Gov. Tony Evers vetoed a bill that would have repealed his decision to allow school districts to raise taxes for the next 400 years, sparking criticism from Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany.
“My 400 year veto is here to stay,” Evers retorted in his Friday veto message. Evers’ veto message was part of a veto rampage that his administration went on Friday night. Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, who is part of that administration, is running for governor.
Although lawmakers initially wanted a spending increase to end after 2023-25, Evers struck out numbers and punctuation to turn that into 2425, essentially giving school districts the ability to raise property taxes for another 400 years. The bill Evers vetoed on April 3 would have overturned that extension.
Congressman Tom Tiffany, candidate for Governor of Wisconsin, released the following statement after Evers vetoed Senate Bill 389, legislation that would have ended his 400-year property tax increase, which extends until the year 2425.
“Wisconsin already has some of the highest property taxes in America, and Governor Evers just vetoed relief for working families,” said Rep. Tiffany. “No governor should have the power to raise your taxes for 400 years with the stroke of a pen. On day one, I will end this 400-year hike and lower property taxes.”
The bill was introduced by Senators Kapenga, Nass, Bradley, Cabral-Guevara, Jagler, James, Stafsholt, Tomczyk, Wanggaard and Hutton; cosponsored by Representatives Maxey, Piwowarczyk, Allen, Behnke, Brill, Dittrich, Donovan, Goeben, Green, Hurd, B. Jacobson, Kitchens, Knodl, Kreibich, Melotik, Moses, Murphy, Mursau, O’Connor, Penterman, Sortwell and Wichgers.
Earlier this year, Rep. Tiffany “unveiled his property tax relief agenda, which includes calling a special session immediately upon taking office to end the 400-year property tax increase and implementing a property tax freeze to stop taxes from rising further,” his press release says.
“It is also worth noting that Francesca Hong, the leading Democrat candidate for Governor, voted against Senate Bill 389. Lt. Governor Sara Rodriguez has also called the 400-year property tax increase ‘appropriate,'” noted Tiffany.
