Wisconsin Gov. Evers' budget could lead to tuition hike at major state college

The University of Wisconsin may soon raise tuition as Democratic Gov. Tony Evers' planned budget shortchanges it by about $130 million worth of operational costs.

The regents had asked the governor to increase the system's budget by $435.6 million in the 2023-25 budget, according to figures compiled by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. The state has accumulated a $7 billion surplus, but the spending plan Evers released on Wednesday would increase system funding by $305.9 million over the biennium.

Republican lawmakers on the Legislature's finance committee will spend the next four months revising the budget before sending it to the full Assembly and Senate for approval. From there, the budget will go back to Evers, who can rewrite it again using his extensive partial veto powers. If Evers' funding proposal for UW survives in the final budget, regents could raise tuition to fill the $129.7 million shortfall.