Since we launched LiberateMKE in 2019, we’ve heard about the impending financial cliff facing Milwaukee. In the preceding years, Milwaukee has made no changes to address the major driver of their financial crisis, the police department. Instead, year after year, Milwaukee continues to invest close to $300 million into police. Each year the financial crisis has gotten worse. The response has been more attempts to cut services like the Office of Violence Prevention and libraries. Our demand has been clear: we must invest more into programs like housing, public health, and opportunities for young people.

Now the city is trying to pass a 2% sales tax to make us pay for their ill-fated decisions. We want to make it clear that this 2% sales tax does not solve Milwaukee’s problem. Milwaukee cannot expand any core services outside of police and fire. So this additional 2% would not increase hours at our local libraries or expand programs for young people. All money collected by the sales tax has to be used to either pay police pensions or expand the number of police we have in Milwaukee. In essence, we’ll be paying an additional 2% to fund more police.

We have not even talked about all the terrible personal provisions that the mayor and county executive, who negotiated the deal, allowed to be in the bill. Some of the provisions include the requirements that cops must be in Milwaukee Public Schools, ending of diversity and inclusion programs, and stripping power away from the Fire and Police Commission.

We all know that Milwaukee produces more revenue for the state of Wisconsin than any other city. Yet we continue to receive crumbs in return. We must demand that Wisconsin use its $7 billion budget surplus to fund Milwaukee. Approving this sales tax only continues the mistreatment of Milwaukee and Madison.  And it is clear residents don’t want to pay this new tax. The overwhelming majority of residents opposed this deal because they don’t want to pay more for the same poor services. We deserve so much more, and we must start by rejecting the sales tax. 

The Common Council is scheduled to vote on the 2% sales tax Tuesday, July 11. The bill needs two-thirds of the Common Council to vote in favor in order to pass.

Email your alderperson and tell them to oppose the sales tax: bit.ly/EMAILALDERS.