Property owners in the Iola-Scandinavia School District could face annual tax increases ranging from roughly $193 to more than $900 if lawmakers or the courts overturn Act 10, according to new district-level projections from the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL).
The Milwaukee-based conservative law and policy center recently released an analysis alongside an interactive tax calculator warning that repealing the 2011 collective bargaining law could trigger the largest property tax increases in state history.
Using the institute’s projected mill rates for the Iola-Scandinavia School District, the financial impact scales directly with assessed property values depending on whether the state offsets local costs with additional aid. In a worst-case scenario where the state contributes no additional aid, the district’s mill rate rises to 9.709 mills. Under that rate, the owner of a $150,000 home faces an annual tax increase of $389.57, while a $250,000 home sees an increase of $649.28, and a $350,000 home incurs an extra $908.99 per year.
Even under a best-case scenario, which assumes state aid increases proportionally to current distribution levels, the district’s mill rate still climbs to 8.398 mills. That projection results in an annual tax increase of $192.89 for a $150,000 property, $321.48 for a $250,000 property, and $450.07 for a $350,000 property.
The localized projections come amid active legal and political challenges to Act 10. Last year, plaintiffs filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of key provisions within the law, a case that remains pending before the Wisconsin Court of Appeals. Simultaneously, several gubernatorial candidates are campaigning on pledges to repeal Act 10 if voters elect them to office.
Enacted in 2011 alongside tighter local spending caps, Act 10 originally sought to curb major cost drivers for local governments and public school districts. Before those reforms, Wisconsin residents paid about 20% to 30% more in property taxes than the national average. Over the past decade, however, the law stabilized property tax growth and brought the state closer to the national per capita average.
Researchers at the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty state that repealing Act 10 will restore collective bargaining rights and prompt public sector unions to demand compensation and benefit packages matching pre-2011 levels. Citing staffing data from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, the organization calculates that average total compensation in school districts must rise by roughly $17,000 per employee, adjusted for inflation, to match 2010-11 payouts. Statewide, the institute estimates these changes will create approximately $1.6 billion in new expenses for school districts alone, plus an additional $500 million burden for other local governments.
According to the report, these tax increases will not take effect immediately. Instead, expenses will accumulate over several years as local officials and school boards negotiate new collective bargaining agreements. However, citing the current composition of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, pending appellate litigation, and the combined fiscal impact of preserving Gov. Tony Evers’ 400-year veto and expanding revenue limits, analysts project that taxpayers will feel the full financial impact by 2030.
