Governor Signs Court Fee Increase with More Action to Come

As legislative action in the 2025-2026 Legislative Session has come to an end, the attention now turns to the Governor. With over 100 bills ready for action, he has until Thursday, April 9th to either sign bills into law or veto them. Governor Evers has been making steady progress by tackling individual or small groups of bills, but many more are still available. Following last week’s exciting recap of the Senate’s final regular session day, the attachment below will discuss the Governor’s recent action on two League supported bills followed by an overview of 29 additional bills the League lobbied on that are ready for his action. 

Reminder: We Need You at TDA Transportation Roundtables

Wisconsin’s cities and villages own and maintain over 20,000 miles of roads. Transportation infrastructure is such a large part of what municipalities provide to their residents and businesses. Unfortunately, state assistance has fallen short of the help we need to maintain this critical infrastructure. On average only about 15% of all eligible transportation costs are paid by the state in cities and villages. While we seek additional assistance, the state doesn’t have the funding in the segregated Transportation Fund as those revenues have been declining relative to inflation. To learn more about Wisconsin’s transportation funding woes, read our Bumps in the Road article from the July 2025 issue of The Municipality.

Simply put, we need to have a comprehensive conversation about Wisconsin’s transportation future and how we can work together to preserve a safe, modern, and interconnected transportation system that keeps our state moving forward, strong, and competitive. The Transportation Development Association of Wisconsin (TDA), a statewide alliance of stakeholder organizations (including the League) advocating for smart transportation policies, is hosting six “Regional Turnout for Transportation Roundtables” in May to launch this conversation, and all municipal officials are invited and highly encouraged to join.

Transportation is an important topic for cities and villages, and our attendance at these events needs to reflect that. The six roundtable dates and locations are listed below, with each event being held from 7:30am to 9:00am. Please put a hold on your calendar for the day and location that works best for you. You can also RSVP now on TDA’s website. 

• Appleton - Thursday, May 14th at the D.J. Bordini Center, 1825 N. Bluemound Dr.
• La Crosse - Monday, May 18th at the Radisson, 200 Harborview Plaza
• Eau Claire - Tuesday, May 19th at The Lismore, 333 Better Way
• Wausau - Wednesday, May 20th at the Hilton Garden Inn, 151401 County Road NN
• Oak Creek - Wednesday, May 27th at the Homewood Suites and Conference Center, 1900 W. Creekside Xing Cir.
• Janesville - Thursday, May 28th at the Woodman’s Sports and Convention Center, 2510 Milton Ave. 

Agency Actions

Rural Housing Initiative Launched by WEDC

The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) announced that they’ve launched the Emerging Rural Developer Fellowship program to help build local capacity for rural housing development. In this program, fellows will be placed in rural communities to work on housing development projects and expand the pipeline of developers working in rural Wisconsin. The first three fellows will be placed in Bayfield, Door, and Grant Counties with the program running from May 2026 through April 2027. More information on this new program may be found in WEDC’s announcement. 

Wisconsin Water Rates Dashboard Webinar

Next Tuesday, March 31st from 2pm to 3pm, the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC) will host a webinar to discuss updates to the Wisconsin Water Rates Dashboard. This online tool compares utility financial metrics of water utilities, including rates, debt, and liquidity. The webinar will cover the basics of this dashboard that water utility officials may find to be a useful tool in its own financial decision-making. Register for the PSC’s webinar here. 

Easing Assessor Registration on MyDORGov

The Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR) has announced that two new online processes on MyDORGov will make it easier for assessors and the municipalities they serve to keep the Department up to date. Assessors will now be able to use the online portal to update their basic information including the municipalities they serve and clerks will now be able to accept an assessor’s submission and confirm that they serve their community. DOR has posted form instructions and questions and answers online and will soon post a webinar recording on these new processes.