By: Josh Schoemann – Washington County Executive
A week from tomorrow, voters in Wisconsin have a unique opportunity to return power back to the legislators who represent them. On the August 13 ballot, there are two very important referendums that would restore a balanced spending authority with the legislature, reaffirm the separation of powers, and ensure our executive branch is not given unlimited spending powers.
After the COVID-19 federal relief made its way to the states, Governor Tony Evers was given the ability to spend billions of federal dollars – completely unchecked. Whenever our State Legislature prevented excessive spending on his liberal wishlist, Governor Evers circumvented the legislative branch by spending from his federal emergency slush fund. Stunningly, Governor Evers’ administration can’t account for where nearly two-thirds of these dollars even went.
The Democratic Party is attempting to brand this referendum as something it is not: a power grab and dangerous in the event of an emergency. These exaggerated claims are a sad and desperate attempt to prevent balanced oversight of your tax dollars. After all, Governor Evers still has $1.8 billion tucked away in his slush fund, but they don’t want you to know that.
Tony Evers is a governor – not a king – and an executive of any party should not be given the power to spend tax dollars without limitations. This referendum ensures that the executive branch must work with the legislature when spending our taxpayer dollars. What’s more, other states worked through an approval process without the doomsday scenario the left describes.
In Washington County, we did things differently when using these dollars. Instead of working against the county board, I worked with them to ensure the voice of their constituents is heard in our budget process and excessive tax dollars are returned to taxpayers. Every proposed expenditure of these funds had to be publicly presented to county legislators in public meetings– a concept completely foreign to Governor Evers.
I didn’t have unlimited, unchecked power to spend the money on whatever I wanted. We used these dollars on additional relief, by only funding items that gave money back to the taxpayers, would lead to a return on investment or reduce future spending by early investing now. If the federal government was going to send us this money, a policy that still concerns me, we wanted to ensure it would get back into the hands of our taxpayers.
This included our Heart and Homestead Incentive, which encouraged first-time home buyers to plant roots in Washington County, allowing us to broaden our tax base while reducing rates. We cut red tape so that more homes could be built in Washington County and more families could afford them. By using this money wisely, we have been able to cut Washington County’s tax rate to the lowest levels since World War I.
But it didn’t end there; we also used this money to clean up the federal and state government’s mess. Our local nursing home, Samaritan Health Center, was in a dire financial position after the shutdowns associated with the pandemic. Federal vaccine mandates left our workforce stretched beyond thin, and we needed help. These funds were used to keep Samaritan afloat until we could put this business back in the hands of the private sector. Additionally, business and tourism grants allowed us to re-invest in our economy after Tony Evers shut it down. These businesses desperately needed help, and a thriving economy means more people living and working in Washington County.
These priorities all have two things in common: putting the taxpayers first and working with our leaders to reach this goal. In Washington County, we believe in the bottom-up philosophy where the elected officials closest to the people should have the biggest voice. Tony Evers can’t say the same, but instead believes in the top-down approach where one person can have the ultimate say on how all of our tax dollars are spent.
Whether you are a Republican, a Democrat, or an Independent, you should care how your money is spent by your government. The referendums on the August 13 ballot restore power in your hands and your wallet. Please get out and vote YES on August 13.
