Chris Reader

Working for a better Wisconsin. Husband. Dad. Occasional coach. COO at Institute for Reforming Government, Executive Director at IRG Action Fund.

[Institute for Reforming Government @ReformingGovt]

On yesterday's podcast episode, @MarkBellingShow covered our analysis of the new DPI report that shows Wisconsin schools have broken an all-time staffing record.

Listen to the full segment here: https://t.co/3ZrzXUJQJg

[Institute for Reforming Government @ReformingGovt]

Teacher pay is down and referenda are up, in part, because schools have added staff while losing students.

School boards and parents must realize no one is served well by the status quo: not students, not teachers, and not taxpayers.
https://t.co/7AAZD6puuT

[Sen. Patrick Testin @SenatorTestin]

Are you wondering why so many public school districts across Wisconsin have been asking local taxpayers for additional funding through referendums?

A bombshell report from the Institute for Reforming Government explains the main reason behind this.

According to the IRG analysis, Wisconsin public schools now employ one adult for every seven students, breaking the all-time ratio record. Simply put, we are educating fewer pupils with more staff, and many of those new hires are not teachers.

From 2010 to 2025, Wisconsin public schools lost 65,381 students while adding 973 teachers and 11,108 non-instructors.

If you would like to know how this is impacting local taxpayers, please check out the IRG report by clicking below: https://t.co/nJ2w6KqG5V

@ReformingGovt @WisSenGOP

[Chris Reader @ChrisMReader]

@ReformingGovt @JacobJCurtis read the report and view all Court Watch reports, scorecards, and issue briefs at https://t.co/b8CdZTfW4x.

[Chris Reader @ChrisMReader]

Must read report from the @ReformingGovt Court Watch team @JacobJCurtis, tracking the important court cases working their way through the judicial branch in WI. This is why courts matter.

[Institute for Reforming Government @ReformingGovt]

📑NEW: We released: Cases to Watch: Pending Cases. Lasting Consequences. Where Wisconsin’s Future Is Being Decided.

This NEW IRG Court Watch report examines the most consequential litigation currently pending before Wisconsin state courts and federal courts.

Learn more here: https://t.co/flalpmGwwQ

[Chris Reader @ChrisMReader]

If you care about Wisconsin’s courts and the impact they have on our state and families, stay tuned to IRG’s Court Watch work. https://t.co/bBYPwbFUvZ

[Institute for Reforming Government @ReformingGovt]

🚨NEW: IRG Court Watch is LIVE.

The courts shape Wisconsin law every single day — from election law to executive power to constitutional rights — yet most Wisconsinites know very little about how the judiciary operates.

That changes today.

Explore:
⚖️Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Scorecards
📚Court of Appeals reviews
📰Court activity and case tracking
🔍 Judicial philosophy and voting trends

IRG Court Watch is your one-stop resource for understanding the Wisconsin judiciary.

Visit now: IRG Court Watch https://t.co/Utihpq2nL8

#WIpolitics #wicourts

[Chris Reader @ChrisMReader]

Two midwest states (Missouri, Iowa) are working to eliminate their income taxes.

[ATR @taxreformer]

Missouri is one step closer to becoming the next no-income-tax state.

The legislature approved HCR 173/174, giving voters the chance to permanently phase out and ban the state income tax through a constitutional amendment.

https://t.co/TXVf8buf4C

[Chris Reader @ChrisMReader]

@ReformingGovt Lawmakers and the next governor should take note: voters are done with the massive state spending.

[Institute for Reforming Government @ReformingGovt]

🚨NEW POLL: Seven in ten Wisconsin voters say the state is in a cost-of-living crisis, three-quarters say their income has fallen behind inflation, and 42% name inflation and cost of living as the single most important issue heading into November’s governor’s race.

Affordability dwarfs every other concern, according to an April 10–14 survey of 800 registered voters by RMG Research for @ReformingGovt and Napolitan News Service, but the poll’s deeper numbers show a candidate of either party could win by owning a credible affordability agenda.
https://t.co/40rHitzroX (1/5)

[The Heartland Post @HeartlandPostWI]

A new poll from the Institute for @ReformingGovt shows that what voters want most are lower taxes and dramatically reduced spending, which presents a clear opportunity for Republicans this fall. https://t.co/Q8D6Kvb8hY

[State Policy Network @StatePolicy]

Whitewater, Wisconsin is a college town of about 15,000 people. Over roughly two years, about 1,000 migrants settled there. Local police, schools, and city officials absorbed the strain with little outside support and no coordination from state or federal government.

The Institute for Reforming Government built the public record of what actually happened.

That record eventually reached Congress.
https://t.co/Gf3IrDWhsM

[Rep. Amanda Nedweski @RepNedweski32]

Parents and taxpayers deserve transparency.

That’s why we held an oversight hearing to get answers from DPI. But instead of accountability, officials dodged questions—and State Superintendent Jill Underly was nowhere to be found after being invited to testify.

Parents deserve transparency when it comes to their child’s education.

[Institute for Reforming Government @ReformingGovt]

From @DairylandSent earlier this week: "We have enlisted the legal assistance of the Institute for Reforming Government. Along with their efforts on behalf of Dairyland Sentinel, IRG also testified at Wednesday’s hearing about their concern that DPI is relying on DRC to skirt the law as it pertains to open meetings." Read more here: https://t.co/wxczeBelez

[Chris Reader @ChrisMReader]

Hopefully the authors introduce the bill again next year. These kids should come before bureaucracy. Or even better, maybe there's a chance yet if a tax deal is brokered soon that this can be included and foster kids, already facing daunting challenges in life, can get a win.

[Chris Reader @ChrisMReader]

ICYMI: read this story from @NatalieYahr and @CarloniBrittany. It highlights a real missed opportunity for bipartisanship this year, that would have helped foster kids. https://t.co/cbycCdZFva

[Chris Reader @ChrisMReader]

A bipartisan bill was introduced this year by @SenJacque and others. It should have been easy, even if it was late in the session. But the hearing was telling. The lone opposition on record? County Governments.

[Institute for Reforming Government @ReformingGovt]

DPI cannot lower academic standards in secret and simply expect parents and students to accept the outcome. Working groups created by DPI are not exempt from Wisconsin’s Open Meetings Laws. Taxpayers funded this process, but DPI shut them out. A state agency doesn’t get to spend public dollars, make consequential decisions, and then hide the process from public scrutiny.
https://t.co/VtGF2wkGa2