftentimes the biggest thing for local
units of government. We need to make sure that they
have good funding to be able to maintain their
infrastructure, especially roads and bridges.
>> As the county executive, 80% of our local tax levy
is going towards, you know, state mandated services.
These are services that, you know, most folks may
not actually utilize, but those most used amenities,
like our public parks, like our county zoo, like our
county transit system, these are non-mandated
services. And it really puts those particular
services that help to improve the quality of life
for individuals who live in or around or just play in
Milwaukee County. Those are always on the chopping
block. And so we actually need a better course of
action. We need a better relationship with the state
of Wisconsin for all local municipalities to be able
to fund the necessary programs and services that
their residents expect, but also rely on every day.
>> I think that the state needs to meet its
commitment to local governments and to our
public schools. You know, the promise was that the
state would cover two thirds of the cost. And we
have really very, very infrequently ever lived up
to that. Meanwhile, local property taxpayers are
asked to raise their own already too high property
taxes just to keep the lights on for our schools
and keep the snowplows on the road and police and
firefighters on the street. That's not fair. The state
is sitting on a multibillion dollar surplus
and has for years, and it's time that we reinvested
that money where taxpayers expect and deserve it to be
spent in our local communities.
>> When we have the number of referenda that are still
going on, when, you know, places like Whitewater and
Stevens Point have to go to, right, we have to go to
referendum in order to create positions for
firefighters. That system is still not working the
way it needs to work. And so, you know, I think that
no matter what we do, we need to ensure that the
relationship between local government and state
government is strong and that we're hearing what's
happening at the local level. And I think that we
have for many years, as state shared revenue was
frozen, I think we were not listening to local
government as their costs were increasing.
>> The state has been starving our local
municipalities and for over a decade now. And so it's
imperative that we have a more equitable shared
revenue formula to make sure that our local
municipalities have the resources they need. They
say when government is the government that's closest
to your door, is the government that's going to
pass policies that impact you quickest. So it's it's
it's for communities. It's necessary for our
communities to have municipalities that have
the resources to provide the services that people
need. >> We do need more
investment in local government. When I talk to
municipalities and cities all across the the state,
they are really struggling to be able to provide the
services that their constituents expect. Basic
services. We're talking about making sure that
their parks stay open, their public libraries stay
open, that there's a public pool that that kids can go
to in the summer. So we're going to have to look at
that formula of how we fund municipalities and cities
to make sure they can provide those services.
>> You know, local governments are really
struggling under the weight of a lack of funding. We
need to do better and make sure that local communities
have resources. My platform of building the economy is
really focused on looking at the main streets around
the state, saying, what do you need? What are your
priorities? Giving some resources so that then they
can start to generate momentum and be able to
have local economies that are providing good jobs,
health care and the services that Wisconsinites
need. >> There's long been a
funding flaw that has made it more difficult for
municipalities to be able to get the resources, or
even the money that goes to Madison, to come back at
the same rate. This has been an issue in Milwaukee.
That's why we've seen the raise in sales tax in the
city of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County. But that
didn't change the formula. The percentage is still the
same. So effectively, there's even more money
coming in. But at a time also when people are
feeling the pinch, you know, at the grocery store or
anytime they're at any checkout counter. Now we
have this increased sales tax, which is making it
even harder for people. But the reason that is the case
is because Madison has failed in the legislature,
has failed to actually implement a real solution
to make it easier for municipalities to get the
support they deserve. And we're going to be convening
a group of local elected officials of mayors very
soon to be able to have this conversation, have
this discussion in a real this discussion in a real