This post originally appeared at https://wisconsindailystar.com/news/milwaukee-sales-tax-increase-has-mayor-washington-county-executive-at-odds/tcsquare/2024/01/06/

by Benjamin Yount

Milwaukee’s new 2% sales tax has spawned a war of words between the city’s mayor and the county executive in Washington County.

It began New Year’s Day when Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann posted a message on social media welcoming people to shop in his county.

“Come to Washington County for the savings, stay for the quality of life! Exhibit A: In the City of Milwaukee, today you will pay an additional $60 for this bedroom set,” Schoeman tweeted.

The back-and-forth continued Thursday when Milwaukee’s mayor slapped back in an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

“I thought his comments were unfortunate knowing that all communities need revenue,” Mayor Cavalier Johnson told the Journal Sentinel. “If folks are looking at a high-quality dinner or a theater or a fine dining experience, they can come here, or go to Cracker Barrel there.”

Schoeman  (pictured above, right) said he never expected his tweet about a tax hike to become such a big thing.

“I’m just surprised that at conservative Washington County welcoming people from Milwaukee getting such blow-back,” Schoeman told News Talk 11130 WISN’s Jay Weber on Thursday morning. “You know it’s certainly sad.”

Milwaukee’s new sales tax took effect Monday. It adds 2% to the cost of most things that people in the city buy. In addition, Milwaukee County added .4% to their sales tax, bringing it to .9%. Those taxes are on top of Wisconsin’s statewide 5% sales tax.

That means, in all, people who shop in Milwaukee are paying nearly 8 cents on the dollar in taxes.

Schoeman said some of the blow back that’s come his way is because he pointed out the Milwaukee and Milwaukee County leaders raised taxes on their own people.

“They’ve been overt in their efforts to raise taxes. [They] initially said they wanted to go to referendum and get the citizens permission, and then advocating even again talking to their citizens,” Schoeman said of Milwaukee’s years-long push to get permission from lawmakers to raise taxes on their own. “And here we sit, they have an increase. Washington County is 2% lower than our neighbors who are literally across the street in the city of Milwaukee. So, yeah, we’re going to try to gain some market share here. But apparently that’s offensive.”

Johnson (pictured above, left) didn’t use the word offended, but he did take some offense.

“[Washington County residents] are getting a boost as this is retaining the Brewers, and it helps a lot of people,” the mayor said. “He is encouraging people to go to their county. Folks will pay more in gas than simply staying here.”

Schoeman said Milwaukee’s 2% sales tax may not be much when you’re talking about a meal or a tank of gas, but he said it becomes a lot of money when you buy bigger ticket items like furniture or appliances or things like that.

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Benjamin Yount is a contributor to The Center Square. 
Photo “Cavalier Johnson” by Cavalier Johnson.

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