Constitution of Wisconsin (2026 publisher edition) — Article VIII

Publisher edition notice: The publisher identifies this complete compilation as published August 5, 2026 and last amended April 2025. Publisher context and source notes are preserved; later amendments have not been independently verified.

Article VIII

ARTICLE VIII. FINANCE Rule of taxation uniform; income, privilege and oc- cupation taxes. SECTION 1. [As amended Nov. 1908, April 1927, April 1941, April 1961, and April 1974] The rule of taxa- tion shall be uniform but the legislature may empower cities, villages or towns to collect and return taxes on real estate lo- cated therein by optional methods. Taxes shall be levied upon such property with such classifications as to forests and miner- als including or separate or severed from the land, as the legisla- ture shall prescribe. Taxation of agricultural land and undevel- oped land, both as defined by law, need not be uniform with the taxation of each other nor with the taxation of other real prop- erty. Taxation of merchants’ stock-in-trade, manufacturers’ ma- terials and finished products, and livestock need not be uniform with the taxation of real property and other personal property, but the taxation of all such merchants’ stock-in-trade, manufac- turers’ materials and finished products and livestock shall be uniform, except that the legislature may provide that the value thereof shall be determined on an average basis. Taxes may also be imposed on incomes, privileges and occupations, which taxes may be graduated and progressive, and reasonable exemp- tions may be provided. [1905 J.R. 12, 1907 J.R. 29, 1907 c. 661, vote Nov. 1908; 1925 J.R. 62, 1927 J.R. 13, vote April 1927; 1939 J.R. 88, 1941 J.R. 18, vote April 1941; 1959 J.R. 78, 1961 J.R. 13, vote April 1961; 1971 J.R. 39, 1973 J.R. 29, vote April 1974] Appropriations; limitation. SECTION 2. [As amended Nov. 1877] No money shall be paid out of the treasury except in pursuance of an appropriation by law. No appropriation shall be made for the payment of any claim against the state except claims of the United States and judgments, unless filed within six years after the claim accrued. [1876 J.R. 7, 1877 J.R. 4, 1877 c. 158, vote Nov. 1877] Credit of state. SECTION 3. [As amended April 1975] Ex- cept as provided in s. 7 (2) (a), the credit of the state shall never be given, or loaned, in aid of any individual, association or cor- poration. [1973 J.R. 38, 1975 J.R. 3, vote April 1975] Contracting state debts. SECTION 4. The state shall never contract any public debt except in the cases and manner herein provided. Annual tax levy to equal expenses. SECTION 5. The legislature shall provide for an annual tax sufficient to defray the estimated expenses of the state for each year; and whenever the expenses of any year shall exceed the income, the legislature shall provide for levying a tax for the ensuing year, sufficient, with other sources of income, to pay the deficiency as well as the estimated expenses of such ensuing year. Public debt for extraordinary expense; taxation. SECTION 6. For the purpose of defraying extraordinary expen- ditures the state may contract public debts (but such debts shall never in the aggregate exceed one hundred thousand dollars). Every such debt shall be authorized by law, for some purpose or purposes to be distinctly specified therein; and the vote of a ma- jority of all the members elected to each house, to be taken by yeas and nays, shall be necessary to the passage of such law; and every such law shall provide for levying an annual tax sufficient to pay the annual interest of such debt and the principal within five years from the passage of such law, and shall specially ap- propriate the proceeds of such taxes to the payment of such principal and interest; and such appropriation shall not be re- pealed, nor the taxes be postponed or diminished, until the prin- cipal and interest of such debt shall have been wholly paid. Public debt for public defense; bonding for public purposes. SECTION 7. [As amended April 1969, April 1975, and April 1992] (1) The legislature may also borrow money to repel invasion, suppress insurrection, or defend the state in time of war; but the money thus raised shall be applied exclusively to the object for which the loan was authorized, or to the repay- ment of the debt thereby created. (2) Any other provision of this constitution to the contrary notwithstanding: (a) The state may contract public debt and pledges to the payment thereof its full faith, credit and taxing power: 1. To acquire, construct, develop, extend, enlarge or im- prove land, waters, property, highways, railways, buildings, equipment or facilities for public purposes. 2. To make funds available for veterans’ housing loans. (b) The aggregate public debt contracted by the state in any calendar year pursuant to paragraph (a) shall not exceed an amount equal to the lesser of: 1. Three-fourths of one per centum of the aggregate value of all taxable property in the state; or 2. Five per centum of the aggregate value of all taxable Wisconsin Constitution updated by the Legislative Reference Bureau. Published August 5, 2026. Click for the Coverage of Annotations for the Annotated Constitution. Report errors at 608.504.5801 or lrb.legal@legis.wisconsin.gov.

