For Release: Friday, March 8, 2024

Contact: Emily Miota, emiota@kidsforward.org, 262-853-6863

Misleading Tax Schemes Would Have Mainly Benefited Wisconsin’s Wealthiest

Last Friday, Governor Evers blocked three bills that would have let Wisconsin’s wealthiest off the hook from paying what they owe and made the state’s racial wealth disparities even worse. The governor’s veto preserves the people’s money to invest in the critical resources low and middle-income families need, like affordable housing, child care, health care, and schools.

“Some state legislators tried to rig the rules in favor of Wisconsin’s wealthy, making it even harder for the everyday people that drive our economy,” stated William Parke-Sutherland, Policy Analyst at Kids Forward, “We thank Governor Evers for standing up to these harmful proposals.” 

An analysis by the ITEP shows that the majority of the proposed tax changes would line the pockets of Wisconsin’s wealthiest households that are overwhelmingly white. 

Read the full analysis here.

Governor Evers vetoed the following three harmful proposals:

• The personal income tax proposal (AB 1020) would cost us nearly $800 million and leave Wisconsin financially underwater. Households in the top 20% of income earners, with an average income of $308,800, would get more than half of those tax savings. 
• The retirement exemption (AB 1021) would have cost Wisconsin over $466 million annually, and most of that tax cut would go to the wealthiest households with average incomes of $308,800. 
• The marriage credit’s (AB 1022) non-refundability would have contributed to the package’s overall regressivity. 

“Wisconsinites move for jobs, family, housing, and weather. Not taxes,” stated Parke-Sutherland, “Now that the Governor has conserved close to $1.5 billion, decision makers should refocus their efforts on confronting racial wealth disparities and investing in essential public services. That’s what will make Wisconsin attractive to workers and families.”