Wausau Mayor "Cautiously Optimistic" in Regards to Share Revenue

Monday, December 5th, 2022 -- 9:01 AM

(Mike Leischner, WSAU) Wausau Mayor Katie Rosenberg says she remains "cautiously optimistic" that there could be some movement in Madison to increase shared revenue, an issue that has come to the forefront for cities, towns, and counties alike the state continues to sit on a multi-billion dollar budget surplus.

"I feel good about the discussions that are happening. We're all talking together, which is really the key here." She says one of the issues both sides have to work through is an understanding of how city budgets work.

"We all do it a little differently. We have different software. We have different assumptions. We have these different things. So, how do we make it easier for the legislature to see what we're doing. How do we have an open book."

She says an amount as little as five hundred thousand to one million dollars extra would make a big difference for Wausau's budget, especially when the city's grant money for additional firefighters and paramedics expires. "If we had $500,000, okay, then we can pay for five of those and it doesn't go on the levy."

She says the biggest key is getting the lawmakers to understand how municipal budgeting works, which may be something they can come together on soon. "There's a desire to be really simple. Just make it an easy formula. And it's really hard because every city and every county has different ways of doing things."

Rosenberg and other leaders discussed the issue during a recent League of Municipalities meeting in Madison, and the most encouraging sign for her is the discussion seems to have shifted from what can't be done, to what can be done to improve the formulas. It remains to be seen where the legislature and the Governor can find middle ground on what to do with the surplus, and how it will impact the next two-year budget.

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