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Published August 5, 2026. 14 ART. VIII, §8, WIS. CONSTITUTION property in the state less the sum of: a. the aggregate public debt of the state contracted pursuant to this section outstanding as of January 1 of such calendar year after subtracting therefrom the amount of sinking funds on hand on January 1 of such calendar year which are applicable exclusively to repayment of such out- standing public debt and, b. the outstanding indebtedness as of January 1 of such calendar year of any entity of the type de- scribed in paragraph (d) to the extent that such indebtedness is supported by or payable from payments out of the treasury of the state. (c) The state may contract public debt, without limit, to fund or refund the whole or any part of any public debt contracted pursuant to paragraph (a), including any premium payable with respect thereto and any interest to accrue thereon, or to fund or refund the whole or any part of any indebtedness incurred prior to January 1, 1972, by any entity of the type described in para- graph (d), including any premium payable with respect thereto and any interest to accrue thereon. (d) No money shall be paid out of the treasury, with respect to any lease, sublease or other agreement entered into after Jan- uary 1, 1971, to the Wisconsin State Agencies Building Corpo- ration, Wisconsin State Colleges Building Corporation, Wis- consin State Public Building Corporation, Wisconsin Univer- sity Building Corporation or any similar entity existing or oper- ating for similar purposes pursuant to which such nonprofit cor- poration or such other entity undertakes to finance or provide a facility for use or occupancy by the state or an agency, depart- ment or instrumentality thereof. (e) The legislature shall prescribe all matters relating to the contracting of public debt pursuant to paragraph (a), including: the public purposes for which public debt may be contracted; by vote of a majority of the members elected to each of the 2 houses of the legislature, the amount of public debt which may be contracted for any class of such purposes; the public debt or other indebtedness which may be funded or refunded; the kinds of notes, bonds or other evidence of public debt which may be issued by the state; and the manner in which the aggregate value of all taxable property in the state shall be determined. (f) The full faith, credit and taxing power of the state are pledged to the payment of all public debt created on behalf of the state pursuant to this section and the legislature shall pro- vide by appropriation for the payment of the interest upon and instalments of principal of all such public debt as the same falls due, but, in any event, suit may be brought against the state to compel such payment. (g) At any time after January 1, 1972, by vote of a majority of the members elected to each of the 2 houses of the legisla- ture, the legislature may declare that an emergency exists and submit to the people a proposal to authorize the state to contract a specific amount of public debt for a purpose specified in such proposal, without regard to the limit provided in paragraph (b). Any such authorization shall be effective if approved by a ma- jority of the electors voting thereon. Public debt contracted pur- suant to such authorization shall thereafter be deemed to have been contracted pursuant to paragraph (a), but neither such pub- lic debt nor any public debt contracted to fund or refund such public debt shall be considered in computing the debt limit pro- vided in paragraph (b). Not more than one such authorization shall be thus made in any 2-year period. [1967 J.R. 58, 1969 J.R. 3, vote April 1969; 1973 J.R. 38, 1975 J.R. 3, vote April 1975; 1989 J.R. 52, 1991 J.R. 9, vote April 1992] Vote on fiscal bills; quorum. SECTION 8. On the pas- sage in either house of the legislature of any law which imposes, continues or renews a tax, or creates a debt or charge, or makes, continues or renews an appropriation of public or trust money, or