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Yes.
Act 10, which effectively ended collective bargaining for most Wisconsin public employee unions, has saved taxpayers billions of dollars.
The 2011 law could be reviewed by the Wisconsin Supreme Court because of a recent judge’s ruling.
The law achieved savings mainly by shifting costs for pension and health benefits for public employees to the employees.
The nonpartisan Wisconsin Policy Forum found in 2020 that state and local governments saved $5 billion from 2011 to 2017 in pension costs alone.
PolitiFact Wisconsin reported in 2014 that public employers saved over $3 billion on pensions and health insurance.
Getting rid of Act 10’s pension, health insurance and salary limits would raise annual school district costs $1.6 billion and local government costs $480 million, the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty estimated in September.
However, the recent court ruling doesn’t invalidate Act 10’s higher employee contribution requirements, said attorney Jeffrey Mandell, who represents unions in the pending case.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Wisconsin Legislative Council: 2011 Wisconsin Act 10
- Dane County Circuit Court: Decision and order in Case No. 2023CV3152
- Wisconsin Policy Forum: Bridging the Pension Gap
- PolitiFact Wisconsin: Scott Walker says union reform law that brought massive protests has saved taxpayers $3 billion
- Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty: Back to the Past: The Fiscal Threat of Reversing Act 10 for Local Governments
- Wisconsin Watch: Did Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Susan Crawford try to overturn Act 10?
- Jeffrey Mandell: Email 12/11/24
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