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No.

A Milwaukee Public Schools referendum question on the April 2 ballot doesn’t say the funding would come from property taxes. It asks:

“Shall the Milwaukee Public Schools, Milwaukee and Washington Counties, Wisconsin be authorized to exceed the revenue limit specified in Section 121.91, Wisconsin Statutes, by $140 million for the 2024-2025 school year; by an additional $51 million for the 2025-2026 school year; by an additional $47 million for the 2026-2027 school year; and by an additional $14 million (for a total of $252 million) for the 2027-2028 school year and thereafter, for the recurring purposes of sustaining educational programming, including offering career and technical education programs, attracting and retaining certified educators, and further improving art, music, physical education and language programs?”

Other 2024 Wisconsin school referendum questions also don’t mention property taxes.

The Milwaukee schools website says it would raise property taxes $216 for each $100,000 of home value.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

Milwaukee Public Schools: Ballot Question and Voter Information

South Milwaukee School District: Referendum 2024 – Safe, Supported, and Successful – Vote April 2

Green Lake School District: Referendum Information 2024

Merrill School District: Wording for Ballot Referendum April 2024.pdf

Milwaukee Public Schools: Frequently Asked Questions

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Does the ballot question for Milwaukee Public Schools’ $252 million referendum tell voters the money would come from property tax increases?

by Tom Kertscher / Wisconsin Watch, Wisconsin Watch
March 12, 2024

<h1>Does the ballot question for Milwaukee Public Schools’ $252 million referendum tell voters the money would come from property tax increases?</h1>
<p class="byline">by Tom Kertscher / Wisconsin Watch, Wisconsin Watch <br />March 12, 2024</p>

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<p><em><em><a href="https://www.wisconsinwatch.org/">Wisconsin Watch</a></em> partners with&nbsp;<a href="https://gigafact.org/">Gigafact</a>&nbsp;to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. <a href="https://wisconsinwatch.org/2023/05/how-wisconsin-watch-checks-claims-for-its-gigafact-fact-briefs/">Read our methodology</a> to learn how we check claims.</em></p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">No.</h2>
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<p>A Milwaukee Public Schools referendum&nbsp;question&nbsp;on the April 2 ballot doesn't say the funding would come from property taxes. It asks:</p>
<p>"Shall the Milwaukee Public Schools, Milwaukee and Washington Counties, Wisconsin be authorized to exceed the revenue limit specified in Section 121.91, Wisconsin Statutes, by $140 million for the 2024-2025 school year; by an additional $51 million for the 2025-2026 school year; by an additional $47 million for the 2026-2027 school year; and by an additional $14 million (for a total of $252 million) for the 2027-2028 school year and thereafter, for the recurring purposes of sustaining educational programming, including offering career and technical education programs, attracting and retaining certified educators, and further improving art, music, physical education and language programs?”</p>
<p>Other&nbsp;2024&nbsp;Wisconsin&nbsp;school&nbsp;referendum questions also don't mention property taxes.</p>
<p>The Milwaukee schools website says it would raise property taxes $216 for each $100,000 of home value.</p>
<p><em>This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as <a href="https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2024/03/05/mps-referendum-northwestern-mutual-milwaukee-schools/72840567007/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">this one</a>.</em></p>
<p><strong>Sources</strong></p>
<p>Milwaukee Public Schools: <a href="https://mps.milwaukee.k12.wi.us/en/District/2024-Referendum/Voting-Information.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ballot Question and Voter Information</a></p>
<p>South Milwaukee School District: <a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.sdsm.k12.wi.us/2024referendum&amp;sa=D&amp;source=docs&amp;ust=1709746341068701&amp;usg=AOvVaw1yYaOxWm-qAdh22J0YIwib" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Referendum 2024 - Safe, Supported, and Successful - Vote April 2</a></p>
<p>Green Lake School District: <a href="https://www.greenlakeschool.com/district/referendum-information-2024.cfm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Referendum Information 2024</a></p>
<p>Merrill School District: <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Lb_GfJ3HBcOyGwzOpGAoRCBMSj3A2eGv/view" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Wording for Ballot Referendum April 2024.pdf</a></p>
<p>Milwaukee Public Schools: <a href="https://mps.milwaukee.k12.wi.us/en/District/2024-Referendum/Frequently-Asked-Questions.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Frequently Asked Questions</a></p>
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<p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://wisconsinwatch.org/2024/03/milwaukee-public-schools-referendum-ballot-property-taxes-fact-brief/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://wisconsinwatch.org&quot;&gt;Wisconsin Watch&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/wisconsinwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/cropped-WCIJ_IconOnly_FullColor_RGB-1.png?fit=150%2C150&amp;amp;quality=100&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p>
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Does the ballot question for Milwaukee Public Schools’ $252 million referendum tell voters the money would come from property tax increases?

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