Last week, the 2025 NFL Draft was held in Green Bay. This was the first NFL Draft held in Wisconsin since Milwaukee hosted in 1940. More than 600,000 people attended the draft, far surpassing organizers’ expectations. This event was a tremendous opportunity for the Packers and the Green Bay area economy!

While Wisconsin hosting the draft was great for our state, you may assume that it has no impact on you. After all, no one was coming from out of state to Mount Horeb, Darlington, or Prairie du Chien to stay in our hotels or eat at our restaurants. But actually, it does have an effect on you. Because of the shared revenue package that was passed last legislative session, Green Bay hosting the draft is great for local governments across the state!

Last session, the Legislature made historic investments in local government through a new shared revenue agreement. We heard from many constituents and local officials that county and municipal governments were struggling to fund basic services because shared revenue funding had not increased in over twenty years. After the shared revenue deal passed, local governments in the 17th Senate District received a total increase in funding from the state of 54%. To ensure that these payments to local governments keep up with inflation, we tied future increases to sales tax revenue, dedicating 20% of the state’s 5% sales tax to local governments. As a result, every local unit of government saw a 2.3% increase in shared revenue payments this past year.

The Greater Green Bay Chamber of Commerce estimated before the draft that Green Bay would welcome 240,000 visitors over three days, generating $94 million in total economic impact for the state. The event brought in nearly three times as many people as the original projection! That is a significant amount of money spent on hotel rooms, food, and other local businesses, and much of that money came from out of state. As a result, state government collected more money than expected through our 5% sales tax. Because of the shared revenue agreement, some of that money will end up in your municipality to improve public safety and fix roads.

When a big event happens in Wisconsin, we all win! Whether it’s an event at Lambeau Field, Summerfest in Milwaukee, or a big Badger game, we see benefits in Fennimore, Dodgeville, and Monroe. This was a major selling point for me during negotiations over this bill, and it is great to see it in action.

As a Packers fan, I was thrilled to see how well the event was received nationwide as Green Bay took center stage for the weekend. The Packers and Green Bay did a fantastic job and made the whole state look good! This was a great opportunity to reflect on the new shared revenue package and think about all the great benefits of this event—and many others—for us in the 17th Senate District, even if we are not the ones hosting.

As always, if you need assistance with any state-related matters, please call my team at the State Capitol – 608-266-0703 – or email me – Sen.Marklein@legis.wisconsin.gov. My team is ready and willing to help navigate your state government, clear obstacles, and receive your input.