THU AM News: WI gas prices up by a third in a month, though below U.S. average; We Energies submits rate increase proposal to PSC

April 2, 2026

— While Wisconsin gas prices remain lower than the national average, they’ve jumped by nearly a third over the past month amid the conflict in Iran.

The state Department of Revenue’s latest economic update report shows retail prices of gasoline in Wisconsin averaged $3.62 per gallon on Tuesday, below the national average of $4.02 per gallon.

Gas prices in Wisconsin have risen by 32% over last month’s average of $2.74 per gallon, an increase of $0.88 per gallon, per the report. Prices tend to be lower in counties along Wisconsin’s western side, and generally higher in the state’s northern region.

Meanwhile, diesel prices in the state have also risen from $3.67 per gallon last month to $4.74 per gallon on Tuesday, marking an increase of $1.11 per gallon or about 29%.

“Higher diesel prices can lead to higher prices on a number of goods due to increased transport costs,” authors wrote.

The DOR report also shows Wisconsin had an increase in housing permits last year, with total permits rising 7.4% to 25,202 and single-family permits rising 3.4% to 13,206. That’s the second year in a row of growth in both total and single-family permits following declines in 2023.

The boost comes as the state’s housing market remains a “strong seller’s market” with demand continuing to outpace supply, the Wisconsin Realtors Association reports.

Last year, the state saw a decline in housing permits in the second quarter, as total permits were down 9.8% year-over-year, while single-family permits were “nearly flat” with just 0.2% growth over the year, according to the DOR figures.

But in the fourth quarter of 2025, total permits rose by 23.5% over the prior year even as single-family dipped 2.6%.

At the national level, total housing permits declined by 4.1% in 2025 while single-family permits fell by 7.1%. Authors note permits nationwide have declined every year since 2021.

See more in the report.

— We Energies’ residential customers would see a 15.2% increase to their electric bills over the next two years, under a proposed rate increase submitted to the Public Service Commission.

Monthly costs for We Energies’ residential customers would increase from around $144 per month now to $166 per month in 2028.

For residential customers of its sister utility, Wisconsin Public Service, electric bills would increase by 12.7% over the same period, or from $116 per month to $133 per month.

Combined rates for We Energies’ residential and business customers – excluding data centers – would increase 4.7% in 2027 and 4.5% in 2028, while WPS’s customer base would see a combined increase of 6.3% and 3.5% year-over-year.

All-in-all, that translates to an additional $355.4 million to be paid by We Energies’ non-data center ratepayers, and $128 million from WPS customers.

PSC commissioners will review the utilities’ requests and decide whether to approve rate hikes at the utilities’ proposed rate or a lower level later this year.

“Our customers count on us every day for the energy they need, and we recognize our responsibility to continue providing safe and reliable energy,” We Energies and WPS President Mike Hooper said in a statement. “This filing shows our continued commitment to keep costs down, invest in reliability and make sure data centers pay their fair share.”

Statements from both companies touted a combined $357 million in savings from federal renewable energy tax credits.

Data centers in We Energies’ region will also pay some $1.9 billion to the utility over the next two years to pay for the cost of infrastructure, equipment and energy. The utility maintains costs tied to data centers will not be borne by other ratepayers.

Tom Content, executive director of Citizens United, pointed out that the utilities’ recent rate increases had exceeded the rate of inflation and said WEC had failed to keep consumers’ concerns about affordability in check.

“Customers have already seen double-digit increases in the last two rate cases and this is just more of the same,” Content said. “It feels like they didn’t read the room and try to keep their request in check.”

Brendan Conway, director of media relations for We Energies and WPS parent WEC Energy Group, said the new cost came from projects that had already been committed.

“The majority of this is driven by the cost of new projects that have already been approved by the Public Service Commission,” Conway said, adding that new solar, wind and battery storage projects would save “hundreds of millions” in fuel cost savings and tax credits over the next couple of years.

Last year, We Energies had the highest residential electric rate among investor-owned utilities in Wisconsin and the third-highest residential rate in the Midwest, according to a report prepared by Brubaker & Associates.

That same report found Wisconsin’s residential electric rates were higher than the Midwest and national average in 2025 and every other state in the region except for Michigan.

