Budget talks break down among Wisconsin Republicans, 10 days left until deadline

MADISON, Wis (CIVIC MEDIA) – Budget planning seems to have broken down among Republicans, with only 10 days before the budget is due. 

In early June, Republican lawmakers and Governor Tony Evers ended negotiations over funding for child care, K-12 schools, and the UW System. After that, the Joint Finance Committee started crafting their own budget. 

It’s a race against the clock. If a new budget isn’t signed by July 1, spending levels will remain the same as the last budget. That means school districts, municipalities, and departments all over Wisconsin will be operating with the same amount of money, and can’t make an accurate budget for the next two years. 

Many hearings over the last couple of weeks have been delayed. On one instance, the hearing was repeatedly delayed, and eventually began five hours late. 

Now, there’s dissent among Republicans in the state Senate. On Wednesday, Senator Chris Kapenga (R-Waukesha) tweeted that he wants the last budget to carry over, instead of voting for the Joint Finance Committee’s plan. 

Wisconsin's state budget expires on June 30. There are three options based on what I am seeing:

1. Accept the Governor's budget. The Governor made clear he wants significant spending and tax increases. The requests don't even make sense… It's a non-starter.

2. Support the…

— Sen. Chris Kapenga (@SenatorKapenga) June 16, 2025

Meanwhile, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Rep. Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam), who’s also co-chair of the Joint Finance Committee, put out a statement saying they hope Senate Republicans come back to talks. 

This is the most conservative and the most responsible option. This budget is on a trajectory to have a more conservative growth rate than the budget that was passed by the Assembly and the Senate two years ago. We hope Senate Republicans will come back to the table to finish fighting for these reforms and complete the budget on time.

On Thursday, June 19, the Joint Finance Committee, led by Born and Senator Howard Marklein (R-Richland Center) canceled its scheduled hearing with about half an hour’s notice. 

They were supposed to discuss the state’s troubled prisons Thursday. Leaders on both sides of the aisle agree that Green Bay Correctional Institution needs to close, and plans to do so were included in Evers’ budget. His budget also included closing Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake facilities for minors. 

The Joint Finance Committee was also set to take up the budgets for the Department of Justice, the Department of Administration, and Tourism, among other things. 

Meanwhile, Democrats on the Joint Finance Committee said it’s another example of Republicans platforming extremist priorities. State Rep. Tip McGuire:

This is ultimately what happens when you allow extremists to hijack the budget process and go against the will of Wisconsinites. Time after time, we heard as we traveled the state from people in communities, rural areas and urban areas, that what they wanted was a budget that would invest in our public schools. We could end the cycle of referendum. They wanted a budget that would invest in childcare so that parents wouldn’t have to make a difficult choice between making sure their kids are taken care of or being able to go to work each day. They wanted a budget that would invest in health care so Wisconsinites could afford to go to the doctor. They wanted a budget ultimately that reflected the needs of the people of Wisconsin.

As of Friday morning, the Joint Finance Committee does not have any future hearings on the schedule.