Franklin: Property Taxes are Too High
We are organizing concerned residents to educate their neighbors, improve public policy at the local level, and lessen our tax burden. Are you in?
Franklin's economic uncertainties by the numbers
Franklin's economic challenges are real and persistent. Here is the data behind the local failures.
Franklin's own finance director told the city council this summer that the gap between what the city costs to run and what state law allows it to collect is growing and that borrowing $10 million to cover it could mean a 4 to 4.5% property tax increase for residents in 2027.
That is the median annual property tax bill for a Franklin homeowner, the lowest effective rate in all of Milwaukee County at 1.53%. That is still $3,249 above the national median. Franklin is the county's most tax-efficient community and its residents still pay well above what the average American homeowner owes. The county structure around Franklin makes lower bills nearly impossible regardless of how well the city manages its own finances.
That is what Milwaukee County's backdrop pension deal has cost taxpayers in total. By 2025, all new county sales tax revenue was being absorbed by pension obligations before funding a single service. The county raised its property tax levy 3.48% in 2026, projecting a $12 million increase largely to service new debt. Franklin sits in Milwaukee County and contributes to that levy regardless of how sound the city's own finances are.
That is the levy impact on the average Franklin property tax bill from the 2026 city budget, approved at the near-maximum allowed under Wisconsin's statutory levy cap. State law limits how much Franklin can raise even as its costs grow. The city used nearly every dollar of allowable increase in 2026, carrying $670,000 in contingency reserves and deferring major capital decisions to future budget cycles. Growth alone cannot solve it under current state law.
What's Driving It
Policy Failures
Wisconsin's Levy Limit Law Is Trapping Growing Communities
Franklin generated roughly $50 million in net new construction in 2025, a sign of genuine economic vitality. Under Wisconsin's levy limit law, that $50 million in new taxable property generates only about $167,000 in additional operating levy capacity. Personnel costs, infrastructure needs, equipment replacement, and debt service grow at multiples of that figure every year. The state law was designed to limit government overreach, but for a growing, fiscally responsible city like Franklin, it has created a structural trap where success in attracting development does not translate into the revenue needed to service that growth responsibly.
Milwaukee County's Pension Liability Is a Tax on Every Franklin Homeowner
Franklin's city government manages its finances carefully, carrying a strong Aa2 debt rating and avoiding general borrowing in its 2025 budget. None of that insulates Franklin homeowners from Milwaukee County's structural deficit. The county's pension backdrop deal, which cost taxpayers over $415 million, consumed all new county sales tax revenue by 2025 and required a 3.48% property tax levy increase in 2026 just to service debt and cover operating shortfalls. Franklin residents pay the county levy regardless of how well their city government performs. A county-level fiscal failure is a Franklin-level tax bill.
Wisconsin's Income Growth Is Not Keeping Pace With Tax Growth
Wisconsin real personal income grew just 1.4% in 2024, less than half the national growth rate of 2.9%. Property tax levies across the state grew 4.2% that same year, the second largest increase in 15 years. For Franklin residents earning above-average incomes, this gap is manageable today but represents a structural trend that compounds over time. The cost of government in Wisconsin is growing faster than the incomes of the people paying for it, and no credible state-level policy exists to reverse that trajectory.
We Need Leaders Like You
Communities like yours need leaders to change economic outcomes. They're protected by driven residents who show up, speak out, and take action.
Education
Learn how the local government functions, how to speak at community events and to board members directly.
Connection
Connect with a growing network of neighbors who share your concerns and are ready to stand together and demand change.
Action
Get practical tools to participate in school board and other city government meetings, submit public comments, and hold local officials accountable.
Support
Ongoing help from experienced community advocates who've successfully driven change across Franklin and other parts of Wisconsin.
Are You In?
Submit your information and our team will personally reach out to you.
We will never sell your or share your information.