Wisconsin's Budget Surplus Grows Even Larger

Friday, January 27th, 2023 -- 12:01 PM

(By Shawn Johnson, Wisconsin Public Radio) Wisconsin's record budget surplus grew even larger Wednesday as a new estimate projected state government would end this fiscal year with an eye-popping $7.1 billion in the bank.

According to Shawn Johnson with Wisconsin Public Radio, the estimate, which was released by the Legislature's nonpartisan budget office, is about half a billion dollars more than Gov. Tony Evers' administration projected just two months ago.

It's also on top of an additional $1.7 billion set aside in Wisconsin's rainy day fund. The primary factors driving that change, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, included a decrease in how much the state is projected to spend over the next several months on expenses like Medicaid.

The state's share of Medicaid went down because the federal government has been picking up a larger share of the costs for the program. The Fiscal Bureau also estimated that tax revenue would grow slightly faster over the next several months than previously projected.

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