THE BARE ACT

The BARE Act — Budget Accountability and Reporting for Everyone

Taxpayer Transparency & Debt Reduction

Wisconsin collects billions of dollars from its taxpayers every year. Those taxpayers deserve to know — in plain, accessible terms — exactly where every dollar goes, how much debt is being carried on their behalf, and what is being done to pay it down. The BARE Act makes that a legal requirement, not a courtesy.

1. The Wisconsin Taxpayer Transparency Portal

Reive will push for the creation of a comprehensive, publicly accessible online portal where any Wisconsin resident can see exactly how state tax dollars are being spent — updated in real time and searchable down to the line item. This isn't a summary. It isn't a press release. It's the full picture.

The portal will include:

• Line-item agency spending — every state agency's budget broken down program by program, line by line, so taxpayers can see exactly what their money funds

• Vendor contracts and payments — every contract the state enters into with outside vendors, including the vendor's name, the purpose of the contract, and the total amount paid — because taxpayers have a right to know who the state is doing business with and for how much

• State employee salaries — full public disclosure of compensation for state government employees, so Wisconsin residents can see how their tax dollars are being spent on personnel

• Local government spending funded by state dollars — any money the state sends to local governments through shared revenue, grants, or other mechanisms must also be reported through the portal, so the transparency doesn't stop at the state level

If it's funded by Wisconsin taxpayers, Wisconsin taxpayers can see it. No exceptions.

2. A Statutory Cap on State Debt

Wisconsin's state debt is a burden that every taxpayer carries — often without knowing it. Every dollar spent on debt service is a dollar that cannot go to schools, roads, public safety, or tax relief. The BARE Act establishes a hard statutory cap on Wisconsin's total state debt, preventing future legislatures from mortgaging the state's future to fund today's political priorities.

The cap is not a suggestion. It is law. Any new borrowing that would push total state debt above the cap requires a supermajority vote of both chambers — forcing legislators to make the case publicly and explicitly for why Wisconsin needs to go further into debt, rather than treating borrowing as a routine budget tool.

3. A Dedicated Debt Paydown Requirement

Capping new debt is only half the equation. The BARE Act also requires that a defined percentage of Wisconsin's annual budget be dedicated specifically to paying down existing state debt — every year, before other discretionary spending is allocated.

This means:

• Debt reduction is not optional and not subject to negotiation during the annual budget process

• Wisconsin's debt load decreases on a predictable, legally required schedule

• Future generations are not handed a bill for decisions made today

• As debt service costs decrease over time, those savings are returned to taxpayers — not absorbed into new spending

4. Budget Process Transparency

The state budget process itself must be open and observable. The BARE Act requires:

• All budget deliberations, amendments, and votes to be conducted in public session with full documentation — no backroom deals that appear in the final budget without public debate

• A plain-language summary of every proposed budget published publicly before any vote is taken, written so that any Wisconsin resident can understand what is being proposed and what it will cost

• A required public comment period before any budget is finalized, giving Wisconsin taxpayers a formal opportunity to weigh in on how their money is spent

• Full public disclosure of any last-minute budget additions or amendments, with the name of the legislator who added them and the justification provided

The Bottom Line:

Government spending in the dark is an invitation to waste, corruption, and runaway debt. The BARE Act turns on the lights — on every dollar spent, every contract signed, every debt incurred, and every budget decision made. When taxpayers can see everything, politicians have to justify everything. That's not a radical idea. That's accountability.