MADISON, Wis. — Gov. Tony Evers took to social media Thursday morning to voice his concerns with the shared revenue legislation Republicans want to pass.
Both parties agree the way Wisconsin gives money to communities to help pay for local services needs to be changed but have been at odds for years over the best way to accomplish that.
In a brief video posted to Twitter, the governor called for more resources with fewer restrictions on communities.
“[…] the state must step up more than what I’ve seen,” Gov. Evers said in the video. “It’s why I can’t support the Republican plan as is—and frankly, I’ll veto it in its entirety.”
The governor ultimately called for “a clean bill that talks about the money” in his message to followers posted just minutes before Assembly Republicans held a public hearing on their bill introduced two days ago.
Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos called the governor’s comments “disappointing” so close to the finish line.
"The most pressing issue here is the bankruptcy Milwaukee will face if this bill does not pass,” Vos said in a statement. “This is a disappointing move by Governor Evers. He should reconsider and work with us before the bill is brought to the floor of the Assembly.”
Leaders on the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Finance also expressed their disappointment before holding an executive session Thursday.
“Certainly, I think it would be a shame if the governor decided to veto a bill that made historic investments in our local governments, something that we know they need,” State Rep. Mark Born, R-Beaver Dam, said. “As we put together a really good package to make those types of investments, but there’s still work to be done, obviously, on the bill. We’re having a hearing today, so we’ll see how the process proceeds.”
State Rep. Tony Kurtz, R-Wonewoc, who has spearheaded the effort in the Assembly to overhaul the state’s shared revenue program, said significant effort has been put toward gathering feedback from local governments about the proposal, especially in Milwaukee.
“We want to make an attempt to, when we go take this to the Assembly floor, that we do get Democrats to vote for this bill,” Kurtz explained. "That is our goal.”
Thursday's pushback from the governor could now delay the reforms that some lawmakers hoped would be passed and signed into law ahead of the state budget.