We Energies said in its press statement that typical customer bills remain below the national average and in line with other utilities in Wisconsin and the Midwest.

The majority of ratepayers’ bill increases would go toward covering new infrastructure. Some $110 million of the additional $175.8 million ratepayers would pay in 2027 will go toward capital improvements, as would $121 million of the $179.6 million they’ll pay in 2028.

For WPS customers, $72 million of the $86.1 million in additional billing they’ll pay in 2027 would go to capital costs.

In 2028, WPS ratepayers’ share of capital costs — $56 million — would actually exceed the $50.8 million in additional bills they’ll pay, but Conway said that would be offset by expected fuel cost savings and contributions from data centers.

— Conway also said data centers will pay $561 million over the next two years to address the cost of building new transmission capacity serving those facilities.

Proposed transmission infrastructure serving data centers in We Energies’ coverage area is expected to cost billions, per a WisPolitics review of PSC filings.

Intervenors in We Energies’ data centers ratepayer case have raised concerns about who will pay those added costs, pointing out that the cost-sharing model used by utility American Transmission Company, LLC, would require current ratepayers to foot much of the initial cost for new transmission.

According to a review by PSC staff, it could take years or even decades for data centers to pay their fair share of the cost to develop those transmission lines – or not at all, depending on how PSC commissioners choose to regulate the risk of data centers shutting down or never coming online.

Conway said data centers in We Energies’ coverage area, which include the Port Washington campus and Microsoft’s campus in Mount Pleasant, have committed to covering that transmission cost, though the “specific mechanics of how that will happen will be worked out.”

Content wrote in a text message that CUB “will take a close look at the utility’s proposal.”

“That would be a significant change and would close one of the loopholes our team found when they matched up the ‘data centers will pay their own way’ statements with what the utility proposed in the data center case,” Content said.

“More loopholes need to be closed to make sure homeowners, renters and small businesses aren’t facing higher prices because of data centers.”

— Recent changes at the federal level “underscore the need to reassess” DEI programs and and other employment practices, attorneys with Michael Best wrote in a recent report.

The overview from the Milwaukee-based law firm points to recent shifts at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, signaling a “meaningful shift” in priorities around enforcement. The EEOC last year regained a quorum after a new chair and commissioner were confirmed, and has since moved to review earlier guidance and resumed setting policies.

To support one of its current priorities, centered around “DEI-related discrimination,” the commission says any DEI initiatives, policies, programs or practices may be illegal if they involve any “employment action motivated, in whole or in part, by an individual’s protected characteristic,” authors wrote.

While diversity, equity and inclusion — or DEI — is a broad term that’s not defined in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the commission has pointed to examples of what may count as discrimination.

“Notably, these examples go beyond employment hiring, firing, and promotion,” authors wrote, noting they can include excluding someone from mentorship or sponsorship programs or fellowships, or interview selection.

Meanwhile, the EEOC has noted practices that limit, segregate or classify employees can constitute discrimination, such as limiting membership to workplace groups or separating workers into groups based on protected characteristics for training on DEI or other topics.

Aside from its DEI-related policies, the commission is now encouraging claims for “American discrimination,” when employers prefer workers from a certain country or with a certain visa status over domestic workers, the attorneys wrote.

At the same time, the commission’s new chair, Andrea Lucas, late last year released a video on social media encouraging white male employees to submit discrimination claims based on their race or sex.

The Michael Best attorneys are encouraging employers to “keep in mind the EEOC’s updated enforcement priorities, particularly DEI-related discrimination, and monitor workplace policies and DEI programs for compliance.”

See the report.

— Attorney General Josh Kaul has joined a group of state and local AGs in a petition challenging the recent repeal of national air pollution rules.

The state Department of Justice yesterday announced Kaul has joined a coalition seeking to reverse the Trump administration’s repeal of the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards Rule. It includes national standards for limiting emissions of toxic pollution from coal- and oil-fired power plants.

After the EPA in 2024 updated standards for emissions under this framework, the Trump administration last month moved to roll back those updated standards and relax the regulations, according to the state DOJ. The coalition is seeking a court decision to reverse the repeal of the rule.

