An Act to repeal 59.90, 62.50 (1j), 62.90, 77.70 (2) (c), 77.701 (2) (c), 77.701 (3), 79.039 (1) and 79.039 (1m); to amend 62.50 (1h), 62.50 (1m), 62.50 (3) (title), 62.50 (3) (a), 62.50 (3) (am) and 66.1105 (2) (f) 2. e. of the statutes; Relating to: eliminating and modifying certain provisions enacted under 2023 Act 12 regarding the city of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County. (FE)
AB684 would roll back and revise a set of Milwaukee-specific provisions enacted in 2023 Act 12. The bill removes several reporting, spending, staffing, and governance conditions tied to the city of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County’s authority to levy sales taxes for retirement system liabilities. In particular, it eliminates annual reporting to the Joint Committee on Finance on how sales tax revenues are spent, and it repeals restrictions that limit cultural and entertainment spending, require supermajority votes for certain new spending or staffing increases, and impose other county- and city-specific budget and operational conditions.
The bill also changes the structure of oversight for Milwaukee’s police and fire departments. It would authorize the city’s fire and police commission to prescribe general policies and standards and to make rules for department members, shifting some authority away from the chiefs’ current control-and-management role. It also revises how common council review works for those rules. In addition, the bill repeals provisions related to Milwaukee tax incremental financing and rail fixed guideway transportation spending, including restrictions on using certain tax revenues for rail projects, while preserving an exception for the Lakefront Line.
AB684 would amend and repeal multiple sections of the Wisconsin statutes that currently apply only to Milwaukee and Milwaukee County, especially provisions tied to the local sales taxes authorized to address unfunded pension liabilities. Its effect would be to reduce state-imposed oversight and operational constraints on the city and county, while expanding the fire and police commission’s policy-making role and altering the legal framework governing police and fire department rules. The bill would also remove several Milwaukee-specific fiscal and transportation restrictions embedded in tax increment and sales tax statutes.
The available context suggests the bill was introduced by a large group of Democratic legislators and cosponsored by several Democratic senators, indicating support among its authors for undoing the 2023 Act 12 framework. No committee transcript or recorded vote is provided, but the bill ultimately failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1. Based on the bill’s content, the general sentiment among supporters appears to be that Milwaukee and Milwaukee County should have fewer state-imposed conditions attached to their local revenue tools and governance, while the lack of passage suggests the proposal did not secure the necessary broader legislative support.
The main points of contention are the Milwaukee-specific fiscal controls and governance restrictions enacted in 2023 Act 12. Supporters of AB684 appear to object to state-mandated reporting, supermajority voting requirements, spending caps, staffing constraints, and limits on how sales tax and TIF revenues may be used. Opponents, by implication, would favor retaining those oversight mechanisms and restrictions, particularly those tied to public safety staffing levels, cultural spending, and rail/transit-related expenditures. The bill also raises a governance question about whether the fire and police commission or department chiefs should have greater authority over police and fire policy and rules.