The GOP-controlled Joint Finance Committee today stripped 612 of Dem Gov. Tony Evers’ proposals from the state budget, taking the document back to current law as members began their work on the two-year spending plan.
In the process, they cut $4 billion in all funds spending proposed by Evers while nixing tax plans that would’ve netted the state another $2.8 billion in revenues, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.
Dems argued Republicans were turning their backs on their constituents by rejecting a slew of provisions designed to make their lives easier. Rep. Tip McGuire, D-Kenosha, said that includes proposals to boost the child care industry.
“People are struggling, and it’s a challenging world, and the one thing that we should not be doing, the one thing that nobody votes for their legislator to do is make their life harder, and yet that’s all we see out of the Republican Party,” McGuire said.
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Along with stripping out the 612 provisions and largely going to existing law for agencies, the committee approved standard budget adjustments continuing the base level of services into the next biennium.
Co-chair Howard Marklein, R-Spring Green, rejected Dem complaints over the committee’s actions. He noted the committee took the same action two years ago, adding Republicans were opposed to starting from Evers’ “inflated budget.” He said the committee will now “make reasonable investments that I believe our constituents want and we can afford.”
Ahead of a vote on the motion taking out the 612 items, Dems proposed three amendments. One sought to pull out of the GOP motion several of Evers’ proposals for veterans, including one to expand a property tax credit for those who are disabled. Another sought to keep a proposed expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. And the third sought to keep several of Evers’ child care proposals, including subsidies for providers he’s pitched as a needed step to keep centers open.
All three went down along party lines.
Sen. LaTonya Johnson, D-Milwaukee, knocked Republicans for moving to strip out the child care provisions without having an alternate plan in place.
“It causes a state of uncertainty and crisis,” Johnson said. “Why would we want to cause that for our taxpayers, for the people who rely on these services to go to work?”
