Education Policy, Business and Technology

Wisconsin school districts' debt soars after $1.35 billion in new borrowing

Journal Sentinel: New and remodeled school buildings, performance centers and swimming pools. Upgrades for technology, security and energy efficiency. And just plain old general maintenance — new roofs and boilers — work that has been delayed by years of razor-thin budgets.

Public school districts in Wisconsin are in the midst of a building boom, financed by a surge in new debt not seen since the 1990s, a new analysis by the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance has found.

According to the report, voters in districts across the state approved through referendums borrowing $1.35 billion last year, 10 times more than in 2011 and the most since the alliance began keeping records in 1993. The previous high, adjusted for inflation, was $1.04 billion in 1996.

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