Some State Democrats are Not Too Stoked Over the Republican Shared Revenue Plan

Wednesday, May 3rd, 2023 -- 3:00 PM

(Bob Hague, WRN) We’re hearing from Democrats, about a Republican shared revenue plan with strings attached.

It would provide $227 million in new funding to local units of government, along with restrictions on how that additional money could be spent. Senator LaTonya Johnson of Milwaukee. “It's because of the Republicans that we are here. And so the public needs to understand it's either we accept what's on the table or we watch the City of Milwaukee go bankrupt.”

Senator Kelda Roys of Madison said Republicans have been tightening the screws on local governments for years. “This is a manufactured crisis and Republicans are finally waking up to the fact that they have to address it.”

Senator Johnson of Milwaukee was also blunt about the plan’s restrictions on the city. “Anything that's proposed for the City of Milwaukee will be like holding a loaded gun to our head. We all know that when it comes to the City of Milwaukee, Republicans are not always so kind, and I don't expect this to be any different. Shared revenue for Milwaukee will will come at a cost.”

Details of the plan were released on Tuesday. It would provide $227 million in new funding to local units of government, along with restrictions on how that additional money could be spent. Milwaukee would be required to pay pension obligations and hire additional police officers.

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