Assembly Joint Resolution 12
Relating to: 4-year terms of office for, appointment of, vacancies in the offices of, and the restriction on holding any other office by, sheriffs (2nd consideration).
By Representatives Krusick, Walker, Albers, Bock, Boyle, Brandemuehl, Dobyns, Goetsch, Grothman, Gunderson, Hahn, Handrick, Hanson, Hoven, Hutchison, Jensen, Kreibich, Ladwig, M. Lehman, Murat, Olsen, Otte, Owens, Ryba, Seratti, Springer, Staskunas, Vander Loop, Wasserman, Williams, L. Young, Zukowski, Gronemus, Green and Freese; cosponsored by Senators Buettner, Darling, Drzewiecki, Fitzgerald, Grobschmidt, Huelsman, Panzer, C. Potter, Rude, Schultz, Weeden and Rosenzweig.
Read first time and referred to committee on Economic Development, Housing and Government Operations.
Assembly Joint Resolution 24
Relating to: the life and public service of Martin Eugene Schreiber.
By Representative
Kunicki
; cosponsored by Senator Grobschmidt
.
Read and referred to committee on Senate Organization.
Assembly Joint Resolution 27
Relating to: celebrating March 1, 1997, as St. David's Day.
By Representatives Owens, Freese, Gronemus, Hahn, Hutchison, Ryba and Turner; cosponsored by Senators Grobschmidt, Buettner and Wirch.
Read and referred to committee on Senate Organization.
Assembly Joint Resolution 27
Relating to: celebrating March 1, 1997, as St. David's Day.
By Representatives Owens, Freese, Gronemus, Hahn, Hutchison, Ryba and Turner; cosponsored by Senators Grobschmidt, Buettner and Wirch.
Read and referred to committee on Senate Organization.
Assembly Joint Resolution 28
Relating to: declaring the week of February 24, 1997, African-American Cultural Heritage Week.
By Representative
Morris-Tatum
; cosponsored by Senator Moore
.
Read and referred to committee on Senate Organization.
Assembly Joint Resolution 28
Relating to: declaring the week of February 24, 1997, African-American Cultural Heritage Week.
By Representative
Morris-Tatum
; cosponsored by Senator Moore
.
Read and referred to committee on Senate Organization.
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Senator Risser, with unanimous consent, appointed Senators Moore and Darling to act as escorts to his Excellency the Governor.
Senator Risser, with unanimous consent, asked that the Senate recess for the purpose of awaiting the Governor's Budget Address in Joint Convention in the Assembly Chambers at 3:00 P.M. and upon the rising of the Joint Convention and receipt of the Budget Bill for introduction by the Joint Committee on Finance adjourn until
Tuesday, February 25, pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1.
10:01 A.M.
__________________
The President of the Senate in the Chair.
The committee to await upon the Governor appeared with his excellency the Governor, who delivered his budget message as follows:
Speaker Brancel, President Risser, Members of the Legislature, Constitutional Officers, Honorable Justices of the Supreme Court, members of the Cabinet, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.
As you know, I was recently in Washington with a group of Wisconsin dairy farmers to seek changes in the unfair way milk is pricedin this country. And we made some positive progress with USDA Secretary Dan Glickman and our congressional delegation.
But I didn't realize we had another milk crisis right here in the state Legislature. Of course, leave it to my good friend, that Great American Dave Zien, to point out that no milk was available for senators to purchase in their vending machines. So in the spirit of bipartisanship, Sen. Chvala came forward with a promise to put a milk vending machine in the Senate building. He called on Republicans to provide the cookies.
Well Senator, I want to do my part, so I brought along some of the world's finest cookies, made right here in Wisconsin. Rippin Good cookies.
Of course, I know that Rippin Good cookies are the world's best because they're made in Ripon, Wisconsin. As we all know by reading our new history standards, Ripon is the birthplace of the Republican Party -- the Party of Lincoln whose birthday we celebrate today.
So there you have it. We worked together -- Republican and Democrat -- to solve the first big crisis of the new year.
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Now on to the biennial budget.
I am proud to present to you this afternoon a balanced budget
that once again pays for every program and every innovation -- including our unprecedented investments in education, technology and the environment -- without raising the income tax, the sales tax or the corporate tax.
We did it again. Six straight biennial budgets, all balanced without a general tax increase.
As with the last one, putting this budget together was not easy.
This was our challenge: To fund two-thirds the cost of local schools, while making the necessary investments in our people, the environment and public safety. All without raising general taxes.
In this budget:
We cut spending for most state agencies.