“People’s health shouldn’t be put at unwarranted risk in order to help polluters make more in profit,” Kaul said in a statement. “The Trump administration should stop taking us backwards on the protection of our natural resources.”

See the release.

— Medicaid costs are trending higher than expected, with the program now projected to have a GPR shortfall of $263.5 million when the two-year budget cycle ends, according to the Department of Health Services.

That amounts to general fund costs coming in 2.7% higher than what was expected when the budget was signed last year. The shortfall is also $50.3 million higher than what the agency projected three months ago.

In a letter to the Joint Finance Committee co-chairs, DHS Secretary Kirsten Johnson laid out six factors driving the increased costs:

Long-term care enrollment is 3% higher than what was projected in the budget. That impact is $33.3 million in GPR.
Nursing home expenditures are projected to be $79 million higher than what was budgeted, an increase of 9%.
Enrollment in the program that serves children with disabilities and their families may increase 18% this biennium rather than the 14% projected in the budget. Those expenditures are expected to increase $54 million in GPR.
Drug company rebates have decreased due to federal policy changes and pharmaceutical industry trends.
The costs for prescription drugs are coming in higher than expected and more people enrolled are using them. This factor and the one above are driving higher prescription drug costs, projected to be $62.2 million higher than expected, or 9.7%.
Costs for Federally Qualified Health Clinics are expected to be up $38.7 million, or 18.1%, for the biennium. The clinics serve local communities, particularly those in rural areas, for services ranging from primary care to dental.

The program is jointly funded by the state and federal government. The current projection for overall expenditures is $36.7 billion, compared to the $35.5 billion expected in the budget. For GPR, expenditures are now expected to be $9.9 billion, compared to just less than $9.7 billion in the budget.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

Sign up here.

— Bills to open the door to online gaming in Wisconsin, give money to UW-Madison to help pay athletes and provide new grants for PFAS cleanup are set to go to the governor today.

Gov. Tony Evers is also set to receive legislation that would exempt tips from the state income tax and another bill that would do the same with overtime.

Once the legislation lands on his desk, it will kick off a seven-day window for Evers to act on the bills.

There are three ways for legislation that’s cleared both houses to head to the governor, beginning the countdown for action. The Legislature can send him the bills, or the governor can call for them. Otherwise, there are triggers built into each session calendar for enrolled bills to head over, and today is the last one of the regular session.

The governor called for 21 bills yesterday. The batch of bills sent over also includes AB 619, an incentive package meant to land a biofuels manufacturing plant in northern Wisconsin, and AB 657, a sales tax exemption for nuclear fusion technology projects.

In all, 71 bills that originated in the Assembly and 44 from the Senate are scheduled to go to Evers today, according to lists the chief clerks’ offices provided to WisPolitics.

Perhaps the most high-profile bill going to Evers today is AB 601, which would expand the definition of a bet under Wisconsin law to allow online gaming. It would allow the governor to reopen gaming compacts with Wisconsin tribes to allow them to offer the option so long as the servers handling the bets were on tribal land.

In a letter to Evers and the state Senate last month, eight of the state’s 11 federally recognized tribes voiced support for the legislation and asked that it be enacted into law. The tribes that didn’t sign the letter were the Menominee Indian Tribe, Oneida Nation and Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.

Evers hasn’t publicly committed to signing the bill into law, telling reporters last month he wanted to ensure all tribal nations are involved in the conversation.

“I’m hopeful that we can get something done, but I also am very concerned about the fact that apparently not all the tribal nations are with this,” he said.

See the list of Assembly bills that went to Evers yesterday.

See the Assembly bills scheduled to go to Evers today.

See the list of Senate bills scheduled to go to Evers today.

Milwaukee convention center hotel could cost $455 million, needs public financing

Butterfat in milk is at historic levels. For some Wisconsin cheesemakers, that’s a problem.

TOPICS

BANKING

– New president named for Johnson Bank

CONSTRUCTION

– Construction-related bills head to Gov. Tony Evers’ desk

– Milwaukee officials pitch $4.7 million in TIF funding for two affordable housing projects

ECONOMY