State Superintendent Jill Underly said in a statement about the response that Wisconsin schools need support, not threatened cuts to federal funding. Underly at a rally for 2025 Public Schools Week. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction is resisting the Trump administration’s threat that it certify that local school districts put an end to diversity, equity and inclusion programs or lose federal funding.

State Superintendent Jill Underly said in a statement about the response that Wisconsin schools need support, not threatened cuts to federal funding.

“We cannot stand by while the current administration threatens our schools with unnecessary and potentially unlawful mandates based on political beliefs,” Underly said. “Our responsibility is to ensure Wisconsin students receive the best education possible, and that means allowing schools to make local decisions based on what is best for their kids and their communities.”

The federal directive comes as a part of the Trump administration’s crack-down on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts across the country and in K-12 as well as higher education. 

Wisconsin joins several states, most led by Democrats, that are rejecting the demands from the federal government. 

In the letter sent to state agencies last week, the Department of Education told state education departments that they needed to certify their compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard — the landmark Supreme Court decision that found consideration of race in higher education admissions violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. 

Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor said in a statement that the request includes ensuring that schools aren’t “using DEI programs to discriminate against one group of Americans to favor another based on identity characteristics in clear violation of Title VI.” Trainor said the government has seen “too many schools flout or outright violate these obligations.” The federal agency gave state agencies 10 days to respond and warned that federal funding could be at risk if there was continued use of “illegal DEI.” 

In a response letter to the U.S. Department of Education, DPI said it has already provided the federal agency with compliance assurances required by federal law, including those related to nondiscrimination. It said that it was unclear why the federal agency is requesting another certification and noted that the agency itself had said that recent guidance “does not have the force and effect of law and does not bind the public or create new legal standards.” 

“At best, the [directive] appears to be redundant. At worst, the [directive] appears to be unauthorized, unlawful and unconstitutionally vague,” Wisconsin DPI General Counsel Benjamin Jones wrote in the letter. “We are deeply concerned that the [request] allows the federal bureaucracy to threaten the loss of crucial education funding in order to dictate local education agency policies and decisions on what is best for kids.” 

The state agency asked the federal agency to answer a series of questions before it complies with the request, including the specific purpose of the certification, whether the requested certification seeks to enforce any requirement beyond what is required by federal law and regulation and what legal authority the Education Department is using to make the request a condition of federal aid.

DPI said that while it waits for a response, it will not collect certifications from local education agencies and will not send the requested certification to the U.S. Department of Education.

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Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Ben Wikler said he is not running for a fourth term on Thursday. Wikler speaks at a climate rally outside of Sen. Ron Johnson's Madison office on June 8, 2021. (Henry Redman | Wisconsin Examiner)

Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Ben Wikler, who is credited for rebuilding the state party over the last six years, announced Thursday that he will not run for another term in the leadership position, saying it is time for him to “pass the torch” and find a new way to contribute to the “fight.”

The announcement comes a little over a week after a crucial Wisconsin Supreme Court election where the party’s preferred candidate, Justice-elect Susan Crawford, prevailed over Waukesha Judge Brad Schimel, who had the backing of Republicans and billionaire Elon Musk. 

Wikler said that the party is in “extraordinarily strong shape” with a liberal majority on the state Supreme Court for at least the next two years and Democrats in the position to potentially win a both houses of the Legislature and retain the governor’s office in 2026. 

“Now is the right time for me to take a breath, and to find new ways to advance the fight for a country that works for working people, and one that honors every person’s fundamental freedom and dignity,” Wikler wrote in a letter. “When my third term as chair ends this June, I will be passing the torch.” 

Wikler said he would be taking some time to “figure out what’s next” and to spend time with his family. 

The prospect of Wikler stepping down was broached earlier this year as he ran for Democratic National Committee chair. But he lost the race to Ken Martin, who was serving at the time as the Minnesota DFL Party chair. 

Wikler, who grew up in Wisconsin, moved back to the state in 2018 and started volunteering on campaigns. He was elected to be chair in 2019 in a moment where Democrats hadn’t had consistent success in the state for many years, but had just elected Gov. Tony Evers, putting a Democrat in the governor’s mansion for the first time in eight years.

Under his leadership, Democrats reelected Evers in 2022 by a bigger margin of votes than his first term, clawed back seats in the state Legislature under new legislative maps and flipped control of the state Supreme Court. 

In his letter, Wikler noted that the statewide races the Democrats have lost have been “agonizingly close.” This includes former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes’ loss by one percentage point to U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson in 2022 and former Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss in Wisconsin by less than 30,000 votes  to President Donald Trump last year.

Wikler also helped grow the state party’s fundraising efforts during his time at the helm, including raising more than $63 million during the 2024 election cycle — the most of any state party across the country. 

“This is a wrenching time for our country,” Wikler wrote in his announcement. “But in Wisconsin’s path over the last 15 years, we can see what we need to do to fight through it. It’s on all of us to find ways to contain the damage, look out for one another, and build the strength to end the destruction — and then rebuild. I’ll be looking for new ways to contribute to that vital work. As I do, I know the labor of building a great Democratic Party — the last line of defense of our battered but immeasurably valuable democracy — will continue. We will not let our country fall, and we will continue to write the story of Wisconsin’s resurrection as a bastion of progress.” 

Wisconsin Democrats acknowledged Wikler’s impact on the party after his announcement. 

Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein said in a statement that “nobody could have dreamed about the lasting, meaningful infrastructure he would go on to build at WisDems.” 

“Through innovation, grit, and a ton of hard work, he transformed our State Party into a national powerhouse – with the results to show for it,” Hesselbein said. 

During Wikler’s time in office, Wisconsin implemented new legislative maps that have given Democrats a chance to control the Senate and Assembly for the first time in 15 years. “While he won’t be at the helm in 2026 when we flip the Legislature, it will be because of Ben’s efforts that we are able to do so,” Hesselbein said.

New chair will be elected in June 

The next chair will be chosen at the state party’s convention in June in Wisconsin Dells and will lead the party through a number of crucial elections, including the 2026 gubernatorial election, another round of state legislative elections and another state Supreme Court race. Some Democrats are already throwing their hat into the ring or announcing that they’re considering a run. 

Devin Remiker, the former executive director of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, quickly announced his campaign for the top position, saying that “now isn’t the time to hit pause or rebuild, it’s time to fight tooth and nail.” Remiker said in a statement that he is grateful for Wikler’s leadership and that he has learned from him and hopes to build on his legacy. 

“I will be ready on Day One to double down on our successes and make needed changes,” Remiker said. “I have the experience working with local party leaders and grassroots activists to provide the partnership they desperately need on the frontlines of this fight.”  

Remiker, a Two Rivers native, has worked for the state party since 2018, including as executive director and currently as a senior advisor. He previously managed western Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Ron Kind’s reelection campaign in 2016.

Democratic strategist Joe Zepecki, a Milwaukee native, said in a statement that in conversations about the party’s future he has heard that “Democrats have got to do better when it comes to how we communicate our message.” 

“We need more effective communicators, period. I’ve given long, serious thought to how we do that and up our game,” Zepecki said. He said he will spend the next week speaking with party members and leaders “about that vision to see if they’re ready to shake things up.” 

Zepecki founded his own company, Zepecki Communications, in 2016, and has worked on three presidential campaigns as well as statewide campaigns for governor and U.S. Senate.

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Jennifer Williamson said she enjoyed the class sizes in Dodgeville. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

The effects of a second failed referendum at Dodgeville School District became immediately apparent this week with the district announcing that 13 staff members along with some programs, including electives and extracurriculars, are to be cut. The April referendum failed last week by 109 votes with 2010 people voting against and 1,901 for.

Ainsley Anderson, a social studies teacher at the middle school, and Ian Sullivan, a third grade teacher at the elementary school, said they heard concerns from voters about there not being an end date to the referendum. 

The school district’s request was for a $2.49 million recurring referendum, meaning it would allow a permanent increase to the amount the district can raise through property taxes annually. It was going to be used for operating costs, filling a gap between the district’s revenue and expenses. The annual cost of the request was more modest than the district’s nonrecurring request in November, which would have allowed an increase of $2.99 million annually for four years, but failed by 113 votes.

“People are scared right now with the economy and everything,” Sullivan said. “It’s a very interesting stock market, and… I mean, eggs are $8.”

The educators said they knew the cuts were a possibility if the referendum failed. 

“The administration and the school board have been very clear… it wasn’t a shock that this was going to happen,” Anderson said. 

“It’s difficult,” Sullivan said. “There’s a lot of emotion, even with it being communicated well to us.” 

“You never want to hear about your colleagues losing their job,” Anderson added. 

The pair of educators met Tuesday with about 10 Democratic lawmakers, including members of the Joint Finance Committee, and about 20 other community members, including parents and school board members, at a community center in Dodgeville. They discussed the situation and the potential for lawmakers to act in the state budget to ease the financial challenges the district and others across the state are facing.

Dodgeville’s situation is a familiar story in Wisconsin as school districts have been relying on property tax hikes that need to be approved by voters for everyday costs while state funding has not kept pace with inflation for the last decade and a half.

“We know that so many families have been forced to raise their own property taxes in order to support their public schools, and that’s a difficult choice,” Rep. Tip McGuire (D-Kenosha) said at the start of the event. 

Democratic lawmakers used the event as a moment to highlight Gov. Tony Evers’ plan for helping school districts escape this trap. His plan would tap the state’s $4 billion budget surplus to increase special education funding by reimbursing public schools for 60% of costs — almost double the current reimbursement rate of 32%, to increase per pupil funding and to invest in other programs, including free school meals and mental health programs. 

Rep. Deb Andraca (D-Whitefish Bay) emphasized that lawmakers wanted to hear about people’s specific stories as a way to help inform their work on the budget committee.

“We know how many referendums there are. We know that some succeed and some fail,” Andraca said. In April, voters approved 52 referendum requests for a total of $952 million in new money for Wisconsin school districts that is funded through property taxes. There were 37 failed referendum requests, including Dodgeville’s. “We want to know the impacts that it’s having with you and your families and your schools on the ground,” Andraca added, “because that’s what makes our work more meaningful.” 

At a table with McGuire, a couple of parents spoke about their concerns about the ways the district will change.

Jennifer Williamson said she has two children in the school district and they’ve appreciated the small class sizes of between 14 and 18 children. Those class sizes on average will grow by four to five students due to financial constraints.

Stephany Marten told the table that she and her husband debated over whether to send their child to the local school district or to a local private school. They decided on Dodgeville. She said she learned more about the district and what it had to offer, including smaller class sizes, reading specialists and opportunities for students that need additional support. 

“It’s accessible and it’s affordable to all families,” Marten said. “Our public school funding is being cut. What are we spending it on?”

McGuire, throughout the conversation, emphasized people should reach their Republican lawmakers. The Democrats brought their conversion about education funding to a school district and area of the state represented by Rep. Todd Novak (R-Dodgeville) and Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) — cochair of the powerful Joint Finance Committee.

Republicans hold the majority in the state Senate and Assembly and Marklein has served as cochair on the committee since 2021, meaning he plays a large part in shaping the budget bill that will eventually be sent to Evers if approved by the full Legislature. Marklein said at a recent public hearing on the budget that lawmakers haven’t discussed specifics on education funding in the budget, but will likely take into account what the public shares.

“Your state senator, Howard Marklein, has a tremendous amount of influence,” McGuire said. “So we have to continue to reach out to him.” He added that people should speak with their neighbors as well to encourage them to reach out to the lawmakers.

One person asked McGuire what is keeping Republicans from dedicating more funding to schools.

“I wish I knew,” McGuire said. “If I knew what levers to pull, I would’ve done it four years ago.”

The impacts of the failed referendum in Dodgeville could likely go beyond those announced by the school district administration, Anderson noted. Some staff will say, ”I can’t work with the district that has two failed referendums because of pay cuts, health care,”  he suggested, adding, “We’ve lost people to going elsewhere.”

The Dodgeville educators also participated in a conversation with Sen. LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee), Rep. Randy Udell (D-Fitchburg) and Rep. Andrew Hysell (D-Sun Prairie). 

Another educator at the table, Tom Butusov, formerly taught at the Dodgeville School District but left for a job at Mount Horeb Area School District — a community about a 20-minute drive away — about three years ago.

“When I got a job teaching in Dodgeville, I was very excited,” Butusov, who taught at the district for about three years, said. He grew up in the community and his mom also taught in the district. “But I learned pretty early on that because of just what the district can offer… I had to go elsewhere to best serve my family,” Butusov said. He said Mt. Horeb could pay more and it was close to a new house his family was purchasing. “It made sense, but I still love this community.” 

Butusov said the failed referendum is “heartbreaking.” He said he doesn’t blame the community because they’re being asked to pay for something they’ve already paid for and he isn’t mad at the district because he feels the state has put the district in the spot. 

“We have an entire district that’s falling through the crack and the state is doing nothing — nothing for us, and that’s what’s so frustrating is to see representatives that just aren’t doing anything,” Butusov said.

Anderson and Sullivan, who are also co-presidents of the Dodgeville teacher’s union, have children who go to the district as well. Anderson said she knows that even as budgets have shrunk, teachers are still working to provide a high quality education to students and are going to continue to work to do that even as some opportunities may be cut.

Sullivan said he and his wife have had discussions about whether they’ll leave the district. 

“We’re getting rid of field trips. We’re getting rid of after school clubs, opportunities at the high school and stuff. Do we want that for our kids?” Sullivan said. He added that the community is a big reason he was there and that it is “fighting to get more funding and give more opportunities not only to our own kids,” but to other students, especially those dealing with poverty and other challenges at home. 

Anderson said she would love to have a conversation with “Mr. Marklein and Mr. Novak about what they envision as the future of education in their districts.” She said she was feeling inspired to contact the local lawmakers and to encourage other members of the Dodgeville education association to do the same.

