Lawmakers cut property taxes, near budget deal
Party-line vote would shuffle DNR duties
MADISON - Republican lawmakers jumpstarted the stalled state budget Thursday with a committee vote to eliminate a property tax and a pledge to put a state spending plan in place by next month.
“We’re back in the saddle again,” Sen. Alberta Darling (R-River Hills) told reporters.
She and Rep. John Nygren (R-Marinette) said they expected the budget committee they chair to wrap up its work on the budget the week of Sept. 4. The Assembly would likely take it up the week of Sept. 11 and the Senatethat week or the following one.
As lawmakers work to end the nearly twomonth old budget stalemate in the coming weeks, they will likely reduce — but not eliminate — the personal property tax that is imposed on businesses for their equipment and furnishings, Darling and Nygren said.
They said they were nearing deals on transportation and education, the two issues that have sparked the most differences between Republicans in the Senate and Assembly. The budget committee will meet Monday to take up funding for K-12 schools.
Full details of the transportation and education plans have not yet been released.
The budget was to be set by July 1. Funding continues at last year’s levels until a new budget is approved.
Thursday marked the first time the Joint Finance Committee met on the budget since June 15.
With all Republicans in favor and all Democrats against, the committee voted, 12-4, Thursday to eliminate the state property tax for forestry programs, which would save $26 on the tax bill for a medianvalued home of $159,400.
The tax raises about $89 million a year and is used to support a variety of forestry programs in Wisconsin, which leads the nation in paper production and has a variety of timber-related industries. Under the GOP plan, that work would be funded with income taxes and sales taxes instead of property taxes.
Some advocates for the industry have questioned whether state funding for those programs will keep pace with inflation if the forestry property tax is eliminated. Republicans said the move showed they were committed to cutting the size of government.
“Here in Wisconsin, we’re not just reducing taxes. We’re eliminating some taxes entirely,” said Rep. Dale Kooyenga (R-Brookfield).
“Here in Wisconsin, we’re not just reducing taxes. We’re eliminating some taxes entirely.” REP. DALE KOOYENGA R-BROOKFIELD
DNR reorganization
On another 12-4 vote, the committee approved a plan by Gov. Scott Walker to reorganize the Department of Natural Resources that supporters say would result in better management of the agency at a time of depleted ranks.
The revamping would cut the number of divisions from six to five and reshuffle many units. A division devoted to water issues, including fisheries management, would be eliminated.
One change that has worried the conservation community is the potential for less emphasis on enforcement with the transfer of water regulation — with oversight of large farms, shoreland protection and runoff pollution — to a new unit, the Division of External Services.
The DNR describes the unit as a “one-stop shop for business assistance” devoted to creating a “business climate that yields better environmental and economic performance.”
The committee earmarked $400,000 for a study on the impact of water use from largescale wells on key lakes and streams in the Central Sands region of the state.
Past studies have shown that some water bodies have been harmed by heavy water use from agricultural irrigation.
The DNR began to approve numerous well applications after getting an attorney general’s opinion last year that found the agency had been exceeding its authority when it took into account water use from other wells and its impact on nearby lakes and streams when considering a new well application.
The committee also weakened state oversight of installation of riprap along shorelines. Property owners would no longer need a DNR permit to place up to 200 feet of stone along inland lakes and rivers; for Lake Michigan and Lake Superior, up to 300 feet of stone could be placed along shorelines.
Rock can protect shorelines from destructive wave action, but it can also harm aquatic life and water quality along a shoreline.
And in a move that brought criticism from Democrats, the committee exempted storm water from farming practices as a definition for point source pollution. Republicans said the measure would match federal rules, but Democrats said the change will add more nutrients into waterways that can cause algae growth.