Among the more than 50 research briefs and reports we publish each year, the Wisconsin Policy Forum always includes at least one analyzing the overall tax levels in our state. For more than a half century, the Forum and one of our two predecessor organizations, the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, have worked to compile and publish data on every single state and local tax here. Continue reading…
The Forum’s 32nd Annual Salute to Local Government was one of our best yet! This year saw another uptick in attendance, as we welcomed more than 460 guests to the November 13 event at Milwaukee’s Italian Community Center.
The Salute is Wisconsin’s premier annual celebration of how public sector excellence improves communities throughout our state. Salute awards recognized local governments and school districts for innovative problem-solving, efforts to advance racial equity, and public-private cooperation. We also honored individuals in the public sector for excellence and lifetime achievement. Another award category, in partnership with UW-Madison’s La Follette School of Public Affairs, recognized innovative performance in state government.
Our featured speaker was Jim Paetsch, longtime leader of the Milwaukee regional economic development entity known as Milwaukee 7. Paetsch said the Milwaukee region’s road to future economic development prosperity may differ from what brought prosperity in past decades – and that the region must get more comfortable embracing smart risk in economic development.
Congrats to all of this year’s winners – click here for a complete list, and to watch video vignettes recognizing each of them! Thanks also to our sponsors, whose logos are shown below.
WPF’s work on Milwaukee’s home ownership inequities is featured in a recently released anthology by the Governmental Research Association (GRA), of which WPF is a member.
Per the collection’s framing essay by Dr. Ryan Hankins, Executive Director of the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama and GRA Vice President, “(GRA organizations) share a common goal: providing objective, nonpartisan policy research to policymakers and the public. Today, the landscape is awash with information of varying quality and intent. Think tanks, research institutes, advocacy organizations, issue groups, and others offer no shortage of research to policymakers.
“In many cases, policy research has become a private good, bought and paid for to confirm the customer’s assumptions. As the public can now be ‘consumers’ of the media that aligns with their views, policymakers can also be consumers of research that aligns with their views.”
This anthology, titled, “Moving Forward: Issues that Matter in Cities, Regions, and States,” is available as a free resource for those looking for example alternatives to this landscape.
We hosted two Forum Friday virtual discussion events in the fourth quarter of 2024. In the Forum Friday webinar format, we discuss a topic from our recent research, then invite notable panelists and audience members to join the conversation.
On October 4, we revisited a critical state-level debate in Wisconsin: whether to expand Medicaid health coverage under the federal Affordable Care Act. Our guests were State Medicaid Director Bill Hanna, Alex Ignatowski of the Institute for Reforming Government, and Mark Grapentine of the Wisconsin Medical Society.
On December 13, we looked at how Wisconsin will fund its transportation system in the years to come amid new challenges including inflation and the adoption of electric vehicles. Our guests were Julie Esch of Milwaukee County Transit System, former Wisconsin Transportation Secretary Mark Gottlieb, Steve Baas of the Wisconsin Transportation Builders Association, and Tracy Johnson of the Commercial Association of Realtors Wisconsin.
Originally adopted as a way to continue holding events during the COVID-19 pandemic, Forum Friday has proven to be durably popular, typically attracting 100-200 registered attendees per event. The accessibility of the virtual format also helps ensure our events better align with our mission of serving the entire state of Wisconsin.
State Budget Brief: Our state budget brief will provide a broad overview of Gov. Tony Evers’ proposed 2025-27 budget, including recommended state spending and revenue levels and major budget initiatives. We will also highlight select issues that are critical to understanding the state budget, focusing on those that appear to have the greatest chance of passage and on those major issues that legislators in both parties will need to consider. Later in the year, we will consider the final budget that is approved by lawmakers and signed by the governor.
Milwaukee Education Ecosystem: We will follow up on our August 2024 landscape study, Roll Call, with an analysis of promising practices and innovations for Milwaukee’s K-12 ecosystem. The report will draw upon data and insights both from exemplary schools within the city and from other places nationally experiencing more success than Milwaukee. It will conclude by laying out policy options for potential next steps.
Fire and EMS Studies: In the first quarter of 2025, we plan to publish five reports examining options for enhanced collaboration on emergency medical services (EMS) – in some cases fire and EMS services – in communities throughout southern Wisconsin, and their potential to improve services and reduce costs. These studies will focus on Milwaukee, Lafayette, and Walworth counties and in the Madison suburbs of Waunakee, Middleton, and Sun Prairie.
Milwaukee County Juvenile Justice System: Our 2023 report, Under Pressure, examined how the pandemic and subsequent challenges have impacted Milwaukee County’s adult justice system, and we have now turned to its juvenile justice system. This research will explore a number of issues, including whether juvenile referrals have declined at similar levels as adult arrests, whether backlogs of court cases exist in the children’s court, and the outcomes of a dramatic reduction in the number of county youth housed at state-run institutions over the past decade.
Madison Gas and Electric (MGE) is working to achieve deep decarbonization, pursuing globally recognized strategies to achieve our science-based carbon reduction goals. By 2050, on behalf of all customers, MGE expects to deliver net-zero carbon electricity, and by 2030, the company expects to deliver electricity with 80% fewer carbon emissions. MGE already has reduced carbon emissions by about 40% compared to 2005 levels, putting the company halfway to its 2030 goal.
MGE generates and distributes electricity to 163,000 customers in Dane County and purchases and distributes natural gas to 176,000 customers in seven south-central and western Wisconsin counties. MGE’s roots in the Madison area date back more than 150 years. Visit mge.com for more information.
How has your membership in the Wisconsin Policy Forum been a resource for you and your organization?
The Wisconsin Policy Forum offers MGE high-quality and objective research. For example, the Forum’s Madison Metropolitan School District Budget Brief and the City of Madison Budget Brief have been educational and helpful. As your community energy company, MGE works, partners, and collaborates across our communities. Understanding the issues facing our communities helps us to advance those partnerships and to better serve our customers to meet their needs, goals, and objectives. We invest in our community, and we seek to help maintain the long-term health and vitality of the greater Madison area for the benefit of all those we serve.
Contact Info: Mario Garcia Sierra, Energy Equity & Innovation Manager
jgarciasierra@mge.com
For more than a century, the Forum and its predecessor organizations have produced impartial research and analysis that has generated greater understanding of complex policy issues and improved the quality of public policy decision-making in Wisconsin. In addition to maintaining your ongoing membership, we ask you to consider making a donation to further facilitate our ambitious research and program agenda. Please contact Elizabeth Cizinsky, our Director of Business & Community Operations, at ecizinsky@wispolicyforum.org or by phone at (414) 435-1130 to discuss how your charitable gift can advance our shared goal of producing objective, independent research to address state and local issues throughout Wisconsin.
In these polarized times, we are especially grateful for the support of our members and sponsors. Thank you for reading our research, attending or tuning in for our events, participating in our committee meetings, and maintaining your membership with us.
We are supported by hundreds of corporations, nonprofits, local governments, school districts, and individuals from across the state of Wisconsin. The following members provide particularly generous support that ensures Wisconsin will continue to benefit from having one of the nation’s most successful nonpartisan, independent public policy research organizations.
