The ever-changing landscape of state government requires businesses across all industries to stay informed on the happenings in Madison. Welcome to the July issue of the Capitol Connection.
In this issue:
- Governor Tony Evers Signs 2025–2027 Wisconsin Biennial Budget into Law
- K-12 Education and Child Care
- UW System and Technical Colleges
- Tax Relief for Household Affordability
- Investments in Tourism Industry
- Healthcare and Public Health
- Transportation and Infrastructure Development
- Support for Veterans and Military Families
- Agriculture, Conservation, and Clean Water
- Public Safety, Justice, and Community Services
- A Budget for Bipartisan Compromise and Shared Governance
- Kathi Kilgore Joins Ruder Ware
Governor Tony Evers Signs 2025–2027 Wisconsin Biennial Budget into Law
In the early morning hours of July 3, 2025, Governor Tony Evers signed Wisconsin’s 2025–2027 biennial budget into law, less than one hour after the Wisconsin State Assembly delivered the final bill to his desk. The comprehensive $111 billion fiscal package reflects months of negotiation, legislative debate, and public input. Despite areas of disagreement, leaders from both political parties reached a bipartisan compromise that delivers meaningful investments in education, child care, infrastructure, healthcare, public safety, agriculture, veterans’ services, and tax relief for working families and retirees.
Governor Evers, who declared 2025 the “Year of the Kid,” emphasized that the biennial budget is centered on improving outcomes for children and families while also addressing economic development, community infrastructure, and long-term fiscal responsibility. Though the final package differs significantly from the governor’s original proposal, it received broad support in both chambers and includes a variety of shared priorities.
K-12 Education and Child Care
A major focus of the budget is public education and early childhood support. The plan delivers nearly $1.4 billion in new spendable revenue for K-12 schools, including the largest special education reimbursement rate increase in state history—rising to 42% in fiscal year 2025–26 and 45% in 2026–27. Additionally, $30 million is included to continue school-based mental health services statewide, building on the “Get Kids Ahead” initiative. More than $54 million is allocated to support high-cost special education needs, and $2 million is included to sustain the Department of Public Instruction’s operations.
The budget also secures more than $360 million to stabilize Wisconsin’s child care industry, including $110 million in direct payments to providers, $66 million for the new “Get Kids Ready” program for four-year-olds, and expanded funding for Wisconsin Shares and infant/toddler care. These provisions aim to reduce out-of-pocket child care costs, improve access, and retain workforce participation across the state.
The budget also delivers $28.5 million for a pilot program to help support expanding capacity across Wisconsin’s child care industry to ensure more families with infants and toddlers can access quality, affordable child care. The proposal will increase the reimbursement rate to providers caring for infants and toddlers across the state through the Wisconsin Shares program. Under the plan, providers would receive payments of $200 per month for every infant under 18 months and $100 per month for every toddler between 18 months and 30 months.
Additionally, new changes under the agreement will help expand access to child care for working families by allowing for ‘large family care centers’ that can serve up to 12 kids and standardize the minimum age for assistant child care teachers to 16 years of age while retaining all requirements for assistant teachers.
UW System and Technical Colleges
Higher education also receives a historic boost. The budget provides over $250 million for the UW System—the largest increase in nearly two decades—including $100 million to stabilize campuses after recent campus closures, layoffs, and program cuts and consolidations, $54 million to support faculty recruitment and retainment in high-demand fields of study, and $7 million in funding for student mental health services and early college access.
Technical colleges receive $13 million, including funds for general aid, materials support, and grants to prepare students for artificial intelligence-driven industries. Over $6 million is invested in the state’s growing Youth Apprenticeship Program, giving students the opportunity to earn while they learn and gain skills in high-demand fields.
Tax Relief for Household Affordability
The biennial budget delivers over $600 million annually in income tax reductions, targeting working- and middle-class Wisconsinites. Approximately 1.6 million taxpayers will benefit from an average tax cut of $180, and 82% of those impacted earn less than $200,000 annually. Retirees will benefit from new exclusions on retirement income—up to $24,000 per individual or $48,000 per married couple—expected to reduce taxes for over 280,000 filers. To ease energy costs, the budget eliminates the state sales tax on household energy bills, projected to save residents more than $178 million over two years.
Investments in Tourism Industry
Despite a turbulent budget process, Wisconsin lawmakers have advanced several notable investments for the state’s tourism sector in the 2025–27 biennial budget. These initiatives are aimed at bolstering marketing, supporting key offices, and enhancing cultural and economic development through tourism-related programs. The budget includes a $30 million infusion of one-time funds for tourism marketing, along with a $1 million increase to the program’s base funding—bringing the total allocation to approximately $44 million. This continued reliance on non-recurring funds highlights the need for long-term sustainability, yet the increase is a step toward strengthening Wisconsin’s national tourism presence.
