It’s the power of the pen. Wisconsin’s governor has the most powerful ‘partial veto’ of any state in the country.
But a new lawsuit aims to change that. This lawsuit stems from the last budget bill.
In a state as politically charged as Wisconsin, the governor’s partial veto could be the most bipartisan tradition we have.
“In other parts of the country, in other parts of the world for that matter, the veto is a relatively boring maneuver between the executive and the legislature. In Wisconsin, it’s a sport,” said Howard Schweber, UW-Madison Professor Emeritus.
In July 2023, Governor Tony Evers extended a per-pupil funding increase for schools by 402 years, just by crossing out a few numbers.
“No governor in Wisconsin has the authority to use a Vanna White or pick-a-letter veto to eliminate certain letters or certain digits or numbers to create new words and new numbers,” said Nick Novak from Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce.
So on Monday, April 15, on behalf of two taxpayers, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce petitioned the state supreme court, asking the justices to strike Evers’ vetoes.