“Obviously, we’re doing everything that we can,” Anderson said. “What are they doing?” 

Sullivan said that he appreciated hearing specific budget plans from Democrats.

“I have not heard that from the other side. I would love that opportunity to hear it,” Sullivan said. “At the moment, I’m only hearing one side. The other is just saying no to everything, which I don’t think is OK.”

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Bascom Hall, University of Wisconsin-Madison. (Ron Cogswell | used by permission of the photographer)

Update: This story has been updated to include the number of students across campuses other than UW-Madison who have had their visas canceled and to include comment from Sen. Kelda Roys.

President Donald Trump’s administration canceled the visas of six current University of Wisconsin-Madison students and seven alumni who had employment extensions, the university announced. Universities of Wisconsin spokesperson Mark Pitsch said in an email that there have also been cancellations at other UW campuses and the system is working on gathering more information.

“We are aware of visa terminations other than those described at UW-Madison. Resources for students are available through our universities,” Pitsch wrote.

As of 4:50 p.m. Tuesday, Pitsch said that the UW knows of at least 14 other cancellations on other campuses. This brings the total to at least 27 students across the UW system. 

The cancellations come as the Trump administration has been cracking down on immigration, including the presence of international students in the country.

UW-Madison said in a press release Monday that it played no role in the cancellations. According to the release, UW learned from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) that the students’ records were terminated.

According to the Wisconsin State Journal, UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin told the Faculty Senate that it wasn’t contacted directly about the cancellations and only learned about them because staff has been reviewing federal databases every day to see whether students have been affected.

UW-Madison noted that a status termination generally means an affected person should depart the United States immediately. UW-Madison’s office responsible for providing services to international students has contacted the students and alumni whose visas were canceled to advise them about the potential consequences of the cancellations and provide information about legal resources if requested. 

UW-Madison also said that while it’s not uncommon to see terminations for many reasons, it and peer institutions have seen an elevated volume and frequency of terminations over the last week. 

On March 28, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that at least 300 visas for international students have been revoked. Rubio told reporters that every time he finds “one of these lunatics,” referring to students that have participated in protests, he takes away their visa.

The cancellations have taken place at other institutions in the Midwest including University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, Minnesota State University in Mankato as well as other institutions across the country, including at University of California institutions, Colorado State University and Arizona State University. In some cases, the cancellations have been tied to activism related to Palestine, while others have been tied to criminal infractions and in some cases, traffic violations. 

UW-Madison said the “precise rationale” for the termination of the visas is unclear, but that it doesn’t believe they were specific to participation in any “free speech events or political activity.” The university hasn’t responded to an inquiry for more information about the students. 

Some of the students targeted by the Trump administration have been outspoken activists against the war in Gaza. Mahmoud Khalil, a former student at Columbia University who helped lead pro-Palestinian protests on campus, was detained by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and is being held in a Louisiana detention facility with federal authorities claiming to have revoked his green card. Tufts doctoral student Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish citizen with an F-1 student visa, was detained by mask-wearing DHS agents as she was leaving her off-campus apartment in Massachusetts. She is also being held in Louisiana.

UW-Madison said it is not aware of federal law enforcement activity on campus as of Monday. 

“International students, faculty, and staff are important members of the UW–Madison community, and the university deeply values their presence,” the university said in the statement. 

Mnookin also told faculty that while she can’t force people to, she is hopeful faculty will use their discretion to offer accommodations to affected students to help them finish their courses and degrees.

UW-Madison also pointed students to resources included in an update from April 2.

In that update to its international community, UW-Madison said it understood that ICE’s detainments of students at other institutions were “highly unsettling — especially for you and our broader international community.” 

“You are a valued and integral part of campus life, not only for the perspectives you bring to our teaching, research, and engagement mission, but also for the many ways you enrich the university’s social and cultural life,” Vice Provost and Dean Frances Vavrus said in a statement earlier this month. “We continue to be deeply grateful for your presence at UW–Madison.”

State Sen. Kelda Roys (D-Madison), who represents the UW-Madison campus, called on people to push back against the actions of the federal government.

“All of us must stand up to the Republican regime’s lawless, unconstitutional and un-American actions to abduct, arrest, and kick out, and intimidate international students, legal permanent residents, and others, without due process of law,” Roys said. “This is unacceptable and we must unite in opposing it.”

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People from across southeast Wisconsin gathered in the Wisconsin State Fair Park Exposition Center Friday. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.)

People from across southeast Wisconsin gathered in the Wisconsin State Fair Park Exposition Center Friday to call on legislators to fund a range of priorities in the next state budget — from education to a new public safety building for Milwaukee to public transportation to child care.

The public hearing of the Joint Finance Committee was the second of four across the state this month. A hearing was also held in Kaukauna last week, and Republican and Democratic lawmakers on the committee agreed Friday morning that education funding was one of the top issues discussed. 

Committee co-chair Sen. Howard Marklein said at a press conference that funding for school districts and the fate of the Green Bay prison were two of the biggest issues discussed during the first hearing. He said lawmakers haven’t discussed any specifics yet when it comes to actions they may take on public school funding, adding that K-12 funding has historically been the No. 1 largest item in the budget and it’ll likely be that way in the future.

“We’re here to listen and input today may influence what we decide to do down the road,” Marklein said.

Co-chair Rep. Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam) added that the lawsuit over Gov. Tony Evers’ partial veto that extended increases in revenue limits — the cap on how much schools can bring in — for 400 years will play a role in the discussion. The case was heard by the Wisconsin Supreme Court last year, but a decision hasn’t been reached yet.

Lawmakers also have a $4 billion budget surplus that they will be considering as they write the budget in the coming months. 

During a separate press conference held by Democrats on the committee, Rep. Deb Andraca (D-Whitefish Bay) called attention to education funding, saying that lawmakers need to “stand up and fund education, particularly special education.” Andraca said lawmakers should adopt Gov. Tony Evers’ budget proposal, which would invest an additional $3 billion in K-12 education. 

“I’m looking forward to hearing more today from all the people at this public hearing about what their priorities are in the state budget. I certainly hope my Republican colleagues are listening and will follow our lead,” Andraca said. 

A focus on education at the hearings continued as members of the public started speaking on Friday.

School leaders and advocates emphasize dire situation

Three days before the town hall, voters approved 57 referendum requests and a total of $952 million in new funding through property tax hikes for Wisconsin school districts. This was an approval rate of about 58% of the nonrecurring operating referendum requests, 65% of requests for building costs and 20% of recurring requests, which contain increases across multiple years. 

While the successful results will help school districts meet costs in coming months, voters also denied over $640 million in requests from other districts, including for Kenosha Unified School District.

Kenosha school board member Todd Price said the failed referendum, which was a $115 million nonrecurring request for operational expenses, leaves the district of 18,500 students in 31 schools facing a $19 million fiscal deficit. 

“As we are frozen in what we can raise due to revenue caps, we needed to go to our local tax payers for approval of the money,” Price said. “Our aim was to keep our class sizes reasonable, vital programs intact like advanced placement programs… which are popular for students aiming to go to college, and we want to retain our staff.” 

KUSD Superintendent Jeff Weiss, who spoke alongside Price, told lawmakers that they have the power to “be a strong partner of public education.” He said the passage of Act 20, a 2023 law to change literacy education in the state is a recent example of lawmakers using that power. 

“I am asking you to do this in the area of finances,” Weiss said. “By raising the reimbursement for special education to 60%, KUSD will receive $13 million of spendable money. We are currently facing a $19 million budget shortfall. $13 million as well as raising the revenue limit… will go a very long way to helping prevent the district from having to seek an operational referendum in the coming year.”

Weiss emphasized that the resources needed to pursue a referendum are “immense.” He said the district held four town halls, 20 small meetings, and five interviews with TV and radio stations in a six-week period ahead of Election Day. 

“This is not how I want to spend our time in the school district,” Weiss said. “I would much rather be using that time to increase student learning and improve our educational program.”

Swallow School District Superintendent Jill Ries said that the small district in Waukesha County has a history of being fiscally responsible, a trait that has helped it weather the “storm” caused by the state’s funding formula.

“We can no longer weather the storm, and we are facing a multi-million-dollar deficit in the future. We have reached the fiscal cliff. We can choose to have barebones public education, but is that what we want our state to become?” Ries asked.

Ries also called on lawmakers to increase revenue limits and at a minimum increase the special education reimbursement to 60%. 

Zachary Geiger, a physics teacher at Greendale High School, also voiced his support for Evers’ budget request, telling lawmakers that teachers have been trying to accomplish more teaching and learning with fewer resources for the last decade and a half. He said this is catching up with the district, which has had to go to referendum and recently had to cut an engineering course for the first time in 12 years.

“Instead of supporting students in pursuit of their futures and responding to the needs of the industries in Wisconsin, this course was cut with many others to reduce costs in order to balance a budget dependent on insufficient funding from the state,” Geiger said. “Please fund public education.”

The tension between public schools’ financial challenges and the growing costs of the state’s school voucher programs was also on display at the hearing.

Glendale River Hills School Board President Carla Pennington-Cross called on lawmakers to stop using school boards as a “laundering service” by sending an increasing amount of taxpayer money to private schools that don’t have “equal accountability, equal transparency and equal legal obligation” to students. 

Pennington-Cross called on lawmakers to increase per pupil funding to keep up with inflation. 

“Your long-term failure to do so means that my district has lost more than $3 million in real spending power since 2009 under your revenue limits,” Pennington-Cross said. 

Pennington-Cross called attention to the significant increases that voucher schools received in the last budget cycle. She also spoke to the disparity between the rate that public schools are reimbursed for special education costs and the rate that private and charter voucher schools receive. 

“In the past year public schools were reimbursed for only 32% of special ed costs, while private schools received 90%. Why are students with disabilities worth less when they go to public schools? They should get the same financial support from the state regardless of their school choice,” Pennington-Cross said. “Your funding model causes people to blame kids with disabilities for budget shortfalls in public schools, reinforcing stigma and discrimination. It is unconscionable.” 

Choice advocates appreciative of last investments, seeking more 

Advocates for more state funding for the charter and private schools that participate in the state’s voucher programs were also out in full force. 

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks for the additional funding for school choice. Your decision has made an incredible difference for families like mine,” one parent of a student at Living Word Lutheran High School in Jackson said.

In the last state budget, lawmakers implemented the largest increase for the school voucher program in Wisconsin history. The change increased payments for schools at a minimum by 18% and at most by 44%. 

Many of the parents who testified for school vouchers wore matching bright green “Parent Power” t-shirts. A group of about 75 parents were organized to attend the listening session by the City Forward Collective, a Milwaukee-based organization that advocates for school choice. 

Executive director of City Forward Collective Colleston Morgan told the Wisconsin Examiner that the last budget was an example of state leaders moving past “partisan rancor” to take action, something he is hoping they’ll be able to do again.

“We saw the Legislature come together on a package that in our understanding benefited everybody — increases in the low revenue ceiling, lifting of the revenue limits and, yes, a significant increase for students in charter and private schools,” Morgan said. “Nobody got everything they needed… but everybody got something.” 

Morgan said that there were many participating charter and private schools that were “in existential crisis” during that cycle, and the historic increase to the program helped stabilize the situation. He said many schools have been able to increase staff pay. 

“There’s still more work to do, but we’re not today talking about schools on the precipice of closing like we were two years ago,” Morgan said. 

Morgan said his group wanted to attend to express thanks and encourage legislators to continue to work in a bipartisan way to get more accomplished, including raising the special education reimbursement rate, lifting the low revenue ceiling and putting additional funding into the voucher program. 

Milwaukee leaders on their goals for next budget

Local leaders who spoke at the hearing included Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson, who thanked lawmakers for their work last session to secure an increased sales tax in the city. He said the investments in the last budget show that “working together and investing in Milwaukee benefits all of us because a strong Milwaukee means a strong Wisconsin.”

Johnson called on lawmakers to invest in young people in the next state budget, including by increasing funding for Milwaukee’s Earn & Learn program, a summer employment program where youth can gain experience working with local businesses, nonprofits, community and faith-based organizations. He also called on lawmakers to support Evers’ proposal for investing in 4-year-old kindergarten and increasing state funding for special education and child care.

“It’s our responsibility to ensure that the youngest residents here and young families have the support they need to start off on the right foot as they enter school and the workforce,” Johnson said.

Sarah Kazell, an advocate with Wisconsin Early Childhood Action Needed (WECAN), is attending all the budget listening sessions.

“Child care is a public good and without public investment, it just dwindles and dies in the private market, which is what we are seeing,” Kazell said. “We cannot find teachers willing to do a really essential, really high-skilled, high-stress job for $14 an hour, which is the average pay in my field. I’m personally making $12.50 an hour to take care of eight children.”

Evers has requested the state place $480 million towards the Child Care Counts program, which gives facilities funds to help pay staff without raising costs for parents. However, the program, which has been funded with federal money, is quickly approaching the end of those funds. 

“We need at the minimum to make the investment that’s in the governor’s budget for child care, but that’s honestly just a starting point to be able to stabilize the field,” Kazell said. 

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said the “most important” investment for public safety would be to fund the removal and replacement of the Public Safety building. 

“We have steered clear of a fiscal cliff. We kept the Brewers in Milwaukee, we shared the burden of funding important services and investments with some of our region’s most urgent issues being addressed,” he said, listing accomplishments in the last budget cycle. Now, he added, it’s time to focus on the “generational impact that we can have in our community on public safety.” 

Crowley said that the removal and the replacement of the Milwaukee County Public Safety building, which was built in 1929, would cost $495 million. Milwaukee County has requested $250 million for the project from the state. According to the capital budget, due to the integrated nature of the county’s Courthouse Complex, the Historic Courthouse and Criminal Justice Facility will need to be renovated in addition to the new Public Safety building. 