The budget also maintains and refines support for several specialized offices within the Department of Tourism. Funding was provided for a staff position in the Office of Group Travel, which supports high-impact sectors such as conventions and international tourism—areas that contributed roughly $10 billion to the state’s economy in 2023. The Office of Outdoor Recreation, which showcases Wisconsin’s outdoor assets, will now have two permanent staff positions, though it represents a net reduction of one full-time position.
To promote the Wisconsin film industry, the budget creates a film tax credit and establishing a State Film Office in the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, which will allocate up to $5 million in film production and investment tax credits in each fiscal year. The measure would provide a 30% tax credit on in-state wages and expenditures for qualifying film, video, and broadcast productions. It also includes provisions for refundable credits and a sales tax exemption on qualifying purchases.
Healthcare and Public Health
Healthcare remains a central component of the budget, particularly for rural areas. Over $1.1 billion is allocated to maintain and expand BadgerCare coverage, increase Medicaid reimbursement rates for essential services, and support mental health and long-term care programs. Funding includes $7 million for crisis response through the 988 Lifeline, $2 million for caregiver training, and $3.8 million for Aging and Disability Resource Centers. The budget also provides new support for charitable clinics, opioid treatment, and maternal health services, reinforcing a broad-based approach to health access and affordability.
Transportation and Infrastructure Development
Transportation infrastructure receives $1.1 billion in new funding, including a 3% annual increase in General Transportation Aids, totaling more than $43 million over the biennium. It also includes a $333 million increase in the state highway rehabilitation program; $100 million for local road improvements and $150 million for the Agricultural Roads Improvement Program, with $30 million specifically targeted to bridges and culverts; and $244.5 million to keep interstate expansion projects like I-41 and I-39/90 on schedule.
Support for Veterans and Military Families
Building on recommendations from the Blue Ribbon Commission on Veteran Opportunity, the budget makes significant investments in veterans’ services including $5 million for veteran’s home operations and $35 million in facility improvements; $2.5 million for new grants addressing housing insecurity and comprehensive support services to veterans; and $5 million for memorials in populous counties to honor our nation’s heroes. These measures aim to reduce barriers to housing, health care, and economic opportunity for Wisconsin’s veteran population.
Agriculture, Conservation, and Clean Water
Wisconsin’s $116 billion agriculture sector receives robust support, including $10 million to continue the Food Security Initiative; increased funding for dairy and meat processor grants, mental health services, and conservation efforts; $1.6 million for the cover crop insurance program and $500,000 for producer-led watershed protection. Environmental stewardship is further supported by $731.6 million in bonding authority to secure federal clean water grants, and additional funds for arsenic cleanup, dam repair, flood control, and Great Lakes protection. Wisconsin’s conservation programs also receive new support to expand park access and update forestry management and wildfire prevention systems.
Public Safety, Justice, and Community Services
The budget includes comprehensive investments to strengthen community safety and justice system operations. There are more than $1.5 million and 13 new positions for the Office of School Safety; Over $20 million in crime victim service grants; and expanded resources for prosecutors and public defenders, including nearly $6 million for pay progression and 43 new assistant district attorney positions. Funding also supports correctional facility modernization, including planning to close the Green Bay Correctional Institution and construct a second youth facility in Dane County.
A Budget for Bipartisan Compromise and Shared Governance
Governor Evers utilized his constitutional partial veto authority to remove provisions he deemed not aligned with the bipartisan agreement. In remarks following the signing, he acknowledged that no party received everything they requested but emphasized that compromise was critical. “This budget proves that bipartisan cooperation remains possible and necessary to meet the needs of a diverse state,” said Evers. Legislative leaders echoed this sentiment, citing the budget as a product of extensive collaboration and negotiation.
State Rep. Mark Born, co-chair of the state budget committee, says everyone can claim wins when reflecting on the state budget deal negotiated and now signed by Gov. Tony Evers. “Certainly he’s going to point to the things he likes; we’re going to point to the things we like. That’s a compromise. And so are there things that would have been different if I got to build it personally on my own, or our caucus just got to build it on their own? Of course. But that’s the way the legislative process works, and that’s part of the compromise.”
Born said that includes an increase in funding for the Universities of Wisconsin, as Republicans once considered major cuts.
While future debates over state priorities will continue, the 2025–2027 biennial budget represents a significant effort to bridge political divides and address the most pressing needs of Wisconsin’s residents. The budget will guide state operations through June 30, 2027.
