Sen. Jeff Smith Calls Out GOP for Bait-and-Switch on State Budget

By UpNorthNews Staff

May 15, 2025

It’s a budget bait-and-switch.

State Sen. Jeff Smith (D-Eau Claire) is calling out majority Republicans for not being transparent about getting public input on the state’s next biennial budget.

The Joint Finance Committee recently finished holding four public hearings around Wisconsin, but Smith points out that nobody there could actually comment on what the final budget bill is likely to be since Republicans haven’t written it yet.

Smith says instead of talking about general concepts, Republicans should allow public input on the specifics of a bill once they write it.

That Republican bill, whenever it’s written, is what will likely be passed by the Senate and Assembly and sent to Gov. Tony Evers for his signature or some form of a veto.

Video created: 2025-05-03T20:01:44.049Z