In the late 1980s, Wisconsin was ranked as the fifth most equal state in income distribution. Since then, the state has dropped to 11th, and the gap continues to widen, according to the Center on Wisconsin Strategy (COWS) and the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families (WCCF).
“Greater inequality feeds on itself. It makes fewer people willing to help pay for critical public goods, like education, which further increases inequality,” said COWS Director Joel Rogers. “It makes the idea of common sacrifice for a common good seem silly, rather than common sense.”