Evers’ budget proposal included $25 million for the project — a tenth of their request.

“Many of you have seen this crumbling, unsafe and inefficient facility firsthand and that’s why, in order to improve outcomes for all, strong partnerships will be key in this endeavor,” Crowley said. 

Crowley said almost 80% of Milwaukee County’s property tax levy is dedicated to state-mandated services and the county has invested an additional $70 million in state-mandated public safety services over the last five years. 

“The cost continues to rise and outpace our revenues and challenges our ability to continue funding these critical services and make any additional investments in local priorities like transportation, mental health, [services for children ages] birth-to-3,” Crowley said. “That’s why a partnership with the state is essential.” 

Milwaukee County Sheriff Denita Ball expanded on the request to replace the deteriorating building that houses the jail.

Ball said the current set-up of the building, which places victims, family members, visitors and defendants together, has created tension and resulted in 852 security incidents that required a response from the sheriff’s office in 2024.

“It is not sustainable to continue working as we have, and it is not fair to those who come in contact with our justice system,” Ball said. “In order to address the significant safety concerns and preserve the comfortability of core operations, funding from the state of Wisconsin will be critical.”

Other public hearings will be held in Hayward and Wausau during the last week of April.

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Madison Hands Off protest on April 5, 2025. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Thousands of Wisconsinites joined rallies in Madison, Milwaukee and Green Bay Saturday, taking part in a national day of action with simultaneous events in more than 1,200 cities across all 50 states, according to the organizers of the “Hands Off!” The protests targeted President Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and the Trump administration’s deep cuts to federal funding for health care, science, the Social Security administration, education and other public goods. Indivisible, one of more than 150 participating civil rights, labor, LGBTQ and other groups, put out a statement saying the rallies were an effort “to let Trump and Musk know they can’t intimidate us into submission.”

In Madison, a massive crowd filled the lawns, sidewalks and streets on the State Street corner of the Wisconsin State Capitol, then marched the one-mile stretch to Library Mall on the University of Wisconsin campus. Organizers estimated more than 10,000 people participated.

Madison residents Jason and Aubrey, who declined to give their last names, said they were looking for a community with like-minded people. “We can be angry but it’s also fun to be out with people and it’s important to have joy in your life,” Aubrey said. She said she is concerned with rising income inequality and billionaires having control over social media and society.

“I’m scared for democracy and for the people I love who are going to be targeted by [Trump’s] immigration policies, his hatred of LGBTQ+ people. I felt kind of powerless and I think just being out here protesting, being in a really welcoming community — it’s what I can do right now,” Jason said. 

“Our next few years will be tough,” Charlene Bechen, a leader with the Oregon Wisconsin Area Progressives said. “MAGA leaders will launch attack after attack, perpetuate outrage after outrage, commit injustice after injustice with the goal of keeping us disoriented, demoralized and demobilized. We cannot allow that.” 

A ‘Forward’ band played several songs in the time leading up to the official start of the rally at noon. One of the band members — seen holding the megaphone — told rallygoers that they were there to “express our outrage at our current political situation.” 

“We’ve got some songs for you. You know what helps sometimes when you’re scared and you’re angry — dancing,” he said.  

Jim from Mazomanie said his chainsaw with “Hand Off” written on it was getting a little heavy, but it was fun to bring some smiles to faces. He said it represented “Elon Musk and his idiocy,” and said that Musk has “worn out his welcome in Wisconsin.”

“If we didn’t produce Tuesday,” Jim said, referring to the state Supreme Court election, in which liberal candidate Susan Crawford defeated Brad Schimel, whom Musk supported by pouring more than $25 million into the race, “[it] would be a whole different deal.” 

Luis Velasquez, an organizer for Voces de la Frontera, highlighted the attacks against immigrants by the Trump administration and the issue of local law enforcement being pushed to assist with deportation efforts by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Velasquez told the crowd that he is a DACA recipient whose parents brought him to the U.S. as a child from El Salvador, but that no pathway to citizenship exists for him. 

“I’m proud of being an immigrant myself and we know that there are plenty of good stories… stories that have been ignored and abandoned that have been systematically discarded,” Velasquez said. “Here in this space today, we can say that migration is beautiful, and that here is our home for the millions of immigrants who have been here in the U.S.” 

Milwaukee protest

In Milwaukee, organizers estimated 5,000 people gathered in front of the Federal Building as police blocked the road. Democratic U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore told the crowd “I feel like I’ve been born again,” and compared the protest to the civil rights marches of the 1960s.  “We fought for voting rights back then. We fought for health care rights then. We fought for the right for our elders to live in decency. We fought for educational opportunity. And guess what y’all, when we fought, we won. And that’s one of the things that… that’s the good news. Right now we’re fighting, and we are winning.”

The Trump administration, Moore told the crowd, is “actively trying to dismantle Medicaid.” Next week, as the Republicans move to push through their budget reconciliation bill with steep cuts to programs, they need to hear from the public, she said.  

Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director of the immigrant workers’ rights group Voces de la Frontera, told the crowd, “This administration has made it clear from the beginning that they are taking a page from the fascist playbook, and treating immigrants as the scapegoat for the economic hardship that they are causing. They are trying to desensitize us to their cruelty, and to the humanity of others.”

Neumann-Ortiz talked about recent ICE arrests inside the Milwaukee County Courthouse, and called on county leaders to make the courthouse a safe zone from ICE arrests. “People will be afraid to come to the courthouse if that is not a protected zone,” she said. “And we know that these local fights are our frontline battles.” This is “where we have the most power” she added, saying it is imperative to win local struggles.

Calling out Trump administration detentions of political activists and deportations without due process to a notorious prison in El Salvador, Neumann Ortiz said,  “I know you’re as clear as I am that this is not just what they are doing to immigrants. They are paving a path, because that’s what they want to do to us.”

Cesar Hernandez of Voces spoke in support of unions and attacked Trump’s claim that undocumented immigrants are a drain on the U.S. economy. “In 2022 alone, undocumented folks contributed $2.2 trillion to our economy, not to mention paying $96.7 billion (with a ‘B’) in federal, state, and local taxes.” 

Community activist Vaun Mayes told the crowd, “Right now food pantries for the poor and in need are losing funding in cities like this one right here, where food deserts are prominent.” Social Security and health care are being gutted “in front of our eyes,” he said. He denounced the erasure of Black history in schools and the rise of white supremacist ideology. “Fight back we will. Defend one another we shall,” Mayes declared. “… ‘cause we are the true patriots. And we seek a new day and a place for all Americans in this nation to thrive.”

Green Bay protest

In Green Bay an estimated 1,500 demonstrators gathered at Leicht Park with signs  protesting tariffs, the stock market crash, and Trump administration downsizing of federal agencies, threats to Medicaid and cuts to education.

"We remain confident Wisconsin schools and the DPI are in full compliance with the law," DPI Superintendent Jill Underly said in a statement. Underly at a rally in February. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction is reviewing a request by the Trump administration that state education agencies ensure they aren’t using diversity, equity and inclusion programs — or risk losing federal funding. 

According to WisPolitics, state Superintendent Jill Underly said the agency is looking at the U.S. Department of Education’s “justification and authority to request sign off from Wisconsin schools on the federal agency’s political beliefs.” 

“Now more than ever, Wisconsin’s students, educators and schools need support – not threats of federal funding cuts that are vital to their success,” Underly said in a statement. “As we stated in February, we remain confident Wisconsin schools and the DPI are in full compliance with the law and remain committed to providing the best education possible for our students.”

In a letter, the Department of Education said that state agencies need to certify their compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and the responsibilities outlined in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard — the landmark Supreme Court decision that said race-based programs in higher education violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and effectively ended consideration of race in admissions programs. 

“Federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right,” Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor said in a statement. “When state education commissioners accept federal funds, they agree to abide by federal antidiscrimination requirements. Unfortunately, we have seen too many schools flout or outright violate these obligations, including by using DEI programs to discriminate against one group of Americans to favor another based on identity characteristics in clear violation of Title VI.” 

The request comes as a part of President Donald Trump’s ongoing attack on DEI efforts across the country.

State agencies were given 10 days to collect certification from local education agencies and respond, according to the release. 

Underly, who was reelected to a second term this week, also urged state lawmakers Wednesday to invest in Wisconsin’s public schools amid the threat of funding cuts by the federal government.

“An unprecedented number of our school districts have been forced to turn to referenda, asking their communities to raise property taxes just to compensate for the state’s underfunding. On top of that, the Trump administration’s reckless cuts threaten the critical federal funding that Wisconsin schools depend on,” Underly said at a public hearing held by the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee in Kaukana. Underly was not invited for an agency briefing before the committee, so she traveled to deliver her message at the public hearing.

Her requests for state investment include increasing the state’s special education reimbursement for schools, funding universal free school meals and investing in mental health supports for students.

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The seven members of the Wisconsin Supreme Court hear oral arguments in 2023. (Henry Redman | Wisconsin Examiner)

The Wisconsin Supreme Court heard arguments Thursday in a case related to a statewide literacy program that considers Gov. Tony Evers’ partial veto power and lawmakers’ handling of emergency funds.

The case comes as the result of the last state budget and efforts by state lawmakers, Gov. Tony Evers and the Department of Public Instruction to overhaul literacy programs in Wisconsin. 

During the 2023-25 budget cycle, lawmakers placed $50 million aside in an emergency fund controlled by the Joint Finance Committee that was meant to go towards funding new literacy programs. Lawmakers also passed AB 321 — now 2023 Wisconsin Act 20 — to establish the policy portions of the initiative, which included creating a new office in the Department of Public Instruction and instructing the agency to hire literacy coaches and create a grant program. 

Lawmakers subsequently passed SB 971, now 2023 Wisconsin Act 100, to create a mechanism for DPI to spend the money when the funds were transferred. A partial veto by Gov. Tony Evers caused lawmakers to sue, saying it wasn’t an appropriations bill therefore not subject to a partial veto.  Evers argued that the law included an appropriation and further asserted that DPI has been urging lawmakers to release the funds, which will lapse back into the state’s $4 billion budget surplus if not used before June 30.

Before the Supreme Court heard the case, a Dane County judge had ruled Evers’ veto proper, but said there wasn’t a case for the release of the funds. Both parties appealed to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, but the Wisconsin Supreme Court agreed to take the appeal directly

Assistant Attorney General Charlotte Gibson, the Department of Justice lawyer for DPI and Evers, argued that lawmakers don’t have the power to withhold the money and the court should order the release of the money to DPI. 

The issues at hand, Gibson said, “reflect an interlocking strategy to control how the executive branch spends funds and to limit the governor’s partial veto power. It involves dissecting appropriations into multiple bills and crediting funds set aside for executive agency programs to [the Joint Finance Committee] to control their destination and use. Those efforts are illegal, and they misread the governor’s veto authority.” 

Gibson said that the intention of the law, and the money being placed in the emergency fund, was to give money to specific agencies for specific purposes. A brief notes that “over the past few decades, the Legislature has increasingly used that appropriation not for emergencies, but rather to fund anticipated expenses through a legislative committee that purports to retain veto power over how the executive branch spends appropriated money.” 

Gibson said that the purpose of the emergency fund statute was not to serve as “a holding pen for lots of money that the Legislature wanted to give [the committee] power over,” but lawmakers are using it “to say, actually, we can spend it on whatever purpose…” 

“We think to correct the constitutional violation here, this agency can order those funds to be released,” Gibson said. 

Justices questioned Gibson on why the funds would need to be released to DPI if there was never an appropriation.

“The reality is the money’s sitting in a fund right now, and it hasn’t done anything with it,” Justice Rebecca Dallet said. “For all, we know they are going to use it for an emergency and not give it to anybody for anything else … that just hasn’t happened yet.”

Gibson replied that DPI has asked for the money and lawmakers haven’t given it to the agency. 

“But, I’m saying, [JFC] hasn’t appropriated it anywhere,” Dallet said. “Is DPI having an emergency where you think this is emergency money that you should get…?” 

“No, we think it’s unconstitutional for DPI not to get the money.” Gibson said. 

“Even if you were right, that the statutory structure here is constitutionally problematic, I still don’t see how you win and get the money, because that is not what the law says,” Justice Brian Hagedorn said. “There’s no provision of law that actually gives the money to DPI or appropriates the money to DPI.”

Gibson noted that the co-chairs of the committee Sen. Howard Marklein and Rep. Mark Born have said the money is earmarked for the purpose of the literacy programs. 

“What we’re struggling with is that we understand that there are hints and clues, earmarks — so different from an appropriation — and the way I’m looking at it, it could probably be parked in that fund indefinitely and that’s where I’m struggling with what’s the legal nexus,” said Justice Janet Protasiewicz. 

Ryan Walsh, the attorney representing the Legislature, argued Evers’ veto was inappropriate because the bill was not an appropriation bill, and that the remedy should be that the bill is law as passed by the Legislature, without Evers’ veto. 

“You can’t have an appropriation bill that makes no appropriation. It just doesn’t make sense,” Walsh said. However, he also said that if he is wrong then it means the law was improperly enacted because lawmakers passed it by voice vote, not roll call as is required of appropriations bills. 

Walsh said that under his argument the money would stay in JFC and go back to the treasury at the end of the biennium. 

“It doesn’t go to DPI,” Walsh said. “There is no obligation for [JFC] to disperse this money.” 

Justice Jill Karofsky said that she didn’t disagree about the discretion of the committee, but asked about the potential for lawmakers to abuse the discretion. 

“There aren’t really any guardrails here,” Karofsky said. 

Walsh said abuse “just doesn’t happen.” 

“What would stop the Legislature from emptying every last dollar of the Wisconsin treasury into a [JFC] emergency account?” Karofsky asked further. 

Walsh said many things could prevent that from happening, including the governor refusing to sign a budget that does so. 