releases, discharges or commutes a claim or demand of the state, the question shall be taken by yeas and nays, which shall be duly entered on the journal; and three-fifths of all the mem- bers elected to such house shall in all such cases be required to constitute a quorum therein. Evidences of public debt. SECTION 9. No scrip, certifi- cate, or other evidence of state debt, whatsoever, shall be issued, except for such debts as are authorized by the sixth and seventh sections of this article. Internal improvements. SECTION 10. [As amended Nov. 1908, Nov. 1924, April 1945, April 1949, April 1960, April 1968, and April 1992] Except as further provided in this sec- tion, the state may never contract any debt for works of internal improvement, or be a party in carrying on such works. (1) Whenever grants of land or other property shall have been made to the state, especially dedicated by the grant to par- ticular works of internal improvement, the state may carry on such particular works and shall devote thereto the avails of such grants, and may pledge or appropriate the revenues derived from such works in aid of their completion. (2) The state may appropriate money in the treasury or to be thereafter raised by taxation for: (a) The construction or improvement of public highways. (b) The development, improvement and construction of air- ports or other aeronautical projects. (c) The acquisition, improvement or construction of veter- ans’ housing. (d) The improvement of port facilities. (e) The acquisition, development, improvement or construc- tion of railways and other railroad facilities. (3) The state may appropriate moneys for the purpose of ac- quiring, preserving and developing the forests of the state. Of the moneys appropriated under the authority of this subsection in any one year an amount not to exceed two-tenths of one mill of the taxable property of the state as determined by the last preceding state assessment may be raised by a tax on property. [1905 J.R. 11, 1907 J.R. 18, 1907 c. 238, vote Nov. 1908; 1921 J.R. 29S, 1923 J.R. 57, 1923 c. 289, vote Nov. 1924; 1943 J.R. 37, 1945 J.R. 3, vote April 1945; Spl. S. 1948 J.R. 1, 1949 J.R. 1, vote April 1949; 1957 J.R. 58, 1959 J.R. 15, vote April 1960; 1965 J.R. 43, 1967 J.R. 25, vote April 1968; 1989 J.R. 52, 1991 J.R. 9, vote April 1992] Transportation Fund. SECTION 11 [As created Nov. 2014] All funds collected by the state from any taxes or fees levied or imposed for the licensing of motor vehicle operators, for the titling, licensing, or registration of motor vehicles, for motor vehicle fuel, or for the use of roadways, highways, or bridges, and from taxes and fees levied or imposed for aircraft, airline property, or aviation fuel or for railroads or railroad property shall be deposited only into the transportation fund or with a trustee for the benefit of the department of transportation or the holders of transportation-related revenue bonds, except for collections from taxes or fees in existence on December 31, 2010, that were not being deposited in the transportation fund on that date. None of the funds collected or received by the state from any source and deposited into the transportation fund shall be lapsed, further transferred, or appropriated to any pro- gram that is not directly administered by the department of transportation in furtherance of the department’s responsibility for the planning, promotion, and protection of all transportation systems in the state except for programs for which there was an appropriation from the transportation fund on December 31, 2010. In this section, the term “motor vehicle” does not include Wisconsin Constitution updated by the Legislative Reference Bureau. Published August 5, 2026. Click for the Coverage of Annotations for the Annotated Constitution. Report errors at 608.504.5801 or lrb.legal@legis.wisconsin.gov.

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Published August 5, 2026. 15 ART. X, §8, WIS. CONSTITUTION any all-terrain vehicles, snowmobiles, or watercraft. [2011 J.R. 4, 2013 J.R. 1, vote Nov. 2014]