☀️ Good morning!

We like to joke about having more than four seasons in Wisconsin. There’s “fake spring,” followed by one more snowstorm. There’s early summer, followed by “Hell’s front porch.” And in autumn there’s “peak colors” followed by “winter preview” one day later!

While it appears our Legislature might be wrapping up the writing of a new state budget, it also has high potential to be a fake spring followed by a long, deep freeze.

Technically, the budget is supposed to be ready and go into effect July 1, but that’s not happening (again). The spending levels and program in the expiring budget will simply stay in effect until replaced with something that sets new priorities for taxes, programs, and fresh ideas. It might happen this coming week, or it could be the beginning of a protracted standoff… not just between Republican lawmakers and Gov. Tony Evers, but among Republicans themselves.

Stay up to date with our weekday newsletter, our social media posts, and our morning radio show, as we explain how your tax dollars are being allocated and whether what’s happening is in line with Wisconsin values.

⏮️ Last Week: UW Budget– Gov. Evers and hundreds of business leaders are calling for a significant funding increase for the Universities of Wisconsin System. Republicans, meanwhile, are talking about cutting UW funding, despite a $4 billion state surplus to punish what they claim is “political correctness.” The results weren’t even close.

🟩 95% of responses called for stronger state support, recognizing that the UW is a big part of our economy. Lucy J. wrote that Republicans have already had a negative impact on higher education that “will be felt for decades, across every aspect of our economy. It’s criminal to further defund the university when there’s a  substantial surplus!”

🟨 2% wanted neither a big hike nor a cut. Some responses emphasized that even a valued university system has room for reforms, consolidation, and updating its programs with the times.

🟫 3% wanted to see UW funding cut. From KC: “Make our university look within to operate more efficiently. Close underperforming campuses. Look at the high wages being paid to the chancellor and administrative personnel. Increase the cooperation amongst the university and tech school systems.”

⏭️ This Week: Did you think we were done hearing about Eric Hovde and Tim Michels? Guess again. Hovde, fresh off his loss to Sen. Tammy Baldwin, and Michels, who lost to Evers in 2018, are reportedly interested in possibly running for governor in 2026. Admittedly, the August 2026 Republican primary is a long way off but, at this point, who do you think will be the GOP nominee for governor next year?

🄰 Eric Hovde – He didn’t lose by much and is a familiar face to voters.

🄱 Tim Michels – He didn’t lose by much and could be a strong nominee.

🄲 Josh Schoemann – Washington County Executive and the only declared candidate right now.

🄳 Some other politician, like US Rep. Tom Tiffany or Assembly Speaker Robin Vos.

🄴 Some other rich business executive who’s never run for office.

To answer this week’s question or to suggest a different answer, hit reply or email me directly at pat@couriernewsroom.com, and we may share it in a future newsletter or on our radio show.

(Photo by Pat Kreitlow) 

It’s a case of déjà vu at the state Capitol, where Republican disarray is holding up a budget bill similar to what’s happening in the US Capitol—internal disagreement on making spending cuts that are severe but not so severe as to cost them their majorities in 2026.

The Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee, which Republicans stacked in their favor 12-4 so that it essentially writes the GOP budget bill, was supposed to meet Friday morning to hammer out final details in a budget bill that the state Senate and Assembly would then approve and send to the governor for a signature or vetoes. But the 10:00 a.m. start was delayed to 12:00 p.m., then 2:00 p.m., then 4:00 p.m., and the committee ultimately didn’t start meeting until after 10:00 p.m. 

The holdup appears to be among Senate Republicans. They have an 18-15 majority, leaving room for only one of them to vote no on the budget. But three Republicans have indicated they’re not yet on-board with whatever the rest of their caucus wants, so leadership either has to find ways to placate them or find ways to attract Democratic senators to vote for a GOP-written bill.

When Joint Finance did finally meet, the co-chairs announced that three big areas are still not ready to be addressed. Those department budgets include things like the UW System, childcare support, and Medicaid.  The committee released only $9 million of the $50 million that’s supposed to be allocated for new literacy programs. The Republican majority also cut positions in the governor’s office for clean energy and allocated only one-third of what was requested for programs that help crime victims.

It’s not clear when Joint Finance will meet again to tackle those final items so that the Assembly and Senate can finish work on a budget that was supposed to be done by June 30.

👉🏼 Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison) expresses her frustration over how Republicans don’t want to talk about how their attacks on public school funding have led to a record number of school district referendums that raise property taxes.

👉🏼 Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin) was asked if the US attack on Iran affects whether Congress should be passing a bill that has massive cuts to programs like Medicaid. Johnson said the potential war only makes him want to move faster to cut programs like Medicaid, as I discussed with Dan Shafer of The Recombobulation Area.

👉🏼 Dr. Kristin Lyerly and I discuss a column by former legislative candidate Emily Tseffos, in which she urges Gov. Evers to use the bully pulpit more to expose the harmful things Republicans are putting in the state budget—and to not shy away from vetoing the entire budget bill if it can’t be fixed with partial vetoes.

Catch our show weekdays from 6-9 a.m. on our Facebook and YouTube pages as well as stations across Wisconsin thanks to our friends at Civic Media. If you can’t listen live, listen on-demand as a podcast by subscribing on Spotify.

📱 And stay up to date all day with all of our team’s work through our social media feeds, including Instagram and TikTok.

1️⃣ – PFAS Contamination – In a 5-2 decision, the court upheld a “spills law” that gives authority to the Department of Natural Resources to address water contaminated by industrial chemicals known as PFAS. A major business group had wanted to significantly weaken the process of identifying and cleaning up spills and holding polluters accountable.

2️⃣ – Setback for Evers’ Vetoes – In a unanimous ruling, the justices said Gov. Tony Evers’ partial vetoes of a bill allocating funding for literacy programs aren’t legal because the bill he vetoed wasn’t actually allocating funding. A lower court had ruled that the $50 million may have first been contained in an earlier bill, but the follow-up bill set up the conditions to use the money, making it another part of the allocation process. 

Sidebar: I’m not a lawyer, but I am a former legislator and there’s a reason why I agreed with the lower court and the argument that Republicans are illegally monkeying with the budget system. Watch my explanation on this segment of our radio show. 

3️⃣ – Congressional Maps Upheld – Wisconsin continue to have gerrymandered congressional maps for at least one more electron cycle. Without comment, the justices refused to hear a challenge to the boundaries, which have been in place since Republicans made significant changes in 2011. As a result, while Wisconsin votes nearly 50-50 in almost every statewide election, Republicans will continue to have 75% of the state’s seats in the US House.

🏁 Thanks for reading today’s update.

Have a great week.

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