Doyle Vetoes--Spend and Tax, Spend and Tax AND Zipperer's Take

(Note: Page-number references correspond with the PDF document's pagination.)

Among other things, DarthDoyle's veto will allow technical colleges to increase their tax levies at any rate they want. (P. 28, #5) This, because a limit would "restrict economic development...and hinder educational achievement and job training."

It would also hinder MATC from paying the highest salaries in the Universe to its faculty.

He also allows a forever-and-ever Hunt for Nasties, (or Full Employment for DNR types). (P. 30 #2)

He also allows DNR to spend whatever they want on CWD and allows DNR to "pursue alternative methods" of financing the wildlife damage program. (P 31/2, #3)

Doyle vetoes stiffened reporting and standards-establishment for IT projects at UW and within State agencies, including vetoing a provision which requires sourcing commercially-available packages for proposed system-change implementations. (P.33, #1.)

That would be the "full-employment for State IT workers" provision.

Think that the Department of Family Services should actually tell the Legislature about its Implementation Plans for BadgerCare?

Naaaah. (P. 36, #1)

The City of Racine will receive an endless $250K annual grant to "identify, develop, and promote models of care to address and improve services and birth outcomes for high-risk pregnancies." (P.37, #5)

'Scuse me. A FOREVER grant? Racine? Who are we kidding here, Jimbo?

He vetoes parts of the Liquor Distributors' Guaranteed-Profits language (thankfully.) (P. 40, #1)

He vetoes a requirement for "Value Engineering" DOT projects over $5 million in estimated costs. (P. 43, #6.)

Who needs all that work when the RoadBuilders want to sell pavement? Screw that!!

Doyle lifts his skirt and reveals (duhhhh....) that only State DOT bureaucrats know anything--that the locals are (after all) just rubes who have to live with Busalacchi's Boyzzzzz Decisions. (P. 44, #8) Screw you, local authorities, residents, and taxpayers!!!

He (thankfully) takes the "do it NOW" language out of the Hy. 23 Developer's Dream Act (P. 44, #10.)

Finally, he mandates spending $800,000.00 on "preliminary studies" of the KRM Collossal Waste of Money Project--the one which will serve Roundy's CEO and other folks who collect paychecks in Wisconsin but would rather pay property- and income-taxes in Illinois. (P. 45, #11.)

Not the worst set of possibilities; but overall, it's Spend and Tax (now or later...)

Rep. Zipperer noticed a few other things:

“Apparently a deal isn’t really a deal with this Governor. With one stroke of his pen today, he doubled the tax increase property taxpayers will see for 2007. This Governor’s disregard for the taxpayer is astonishing.”

Some of today’s more egregious vetoes include:

Increase property tax levy limit to 3.86% in 2007. Under the budget negotiated with Doyle, there was a 2% cap.

Eliminate phase-out of the PECFA program. This program places an additional tax on each gallon of gasoline.

Eliminate a requirement that the UW-System let students know at the time of class registration who the daily teacher would be and what their credentials are.

Eliminates legislative oversight of DNR Stewardship land acquisitions, meaning the Legislature will not have oversight on $85 million of DNR expenditures each year.

Eliminate a ‘lock box’ on the Transportation Fund, leaving the fund open for future abuses and raids.

Eliminate a requirement that the DOT annually submit to the Legislature a ten-year plan on future bonding.

Eliminate a requirement that the DOT submit a plan to the Legislature on how to eliminate a $30,000,000 structural deficit within the Transportation Fund

To update the term 'double-dealing,' we now have "Doyle-Dealing."

What a guy.