Walsh also said the emergency account is a small portion of the state budget. He said that in the last 10 years the percentage of the budget that has gone to the supplemental account has ranged from 0.06% in the 2017-19 budget to 0.33% in the 2021-23 budget.

Justice Ann Walsh Bradley said she thought “part of why we are here [is] that some want us to take a look at this structure — allowing JFC to have this discretion — and that to not address it would be a rather lame opinion.”

Walsh said that he didn’t think the Court needed to reach the constitutional question. 

“I don’t think anybody is insisting that you decide whether [Wisconsin should retain the] supplemental funding structure, which has been in place a long time, and by the way, the governor and the Legislature are assuming it’s still in place,” Walsh said. “We have a new budget pending… There are lots of reasons to be cautious here.”

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Justice Ann Walsh Bradley speaks at an election night party for Justice-elect Susan Crawford. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Justice Ann Walsh Bradley will retire from the Wisconsin Supreme Court in July with one more title on her curriculum vitae: chief justice.

Bradley, the Court’s most senior member, was elected by her colleagues Thursday to serve as the leader of the Court. She’ll succeed outgoing Chief Justice Annette Ziegler, whose second two-year term in the top position ends April 30.

Bradley’s term will run about two months starting May 1, and she’ll step down June 30 in anticipation of her retirement. In preparation for that, the justices also elected Justice Jill Karofsky to fill out the remainder of the two-year chief justice term, ending April 30, 2027. 

Both Bradley and Karofsky, who was elected to the Court in 2020, are members of the Court’s liberal majority. 

From the late 19th century to the mid-2010s, the state Supreme Court’s chief justice had been selected by seniority. In 2015, a constitutional amendment drafted by the Legislature’s Republican majority changed the selection process to a majority vote of the Court’s seven justices. The amendment also instituted a two-year term for the chief justice.

The amendment was aimed at unseating Justice Shirley Abrahamson, the Court’s first woman justice. Abrahamson had been chief justice since 1996, the second-longest to serve in the position. After voters ratified the amendment in April 2015, a majority of the justices — at the time, five conservatives — elected Justice Pat Roggensack chief. They reelected her in 2019, then elected Ziegler as her successor in 2021.

Bradley said in a statement that her election as chief justice is a “tremendous honor.”

“It has been my life’s goal to honor the rule of law, enhance access to justice, and serve the 5.9 million people who call Wisconsin home,” Bradley said. “Serving as Chief Justice enables me to further those goals.” 

Bradley also participated in her final oral arguments Thursday morning, where Ziegler delivered kind words about her and called attention to her thorough resume and accomplishments

Prior to her time in law, Bradley served as a high school teacher before earning her law degree at UW-Madison Law School in 1976. Bradley worked in private practice, as a city attorney and as a public defender, including being appointed to the state public defender board in 1983.

In 1985, Bradley was appointed to serve as a circuit court judge in Marathon County. 

Bradley won her first term on the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 1995, and was reelected for two consecutive terms in 2005 and 2015. She decided to retire this year and will be succeeded by Justice-elect Susan Crawford, who defeated her challenger Brad Schimel Tuesday ensuring a 4-3 liberal majority on the Court until at least 2028. 

Ziegler said Bradley has likely heard over 2,400 cases in oral arguments, give or take some cases, during her many years of service.

“I can assure you it’s quite impressive,” Ziegler said. “I don’t know how many opinions that you’ve written, Justice Ann Walsh Bradley, but that number is also certainly impressive, and so, I would like to thank you Justice Ann Walsh Bradley for your service to the public and your service on this court.” 

Bradley thanked Ziegler and said that it’s been an honor to serve. She also thanked her husband and family for their support throughout the years. 

“People ask me, ‘Will you miss this place and miss this job?’ And, of course, I will,” Bradley said. “What makes this job is not only the heavy responsibility and an opportunity to serve, but an opportunity to serve with people who care deeply about the rule of law and care deeply about the people of this state.”

Karofsky said in a statement about her election to serve as chief justice that she appreciates the confidence of her colleagues and she will “continue to work respectfully with every member of this Court to ensure the administration of Court business is conducted in a fair and efficient manner.” 

“The people of Wisconsin have great faith in this Court, and I intend to be a Chief that increases the people’s confidence even further,” Karofsky said. “I hope to be someone that every judge and staff person in the judicial system finds approachable, so we can continue to improve the service we provide in all 72 counties, keeping each of us safe and ensuring access to justice.”

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Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, who said the power issues in Wisconsin mirrors current federal issues, at a press conference in December 2024. (Photo by: Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

The Wisconsin Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday in a case that could determine whether a law passed in 2018 that requires approval from legislators on civil settlements violates the separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches. 

The case — Josh Kaul v. Wisconsin State Legislature — is the latest in an ongoing legal struggle focused on the division of power between the Legislature and the executive branch.

A  law passed after Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Kaul were elected in 2018, but before they took office, gave the Legislature, through the Joint Finance Committee, the ability to sign off on and decide how to spend court settlement money. That had been a power traditionally held by the attorney general.

It was part of a slate of laws passed and signed by Republicans during the lame duck period just weeks before the new Democratic administration took power in 2019. The Joint Finance Committee has become the vehicle for lawmakers to maintain control over  actions that agencies take outside of the legislative process, and this is not the first lawsuit the state’s top court has heard on the issue.

The case made it to the state Supreme Court after Kaul appealed a 2024 decision by the Wisconsin Court of Appeals District II that overturned a favorable decision made in 2022 by Dane County judge and now Justice-elect Susan Crawford.

Kaul said at a press conference after the arguments that the actions Wisconsin Republicans have taken to strip power from the executive branch are similar to those being taken by Republicans at the federal level. 

“What we are seeing in these cases in Wisconsin in a lot of ways mirrors what’s going on with the federal government right now,” Kaul said. “At the federal level what we’re seeing is the executive branch trying to pull legislative power into its own hands and making decisions about how legislation should be applied or whether it should be applied. Here in Wisconsin what we saw instead was an effort to concentrate power in the Legislature.” 

Kaul said that checks and balances and “multiple different sources of authority within the government” are necessary to protect the “our freedom and our liberty.”

“That’s why we have three co-equal branches of government,” Kaul said. “This case is about supporting that principle and ensuring that the separation of powers remains strong here in Wisconsin.” 

During the arguments, Assistant Attorney General Hannah Jurss argued that the “executive branch has the power to execute the law” and the “Legislature’s constitutional power is to write the law.” 

In a 2019 case, the state Supreme Court ruled that the law was constitutional. However, in a brief, Jurrs argues that the decision was not a broad endorsement of the law, but only “located a few instances where the statutes could be applied constitutionally and went no further.” 

Jurrs argued the law is unconstitutional in part because there is no way for the executive to override a decision by the lawmakers, which has infringed on the executive branch’s work. The 2018 law has led to disputes between Kaul’s office and lawmakers over resolving cases involving state taxpayers. 

“Having this sword, the legislative committee sword,  hanging over our head infects our decision making at every stage and every action… whether to prosecute, how to prosecute. How to talk with our clients, when to pursue negotiation, and the terms,” Jurrs said. “We’ve presented 13 cases that [the committee] as a body never even convened to consider.” 

Jurrs called the legislative seizure of executive powers  an “unprecedented and unparalleled intrusion into execution of the law.” She also argued that it limits the ability for the attorney general to act in multi-state lawsuits. 

Jurrs said that if the law had been in place in the 1990s when the state negotiated a tobacco resolution it would have led to a more complicated situation. 

“Hey, 44 other states, we’re entering this gigantic resolution with the major tobacco companies. We know that everybody else has come to this agreement. It has to be really confidential, but excuse us, we’re gonna have to hold everything and we have to take this to a committee of our Legislature so that they can decide whether they want to rewrite this agreement or allow us to enter it or not,” Jurrs said.

Justice Rebecca Bradley expressed skepticism about Jurrs’ argument that the power should lie with the attorney general without the oversight of lawmakers. 

“The Legislature in the provision that you’re attacking has prescribed the powers and duties of the attorney general, which is to basically give… the Legislature a check-and-balance on what the attorney general is doing and what I find frightening is that one person gets to make all of the policy decisions under your argument about what is going to be done with what is the taxpayers money,” Bradley said. “It’s not the attorney general’s money.” 

Misha Tseytlin, the attorney representing the Legislature, argued that the statute serves as a check on the attorney general’s power and lawmakers have an interest in overseeing the money.

“It’s important to remember we’re talking about not the attorney general’s money, not the agency’s money, but the people’s money,” Tseytlin said. He said an example is the $420 million opioid settlement that was reached and approved by lawmakers on the Joint Finance Committee in 2021.  “The settlement was submitted to the Joint Finance committee, and it was approved by The Joint Finance committee. The Legislature in carrying out its constitutional duty to balance the budget of the state had to take into account all sorts of income, including that $420 million.”

Justice Rebecca Dallet questioned Tseytlin on how much power he was arguing lawmakers should have over funds. 

“Any source of income that comes into the Legislature they’ve got control of, so could the Legislature appoint a committee to return tax returns to make sure they are getting the money that they’re supposed to?” Dallet asked. “My point in asking the question… is where does this end? Every single dollar that comes in means the Legislature has total control… There is no role for executive power here.”

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UW President Jay Rothman tells lawmakers that this will be a “make it or break it” budget for the UW system. Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

Leaders of the Universities of Wisconsin and the state Department of Corrections (DOC) defended Gov. Tony Evers’ budget requests to lawmakers on the Joint Finance Committee during a meeting Tuesday. 

The hearing marks the start of lawmakers’ official work on the state budget, which will continue this week with public hearings in Kaukauna on Wednesday and West Allis on Friday. 

Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) and Rep. Mark Born (Beaver Dam), co-chairs of the Joint Finance Committee, said during a press conference ahead of the meeting that they were looking for “justification” on the “massive” requests from the UW and wanted an explanation of the plan for DOC. 

“[The DOC request is] lacking in a lot of details and seems to be a little short of being able to accomplish its mission, but I’m interested to hear more about how they arrived at that and why they made some of the decisions they made and hopefully provide some information that will allow us to improve that plan and make sure that it’s a good plan for the future of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections and for public safety here in Wisconsin,” Born said.

In the past, lawmakers have heard from a greater number of agencies about their requests. During the last budget cycle, lawmakers heard from four agencies, including DOC, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Safety and Professional Services and the Department of Administration. That year, state Superintendent Jill Underly traveled to Eau Claire to talk to lawmakers about the Department of Public Instruction budget after not getting an invitation to speak. 

The lawmakers said it would have been a “waste of their time and our time” to hold briefings with other agencies.

“[The agency leaders] just have not been straight with us on things. They just don’t want to really talk about what they’re doing and why they’re doing it,” Born said. He said lawmakers were hopeful that the UW and DOC would work with them to answer some questions. 

Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman told lawmakers during the briefing that he agrees with Gov Tony Evers’ assessment that this will be a “make it or break it” budget for the UW system. Evers’ request for the UW includes an additional $856 million, which would be one of the largest investments in the university campuses in state history. 

Rothman acknowledged that the request is “significant” but he emphasized that Wisconsin currently sits at 43rd out of 50 when it comes to state investment in public universities. The investments in the request would bring the system up to the median nationwide. 

Rothman explained to lawmakers that inflation and a lack of state investment over the last three decades to meet increasing costs has hindered the UW system. 

UW schools have worked to make changes, he said. When he started as president in June 2022, Rothman said 10 of the system’s 13 campuses were running fiscal deficits. That number is now six and should hit zero over the next year or so. He also noted there have been six two-year colleges that have closed or will close this year.

Rothman called the reforms necessary and said that the changes position the system for sound investments from the state. 

“We have to be asking ourselves a question: who will teach our children and grandchildren? Where will the nurses come from that will help care for our families and perhaps ourselves? Where will the engineers come from?” Rothman told lawmakers.

Rothman explained that the proposals seek to address five goals including increasing affordability, accessibility, developing talent, ensuring quality and investing in innovation.

“You cannot cut your way to success,” Rothman said. “You need to invest.” 

Rep. Tip McGuire (D-Kenosha) asked Rothman what would happen if the state did not fund the requests. 

“If we get the budget funded, we will not have to raise tuition. If we don’t get funded at an adequate level, that’s one of the levers… that I don’t want to have to use,” Rothman said. “I want to be able to maintain the accessibility that our students get, but we will do what we need to do, and it won’t be just one piece. That will be multiple levers, and we get more efficient in some places. We have to stop offerings, programs at certain universities.”

Republican lawmakers grilled Rothman on “administrative bloat” across the system and requests for additional positions and funding from the UW schools. 

The budget request would add 214 positions funded by state general purpose revenue to UW campuses. Rothman noted that UW campuses, excluding flagship UW-Madison, have lost 6,000 positions funded by the state since 2019. 

Born asked why there was a request for 13 additional staff members to support students who have aged out of the foster care system. He noted that a 2023-24 report found there were 420 of those students across the system. 

“I’m trying to wrap my head around — you talked about strategic investments, sound investments, and you’re asking for 13 positions, one on every campus to serve 420 kids?” Born asked. 

Rothman said the intention would be to expand the number of students who could be supported. 

“They’ve had a tough lot in life to start with,”  Rothman said, adding that the additional staffing  could give those students a leg up. “I would hope that we could expand that number.” 

Rothman also said that the specific request is part of the general goal of investing in students to ensure they make it to graduation. 

“If you look at the positions that we have asked for, they are all student-facing. We are trying to help our students be successful,” Rothman said. 

“This is a shining example of the governor’s desire to grow government and your desire to grow your system, and it’s not focused on the reality of how you invest in this stuff,” Born said. 

Born also focused on the idea of funding new programs on UW campuses. 

“Why would we need to fund a curriculum of the future? Isn’t there things that are fading away, things that are no longer of interest to students, things are no longer of interest to the workforce? Shouldn’t there be funds available to offer new things?” Born asked. 

