MADISON, Wis. — Budget negotiations between Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Republicans who control the state Legislature have broken down, leaving lawmakers on a short timeline to draft their own proposal.
The GOP-led Joint Finance Committee met Thursday to work on a new two-year budget for only the third time this year. Two years ago, at this time, the committee had met seven times to vote on spending plans for state agencies.
The governor and top Republicans had been meeting for weeks to try to reach a deal on tax cuts, education funding, and other priorities. In separate statements issued Wednesday evening, Evers and GOP leaders from both chambers of the Legislature announced that they had reached an impasse.
“We’ve spent months trying to have real, productive conversations with Republican lawmakers in hopes of finding compromise,” Evers said. "I am admittedly disappointed that Republican lawmakers aren’t willing to reach consensus and common ground and have decided to move forward without bipartisan support instead.”
Republicans pointed the finger back at the governor.
“Both sides of these negotiations worked to find compromise and do what is best for the state of Wisconsin. However, we have reached a point where Governor Evers’ spending priorities have extended beyond what taxpayers can afford,” Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu and Sen. Howard Marklein, co-chair of the Legislature’s budget-writing committee, said in a joint statement.
Watch: After failed negotiations with Evers, Republicans continue work on state budget
Republicans have been prioritizing tax cuts this budget cycle. Evers said he was willing to approve the GOP’s “top tax priorities,” noting that they were similar to bills he has already vetoed, but that negotiations broke down after Republicans wouldn’t agree to his proposed investments in education and child care.
“The concept of compromise is simple—everyone gets something they want, and no one gets everything they want,” Evers said.
The governor’s office said its staff had been meeting with Republicans every day over the past week to try to reach a compromise.
Rep. Mark Born, co-chair of the budget-writing committee, said Thursday that the governor’s spending demands were roughly three times the value of the tax cut Republicans were pushing for.
“The spending, really, that the governor needs is just more than the state can afford,” he said.
Evers and Republicans both thanked each other for coming to the meeting table, and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he’s open to continuing negotiations.
“Assembly Republicans remain open to discussions with Governor Evers in hopes of finding areas of agreement, however after meeting until late last night and again this morning, it appears the two sides remain far apart,” Vos said in a joint statement with Born.
The Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee is now continuing its work towards passing a new two-year budget through the same process as the last three budgets passed since Evers was first elected. That means going through agency by agency to create a draft to send to the governor. Evers can then amend that plan with his partial veto power, but he can’t add new items.
Born said Thursday that even with the delays caused by failed negotiations, he believes the Legislature can pass a budget on time.
“It’s certainly going to mean maybe a few longer meetings, but budget meetings usually get long anyway,” he said.
If lawmakers don’t pass a new budget by June 30, state spending will continue at its current levels. A late budget could pose issues for local governments and school districts trying to put together their own spending plans without knowing how much revenue they’ll receive from state government.
“[Republicans] have all the tools within their power to pass a budget on time, and if they don’t, it’s a huge failure on their part,” Democratic Sen. Kelda Roys, a member of the finance committee, said Thursday. “There are real-world repercussions here for every single school district and every single municipality across the state.”
A late budget could also mean a slower start to the 2026 governor’s race. Evers has said he won’t announce whether he plans to run for reelection until the budget process is over.
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