We reduce the number of government positions by 145, excluding the Department of Corrections and the takeover of child welfare in Milwaukee County.
We increase funding for K-12 schools by nearly $400 million over the biennium.
And, most importantly, we keep our commitment to fund two-thirds the cost of local schools. No wavering. No going back.
Those who doubted we could keep this commitment while making major investments in education and our workforce said, ";Show me the money.";
Well here it is. Completely paid for and balanced. Without a general tax increase.
Property taxes
Because we keep our financial commitment to our local schools, property taxes will not increase in Wisconsin and many homeowners will see a property tax cut this December for the second straight year.
Much of the cut can be attributed to a renewed lottery credit. And this tax cut is small, certainly not as dramatic as last year's. But it is a cut. And it represents a sea change in the direction of property taxes in this state, continuing a downward slope that has stretched over four consecutive years. A downward slide made possible by our unwavering commitment to pay two-thirds the cost of local schools and our determination to put cost controls on local school spending.
As a percentage of per capita income, Wisconsin homeowners will have their lowest property tax burden in 45 years -- since before Fred Risser and Tommy Thompson were elected to the Legislature.
We are also providing tax relief for our low-income working families and those who don't yet own homes.
We are providing $50 million in additional state money to fully fund the earned income tax credit, allowing low-income working families to keep more of their hard-earned dollars. And we are providing an additional $11 million for homestead tax relief.
This budget provides Wisconsin taxpayers with their lightest state and local general tax burden since 1982 -- the lightest tax burden in 15 years!
Feel the power of a state that works!
I hold these tax cuts aloft as symbols of what can be accomplished when we invest wisely and prudently in our economy and our schools. Investments in our people that produce stronger neighborhoods and communities.
The biennial budget I lay before you today is the last of this century -- bringing us to the doorstep of a new millennium, where new challenges await.
As we build for the future, we cannot help but find inspiration in the past -- the vision of Abraham Lincoln, our bold and courageous forefather who we honor today.
Abraham Lincoln often spoke of our great nation as a strong house. And he dedicated his life to making sure an even stronger, more unified house stood for future generations of Americans. Our challenge is to do the same for future generations of Wisconsinites.
This budget is founded on the building blocks for our future -- education, the economy, the environment, public health and public safety. Two of these building blocks, however, are especially vital to the success of all our endeavors. Education and the economy will be the driving forces in meeting every challenge we face, today and tomorrow.
In Wisconsin, our economy is a rich soil from which everything else grows. And education is the nutrient that keeps this soil fertile.
Without a strong economy, built on education, we will not have money for tax cuts or schools and children. We will not have a skilled work force or good-paying jobs for our families. And we will not be able to lift our poor out of poverty or steer our youth away from crime.
Education and the Economy are our future. They are the stones upon which we will build a great new house for a new generation.
A house united, filled with opportunity, and warmed in the comfort of prosperity for all, for generations to come.
This budget builds a strong economy and strong schools, so that a new generation will feel the power of a state that works.
Education:
Abraham Lincoln told us: ";The philosophy of the schoolroom in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next.";
This is why we must prepare our children today to lead our state to even greater heights tomorrow. We do so by building a world-class system of schools thereby investing in our greatest resource -- our people.
This budget invests in an educated and skilled workforce with a strong program to connect school to work, which includes allowing high school students to attend technical college. We make sure our students leave school with the necessary skills by establishing rigorous standards and requiring students to pass a test in order to graduate. And we invest more than $200 million in the technology to create greater opportunities for our students to learn.
If you build the worker, the jobs will come.
While this budget goes to great lengths to improve the quality of our K-12 schools and technical colleges, it also brightens the shining star of our education system -- the University of Wisconsin System.
We are investing more than $10 million in technology and faculty training in the UW System.
And we help keep a University of Wisconsin education affordable by providing a 5 percent increase in student aid for college over the next biennium -- the eighth time in 10 years we have been able to increase student aid.
The recent Kiplinger Magazine report that ranked the UW-Madison the third best value in the nation simply stated what we already know. This budget makes sure the UW System remains a remarkable value for the dollar. While we reduce most state agencies, we do not reduce the UW budget.
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From kindergarten to college, our budget provides the high quality system of schools necessary for Wisconsin to succeed in the 21st century.
America's State won't work tomorrow if we don't prepare our children today.
Economy:
And America's State won't work if our economy isn't creating the high-paying jobs that make for vibrant communities.
On Monday, I announced an unprecedented and ambitious plan to clean up contaminated sites in our inner cities -- providing incentives for companies to move into these neighborhoods and bring with them family-supporting jobs.
