State Budget: What an Educator Needs to Know
Governor Tony Evers has signed a 2025-27 state budget, Act 15, that freezes aid to K-12 public schools, increases special education funding slightly and makes modest investments in student mental health. WEAC is still plowing through what this means for the state technical college system, but the University of Wisconsin system will fare better than initially expected at the start of negotiations.
“Let’s call this what it is: a complete betrayal of public schools,” said Peggy Wirtz-Olsen, teacher and WEAC President, after educators and families rallied in a final push to get a better budget for students. “Given the ugly truth about this budget, educators are exploring every option to force politicians to bring forward a longterm solution to Wisconsin’s school funding crisis. This state can’t keep shattering the foundation of our public schools and expect the professionals who teach them to pick up the pieces.
“If you think things can’t get worse, look at what’s coming from Washington—a federal attack on public education. Wisconsin cannot withstand the double-blow to public schools. We have every right to be angry.”
See How Your Legislators Voted
Budget Breakdown
K-12 Public Schools
- State Aid: Not a single new state aid dollar for K-12 public schools. Sixty-six percent of districts are already set to LOSE state aid next year, and this budget will only make it worse as funding won’t keep up with inflation. That means more cuts, more layoffs and more referendums just to keep the lights on.
- Special Education Reimbursement: 42 percent in 2025-26, 45 percent in 2026-27. The reimbursement represents flat funding, which does not adjust for needs or inflation, rather than sum sufficient so experts say support will fall significantly short.
- Healthy School Meals: Does not include universal free school meals, as the governor’s original proposal did.
- Student Mental Health: In a time when politicians have said they understand the need to address serious mental health issues, the budget deal only offers a small fraction of the increase originally proposed.
- Sparsity Aid: $2 million to fully fund the state’s sparsity aid program for eligible districts in 2025-26 and 2026-27.
- Literacy Funds: $37.1 million in 2025-26 to provide grants to reimburse school districts and vouchers to adopt literacy curriculum and the cost of professional development. This increase is exempt from being included in the calculation of voucher payments, preventing them from double-dipping. There’s also $1.4 million for early literacy assessments.
- Science Teachers: $250,000 for science teacher professional development,
- Vouchers: Voucher and privately run charter school payments remain sum sufficient, with per pupil payments increasing $174 in the first year and decreasing by $25 in the second. In total, funding for vouchers increase $13.2 million in 2025-26 and $12.5 million in 2026-27.
- High Cost Special Education: This budget increases the reimbursement rate from 26 percent to 50 percent in 2025-26 and 90 percent in 2026-27, for public school children with costs exceeding $30,000. This would create equity for a relatively small number of children in public schools, who will be reimbursed at the same rate as vouchers in 2026.
- Library Aids: $36 million for school library aids.
- Holocaust Education Resource Center: The center would receive an increase of $300,000 above base-level funding of $200,000.
Wisconsin Technical College System
- Cybersecurity: The budget deal reached between the governor and legislature includes $100,000 for WTCS in cybersecurity.
UW System
- Largest Investment in Decades: The UW System is set to receive a $256 million increase in the next state budget, marking the largest investment in over two decades.
By the Numbers
Here’s a look at some of the key provisions in the budget as it stands. WEAC will continue to analyze the budget document and make adjustments as new information becomes available.
| Governor’s Proposal | Legislative Proposal | |
| Per-Pupil Revenue Limits |
Increase $334 / $345 |
Increase $325 / $325 |
| Low-Revenue Limits |
Increase $1,000 / $400 |
Appears no increase in funding |
| Per-Pupil Categorical Aid |
Increase $58 / $50 |
Information coming. |
| General Equalization Aid |
$1.2 billion |
No Increase $0 / $0 |
| Special Education Reimbursement |
60% / 60% |
42% / 45% |
| School Mental Health |
$300 million |
$30 million |
| Healthy School Meals for All | $155 million over the biennium | $0 |
