Mailbag: Brett Davis writes on Budget Impasse:

Time To Put Differences Aside And Finish The State Budget

As the Conference Committee has met over the last several weeks to try and work out a state budget we can all agree on, one thing has become increasingly clear to me: Despite all the stark differences between the Senate and Assembly versions of the budget, life�s too short for politics and it�s time to get the budget done.

I�ve heard it repeated in the communities I�ve visited this summer and I�ve said it time and again myself. And if I could have it my way we�d simply lock the Conference Committee members in a room and not let them out until the budget is complete.

My legislative colleagues and I caucused on Monday, Sept. 10 to hear an update from our Conference Committee members on the state budget. My message to them was simple: Roll up your sleeves and continue working until the job is done.

It is true that while the 2005-07 state budget officially expired at midnight, July 1, the state continues operating with the same level of funding as provided in that budget � and will continue to do so until a budget compromise is reached.

However, school districts and local governments are trying to set their budgets. Without a state budget in place we all face property tax increases in order to ensure there�s enough money for our cities and our schools. I am doing everything I can to get a full state budget approved. Since the Conference Committee can�t agree on every part of the budget yet, at a minimum it is important a good faith compromise be reached now on education and aid to local governments.

On Thursday, Sept. 13 the Assembly Conference Committee members offered a compromise which will provide school districts with more than $12.3 billion � a $543 million increase in state aid over the next two years. Outlined below is a brief summary of our school aid proposal and the versions of the budget in which each component was originally included:

General & Categorical School Aids

General School Aids $235 million increase (Governor\Senate)
Special Education Aids $53.5 million increase (Governor\Assembly\Senate)
SAGE Increase $26.7 million increase (Senate)
School Safety Grants $10 million in new funding (Assembly)
School Library Aids $17 million increase
School Breakfast Aids $3.2 million increase (Governor\Senate)
Pupil Transportation Increase per pupil reimbursement rate from $180 to $220 for transporting pupils over 12 miles

Revenue Limits

Per Pupil Adjustment $264 increase in 2007-08; $270 (est.) increase in 2008-09 (Governor)
Low Revenue Ceiling $8,700 increase in 2007-08 (Governor\Assembly\Senate) $9,000 increase in 2008-09 (Governor\Assembly\Senate)
Declining Enrollment Increase adjustment from 75% to 100% of three-year rolling average and prior year base revenue floor for severe declining enrollment (Governor\Assembly\Senate)
School Levy Credit $200 million in 2008-09 tax year (Assembly)

In addition, the compromise increases shared revenue for local governments so they may continue to provide high quality services like police protection to our state�s residents. This compromise will also address the property tax freeze and offer a common sense solution. The Senate originally proposed freezing property taxes at a 4 percent increase, while the Assembly passed a budget with a zero percent increase. Because our state�s economy continues to grow, our Conference Committee members proposed a compromise of a 2 percent increase in property taxes.

According to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB), if nothing is done before rapidly approaching statutory deadlines, property taxpayers will be on the hook for an unnecessary $589.7 million over the next two years. For the median value home, this will mean a total of $199 over the next two years. If our legislation is passed to provide critical funding for K-12 schools and local governments, that $589.7 million property tax hike will be averted.

There are many tough budget decisions still to be made and some glaring differences between the Senate and Assembly versions of the budget to overcome. A Senate budget that increases government spending by 23 percent versus an Assembly budget with a 5 percent increase is just one of several major hurdles the Conference Committee must overcome.

But my message will continue to remain the same: We need a budget compromise and we need it now. The voters of Wisconsin sent us to the legislature to do a job. Now it�s time to get that job done.

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State Representative Brett Davis
State Capitol - Room 308 North - Post Office Box 8952 - Madison, Wisconsin 53708
(608) 266-1192 - Fax (608) 282-3680 - Toll Free: (888) 534-0080
Email: Rep.Davis@legis.wi.gov
On the Internet: www.brettdavis.us
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