In sports, it is often said that the best offense is a good defense.

The same holds true for the Wisconsin State Legislature.

While a lawmaker’s main role is writing and passing bills, another important part of our job is stopping bad or harmful policies from advancing through the legislative process.

We did just that with Gov. Evers’ 2025-27 budget proposal where he was looking to increase spending by almost 20 percent to $119 billion.

With its unrealistic and unsustainable revenue sources, the governor’s plan would have significantly raised taxes and fees and resulted in a $3.28 billion structural deficit.

Under the governor’s proposal, the size of government would have also swelled. Gov. Evers wanted to add nearly 2,200 more state employees, placing an even further strain on future budgets.

Instead of steering Wisconsin down a path of financial chaos, the Joint Finance Committee – of which I am the Senate vice-chair – rewrote the state budget and included a number of tax relief measures.

What were those exactly? Please check back over the next several Thursdays to find out.