Cost of Crawford—Liberal Supreme Court Win Could Cost WI Families $4,000 in Lost Tax Relief

Wisconsin Republicans are poised to deliver $2 billion in tax relief to families thanks to the state's current budget surplus, totaling an estimated $4,000 per family over the next 3–4 years. 

That plan is under threat from Democrats, led by far-left Gov. Tony Evers, who want to block Republicans' tax relief plan, Senate President Mary Felzkowski (R) told Restoration News in an exclusive interview. 

Now billions of dollars are on the line—and it could all come down to control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court after the state's all-important April 1 election between liberal Susan Crawford and Republican ex-Attorney General Brad Schimel.

Before the planned legislation can become a reality, Felzkowski explained, lawmakers will need Evers to prioritize the financial needs of Wisconsinites reeling from the effects of former President Biden's high inflation. This means Evers would need to relent from abusing what the Republican leader describes as "the strongest veto pen in the nation."

If the envisioned legislation is implemented, Felzkowski said middle class families can expect to see "thousands of dollars" in tax cuts "accumulate" in just a few years.

"That's money coming back to you, and that's money we didn't take out of your pocket," she continued. "These dollars will build up year after year."

But if Republicans cannot come to terms with Evers, there is a strong possibility that they will not submit a budget. 

"Wisconsin is not like the federal government," Felzkowski said. "We do not shut down. We continue to operate. We just operate under last year's budget levels."

(RELATED: Wisconsin's $4.6 Billion Surplus is Under Threat by Liberal Supreme Court)

About That Budget Surplus…

The state entered 2025 with a $4.6 billion budget surplus. But, as Felzkowski explained, there are a few caveats. 

"There's what I call artificial money sent out by the federal government under the Biden administration that's not going to be ongoing," she said pointing to the Inflation Reduction (IRA) and the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The senate president also commented on the penchant Evers has for resisting tax cuts. 

"In the last session, we put about four different tax cut proposals in front of Evers, and he said no to absolutely everything we put in front of him," Felzkowski said. "Because Wisconsin has a progressive tax code, he literally vetoed tax cuts for people on food stamps."

The $2 billion tax cut proposal Republicans plan to unveil in April will benefit Wisconsinites earning $150,000 annually and below.

"This is the definition of middle class that Evers gave us and that's what we are going from," the senate president said. "People are hurting financially from Biden's inflation. We know what it costs at the grocery store with the press of eggs. People need these tax cuts."

Republican lawmakers are keen on the idea of delivering substantial tax relief as part of their 2025–27 biannual budget proposal. They anticipate that the surplus will enable them to comply with Wisconsin's constitutional requirement to balance the budget. 

"Keep in mind we will still be left with a $2 billion surplus of ongoing dollars to fund priorities in the state of Wisconsin," Felzkowski said. "So, we can very well afford this tax cut."

Evers' Frankenstein Veto

But there's still the matter of governor's partial veto power, which is unique to Wisconsin and has been in place since 1930. Also known as the "Frankenstein Veto," this peculiar feature of Wisconsin law enables a governor to selectively delete words, numbers, and even punctuation from proposed legislation, and effectively rewrite a bill without the legislature's approval. Voters approved a 1990 amendment blocking governors from creating a new word in bills. 

But the amendment hasn't stopped Evers. 

The governor used his partial veto power during the last budget battle to extend the expiration of an annual $325 school revenue limit increase by 400 years—from 2025 to 2425, slashing two digits and a dash to completely transform the bill's scope. That's four centuries of funding increases that can't be undone without legislative or court action.

The Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC), the state’s largest business lobby group, and two Wisconsin taxpayers, are challenging Evers' school revenue alteration as unconstitutional since it involved the creation of a new word. The case is currently being heard before the Wisconsin Supreme Court. 

Property taxes for school funding will soar, Felzkowski warned, if the court permits the Evers veto to stand in this case.  

There's the Rub

The 7-member state supreme court is now in the hands of a liberal majority after Janet Protasiewicz was elected in 2023 amidst a tidal wave of out-of-state dark money.

The Supreme Court isn't expected to reach a verdict before April 1, when voters will elect either Republican former Attorney General Brad Schimel or radical leftist Susan Crawford to the open court seat. But the winner of that race will likely rule on future partial veto cases—putting billions of dollars and the fate of Wisconsin's remaining surplus on the line. The judges serve 10-year terms. 

"The election for the supreme court will be the most important election we see in the next four years," Felzkowski said. "It will be more important than the legislature races and more important than the governor's race in 2026."

The winner of the April 1 election will not be seated until August 1. If Schimel were to prevail, Felzkowski expects that the court's current majority will do whatever it can to make sure high-profile cases are decided in their favor before August. Even so, she sees at least a possibility the court will rule against Evers in the school funding case. 

"The courts don't want to get too cute because the pendulum can swing," she said. "Right now, we have a Democratic governor, but that won't be the case forever."

As Felzkowski explained, the court must know that when giving this veto power to Evers they are also over the long-term giving it to a future Republican governor. 

"This is something they are also weighing, and they have to be careful," she said. 

Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers are in the early stages of pushing a proposal for a constitution amendment to limit the governor's partial veto power. But the future hangs on which candidate wins the Supreme Court race—and tilts control of the court itself.

(READ MORE: Drag Queens Rallying for Susan Crawford in WI Supreme Court Race—Explicit)