Noah Smith, Columnist

How Wisconsin Can Escape the Middle of the Pack

Tax breaks only go so far. The next step is reversing cuts to the state university system.

February 2, 2018 at 1:00 PM UTC

Noah Smith is a former Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He was an assistant professor of finance at Stony Brook University, and he blogs at Noahpinion.

Standing out isn't easy.
Photographer: Darren Hauck/Getty Images

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

Wisconsin is, by many measures, a medium state. It ranks 20th in population and 24th in median household income (as of 2016). Its poverty rate is 18th. Its best university, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, ranks 46th among national universities in U.S. News and World Report. Its biggest city, Milwaukee, is the 31st-largest city in the country.

True, Wisconsin has suffered from the decline of manufacturing, but it isn’t a Rust Belt sob story like Michigan or Ohio. It hasn’t been among the places hardest hit by the opiate epidemic. When people think of the state, the first thing that comes to mind is probably either beer or cheese.