Rothman said that the UW system has cut about 100 programs already. 

“So you’ve eliminated about 100 programs, but you can’t fund a new program and curriculum and AI without more funding?” Born continued. 

“I think the fact of the matter is if we had kept up with inflation in terms of our state support, we’d be in a different position,” Rothman answered. 

Corrections budget 

DOC Sec-designee Jared Hoy also defended Evers’ proposals during the hearing, saying that policy changes, increased investments and capital projects are needed to improve safety in facilities across the state. The proposal, Hoy said, is “not simply a list of funding requests” but is a “blueprint for the future” of state corrections. 

Under the proposal, the state would invest about $634 million in the DOC. The majority of the money would be used to fund major reforms throughout the state’s prisons including infrastructure upgrades and capital improvements to Waupun Correctional Institution, Lincoln Hills School, Stanley Correctional Institution, Sanger B. Powers Correctional Center and John C. Burke Correctional Center. The improvements would culminate in the closure of the Green Bay Correctional Institution. 

Hoy told lawmakers that the budget proposal was developed through conversations with DOC staff, legislators and outside experts with a focus on “safety for those in our communities and the people that work in our facilities every day.” 

The proposal also includes some policy changes meant to help limit recidivism, including by expanding access to workforce training and substance use treatment for people who have 48 months or less left in their sentences for nonviolent offenses.

“A system that prioritizes re-entry and release, but fails to reduce recidivism is not truly safe. A facility that contains individuals but is dangerous and unstable inside its walls is not safe,” Hoy said. “Safety must be both measured by what happens inside the walls of our facilities, and by what happens when a person releases into the community.”

Hoy said that he hoped lawmakers would see some of their thoughts and ideas for the agency reflected in the plan.

“The governor’s budget request is an opportunity for our state to come together and use our taxpayers’ money responsibly to help keep our children and our communities safe,” Hoy said.

The idea that some lawmakers have floated of building a new facility would take significantly more time and money, he added. 

“Our agency does not have time to wait 10 to 12 years for a new facility to be built,” Hoy said.

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State Superintendent Jill Underly won a second term in office Tuesday evening. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Incumbent Jill Underly, who had the backing of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, won a second term as state superintendent on Tuesday, defeating education consultant and Republican-backed candidate Brittany Kinser. 

“I’m just deeply honored and humbled for the trust you have placed in me to continue as state superintendent for public instruction,” Underly told supporters at her Election Night party. “This victory belongs to all of us who believe in the power of public education, but for every educator, family, and most importantly, kids across our state.”

The Associated Press called the race at 10:05 p.m. with Underly leading by more than 5 points and with more than 80% of the votes counted.

Kinser’s campaign released a statement shortly before 10:30 p.m. in which she acknowledged the result was “not the outcome I had hoped for.”

“Our kids’ future shouldn’t rest on the politicization of our education system, but on the belief that our kids deserve so much better than they currently receive,” she said.

The state superintendent, a technically nonpartisan position, is responsible for providing guidance for the state’s 421 public school districts, leading the Department of Public Instruction (DPI)  — an agency responsible for administering state and federal funds, licensing teachers and developing educational curriculum and state assessments — and also holds a position on the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents. 

Underly received the endorsement from Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC), the state’s largest teachers’ union, and AFT-Wisconsin. The Democratic Party of Wisconsin contributed over $850,000 to her campaign. While Underly had the backing of the state Democratic party, Democrat Gov. Tony Evers refused to endorse in the race. 

WEAC said in a statement that the “victory inspires the public school educators who work with students every day to be even more visible and more involved in education policy deliberations to solve staffing shortages and the state funding crisis that forces communities to referendum every year to keep the schoolhouse doors open” and that the result is a rejection of “the school voucher lobby in favor of educators, so all students – no exceptions – have the opportunity to learn without limits and unlock their dreams.”

Kinser had never worked in a traditional Wisconsin public school and received criticism during the campaign for never holding a Wisconsin teachers’ license and allowing her administrator’s license to lapse, though she eventually updated it. She had also worked mostly in charter school circles in recent years, including as principal and executive director of Rocketship schools in Milwaukee and as a leader of the City Forward Collective, a Milwaukee-based advocacy group that has lobbied in favor of increasing funding for the state’s voucher program.

With her background, Kinser, who describes herself as a moderate, found support from Republicans and school choice advocates, receiving over $1.6 million in contributions from the Republican Party of Wisconsin.

While decisive, Underly’s victory was by a narrower margin than her first election in 2021, while Kinser did better than past DPI candidates who have run with the backing of the state’s powerful school choice lobby.

Underly said her takeaway from the closeness of the race is that “we need to just communicate better.” 

Throughout the campaign, Underly faced criticism from her opponent, Republicans and others for her recent approval of changes to state testing standards and poor communication with school districts. 

“There’s a lot that goes on at the agency that I think in years past, maybe state superintendents took for granted, but I think it’s important that we are communicating more,” Underly told the Wisconsin Examiner.

Underly said that the agency is working on rebuilding its relationship with legislators. 

“The Legislature and the relationship with the state superintendent hasn’t always been that great…,” Underly said. “We meet with them frequently. We meet with the governor’s office quite frequently also. I’m just going to go back to the fact that I hope that we all want the same things, regardless of where we are on the political spectrum.” 

Underly said that she also respected Evers’ decision not to endorse in the race and that her working relationship with his office is “fine.”

Throughout her campaign, Underly defended her decisions during her first term and said that she has served as “the No. 1 advocate for public education” and will continue to do so. Prior to being elected to the top DPI position, Underly worked as assistant director in DPI. She also previously served as a principal and superintendent of the Pecatonica Area School District and taught in public schools in Indiana.

Underly leaned on her advocacy for public schools while making the argument for her reelection. She introduced a budget request for the state that would have invested over $4 billion in public education, saying that it’s what schools deserved. Republicans and Evers both said it was too large. 

Democratic lawmakers said Underly’s victory is a sign of Wisconsinites’ support of public schools and will hopefully bode well for the future of securing improved funding for public education. 

Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) told the Wisconsin Examiner that Underly’s victory was a vindication of her first term in office.

“She’s had to make do with some really tough choices, and she’s done a great job for kids and for teachers,” Hesselbein said.

“We know public schools unite communities, and when we have strong public schools, we have strong communities,” Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison) said. “We’ve got a state superintendent who’s going to be looking out for every learner in our state, and so I’m also looking forward to the transparency and accountability that will come with ensuring that public dollars are for public schools.” 

Hong said that the lack of communication between Republican lawmakers and Underly is the fault of  lawmakers who are not interested in meeting the needs of students. She said that Underly’s win and “Republicans needing to answer to their communities who care about their public schools again” could encourage them to work across the aisle. She noted that Wisconsinites have repeatedly raised their property taxes to ensure schools have funding in lieu of reliable state investments. 

Hong also said that she thought Underly’s victory showcased that “public dollars going to private schools was a deep concern for a lot of Wisconsinites.” During her campaign, Underly criticized  her opponent for her lobbying for and support for Wisconsin’s school choice programs. She also expressed her opposition to the growth of those programs, saying it is not sustainable for the state to fund two school systems and that she would oppose dedicating more money to private school vouchers.

Underly said it’s clear that her opponent “cares about kids and she cares about kids learning,” and that something she would take away from the race is that “we all want the same things. Ultimately, we want kids to be successful.”

Tennesseans and Wisconsinites involved with the Builders' project. Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

Madison School Board member Ali Muldrow said people who work in education know that the “worst day” is when children get hurt in school. 

“When the Abundant Life shooting happened, which was at a private Christian School very close to my home, it was just a really horrible day, and I think I realized it’s too late to talk about this,” Muldrow said. “It’s been too late and we can’t keep letting it be too late.”

A teacher and student were killed and six others were injured by a 15-year-old who brought a gun to Abundant Life Christian School, a private school in Madison, in December 2024. It is the deadliest school shooting on record in Wisconsin.

The shooting made national headlines, but it is just one example of children harmed by gun violence. According to the K-12 School Shooting Database, there were 332 school shootings in 2024. A 2024 report by Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions found firearms continue to be a leading cause of death for children and teens, and those who are Black are disproportionately the victims

Muldrow, who is running unopposed for another term on the Board this spring, said measures taken to try to prevent shooting deaths at school have not been enough. 

“All of the things that we’ve done to our students haven’t resolved this issue — whether it’s practicing and having drills or whether it’s making our schools harder places to get into,” Muldrow said. “None of that changes the reality that a 15-year-old went into their school, two guns, and killed multiple people, including themselves.”

Students from Madison Metropolitan School District walked out of class in December and marched to the state Capitol to demand something be done about gun violence. 

“They asked for two things,” Muldrow said. “They asked for laws related to gun storage and gun safety, and they asked for more mental health support within their education.”  

Muldrow said that adults should “honor” the demands of the students and build bridges across political divides to get the work done. She said having conversations is an important starting point. 

In the aftermath of the Madison school shooting, Muldrow said she wanted to organize an event to inspire people in the community to feel capable of making change. She turned to a group that tried to find solutions after a school shooting took place about two years ago and more than 620 miles away.

Tennesseans were left reeling in 2023 after a shooter killed three 9-year-olds and three adults at the private Christian Covenant elementary school. A nonprofit organization called Builders (formerly known as Starts With Us) that seeks to ease political polarization brought together a group of 11 Tennessee residents with a range of opinions on the issue of guns to discuss and come up with some solutions. 

Muldrow was part of a similar group in Wisconsin in 2024 that explored the debate on abortion. She saw a documentary about the Tennessee group and thought its approach could be a way for the community affected by the Abundant Life shooting to come together and find a way forward. 

Muldrow said that the point of the event she helped organize Sunday was not necessarily to “mirror or mimic what happened in Tennessee, but to learn from that collaborative attitude towards solutions.” 

More than 100 people attended the event at the Overture Center for the Arts in Madison, which included a screening of the documentary about the Tennesseeans’ journey and a panel discussion with two of the participants and a handful of Wisconsinites.

Charles Franklin, director of the Marquette Law School Poll noted during the panel that potential solutions to gun violence would look different for Wisconsin, given the difference in state laws and the general beliefs of residents in each state. A key point of disagreement among participants in the documentary centered on concealed carry permits and whether they should be mandated. Tennessee has allowed for permitless carry of handguns since 2021.

Wisconsin already requires a permit for concealed carry, however, and it’s mostly not a partisan debate, Franklin said. According to the most recent polling, about 65% of Wisconsinites support concealed carry, but only under certain circumstances. 

“We do have a concealed carry law that requires a permit. When the Legislature has considered concealed carry without a permit, we found only about 20% support for that, about 80% opposition,” Franklin said. “There is a distinction that the public makes… public opinion is quite opposed to that form of concealed carry, but solidly in favor of [concealed carry] with a permit.”

Franklin said he thought proposals that originate from and garner support among Second Amendment supporters should be celebrated. He noted that there is a Republican bill that’s been introduced in Wisconsin that would create a tax exemption for gun safes. 

“That’s a small, incremental matter of, what, 5 ½% on the cost of the safe, but on the other hand, when you think of children’s access to guns in the home, access to those guns by burglars or other circumstances,” it could be a significant step, Franklin said. 

Franklin said the idea that “if you don’t get everything you’ve got nothing” is a huge barrier to progress. 

“I would just stress that incremental improvements are still improvements,” Franklin said.

Steve D’Orazio, founder and president of the Oregon, Wis., gun shop and range Max Creek Outdoors said during the panel that his business works hard to educate people who acquire guns. He said he has been working with a doctor at the UW Health System to educate doctors on guns and have them talk with their patients about gun safety and awareness, including keeping guns locked away. 

“My goal is the safety of our children,” D’Orazio said. 

The solution to school shootings he emphasized the most was implementing metal detectors in all schools. 

“Every one of us here today walked through the front door of this building and we walked through a metal detector, but our schools don’t have metal detectors,” D’Orazio said. “I sell guns. That’s our business. There’s so much education that we do at our shop to make sure that the gun owner doesn’t get hurt and that they use it correctly…, but every school district should have a metal detector. That’s how you’re going to stop this stuff.” 

The documentary shows the Tennessee group taking and presenting their recommendations at the Tennessee State Capitol. Those recommendations included temporary removal of firearms based on risk of violence, developing tools to support responsible gun ownership, expanding the role of school resource officers, investing in community to reduce trauma and developing gun literacy resources for schools, communities and media. 

Tennessee leaders did pass a bill in 2024 requiring education in schools about guns, a policy similar to the recommendation of the group. Though the end result was not exactly as participants imagined it. 

Adam Luke, a Tennessee marriage and family counselor and conservative, spoke to how the “rush to be right” by lawmakers on the issue may diminish the effectiveness of the legislation.  

“People will not be able to opt out [of the curriculum]. Now, I would like to turn to conservative America and say, ‘If you did not have the ability to opt your child out of sex education would that bother you?’” Luke asked. “This is what happens when you have super majorities.” 

Luke said that the Tennessee Department of Education also doesn’t have the curriculum for teachers and just recently closed the public response period. He said lawmakers were so quick to want to get something done that they’ve created a policy that may not be effective.

“Let’s say that we did something, but guess what? We forgot to actually give you the resources to be successful with it,” Luke said. 

Political polarization was on display following the Madison school shooting. Muldrow said she has been “saddened” by the divide.

“It’s really hard to see our Legislature be so divided and in such a contentious relationship with our governor, and it’s a shame because all of these people represent us and there is an expectation that they work together,” Muldrow said. 

Since the shooting, Gov. Tony Evers has launched the Office of Violence Prevention and has proposed adopting further gun safety policies including stricter background checks and red flag laws. Republican lawmakers were quick to criticize Evers’ proposals and have been developing their own proposals for addressing school shootings, including financial support for the Office of School Safety and allowing teachers to be armed. 

