Badger Institute

Governor Tony Evers has falsely suggested the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit amounts to “vouchers” merely for private schools.

Public school district leaders beg to differ — and are thinking about what scholarships will do for their students as well.

Public school leaders look forward to possible private donations for scholarships - Badger Institute Badger Institute : Public school district leaders are thinking about what scholarships from private donations through a new federal tax credit program the will do for their students.

Citizens view accountable and transparent government as vital for American democracy.

But many Wisconsinites are losing confidence that their elected officials share the same values.

Mandate for Madison: Restoring accountability in Wisconsin government ⬇️

Restoring accountability in Wisconsin government - Badger Institute Badger Institute : Wisconsin’ recent failures of accountability share a common feature: Power has increasingly shifted away from the Legislature and toward governors, agencies, courts and other institutions that operate further from direct democratic control.

The good:

The Legislature in 2023 passed Act 20, a reading reform law that requires districts to adopt “science of reading” methods — essentially, teaching children to sound out words in preference to the discredited “three-cuing” method that included guessing at words by looking at nearby pictures and using context clues.

The bad:

“I think that no one is really checking up on (the schools), no one is really monitoring the implementation (of the law),” said the head of Forward Literacy, Katie Kasubaski.

One mother of children with special needs described guidance materials from the DPI as being “clear as mud.”

Wisconsin students who struggle with reading are let down by unenforced literacy reforms, say advocates - Badger Institute Badger Institute : A Wisconsin law requiring schools to inform parents when their students are struggling with reading is going unenforced in far too many districts.

Across regulation, budgeting, workplace policy and federal spending, important decisions have increasingly been made by governors, agencies and courts rather than by the branch of government most directly accountable to the public: the Legislature.

Restoring accountability in Wisconsin government - Badger Institute Badger Institute : Wisconsin’ recent failures of accountability share a common feature: Power has increasingly shifted away from the Legislature and toward governors, agencies, courts and other institutions that operate further from direct democratic control.

In his latest round of pardons, Gov. Tony Evers, who already held the record for most pardons issued by any Wisconsin governor, issued batch of 220 more to bring the total over his tenure to 2,027.

Evers has now overtaken Heil as the most prolific issuer of pardons per year, reaching a rate of nearly 275 granted per year.

Evers issues pardons at higher rate than any governor in Wisconsin history - Badger Institute Gov. Tony Evers, who already held the record for most pardons issued by any Wisconsin governor, issued batch of 220 more to bring the total over his tenure to 2,027.

“I mean, how do we sit here and watch other states like New York, Colorado, Texas, Alabama, Mississippi have additional money for reading tutors or additional money for marching bands or additional money for robotics” — and refuse any for Wisconsin.”

Wisconsin eventually will opt in to donor bonanza for schools, business leader predicts - Badger Institute Badger Institute : “There’s never been a federal program that’s been as generous as this that the state didn’t opt in,” said Kooyenga.

Some of Wisconsin’s recent failures of accountability share a common feature:

Power has increasingly shifted away from the Legislature and toward governors, agencies, courts and other institutions that operate further from direct democratic control.

Restoring accountability in Wisconsin government - Badger Institute Badger Institute : Wisconsin’ recent failures of accountability share a common feature: Power has increasingly shifted away from the Legislature and toward governors, agencies, courts and other institutions that operate further from direct democratic control.

Wisconsin is unlikely to transform higher education through one sweeping reform. Authority is fragmented, ideological divisions are real, and the University of Wisconsin System is a large institution with its own internal governance structures.

Still, recent experience shows that practical reform is possible. Lawmakers can use budget leverage, resist the assumption that every problem requires more spending, and along with the Board of Regents pursue good-governance reforms that make the system work better for students and taxpayers.

Building on the Wisconsin higher-ed reform model - Badger Institute Badger Institute : Wisconsin can pursue practical, targeted reforms that improve accountability, strengthen academic standards and better align universities with the needs of students and taxpayers without dismantling the university system itself.

The number of homicides rose in the city of Milwaukee in 2025 compared to 2024, while the number fell in rest of the state.

Homicides rise in Milwaukee, fall in rest of Wisconsin - Badger Institute

In some places, parents are not being properly notified of either their children’s reading struggles or remediation plans or both.

In other places, remediation appears to not be meeting the standards specified in the law.

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, meanwhile, is not providing clear guidance, let alone oversight.

Wisconsin students who struggle with reading are let down by unenforced literacy reforms, say advocates - Badger Institute Badger Institute : A Wisconsin law requiring schools to inform parents when their students are struggling with reading is going unenforced in far too many districts.