Gov. Scott Walker’s administration announced Monday the state’s 2013 fiscal year surplus as of June was $274.5 million more than expected at the beginning of the year, which allowed the University of Wisconsin System to keep tuition below the Big Ten average for a public university.
The state Department of Administration made the announcement through its Annual Fiscal Report, which analyzed state spending numbers through June 30. The $759.2 million surplus allowed the UW System, which accounted for 7.8 percent of total general-purpose revenue spending, to increase spending by $183.2 million or 20.1 percent. The surplus also kept tuition $1,102 below the "Big Ten" public institution average, according to the report.
It also allowed the state to increase its emergency fund by $153.2 million, bringing the total to $278.5 million.
The report’s release comes a day before the state Legislature is expected to take up a bill to cut property taxes that would use $100 million of the surplus. State legislators have said they expect the property tax cut to receive bipartisan support as it moves through the Legislature.
Walker, who announced the property tax plan Friday, said in a statement Monday the report shows the state is “on the right track” after being faced with a $3.6 billion deficit when he first took office. The governor attributed the turn from deficit to surplus to the economic work his administration has done since 2011.
“Our tough, but prudent, decisions are paying off for Wisconsin families,” Walker said in the statement. “This is more great news for the hardworking taxpayers, but there’s more work left to be done.”
