MADISON, Wis. – Up to 99% of funds generated for the City of Milwaukee by way of 2023’s Act 12 went towards pension payments and raises for city employees, according to a report Monday by a Wisconsin state senator.
Republican Van Wanggaard released the data the same day the city had begun arbitration hearings with the Milwaukee Police Association over a new contract, and one day before Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson will present his proposed 2026 city budget to the Common Council.
“The Legislature passed Act 12 to help Milwaukee avoid bankruptcy due to its underfunded pension, and to improve public safety,” said Wanggaard in a release Monday, who represents a far southwest portion of the City of Milwaukee. “I started looking at this to see how Milwaukee spent their Act 12 money. I never expected to fall down this rabbit hole. While I’m glad they’re paying off the pension as required, it appears they’re more interested in rewarding everyone from the mayor to the dog catcher with raises, rather than investing in police and public safety.”
According to a memorandum from the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau sent to Senator Wanggaard, “the City of Milwaukee budget office reported $182.5 million in actual expenditures tied to sales and use tax revenues in 2024, while the City of Milwaukee Comptroller reports $200.6 million in sales and use tax revenues received in 2024.”
The Senator’s questions stem from the roughly $20 million gap between those two reportings.
“Maybe there’s a simple explanation as to why the Comptroller is giving one set of numbers and the city is saying it has $20 million less than that. But, right now, it doesn’t make sense. Where did it go?”
Between 2023 and 2025, Wanggaard claims Milwaukee Police Department employees on average received an 8% raise while the department as a whole saw spending increase by 11%. Chief Jeffrey Norman received a new four-year term from the Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission in a unanimous vote this past summer; his new contract begins November 15, and is accompanied by a $243,000 salary, up nearly 50% from his previous earnings.
Part of securing a new city sales tax for Milwaukee was a stipulation in Act 12 requiring that “any additional sales tax revenue must be used to increase law enforcement to 1,725 officers”. The law requires, beginning July 1, 2024, municipalities to provide “maintenance of effort” certifications to the Department of Revenue, with a penalty of a 15 percent reduction in a municipality’s shared revenue for failing to do so, according to the League of Wisconsin Municipalities.
“The chart released today confirms what our officers have felt for years: other city departments received double- and even triple-digit wage increases, while Milwaukee’s police officers are left behind. Even the City Assessor’s Office notched a 19% raise. This is a slow-motion defunding of the Milwaukee Police Department, especially as we face a staffing crisis that threatens public safety. It is not sustainable,” said the union in a statement on social media Monday.
READ MORE: “Beyond Shameful”: Milwaukee’s police union frustrated with delays in contract negotiations
Jeff Fleming, spokesperson for Mayor Johnson, questioned the presentation of the information, calling the timeframe of Senator Wanggaard’s report “cherrypicking” to understate pay increases for members of the Milwaukee Police Department.
“A timeframe the went back to 2008 would show police pay increases far surpassed the pay of general city employees. In fact, since 2008 the police increased more than double the general city employee increases,” said Fleming. “Legally, neither ARPA money nor Act 12 sales tax money were (or could be) spent for wages.”
In response, Wanggaard tells WTMJ the city has not been acting in good faith with the police association during their contract dispute.
“How do you justify a 150% increase for some of these positions?,” asked Van Wanggaard.
Wanggaard added he plans to recommend the Legislature audit the city over the matter.
“There needs to be an audit, because there are a lot of questions here. I’m not a CPA, but this makes absolutely no sense to me,” said Wanggaard.
Milwaukee Alderman Peter Burgelis, who also serves as Vice Chair of the Common Council’s Finance and Personnel Committee, called Wanggaard’s report “misguided and misleading attacks” on Milwaukee.
“Senator Wanggaard’s comments show a troubling pattern of political theater over genuine problem solving. Instead of contacting the City Comptroller, Budget Office, or my office, he chose to issue misleading statements that ignore the law and misinform the public,” said Burgelis, while also indicating he had invited the state senator to review information at community meetings.
“Those invitations have gone unanswered,” says Burgelis.
Author’s Note: This story has been edited to include comments from Alderman Peter Burgelis
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