Research Reports
The Public Policy Forum publishes reports,
research briefs, and major studies across a range of topics.
Visit our Issues page to access reports
by topic; here you can access all reports by title, date,
or type (full report or research brief).
Recent Reports
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| Milwaukee County's Transit Crisis: How did we get here and what do we do now? |
May 4, 2008
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| research brief
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| The recent history of transit in Milwaukee County is one marked by desperation and false hope. Simply put, public funding sources have not kept pace with growth in operating costs. While warning about the consequences, transit officials have averted disaster - and perhaps inadvertently delayed a solution - by spending down reserves, deferring needed capital expenditures and implementing gradual service cuts and fare increases.
The hope was that elected officials would heed the warnings and provide a dedicated funding source - one that would be sizable enough to both restore and enhance service, including the types of improvements that would attract new riders and provide for steady revenue growth. That hope, of course, has not materialized. And now, the hole that has been dug is so deep that there are few practicable solutions.
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| Toward High Quality Early Childhood Education: An Imperative for the Regional Economy |
April, 2008
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| full report
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| A gap exists between the current status of child care in the U.S. and best quality child care. This gap is unfortunate, because high quality child care is associated with many short- and long-term economic benefits for both the children and society as a whole. A growing body of research indicates that high quality early childhood care and education can be one of the best economic development investments a local or state government can make. |
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| Parents pleased with child care options and quality |
April, 2008
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| full report
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| A recent survey of 430 parents in southeastern Wisconsin finds the vast majority are satisfied with the quality of their
child care arrangements and their options for child care. In fact, most say they would not change anything about their
child care arrangement if they had the chance, and nearly two‐thirds report a willingness to pay more for their current
child care.
The high rates of satisfaction may contradict other research on child care quality in the region which, using more
empirical methods, has found that the majority of child care providers are of mediocre quality.* Parents’ general
satisfaction with the quality of their child care providers also may explain why legislative efforts to improve child care
quality in Wisconsin have found little grass roots support. Parents may be satisfied with what experts may deem lower
quality child care either because they are not aware the quality is not optimal, or because they value different aspects of
quality than do researchers and policymakers. |
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| 2008 Southeastern Wisconsin property values report |
March 28, 2008
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| research brief
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| Property values in southeastern Wisconsin counties grew 6% last year, a relatively healthy rate but the
slowest since at least 2004, and for some counties, the past decade. Also, proximity to northern Illinois looks
to be a key factor in fueling strong growth. |
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| Tax Increment Financing in Southeastern Wisconsin |
February, 2008
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| full report
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| Tax Increment Financing (TIF) is southeastern Wisconsin’s largest economic development tool. With 176 TIF districts
and $8.4 billion in property value, the collective tax base devoted to TIF districts in our region ranks behind only the
city of Milwaukee among our region’s largest tax bases. Despite the impressive scale of TIF in the seven‐county area, the tool is used less here than in the rest of the state. Whether that’s due to reluctance or lack of need is unclear. What is clear is that if the region decides that it can become more aggressive with TIF, it has sufficient capacity. It’s critical that we know where this capacity exists and how best TIF can be deployed to shape the region’s future growth. After all, economic development needs finance. |
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| Did compromise voucher law achieve intended purpose? |
February, 2008
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| full report
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| In early 2006, Governor Doyle signed Act 125 into law, codifying the legislative compromise that allowed the
cap on enrollment in Milwaukee’s Parental Choice Program (MPCP) to be increased in exchange for greater accountability
for the participating schools.
After the cap was increased to 22,500 voucher students last school year, voucher use increased 16% to 17,951
students, the largest growth in the program since the 2000‐01 school year. One year later, voucher enrollment
increased only 7%, the second smallest increase since 1999‐00. Voucher enrollment is now 19,233 students in
123 schools. |
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| Milwaukee Voucher Schools 2008-2009 |
February, 2008
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| full report
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| 2008-2009 directory of schools participating in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. |
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| A capital and debt management tale of two local governments |
January, 2008
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| full report
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| Infrastructure – literally in the case of roads and sewers – underlies the growth and
development of cities and regions. And because infrastructure serves generations of
citizens, governments generally pay for it through long-term borrowing. Meanwhile, the
political process focuses on a much shorter timetable. Elections are about the issues of
the day, and candidates rarely focus on long-term issues such as debt and infrastructure. |
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| A challenging revenue picture for Milwaukee local government |
December, 2007
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| full report
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| On April Fools’ Day 2008, Milwaukee citizens will elect people to four-year terms in city and county public offices. Candidates for those offices have an obligation not to fool voters with shallow promises but rather to provide answers to critical questions facing local government. Among those questions, none is more important – and more rarely addressed -- than this one: How do you plan to ensure the long-term financial stability of the government with which you will be entrusted? |
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| 10th annual comparative analysis of the Racine Unified School District |
November, 2007
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| full report
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| Over the past decade, conditions affecting the Racine Unified School District (RUSD), as well as
school outcomes, have changed in some ways – and remained remarkably stable in others. Therefore,
more than in previous report, this analysis of RUSD takes a longer-term view. Even so, this
study follows a format similar to that of the first report commissioned in 1998. The analysis compares
RUSD to nine peer school districts and the state of Wisconsin. RUSD peer districts, for the
most part, are Wisconsin’s largest (Milwaukee Public Schools is not included) and their enrollments
are similar to the enrollment in Racine. Each district is examined based on enrollment, finances,
staffing, student engagement, and student performance. Data collected for the analyses over the
past 10 years makes it possible to provide a snapshot of how RUSD is faring and puts the latest information
in a historical context. |
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