The Madison Common Council and the Dane County Board of Supervisors both passed resolutions urging the Legislature to take action and implement common-sense gun measures. 

Steven Olikara, a former candidate for Wisconsin Senate and founder of the nonpartisan organization the Future Caucus, said the actions of local leaders and Evers are a step forward, but the state needs to take bigger steps. 

“Those bigger steps will come from bringing Democrats and Republicans together in a real way and building trust,” Olikara said. “And I think conversations like this can help create that kind of momentum. [When people are at] each other’s throats, the kind of progress you make is very small and very incremental. When you have conversations like the one today, you can reach transformative change, and that’s really what we need.”

Tennessee educator Alyssa Pearman, who lost one of her students to gun violence, said the key is to keep showing up to have the conversations.

“You are going to be told no, and you are going to have people who have no interest in making a change and being a builder, but you keep showing up,” Pearman said. “You find people who want to do something, who want a better tomorrow, and you have conversations like these… This is the type of conversation that needs to be had, whether it’s in Wisconsin, whether it’s in Tennessee and whatever state where we have this crisis.”

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Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway alongside other Wisconsinites at a city celebration for Transgender Day of Visibility. Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

Wisconsin Democrats and city of Madison leaders recognized transgender visibility day in Wisconsin Monday, introducing legislation that would provide protections for people and raising the transgender pride flag. 

This year’s International Transgender Day of Visibility comes amid a political environment in which trans people have been targeted by new proposed federal and state restrictions. Wisconsin Republican lawmakers spent significant time in March on a slate of bills focused on transgender kids and would have limited their ability to play sports, access gender affirming medical care and change their names and pronouns in school. The bills are among more than 800 anti-trans bills that have been introduced nationwide this year.

Participants in the Madison celebrations said the point of the day was not to focus on the negative and harmful actions being taken, however, but to focus instead on the positive experiences of being transgender. 

Sen. Melissa Ratcliff (D-Cottage Grove), co-chair of the Transgender Parent and Nonbinary Advocacy Caucus, said during a press conference that the purpose of the day is to “elevate the voices of our trans and non-binary communities, emphasize the joy of living life as your authentic self and to visualize the world in which all our trans and non-binary children, co-workers, neighbors, parents and elected officials throughout Wisconsin and the world are loved, accepted and safe.”

Democrats holding the press conference proposed a handful of bills. One would extend Wisconsin’s nondiscrimination laws to include transgender and nonbinary people by prohibiting discrimination on the basis of gender identity or gender expression.

Another bill would create an exception to current law for those seeking a name change for gender identity reasons. Under the current state statute people seeking a name change petition must publish notice of their petition in a local newspaper, including in the area where the petition will be heard, once per week for three consecutive weeks before they may petition the court.

A third bill would declare March 31, 2025 as Transgender Day of Visibility in Wisconsin and recognizes the achievements of several transgender people and organizations who have made contributions to Wisconsin.

In addition to the bills, Gov. Tony Evers, who has committed to vetoing any anti-trans legislation that makes it to his desk, signed a proclamation declaring Monday Transgender Day of Visibility.

Rep. Christian Phelps (D-Eau Claire) said the bills are important because lawmakers need to send a positive message to young Wisconsinites who may be paying attention. He said that when he was young he remembers feeling discouraged as a gay teen when the state passed a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. 

“Thirteen-year-olds across Wisconsin are listening to political actions and messages that are being sent out of the Capitol,” Phelps said, adding that children should know there are elected officials and allies and leaders who are fighting for transgender, non-binary and gender-expansive people of all ages across Wisconsin.

“That’s the message that we want people to take out of the Capitol and into their communities and to see [protections] passed in the state law as well,” Phelps said. 

When asked about plans to discuss the legislation with Republicans and the potential for garnering support across the aisle to pass any of the bills, the lawmakers sounded doubtful. Republicans hold majorities in the Assembly and Senate and support from them would be necessary for any of the Democratic legislation to be taken up.

“I don’t think they will sign on to this legislation. I certainly wish that they would take a look at it and hear our voices here today and see the love and support of so many community members,” Sen. Melissa Ratcliff (D-Cottage Grove) said. 

Clancy called it a “valid question” that Democrats get every time they hold a press conference. 

“Will Republicans sign on to this? And every time the answer is somewhat the same…,” Clancy said. “Republicans, two weeks ago, sat on the floor of the Assembly just feet from here for hours. They said that trans people should not exist, should not have basic rights. They have had the opportunity to weigh in on this, and I would welcome any of them moving across the aisle, breaking ranks from their, frankly, hateful leadership and joining in on these things.” 

The city of Madison also recognized Transgender Visibility Day by raising the transgender pride flag outside of the city municipal building.

Mayor Satya Rhodes Conway said the city was raising the flag to celebrate trans people, because the city respects individual rights and “rejects hate.” 

“The safety and the livelihoods of trans people are being threatened, and the issue of the fact of trans people is being used to divide our country in a hateful and really disappointing way, but here in Madison, we refuse to go backwards, and we refuse to let hate divide.” 

Asked about communicating the message of acceptance to those who disagree, Rhodes-Conway said that she thinks it’s important people recognize that diversity makes the Madison community stronger and invited people to “learn about the things that maybe make them nervous or scared and to be a part of the incredible diversity.” 

Rhodes-Conway also urged people to educate themselves.

“Folks can educate themselves and each other and a lot of the fear and resistance comes from lack of knowing, and so I just encourage people — there’s a lot of resources,” Rhodes-Conway said. “Please don’t ask the trans people in your lives to educate you. There’s a lot of resources out there and our libraries, our fantastic resources, and people can educate themselves about the history.”

Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford, the first out transgender member of the Madison Common Council, said that transgender people are all “part of an unbroken legacy of resilience” and “authenticity.” 

Martinez-Rutherford said that she never expected to feel “so much love and community” when first elected in 2023 and never expected when she first started transitioning in 2007 to be in a position to advocate for people. 

“We raise the transgender flag today for it to be a symbol that Madison is welcoming and that you belong here,” Martinez-Rutherford said. “Let it be a beacon of hope, a reminder that we will not be erased.”

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A yard sign urging voters to vote 'Yes' on a referendum request for Ashwaubenon School District in 2024 when a record number of schools went to referendum. Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

As Wisconsin school districts seek permission this week from voters to spend more than $1.6 billion for operational and building costs, state lawmakers are looking for ways to address the issue of schools’ growing reliance on referendum requests.

Voters across the state are deciding this spring on a total of 94 referendum requests including some in February and many in the upcoming April 1 elections. According to the Wisconsin Policy Forum, it’s the most ever between January and April in a non-presidential or midterm election year and it’s the continuation of an ongoing trend.

Republicans have introduced three proposals for new limitations on the referendum process in reaction to Milwaukee Public Schools’ successful request last year, with lawmakers saying the proposals would increase fairness and transparency for voters and taxpayers. However, one Democratic lawmaker and other stakeholders said the proposals would limit local control and don’t address the structural financial issues that drive school districts to go to referendum.

Eliminating ‘recurring’ referendum requests

A bill coauthored by Rep. Cindi Duchow (R-Town of Delafield) and Sen. Chris Kapenga (R-Delafield)  would eliminate referendum questions that allow permanent operational funding increases and would limit other referendum requests to cover no more than a four-year period.

Duchow said in an interview with the Wisconsin Examiner that she doesn’t think there is a problem with school districts going to referendum and called them the “perfect tool” to allow local residents to make funding decisions. But she doesn’t think funding increases sought through a referendum should be permanent — or, in legislative terminology, “recurring” year after year. 

The referendum option was created for schools in 1993 as a part of legislation that put limits on schools’ ability to raise revenue by increasing property taxes. 

Anne Chapman, research director for the Wisconsin Association of School Business Officials Association (WASBO), said in an interview that the idea behind the legislation was that property taxpayers would be protected and the state would take care of school districts financially in return. From 1993 to 2010, revenue caps — the limit on how much districts could raise without voters’ permission — were tied to inflation. The inflationary increases were eliminated in 2009 and state funding has not filled the gap to give schools an inflationary increase. 

According to WASBO, general school district revenues have lagged the rate of inflation for a decade and a half. If funding had kept up with inflation, districts would be getting $3,380 more per pupil in 2025.

Wisconsin schools also only receive funding for about a third of their special education costs and many are drawing from their general funds to keep up with providing expensive federally and state mandated services to students with disabilities. Districts are also dealing with declining enrollment, which results in lower funding for a district as there are fewer students even if fixed costs such as maintaining facilities may not fall.

School officials and advocates have pointed out that many districts are relying heavily on referendum requests to meet costs (even to keep schools open), saying the trend is untenable. Mauston School District is one example as school leaders were considering dissolving the district after two failed referendum requests until voters finally approved a request in February.

Chapman noted that when a referendum fails it can result in a school deferring maintenance, increasing class sizes and cutting staff, AP programs, language, support staff for special education, nurses, librarians, athletics and “all the things that kids need to kind of stay engaged in school.” 

Dale Knapp, director of Wisconsin-based research organization Forward Analytics, said in 2023 that he didn’t “think the lawmakers who created this law envisioned referenda being relied on this much.”

“Maybe the answer after 30 years of the limits is an in-depth review of the law to see how it can be improved to continue protecting taxpayers and ensure adequate funding of our schools,” Knapp said.

Duchow, however, said that the state is providing “plenty of money” to schools.

“If they want a new gym, that’s on them. I’m not here to build you a new gym. The people who live in that community should make that decision,” Duchow said. She also said there are some schools that probably need to consolidate and others that need to close.

While school districts do go to voters to fund building costs, many are also going to referendum for “operational” (and often recurring) costs and as a way to keep up with staff pay, afford educational offerings and pay utility bills.

Duchow said recurring referendum questions are unfair. She said lawmakers in the caucus have been discussing changing the policy for a while. A similar proposal was introduced in 2017.

“We are looking at declining enrollment around this state, and how do we know what we really need 10 years from now?” Duchow said. “The Milwaukee referendum never goes away, so 10 years from now, we have less students in Milwaukee and we need the same amount of money?  We have more technology coming in, which means we probably need less teachers.” 

Duchow said Milwaukee’s $252 million operating referendum, which was the second largest school operating request in state history, was the “catalyst” for her bill.

Republican lawmakers and other state leaders have been highly critical of the request, which the district said was needed to fund staff pay and educational programming and voters narrowly approved. The criticism grew louder after the district’s financial crisis that resulted in the resignation of the superintendent and audits launched by Gov. Tony Evers.

“Enough is enough. MPS is a disaster. We have the worst reading scores in the nation, and all they do is scream they need more money,” Duchow said. “Money is obviously not the answer.”

Even with declining enrollment, the Milwaukee Public School District is the largest district in the state with 65,000 students enrolled, according to the 2024-25 enrollment data from DPI. This is over 2.5 times as many students as the next largest district in Wisconsin, Madison Metropolitan School District.

MPS students are also more likely to face significant challenges. More than 20% of students in the district have a disability, more than 80% are economically disadvantaged and 17.5% are English language learners. Statewide about 40% of students are economically disadvantaged, 15.7% are students with disabilities and 6.92% are English language learners.

Chapman said students with higher needs often incur higher costs for districts. 

Duchow said that putting a four-year limit on referendum requests for recurring funds gives communities the ability to react to changing circumstances and that school districts should justify to voters why they need the funds. She said she would be open to discussing a different limit when it comes to nonrecurring referendum requests.

“It’s also not fair that everybody could vote for that referendum and then decide, hey, this is really too expensive. I can’t afford these property taxes and then they move out, and I’m still there paying the referendum,” Duchow said. 

Duchow said she hadn’t yet spoken with any school district leaders when she was interviewed by the Examiner in early March, but planned to reach out before a public hearing on the bill.

“I’m sure I can already tell you how the schools are going to feel. The schools are going to feel they want their recurring referendum, just like we want your boss to give you a 20% raise every year without you justifying why you should get it,” Duchow said. “That’s what the schools want, too. I don’t blame them. I would, too, but we can’t do that to our taxpayers.”

According to the Wisconsin Eye on Lobbying website, the Wisconsin Education Association Council has registered against the bill, while the Wisconsin REALTORS Association has registered in favor.

Lawmakers have added new restrictions to school referendum requests before. The 2017-19 state budget limited scheduling of a referendum requests to only two per year and only allowed them to be held on regularly scheduled election days.

“It used to be that referendums could be called by a school district at any time, but the Legislature said… we don’t want you to have the option to run so many referendums,” Chapman said. 

Chapman noted in an interview that recurring referendum requests pass at lower rates than other types because it is harder to convince taxpayers. She said voters “know how to handle this” and lawmakers shouldn’t further reach in to restrict district’s options.

“Some districts and some communities want a recurring referendum,” Chapman said. “School districts have the option of asking for recurring and sometimes they do and voters sometimes approve them because they’re asking to fill structural budget holes that are never going to go away. They’re asking for basic operating dollars that they’re going to need in four years.” 

A recent Marquette Law School poll found that Wisconsinites are becoming increasingly concerned with holding down property taxes since 2018 and less favorably inclined toward increasing funding for K-12 public schools. 

Chapman noted that districts also often make nonrecurring referendum requests for recurring costs because they are an easier ask, though this places districts in another difficult position.

“As soon as you go to nonrecurring referendum in this environment with grossly inadequate state funding and state policies to support schools financially, you are now going to be in your own personal fiscal cliff,” Chapman said. “You’re going to have to go again, and probably for more, because your costs have gone up and funding does not keep up with inflation.” 

Bills meant to provide ‘fairness,’ ‘transparency’

Lawmakers, concerned about the MPS referendum, requested a Legislative Fiscal Bureau memo last year that found some school districts in Wisconsin could see a decrease in state aid after the MPS referendum due to the way that equalization aid is calculated.

