State Biennial Budget Process Formally Begins
On February 15, 2023, Governor Evers introduced his third State Biennial Budget to a joint session of the Legislature. The budget bill was introduced as Senate Bill 70 and Assembly Bill 43 and was referred to the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee. GOP legislative leaders, in a press conference immediately following the budget address, stated that they would begin budget deliberations from the base budget. This means that the Joint Finance Committee will begin to build the 2023-2025 biennial budget from the current biennium’s programs and expenditures rather than the plan unveiled by the Governor.
While there are many priorities that the Governor and the majority party share the solutions they outline will be very different. The League is pleased that Republicans have been working on a comprehensive local government funding solution for months and we are happy to see the Governor continue his support of local governments by supporting these efforts.
Last night, the Governor proposed an operating budget of $103.8 million over the biennium. This represents a 23.2% (compared to the current fiscal year) increase in general purpose revenue in 2023-2024 before decreasing slightly in the second year of the biennium by 1.2%. This spending increase is surely a nonstarter for Republicans.
As the next months unfold, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau will produce a summary of the Governor’s budget and the Joint Finance Committee will hold agency informational briefings where cabinet members discuss the Governor’s budget provisions and how they impact individual agencies. Once the informational briefings conclude, JFC hits the road for a series of public hearings around the state before settling back in Madison to begin voting on provisions that will build the GOP budget.
Following the Joint Finance Committee's approval of the budget, both houses of the legislature must pass the budget and send it to the Governor’s desk where he can sign the budget, veto the entire bill, or use his line-item veto authority to modify the budget. The entire process typically concludes at the end of the state’s current fiscal year (June 30, 2023) and is signed into law by July 1st. If the budget is not finalized, the state continues to function on the same spending plan as the current fiscal year.
It is a long, comprehensive process to craft and finalize the state’s two-year budget. As always, the League’s Government Affairs Team is here to keep you updated on the entire budgetary progress as well as legislative proposals introduced during the session. If you have questions please contact Government Affairs Director, Toni Herkert at therkert@lwm-info.org or Katie Scott, Government Affairs Specialist at kscott@lwm-info.org.
Additional Budget Resources
