Tiffany's negative ads lack meaningful context, should not be taken seriously
In Milwaukee County, the property tax rate – what each homeowner pays – has actually fallen every year Crowley has been in office. For a $250,000 home, the amount of property taxes going to the county is projected to decrease on average by $30 next year.
Wisconsin voters are used to a perpetual election cycle filled with attack ads. This year, negative and inflammatory political advertising seems to have surged. Outside spending, artificial intelligence deepfakes, and polarizing social issues are blanketing the airwaves and social media platforms.
Voters are often bombarded with half-truths or outright lies that lack proper context. That’s the point, of course: to amplify negative messages that are often difficult if not impossible to easily refute without resorting to complicated counterpoints.
Take Tom Tiffany’s ad claiming that David Crowley raised property taxes five times, for example.
The ad was likely based on a recent Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story about Milwaukee County taxes. Tiffany’s ad highlighted the top line without explaining the difference between the tax levy and the tax rate.
It is true that the amount of revenue levied increased, but the property tax rate – what each homeowner pays – has actually fallen every year Crowley has been in office. For a $250,000 home, the amount of property taxes going to the county is projected to decrease on average by $30 next year.
That decrease in the tax rate points to a vibrant and growing Milwaukee County. Higher overall levies (and thus, lower property tax rates) are the result of net new construction, which increases the tax base. When costs are shared among many, it means everyone benefits and taxes go down.
In fact, the county’s finances have strengthened under Crowley’s leadership since 2020. This year the county is projected to end with a surplus of $3.3 million. For the seventh straight year, Crowley has proposed a balanced budget.
‘Jim’ from Milwaukee
In another ad, ‘Jim from Milwaukee County’ seems to want quality city services but seems unaware that the Republican majority in the legislature has underfunded municipalities for years. Local governments have had to trim budgets year after year just to keep up with inflation, all while the state sits on a budget surplus of around $3 billion.
Perhaps Jim believes municipal services cost the same as they did 10 years ago. Or that public employees should never receive salary increases. Or maybe Jim is fine with crumbling roads, dilapidated schools, slimmed-down emergency services, and unkempt parks as long as they don’t affect him personally.
Wise state budgeting over the years would not have put local governments in this situation. Jim may be pleasantly surprised when he discovers he’s paying lower taxes this year due to Milwaukee’s growth.
Regarding that structural deficit …
In yet another ad, this one criticizing Crowley for a projected $51 million structural deficit, critical context is once again missing
Because the state legislature provided insufficient shared revenue for nearly 20 years, Milwaukee County is dealing with a $50 million budget deficit. Crowley’s budget proposal is addressing this by reallocating funding, consolidating services, and seeking state and federal partnerships.
"It is not an easy task. But together, we’ve delivered real, tangible wins for Milwaukee County that have moved us closer to our goal of generational fiscal stability," Crowley said in his budget address.
Furthermore, Crowley helped negotiate the passage of Act 12, which released state revenues to municipalities and ended decades of fiscal instability for Milwaukee and every community across Wisconsin struggling to maintain services that working families rely on.
That county sales tax matter
Yet another ad that fails to provide the full picture accuses Crowley of raising the county sales tax. Let’s look at that.
Because state-imposed caps limited shared revenue and restricted property tax increases for more than 20 years, Milwaukee County was forced to look elsewhere to maintain services.
Seventy of Wisconsin’s 72 counties impose their own local county sales tax on top of the 5% state sales tax. Most counties charge an additional 0.5% local tax.
Under Act 12, Milwaukee County was able to add an additional 0.4% county sales tax in 2024.
Let’s be honest: Crowley and Milwaukee County was forced into the deficit it found itself in. Act 12 was a fiscally mature response to that. It has allowed Milwaukee County over the past six years to finally address unresolved problems, strengthen the county’s finances and expand services such as affordable housing and mental health care, while funding services that keep its citizens safer.