Equalization aid acts as a form of property tax relief, according to the Wisconsin School Business Officials Association. The amount of aid a district receives from the finite pot of money distributed by the state is determined by a formula that depends on a district’s property wealth, spending and enrollment.

Spending triggered by referendum requests is one factor in determining districts’ equalization aid, and Milwaukee — like other districts with low property wealth per pupil compared to the rest of the state — will receive more state aid per pupil than other districts with higher property wealth per pupil as a result of its increased spending from the referendum.

Chapman noted, however, that all 148 referendum requests for operating expenses in 2024 affect the share of equalization aid districts receive. She also emphasized that it’s not the only factor affecting the amount of aid districts get.

“Some districts have increasing enrollment, which means they’re going to pull more money away from Milwaukee.” Chapman said. “There’s all of these factors that affect every single district, and they intertwine with each other.”

Republicans viewed Milwaukee’s referendum as taking too much from other districts. 

“Is it fair to the students, parents and taxpayers in Waukesha, Madison, Wautoma and others suffer without having the right to cast a vote?” the bill authors Rep. Scott Allen (R-Waukesha) and Sen. Julian Bradley (R-New Berlin) asked in a memo. “Local school referendums should not have a significant negative impact on other districts. Simple fairness demands this type of thinking.”

The lawmakers’ bill would exclude any district referendum request worth more than $50 million from being considered when determining equalization aid. The effect of the bill would be that districts that pass a large referendum would have their aid eligibility reduced, leaving local taxpayers to pay more of the cost. The bill would only apply to districts below a certain property wealth value.

Chapman said the bill would penalize districts for being larger and having lower property wealth and is an example of lawmakers trying to micromanage local entities.

A final bill introduced by Allen and Sen. Rachael Cabral-Guevara (R-Appleton) would require that tax impact information be added to ballots. Currently, referendum ballot questions are required to include the dollar amount of the increase in the levy limit.

Under the bill, referendum questions would also need to include the estimated interest rate and amount of the interest accruing on the bonds, any fees that will be incurred if the bonds are defeased and a “good faith estimate of the dollar amount difference in property taxes on a median-valued, single-family residence located in the local governmental unit that would result from passage of the referendum.” 

Proposal criticisms

Freshman Rep. Christian Phelps (D-Eau Claire) said he wasn’t inclined to support a ban on recurring referendum requests given the inconsistency in state funding. 

“We go through this sort of toxic [state] budget cycle every two years and districts have to levy, and they don’t even know what to plan for, so recurring referendums are obviously a response to that,” Phelps said.

Phelps said the question of fairness is relevant when talking about the referendum process, but the framing of the Republican proposals is misguided, given the state’s over $4 billion budget surplus.

“It is not fair to taxpayers that, depending on what school district you live in, you might have an astronomical property tax bill just to keep that district running. That’s not fair,” Phelps said. He said the state of Wisconsin is “underfunding public schools and not using the taxes people already paid.”

Derek Gottlieb, an associate professor at the University of Northern Colorado and senior research director for School Perceptions, an education research firm, said Republicans appear to be “operating on behalf of the taxpayers across the state who have voted no on school referendums and yet lost and so had their taxes raised anyway.”

“Suddenly, because so many [referendum requests] are passing, homeowners, taxpayers who don’t want to have their taxes raised are saying that this is unfair or we shouldn’t have to have our taxes raised just because everybody in our community wants to raise our taxes and Republicans are coming to the defense of those folks,” Gottlieb said. 

According to the Wisconsin Policy Forum, while the number of requests continues to rise, approval rates have started to decline with the 66.2% approval rate in 2024 being the lowest in a midterm or presidential election year since 2012.

Gottlieb said some of the concerns raised by lawmakers are valid. For example, he said the current terms used to describe referendum questions are “obscure” and unclear.

“Why not just say a permanent referendum and a temporary referendum?” he asked. “You could do a lot to increase the transparency of what people are voting on if you made that little language change.” 

Gottlieb also said that he does have “sympathy” for those who don’t think there should be permanent funding requests, but acknowledged that this would have consequences for districts because it removes predictability in planning.

However, he said he doesn’t agree that the potential for people to move out of a community or into a community in the future should be the deciding factor in funding decisions. 

“That’s a basic feature of any community anywhere,” he said. 

The argument that “it is not a legitimate exercise of public governmental power to make a decision for a community, given the fact that the community will change in the future…is ridiculous,” Gottlieb said. “If that were the case, it would make all public decisions fundamentally illegitimate.”

The increasing number of referendum requests, Gottlieb said, is a sign that revenue limits are set too low, at an amount that is unacceptable to community members. He noted that when operational referendum requests fail, the schools typically cut theater arts, advanced placement coursework, second language instruction, foreign language instruction and other programs that aren’t required by the state.

Chapman called the proposals a “BandAid” on the issues districts are facing that “isn’t even really fixing the problem.” 

“[If] legislators really wanted to protect taxpayers and make sure schools have what they need, they would do something like keep revenue limits inflationary [and] significantly improve the funding for special education, which would help every single kid,” Chapman said.

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Gov. Tony Evers vetoed a Republican bill that would have undone recent testing standards changes. Evers talks to reporters at a WisPolitics. Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

Gov. Tony Evers vetoed a Republican bill Friday that would have undone recent changes to Wisconsin’s state testing standards — taking the state back to those used in 2019 and tying the standards to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Lawmakers introduced the bill after changes were approved by state Superintendent Jill Underly last year, who said the changes would better align tests with educational standards and were developed with the help of teachers and other stakeholders as a part of a standard process. However, lawmakers accused Underly of lowering standards for kids. Evers had criticized the process for the changes as well, saying that there should have been better communication between Underly and other stakeholders. 

Evers said in his veto message for AB 1 that while he has criticized the processes for the recent changes, he vetoed the bill because he objects to lawmakers “attempts to undermine the constitutional authority and independence of the state superintendent.” 

Evers noted that the state superintendent is responsible for supervising public schools under the Wisconsin State Constitution and the Legislature is overstepping, and lawmakers had opportunities to provide input to the review and revision. The bill, he said, would “essentially strip control over school scoring and standard metrics away” from the superintendent and give it to the Legislature.

Underly said in a statement that she commends the veto. She said the bill was “deeply flawed as it relied on the NAEP – a federal assessment that is currently being cut by the federal government and is not aligned to Wisconsin’s rigorous standards – to influence local school policies. Most importantly, it undermined the authority of the state superintendent as outlined in Wisconsin’s Constitution.” 

Lawmakers used the veto as an opportunity to criticize Evers and incumbent Superintendent Jill Underly — and to call on Wisconsinites to vote her out of office next week. Underly is running for her second term and faces education consultant and school choice advocate Brittany Kinser, who has cited the changes as a reason that she entered the race, on Tuesday. 

Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said in a statement that Evers “failed” students by vetoing the legislation. 

“In January, the governor slammed State Superintendent Underly for lowering standards, but when he had a chance to fix it he chose politics over students,” LeMahieu said. “If 2025 is going to be the ‘Year of the Kid,’ Wisconsin voters will have to make changes at the Department of Public Instruction.”

Kinser said in a statement that “the decision to restore high standards now rests in the hands of Wisconsin voters” and she would “restore high standards” if elected.

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Brittany Kinser discussed her plans for leading the state education department at a forum with reporters Tuesday. On many issues she said she "is not an expert" and would need to learn more.High school classroom. (Dan Forer | Getty Images)

State Superintendent candidate Brittany Kinser said Tuesday she would support Milwaukee schools and advocate for reform to the state funding formula if elected, but declined to explain what she would specifically advocate for, saying that she needs more information and isn’t an expert.

Kinser, an education consultant, is challenging incumbent Jill Underly for the nonpartisan position in the April 1 election. The state superintendent is responsible for overseeing the state’s 421 public school districts, leading the state Department of Public Instruction and has a seat on the University of Wisconsin Board of Regent.

At an hour-long event hosted by the Milwaukee Press Club, the Rotary Club of Milwaukee and WisPolitics, Kinser answered questions from WisPolitics President Jeff Mayers and the audience about her stances. Both DPI candidates were invited to take part, but Underly declined. The two candidates participated in a conversation hosted by other groups last week.

Kinser has outraised her opponent partially due to the contributions she’s brought in from the Republican Party. According to recent campaign finance filings, Kinser raised $1,859,360 from Feb. 4 through Mar. 17. The Republican Party of Wisconsin contributed $1.65 million, and other political organizations $8,380, while individuals contributed $200,980. 

Underly raised $1,063,866 in the same time period, with $850,000 coming from the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.

Mayers asked Kinser, who has previously called herself a moderate, whether the support makes her “uncomfortable” because she is being cast “as the conservative Republican individual” in the race.

“I’m very thankful for all of my supporters. I’m thankful for the Republicans, the Democrats, the independents who have supported me,” Kinser said.

Kinser spoke to some of the issues that Milwaukee Public Schools, the state’s largest school district, has faced in recent years, including the financial crisis that led to audits by the state, recent results from the “nation’s report card” that show wide racial achievement gaps in the district, and reports of lead in schools. Kinser, who has worked in the charter school sector in Milwaukee in the past and is from Wauwatosa, has repeatedly criticized her opponent for problems in the district.

Kinser said she thinks some of the problems are a result of the governance and leadership of the district and said she is excited about the recently hired MPS superintendent. 

Brenda Cassellius, a former superintendent of Boston Public Schools and former Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Education, started her tenure earlier this month — taking over a vacancy left by the former superintendent who resigned after details emerged of a financial crisis at the district.

“We all need to support her because her successes are children’s success, so we need to make sure that she has the support she needs,” Kinser said. 

She said she hasn’t spoken to Cassellius yet.

“I’ve been a little busy, but I hope to meet her,” Kinser said. “If I get elected, she’ll be definitely on the top of my list to reach out to.”

Kinser said that she hopes Cassellius will “create very clear goals on what she wants to see with operations and academics, financials, and that she can meet those goals.” If the problems persist after some time, that would be the time for the state to step in, she said. 

Kinser said she hasn’t supported splitting up the district — as Republicans have proposed in the past — but she would be open to discussing the possibility. 

“I think that would actually cause more bureaucracy,” Kinser said. “If that’s what the community wanted, I’d be supportive as long as we could show the kids would have better results, that kids can learn how to read, they’re not going to be poisoned by lead — all of those things.”

Kinser said she wants to open a DPI office in Milwaukee to work with the district. 

When it comes to funding, Kinser said MPS gets a lot of money per child, but said special education is underfunded. 

“I want to make sure we have an increase,” Kinser said. She has said that she thinks the current reimbursement model for special education costs is outdated and would want to look to other states to see if there is another way to do it.

Kinser again said that she would want to help modernize the state funding formula, but she didn’t provide specific suggestions. She said she would want to look at other states and consult with others when asked about her ideas for modernizing the funding formula. She named Florida, Colorado as states with funding models she would want to look at.

“I would hire someone to help me do this work because I am not a financial expert in school funding and so would have to look and see what they’re doing in other states,” Kinser said.

She also emphasized that the ultimate decision wouldn’t be made by the state superintendent.

“We could provide ideas. The Legislature and the governor have to sign off. I’m not a lawmaker,” Kinser said. “People talk about this role as if it were a lawmaker.”

While the state superintendent recommends an education budget, the final proposal comes from the governor’s office. For the 2025-27 budget, which state lawmakers will take up starting in April, Underly submitted a proposal to increase public education by $4 billion. Gov. Tony Evers trimmed that back to more than $3 billion before submitting his draft budget. 

Kinser declined to weigh in on whether Evers’ recommendation was “right or wrong.” 

“I haven’t created my own state budget,” said Kinser, who is making her first run for public office. “I just started this 100 days ago, but I would want to make sure that it’s something that is possible because you want to be taken seriously by the Legislature and the governor.”

Across the state, many school districts have held referendum votes in the last couple of years to increase local property taxes, covering budget shortfalls. 

Kinser said she agrees there are too many referendums, but also said she hadn’t thought about whether the state is relying too much on property taxes for school funding. Asked if the state should rely more on sales tax or the income tax to fund schools, Kinser said she thinks the state would probably need to rely on both.

“I don’t know. Like I’m telling you, I’m not an expert in that,” Kinser said. “I promise to learn more about it [and] try to find the best way for communities, but I don’t want to say something that I’m not an expert in.” 

She added that she would seek advice on such matters. “I promise to have experts around me to answer these questions that you’re [asking], talk with Republicans, Democrats, independents, anyone that owns a home, that has children, worried about their kids,” Kinser said. 

Kinser has never held a teacher’s license in Wisconsin, and she recently updated her Wisconsin administrator’s license after a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel report that her license had lapsed in 2024.

She emphasized that there is no requirement in state law that the state superintendent hold a teacher’s or administrator’s license

“We’re not trying to be a teacher or a principal in the school. You don’t need that. You just need to be a citizen of Wisconsin,” Kinser said. She added that she has a varied background with experience as a special education teacher as well as a charter school principal and leader, but that getting licensed in Wisconsin was difficult.

Kinser, who supports school choice and has lobbied for increased funding to voucher schools, was also asked about a report from the Journal Sentinel published Tuesday morning. The report found that a Milwaukee-based virtual private school received millions of dollars from the state despite being virtual — blurring the lines between the state voucher program, which uses state funds to send students to private and charter schools, and homeschooling, which isn’t eligible for state funding.

“Does that bother you as an educator that there’s this virtual school that’s getting this much state money?” Mayer asked.

“I would have to look into this,” Kinser said. “I did not read the article today. I was not made aware. Sounds like there’s some controversy there.”

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Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk) said she thought there were “worthy” projects in the proposal but criticized the $3.85 billion in bonding to pay for the projects. Gov. Tony Evers delivers his seventh State of the State address while standing in front of Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Felzkowski. Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner

The State Building Commission is not recommending Gov. Tony Evers’ $4.1 billion capital projects proposal to the budget committee after Republican lawmakers voted against doing so saying that it wasn’t realistic and wasn’t created in a bipartisan manner.

