Frederica Freyberg:

The Wisconsin legislature is getting down to business. The assembly is planning to be in session starting on Tuesday, January 14. But what direction will the legislature go on issues like taxes and education? There are some mixed messages at this point. Wisconsin Public Radio political reporter Shawn Johnson joins us for this edition of Capitol Insight. Hi, Shawn.

Shawn Johnson:

Hi.

Frederica Freyberg:

Thank for doing this. Let’s begin by talking taxes. Our theme being mixed messages, so hold on to that thought as we hear from Governor Scott Walker recently interviewed by Zac Schultz.

Scott Walker:

We cut taxes, almost a billion and a half dollars, three years of property taxes going down on a typical home. Is it enough to just chip away or could we have a more dynamic impact on the state’s economy if we did something like give up the state’s income tax or take away a major portion of the property tax?

Frederica Freyberg:

So the big idea here, the bolder form Governor Walker talking about is potentially eliminating the incomes tax, which represents about $7 billion annually. But if he did that something else would have to give.

Shawn Johnson:

Right, and if you were to completely eliminate the income tax in Wisconsin and make up for it by raising the sales tax, you’re talking about more than doubling the sales tax in Wisconsin. And to be fair, the governor has stressed this is only an idea at this point, but it’s certainly not something he’s dissuading people from talking about. Contrast that to what they’re talking about in the legislature right now. There was a public hearing this past week on a sales tax holiday twice a year, once for school supplies, once for energy efficient appliances. It would cost the state about $14.5 million in lost revenue. Here’s what Republican senate sponsor Rick Gudex of Fond du Lac had to say.

Rick Gudex:

That’s $14.5 million more that goes into the pockets of the people who could really use it, working families, single moms, people just trying to get their kids ready for schools.

Shawn Johnson:

Speaking of mixed messages, you’re hearing a little of that between legislative leaders on this issue.

Frederica Freyberg:

Because I understand that Assembly Speaker Robin Vos kind of likes this idea of a sales tax holiday, but Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald has said some of his members think it’s a kind of like a gimmick. Political parties are often criticized for working in lockstep. It seems like they’re branching out a little here.

Shawn Johnson:

Right, and speaking of branching out, during the legislature's budget writing committee this past week the messages were definitely mixed on a couple issues.

Frederica Freyberg:

Take this, for instance. When a head of a vote joint finance committee members, we were both there in that committee room, they were discussing funding for the state’s job creation agency, or the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, WEDC, but two Democrats on that committee, as you heard, took different tacks.

Jennifer Shilling:

So how can we continue to put resources into an organization that I think is failing to meet your own goals and has repeatedly been unable to utilize the funds you have provided?

Cory Mason:

Why, if we’re trying to create more jobs, are we talking about austerity and cutting back in the work and the mission of your agency?

Shawn Johnson:

And there were a couple issues they were debating here. One was whether to give WEDC the second year of its two-year budget, about $60 million. Democrats said lawmakers should wait until you have a follow-up audit on WEDC to find out if serious problems have been addressed. The other issue is whether to give WEDC this $35 million surplus that it finds itself with right now. That’s where you heard Democrat Cory Mason saying, why are we waiting, why do we have this austerity budget for WEDC when the agency itself has said that money could create jobs?

Frederica Freyberg:

After all of that though, in the end, the budget got approved, the surplus got held and Democrats were on the same page in their votes, even though their comments, as we heard, going into it were divergent. But now, next up on this mixed messages parade, another joint finance topic. The committee was voting whether to give the Department of Public Instruction $7 million for its new student information system.

Shawn Johnson:

Yeah, information that would go toward school accountability measures, both public and private. Some Republicans on the committee thought that collecting this data from schools was a little too Big Brother.

Glenn Grothman:

I think it's appalling they were applying it to the private schools, but I think it's appalling they’re even applying it to the public schools. And you know, there are always going to be people who say if the government knew more about everybody in one handy place they’d be able to do a better job of controlling our lives and making sure we're always behaving properly.

Shawn Johnson:

But Republican senator Luther Olsen who’s chair, as you know of the senate Education Committee, told fellow Republicans, basically, to chill.

Luther Olsen:

This is the foundation of accountability in the state of Wisconsin, and without that then we might as well just say, oh, okay, well, just give them the money and don’t look back and whatever happens happens. And I don’t think that’s where Wisconsin wants to go.

Shawn Johnson:

In the end, close vote, but the committee narrowly approved spending the money for a new student information system.

Frederica Freyberg:

One thing seems clear, that the dividing lines aren’t necessarily always clear, but it makes our jobs a little more interesting.

Shawn Johnson:

It does.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right, thanks, Shawn.

Shawn Johnson:

Thank you.