MONROE — State budget talks between Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers and the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) has stalled, officials said late Wednesday, June 4.

“Since April, we have engaged in good faith negotiations with Governor Evers and his staff to establish the outline of a bipartisan state budget,” Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) and Senate Joint Finance Co-Chair Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) said in a joint statement. “Unfortunately, those talks have reached an impasse.”

Meanwhile, Evers, a Democrat, put the blame on the Republican leaders for the demise of the negotiations.

“The concept of compromise is simple — everyone gets something they want, and no one gets everything they want” Evers said. “I told Republicans I’d support their half of the deal and their top tax priorities — even though they’re very similar to bills I previously vetoed — because I believe that’s how compromise is supposed to work, and I was ready to make that concession in order to get important things done for Wisconsin’s kids.

“Wisconsinites expect their elected officials to show up, act in good faith, and work together across the aisle to get things done — that’s what I’ve been committed to doing in these bipartisan negotiations from the get-go, and that remains my commitment,” Evers added.

The governor said his top priorities were meaningful investments for K-12 schools, to continue Child Care Counts to help lower the cost of child care for working families, and to prevent further campus closures and layoffs in the UW system.

“Republicans couldn’t agree to support the top priorities in my half of the deal,” Evers said. “(They) decided not to move forward with any more bipartisan negotiations with me.”

LeMahieu and Marklein chocked it up to Evers wanting more than Republicans were willing to compromise on.

“We have reached a point where Governor Evers’ spending priorities have extended beyond what taxpayers can afford. The Joint Committee on Finance has successfully crafted three consecutive budgets that were signed by Governor Evers. We are confident that the legislature will pass a responsible budget that the governor will sign into law,” the joint statement continued.

Famously, Evers used the line-item partial veto power when signing the budget in 2024. With his pen, he struck words out to increase school revenue limits by an additional $325 for the next 400 years, much to the ire of Republicans. Marklein and the JFC challenged the veto, but the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled in favor of Evers.

“We uphold the 2023 partial vetoes, and in doing so we are acutely aware that a 400-year modification is both significant and attention-grabbing,” Justice Jill Karofsky wrote at the time. “However, our constitution does not limit the governor’s partial veto power based on how much or how little the partial vetoes change policy, even when that change is considerable.”

Evers isn’t the only one working for change in child care funding. Last month, Rep. Jenna Jacobson, (D-Oregon) of the 50th Assembly District, co-sponsored LRB-3324/1 and LRB-3322/1, which relate to a Department of Children and Families program to make payments to child care programs, granting rule-making authority and making an appropriation.

“The Joint Finance Committee voted to cut funding for child care, along party lines. This funding would have saved money for Wisconsin families,” Rep. Jacobson said. “We can and should be prioritizing our children and our future.”

Fifteen state senators and 44 representatives had signed on as of late May, with the deadline for co-sponsorships Friday, June 5.

“To ensure that families with young children are able to actively participate in the workforce and contribute to the state’s economy, it is essential to pass the funding for this program that Governor Evers requested in the 2025-2027 biennial budget. This bill invests $480 million in the Child Care Counts program,” co-sponsors wrote in a letter to their peers.

Since 2007, more than half of Wisconsin’s child care providers have closed. Over half of the state and nearly 70% of rural Wisconsin is a child care desert, meaning there are three or more children for every child care slot. Funding this program would help child care centers keep their doors open while also supporting partnerships between businesses and child care providers.

An analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau said that the bill funds the program through a new appropriation and by allocating federal moneys, including child care development funds and moneys received under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant program.

“With the funding from the (federal) government, I was able to increase wages by $4 an hour and began a health insurance package for my teachers,” said Riley Johnson. Johnson owns two child care groups in Green County — Little Learners Child Care Centers — one in Monticello and the other in Monroe. “I was able to keep tuition the same price through the entirety of the pandemic while the prices of food and supplies increased significantly.”

Johnson said that with the complete loss of funding coming in July, childcare costs will have to go up to offset the loss of funding or teachers wages will have to decrease “at least $4 an hour” to recoup the loss.

“To retain teachers and to remain open, tuition increases would be the only viable option,” Johnson said.