The fourth of 11 children born to James and Mary (née Gleichner) Schmitt in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, he attended Roncalli High School and St. Norbert College[1] He is an active Roman Catholic, and one of his brothers was ordained into religious life.

[3] In the private sector, Schmitt was president of Famis Manufacturing Inc. and in 1997 received the Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce Small Business Entrepreneur of the Year award.

[7][8] In January 2015, Green Bay city council Aldermen Chris Wery, Guy Zima, and Andy Nicholson alleged that Schmitt had accepted as much as $10,000 in illegal donations for his mayoral campaign.

[9] Schmitt contended that the errors were unintentional and handed his records over to the Brown County District Attorney and the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board to be audited.

[13] In 2017, seven City Council members signed a letter stating their disapproval of the conduct of one of Schmitt's accusers, Alderman Chris Wery, who used his bank job to pry into an opponent's financial records.