The State Building Commission is made up of eight members including Evers, four Republican lawmakers, two Democratic lawmakers and one citizen member appointed to the body by Evers. The votes on each section of the capital projects budget was split down the middle, with Republicans all opposed. The outcome was expected as Republicans have said they plan to create their own proposal. 

Evers’ proposal includes nearly $1.6 billion in projects for the University of Wisconsin System, $634 million to the Department of Corrections, $195 million for health facilities, $170 million for Department of Veterans Affairs’ projects, $164 million in projects requested for the Department of Natural Resources and investments in other areas. 

Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk) said she thought there were “worthy” projects in the proposal but criticized the $3.85 billion in bonding to pay for the projects.

“This is more new bonding in this capital budget than the last five capital budgets combined, and I think to get to a more appropriate level, further discussion is needed,” Felzkowski said. “We need to hear from stakeholders and the public and that just hasn’t happened.” 

Sen. Andre Jacque (R-New Franken) said that he thinks lawmakers and Evers will be able to find some agreement, but argued that “shoehorning” money at the moment for projects will “limit the ability to have some of those discussions, or in some cases might prejudice the [Joint Finance] Committee against whatever we might do here.” 

Evers’ ambitious proposal for reforming the state’s prisons would include infrastructure upgrades and capital improvements to Waupun Correctional Institution, Lincoln Hills School, Stanley Correctional Institution, Sanger B. Powers Correctional Center and John C. Burke Correctional Center. The projects are planned to be carried out one after the other and culminate in the closing of the Green Bay Correctional Institution.

Felzkowski said she was “very saddened” about the corrections proposal and called it a “missed opportunity” for a bipartisan solution. 

“There’s quite a few of us in this Legislature who have worked diligently for corrections reform, and so much of the DOC capital budget rests on the changes to policy around corrections reform,” Felzkowski told Evers. Republican lawmakers have expressed opposition to proposals in the corrections budget that would increase early release. 

“We could have been brought in earlier to discuss the changes or even when you had brought in a consultant around corrections, I would have loved to have been able to work with them and to help bring my side of the aisle into the reform process,” Felzkowski said. 

The Joint Finance Committee, which is responsible for writing the budget, will kick off its work next week with briefings from the University of Wisconsin System and the Department of Corrections. Public listening sessions will then take place starting next week with lawmakers traveling to Kaukauna on April 2 and West Allis on April 4.

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Rep. Barbara Dittrich (R-Oconomowoc) speaking during floor debate Thursday. Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

The Wisconsin State Assembly passed several bills Thursday that target transgender youth in sports, their medical care and decisions on pronouns and names used in school. 

The bills are part of a national wave of actions targeting transgender people that have been taken since President Donald Trump took office. According to the Trans Legislation Tracker, 796 bills have been introduced across the country in 2025. 

Hearings on the bills over the last two weeks were emotional and lengthy, lasting over 20 hours, with the vast majority of people testifying against the bills. Republicans dismissed the public feedback, saying the policies are popular. They cited recent surveys, including a Marquette Law School poll that found 71% of U.S. adults favor requiring transgender athletes compete on teams that match the sex they were assigned at birth.

It’s unlikely the bills will become law as Gov. Tony Evers has vetoed similar bills in the past and vowed to veto any legislation targeting LGBTQ+ youth. 

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) said lawmakers were still pursuing the bills because they provide an opportunity for the public to tell Evers what it thinks.

“At some point you would hope that public pressure would convince Gov. Evers that he has to change his stance,” Vos said. “We have seen some brave Democrats across the country realize that their party has veered way too far to the left, and then if they want to win elections again, and they want to be on the side of the public, they’re going to change their stance.” 

When asked what he made of the overwhelming opposition to the bills at hearings, Vos referenced a saying by former Wisconsin Gov. Lee Dreyfus that Madison is “30 square miles surrounded by reality.”

“If you look at where the most part of Wisconsin is, I think everywhere there’s broad bipartisan support,” Vos said. The area surrounding the Capitol “is the one place where the majority of people think that it’s OK to mutilate your kids. It’s OK to have women never win another sporting event. Yes, did they succeed in getting a couple dozen people to come and testify? Yes, they did and to that, they deserve the credit, but the reality is, we had elections. This was an issue.”

Since the 2024 elections, some Democrats across the country, including U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, have challenged other Democrats’ positions on policies related to transgender people. Wisconsin Democrats were mostly united against the bills, giving impassioned speeches about how the bills would do more harm than good and citing testimony delivered at the hearings.

Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer (D-Racine) said that denying children health care is a “new low” and accused Republicans of proposing the legislation in order to create a political issue and rile up their own base.

“We are here because the majority party is trying to gain an advantage in the Supreme Court election by bullying kids. We know it. You know it. It’s mean-spirited, and it’s not helping people of Wisconsin,” Neubauer said.

One Democrat, Rep. Russell Goodwin (D-Milwaukee), joined Republicans voting in favor of AB 100, which would ban transgender girls in Wisconsin K-12 schools from participating on teams that reflect their gender identity. 

AB 102, which would ban transgender women attending UW System schools and Wisconsin technical colleges from participating on women’s teams, passed 50-43 along party lines. Goodwin left before voting  on that bill or any of the other bills on the calendar.

Rep. Barbara Dittrich (R-Oconomowoc) said the sports bills are needed to fill the “gaps” left by recent policy updates by the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, which recently barred transgender girl athletes from competing on teams that don’t correspond with their sex at birth. The changes came in reaction to an executive order signed by Trump.

The bill was amended to explicitly exclude transgender women from locker rooms and shower areas as well. 

Dittrich said the bills are about fairness and inclusion for women, saying that a co-ed option for teams is included.

“If you want to play with boys, have at it, there’s a co-ed track for you to do that,” Dittrich said.

Rep. Angelina Cruz (D-Racine) and Rep. Angela Stroud (D-Ashland) questioned how the legislation would be enforced. 

“This bill would inflict harm on girls. This bill is an attack on girls. This bill is about exclusion and not protection. This bill does not contemplate enforcement mechanisms — raising concerns about girls’ privacy,” Cruz said. “It is unclear whether the bill would require them to answer intrusive questions about their bodies or undergo physical exams.” 

Stroud said it would likely require people to carry documents to avoid harassment and discrimination. She said the bill wouldn’t help women as a group. 

“One of the reasons we so often celebrate Title IX is because sports have allowed women to defy narrow definitions of acceptable femininity. We could be strong. We could be aggressive. We could be tough. We could be leaders,” Stroud said. “No woman is benefited by narrowing the definition of what counts as being a real woman.” 

Several Republicans complained throughout the debate about “name-calling” and harsh words that were said to them during hearings.

“The only bullying I saw was coming from the trans community,” Dittrich said, adding that she was physically threatened, called a Nazi and had to be escorted to her car from her office. She added that there were “vile” comments posted about her and her family on social media.

AB 103 would require school districts to implement policies that require a parent’s written permission for school employees to use names or pronouns different from a student’s legal name. There is one exception in the bill for a nickname that is a shortened version of a student’s legal first or middle name. The bill passed 50-43 along party lines.

Dittrich, the author of the bill, said it is necessary for parents to be included in those decisions.

“We don’t want to divide between home and school,” Dittrich said. “This is meant to heal that.”

AB 104 would ban gender-affirming care, including the prescribing of puberty-blocking drugs or gender-affirming surgery, for those under 18. It would also require revocation of a medical provider’s license found to be providing the care. It passed 50-43 with Democrats against and Republicans in favor. 

Republican lawmakers said that the bill is necessary because children often change their minds about things, and shouldn’t make medical decisions that cannot be reversed. 

“It would be a failure on our part to allow children to make life-altering decisions, decisions that they will have to live with for the rest of their life, even when that choice is made with parental support,” Rep. Rick Gundrum (R-Slinger) said. 

Gender-affirming medical care is often a lengthy, multi-step process. For those under 18, it typically focuses on pubertal suppression or hormone therapy and surgeries are extremely rare for those under 18, according to KFF. Decisions in the process are made with the input of children, their families and health care providers, including mental health providers. 

Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison) said her office had gotten many calls from people who have concerns about the actions lawmakers are taking, including a Wisconsinite she said was “afraid that standing up for trans people would result in retaliation to her business.”

Hong said the bill is “deeply shameful” and she was “embarrassed” to be there as the Assembly passed it.

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Brittany Kinser headshot. Photo: courtesy of campaign. State Superintendent Jill Underly speaking at a rally in the Capitol. Photo: Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

State superintendent candidates, incumbent Jill Underly and education consultant Brittany Kinser, answered questions about public school funding, the state’s voucher program and working with the Legislature during an online forum Wednesday evening.

The forum was hosted by the Wisconsin Public Education Network (WPEN), the NAACP, the League of Women’s Voters and Wisconsin Early Childhood Action Needed and moderated by Kevin Lawrence Henry, Jr., Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at UW-Madison.

The race for the nonpartisan office will appear on voters’ ballots April 1 alongside the high-profile state Supreme Court race. The state superintendent is responsible for overseeing Wisconsin’s 421 public school districts and leading the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), which administers state and federal funds, licenses teachers, develops educational curriculum and state assessments and advocates for public education.

Underly, who was elected to her first term in 2021, said she has the relationships, experiences and “deep knowledge of what it takes to lead Wisconsin’s public schools.” She said that she is “100% pro public school” and said that improvements have been made to Wisconsin’s education system, but there is more work to be done. 

Kinser said that her “vision for Wisconsin education is that 95% of children will be able to read well enough to go to college, have a career or a meaningful job or master of trade” and is running “to restore our high standards.” She referenced the recent changes approved by Underly in 2024 to state testing standards, but this was the only mention of what has become a major issue among the candidates and state lawmakers who have launched an audit into the changes and passed a bill to reverse them.

Both candidates said the state’s educational gaps must be addressed, but had varying answers on how to do that. According to the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), about three out of every 10 fourth graders and eighth graders were at or above proficient levels. 

“We have got to take accountability at the state level for how our children are learning or not learning… This is a crisis,” Kinser said. “That’s why I got into this race. We have got to hold ourselves accountable. We have got to make it transparent. We have to make sure that it’s easy for all of us to know the information right now.”

Kinser said she has been researching some of the best practices around the country and wants to bring “more transparency and predictability” to DPI. 

Underly said the gaps are “absolutely unacceptable.” She said they know how to solve the problem but that “it takes money and it takes effort.” 

Both candidates said they would want to look at the state’s funding formula for schools, though Underly said that the state’s school choice program, which allows students to attend private and independent charter schools using public dollars, is draining needed resources from public schools and making problems worse. 

“It goes back 30-plus years to [former Gov.] Tommy Thompson and his effort to defund public schools and send funding to unaccountable voucher schools, and this goes back to the refusal of the Legislature to fund public schools and the efforts that they make to defund public schools,” Underly said. “I say, give us the tools we need to do the work, and we can get it done.”

Underly added that she would have to sue if the Legislature continued not investing in schools, as required by the state constitution.

Kinser said that she would also want to look at the funding formula. She said that throughout her campaign she has learned that most people agree that the funding formula is “broken” and is in need of “an upgrade.” She also said that she would be interested in examining whether there is a better way to fund special education costs other than through the current reimbursement system. 

“Schools are operating with limited resources, are concerned and tired of actually paying the referendums,” Kinser said. “Wisconsin’s funding formula needs to be modernized, and I promise to be a leader in that… I have relationships on both sides of the aisle and rapport with the governor’s office. We have to make sure that it’s updated.” 

Underly said that she has worked to develop relationships with legislators, and has worked to “foster productive dialogue, even when we don’t agree.” She noted that collaboration between DPI and the Legislature helped get Act 20, a law that implemented new literacy requirements, passed.

Kinser took credit for helping get Act 11 passed in 2023. The bill provided a historic funding increase to independent charter schools and private schools participating in the Parental Choice Programs and raised the revenue ceiling for public schools to $11,000 for the 2023-24 school year.

“It was the Republicans plus five Democrats in Milwaukee,” Kinser said about the lawmakers who supported the bill. “The governor’s office signed that bill, so it was a group effort to get more funding for all the schools and then some other areas that the governor prioritized.”

Kinser, during her time at the City Forward Collective, a Milwaukee-based school choice advocacy group, lobbied for a bill that increased funding to Wisconsin voucher schools.

While most of the conversation throughout the forum was cordial, the candidates butted heads at the end over Kinser’s lack of a teacher’s license and her support of the state’s choice program. 

A report from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in early February found that Kinser has never had a teacher’s license in Wisconsin and had let her administrator’s license lapse.  

“I don’t believe she fully understands how public schools work in Wisconsin,” Underly said. “She’s made this claim routinely, for example, that only three in 10, or 30 percent of kids, are able to read, or that they’re college ready, and that makes absolutely no sense. We’ve made incredible gains in Wisconsin — how can we be sixth in the nation? And I think my vision has had a lot to do with that.”

Underly also underscored Kinser’s background as a lobbyist advocating for school vouchers and independent charter schools. 

Kinser pushed back noting her varying experiences in the education field including a decade in Chicago Public Schools as a special education teacher and at the district level and about a decade as a principal and in leadership at a charter school in Milwaukee. She also clarified that she recently retained a license again.

“I paid the $185 to update my license… It was so difficult to move my license in from New York and Illinois to Wisconsin,” Kinser said. “I would hope Dr. Underly would understand this as she has said she understands that the teacher shortage is real.”

According to state records, DPI received Kinser’s application and payment on Feb. 25.

Kinser also said the claim that she is a school “privatizer” isn’t true, although she supports school choice. She said when it came to funding she was “lobbying for equal funding for all of our children.”

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