MacIver Institute

Special funding the legislature set aside to “fix the damn roads,” could now go to bike paths, buses, and the Milwaukee streetcar thanks to Gov. Evers’ veto pen and shifting priorities. Lobbyists from the League of Wisconsin Municipalities and the Wisconsin Towns Association gave their seal of approval on Thursday.  Read More “Fix The Damn Roads” After Evers’ Other Priorities

As we dive into the heart of the summer, nothing slowed down in the news across the state and country. Over the past week MacIver released its complete analysis of the state budget and a breakdown of how Gov. Evers increased spending through his veto pen; the Governor is trying to push through extensive PFA regulations that would destroy businesses; and consumers keep the economy alive.   Read More ICYMI: Complete Budget Analysis, Evers Pushing Costly Environmental Regulations, And The US Consumer Spends Strongly

Perspective by Chris Rochester - President Trump has made reducing the price of prescription drugs a cornerstone of his presidency, and that effort continues largely under the radar in Washington. It’s a worthwhile effort, but Trump and Congress should be wary of embracing the type of inhumane, socialist-style price controls adopted in other countries.  Read More Americans Should Be Wary of Embracing Socialist-Style Price Controls

By M.D. Kittle -- It looks like Gov. Tony Evers will have to change his feisty slogan from “Fix the Damn Roads” to “Fix the Damn Roads … and Spend More Money On Transit  …and Harbors … and Maybe Even Milwaukee’s Boondoggle Streetcar.”  Read More Local Roads And So Much More: Evers Just Might Have Some Money For Tom’s Trolley After All

By M.D. Kittle - With scant public input, Gov. Tony Evers’ administration has just crafted some of the most draconian environmental standards in the world.   Read More Evers Administration Unveils Stringent And Costly Environmental Regs With 1 Day To Comment

This week started with Amazon Prime Day, the online retail giant’s annual day of discounts. But those unbelievable deals are illegal in Wisconsin, thanks to the state’s antiquated Minimum Markup law, a relic of the Great Depression, when the Amazon was just a river. The law effectively outlaws low prices in the name of protecting “mom and pop” shops. In reality, it’s an anti-free market enemy of consumers that forces Wisconsinites to pay higher prices on everything from prescription drugs to gasoline.  Read More MacIver News Minute: Hey Alexa, Find Me An Illegal Deal!

Video - Democrats from Milwaukee talked about some serious public health problems in Wisconsin during the recent budget debates that truly need to be addressed. However, they didn’t bring up those problems to look for real solutions. They simply wanted Republicans to expand Medicaid – even though data from the CDC says it wouldn’t necessarily do anything to solve those problems.  Read More Medicaid Expansion Talking Points Versus Statistics

By Dan O'Donnell - To say that Governor Evers is inventing new ways to spend money isn’t just a figure of speech anymore.  In the most ludicrous expansion of line-item veto power in recent memory, he circumvented longstanding constitutional norms and $86 million in K-12 education spending to Wisconsin’s biennial budget.  Read More Evers Literally Inventing New Ways to Spend Money

He shouldn't have been able to do that, according to how most people understand the Wisconsin governor's veto authority.  Read More How Evers Vetoed A Spending Increase Into The Budget

A MacIver Institute Analysis - The 2019-21 Wisconsin state budget is now law. What's in the document? Read our full analysis here, with in-depth subsections for important issue areas.  Read More COMPLETE ANALYSIS: The 2019-21 Wisconsin State Budget

MacIver News - If unchanged, the ultimate impact of these policies will be higher vehicle prices and fewer choices for consumers. The Heritage Foundation estimates a new car in 2025 will cost at least $7,500 more if the Trump Administration does not reform the mandate.  Read More Car Buyers Face Fewer Choices, Higher Prices Unless Trump Reforms CAFE Mandate

It has been a busy past week for the state of Wisconsin! Gov. Tony Evers partially vetoed the GOP budget proposal last week, and with both sides of the aisle (mostly) pleased the Legislature is now off for the summer. Around the country, the CBO researched the $15 minimum wage and found that the policy hurts those it intends to help.   Read More ICYMI: MacIver Budget Analysis, $15 Minimum Wage Report, and Possible Interest Rate Cut Coming Soon

By Chris Rochester - Freedom fighter Ismael Hernandez was a card-carrying communist - a true believer in the Cuban revolution - an all-consuming belief system that defined most of his young life.  Read More MacIver Newsmakers Podcast: Ismael Hernandez’s Journey From Communist To Freedom Fighter

Madison is 30 square miles surrounded by reality. Case in point: the recent debate over K-12 funding. The GOP budget increases K-12 funding by $655 million over two years, the largest increase ever in Wisconsin history. But out-of-touch activists claim this amounts to a $900 million cut...only in the alternative universe of Madison. But taxpayers still live in the real world, where people have to spend what they can afford.  Read More MacIver News Minute: Madison Math Turns Huge K-12 Hike Into A “Cut”

The state’s newly-signed budget is a compromise of both the best and worst sorts. Legislative Republicans were able to exorcise the worst and most ridiculous of Democratic Governor Tony Evers’ policy proposals, but in exchange had to surrender the last vestiges of fiscal sanity left over from the Scott Walker era.  Read More A Costly Compromise

Just before we all left work to celebrate the nation's birthday, Gov. Tony Evers used his powerful veto pen to make significant changes to the 2019-21 budget passed by the GOP-controlled Legislature. He vetoed out common-sense work and drug testing requirements for welfare programs, despite the strong economy. But surprisingly, Evers left alone the GOP's $500 million-plus tax cut. For more on the budget and the vetoes, visit maciverinstitute.com.  Read More MacIver News Minute: Ups and Downs of Gov. Evers’ 78 Vetoes

A MacIver Institute Analysis - There is something for everyone to love in this budget - from fiscal conservatives, far-left progressives, Republicans, taxpayers, Democrats, big-government loving special interests, lobbyists, to local governments - and something in this budget for everyone to hate.  Read More ANALYSIS: The 2019-21 Wisconsin State Budget 

By Matt Kittle - At a press event surrounded by cabinet secretaries, Dem lawmakers, and, of course, children, Evers not-so-begrudgingly signed into law an $81.4 billion biennial budget crafted by the Republican-controlled Legislature. The governor made the document a bit more to his liking with 78 line-item vetoes, cutting some GOP initiatives while bolstering k-12 funding by $63 in per-pupil over the life of the budget.   Read More Evers Trades In Campaign Promises For A Big-Spending Budget With 78 Vetoes

There was nothing Evers could do to get it back to the $84.2 billion he wanted to spend. However, he certainly was not going to sign the Republicans' budget without making some changes. Here’s what Evers did and did not do in his 78 line-item vetoes.  Read More Veto Day Analysis

Any big-spending budget is bound to produce many winners and losers, and the same can be said of the 2019-21 budget passed last week by both Houses of the Legislature and likely to be signed by Gov. Evers this week. Taxpayers, for example, landed in both the winners and losers columns. While the $83 billion budget cuts taxes $500 million, it still is a massive spending hike. Big Labor was also a big loser in this budget, with every worker freedom rollback axed from the document on day one. But the ultimate loser: fiscally conservative values.  Read More MacIver News Minute: Winners and Losers in the 2019-21 State Budget