Report: Next Budget Faces $2.2B Deficit Based On What Agencies Have Asked To Spend

According to budget numbers released by the Walker administration on Thursday, the next state budget faces a $2.2 billion shortfall between what agencies want to spend and what the state is expected to generate in tax revenue.

The Department of Administration report says that agencies are asking for a nearly 5 percent increase in general fund spending next fiscal year and a 6 percent increase the year after that. As is typical in many budgets, the Department of Health Services, which runs programs like BadgerCare, is seeking the biggest budget increase, followed by the Department of Public Instruction.

What’s unusual is that the Department of Transportation is asking for more general fund dollars than it’s received in the past — specifically, a 95 percent increase next fiscal year.

Revenues are expected to grow in the next budget, but not nearly fast enough, meaning Gov. Scott Walker and state lawmakers will have to make significant changes.

The DOA report shows that the budget for the current fiscal year is projected to end roughly $130 million in the red.