As we set off into a new year, many of us are looking back at the year that was 2024. That includes the Wisconsin Policy Forum, an organization that analyzes critical policy issues in the State of Wisconsin.
They compiled a list of their top five findings of the year and the forum’s communications director Mark Sommerhauser, shares those with Lake Effect.
1. Since 2017, home prices in Wisconsin have outpaced incomes, making home buying more daunting.
If it seems like it's been harder to buy a home in Wisconsin recently that could be due to the disparity between wage increases and the increase in home prices.
Sommerhauser explains, "The median sale-price of homes in Wisconsin during that period from 2017-2022 had increased ... by about a 53% in just a five year period."
2. Among the 10 states that haven’t expanded Medicaid, Wisconsin is the only one that would have substantial savings.
Wisconsin is one of just 10 states that hasn't fully expanded Medicaid coverage, but it's the only one of those states that would save a substantial amount of money by doing it. In 2024, the State of Wisconsin would have saved an estimated $261 million and could save an estimated $1.7 billion over the next two years.
3. State and local taxes fell to record lows in 2022, well below national average.
Wisconsin's tax burden in 2022 fell to 9.9%, below the national average of 11.1%. This marks a big change in the tax burden over the last couple decades, and comes at a time when many school systems and municipal governments are struggling to survive.
"As recently as 2000, Wisconsin ranked third among the 50 states for tax burden and just in the last 24 years here, we've seen quite a dramatic shift, and in 2022, we had fallen all the way to 35th," says Sommerhauser.
4. MPS leaders more than tripled the district’s property tax levy for recreation in '23-'24, then lowered it again this year.
As taxes have continued to fall in the state, many school districts have turned to increasing property taxes to raise money. Between 2023-2024, Milwaukee Public Schools dramatically increased the district's property taxes for its recreation fund, which covers things like community education.
5. Arrests by MPD fell by 82.3% over the past decade.
In 2012, Milwaukee had the highest arrest rates among 11 peer cities in the U.S. with a rate of 85.5 arrests per 1,000 people. In 2023, the city had the third lowest arrest rate, with just 16.1 arrests per 1,000 people. There are a variety of reasons for this, including a nationwide decline in the number of arrests and the end of the city's stop and frisk policy.
Sommerhauser says, "We were somewhat of an outlier ... in 2012 in terms of being very much on the high end and we just have seen a really, really significant shift in the last 11 years."
