WMC Litigation Center

Two Wisconsin taxpayers filed a lawsuit challenging an unlawful partial veto from Gov. Tony Evers in the most recent state budget. This imaginative veto would allow property taxes to increase exponentially for more than 400 years – significantly longer than the Legislature’s intent of just the next two fiscal years. At issue is Gov. Evers’ use of the so-called “Vanna White” or “pick-a-letter” veto. The governor creatively eliminated specific numbers in a portion of the budget bill that was meant to increase the property tax levy limit for school districts in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 fiscal years. By striking individual digits, the levy limit would instead be increased from the years 2023 to 2425 – or four centuries into the future. Wisconsin voters, however, approved a constitutional amendment in 1990 banning this type of veto and limiting the governor’s authority.