Jimbo Doylie will arrive in Milwaukee and speak to a hostile audience--except for a couple of lawyers who will be firmly attached to Jimbo's legs, and one hospital bigwig who will be performing.....uuhhhhhh.......nevermind. Family blog, and all that.
When Gov. Jim Doyle addresses a quarterly meeting of Milwaukee-area business leaders on Thursday, he will be facing some who believe his proposed business-tax increases will "clobber" the region's most crucial industries, says Tim Sheehy, president of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce.
"We asked him to talk about how Wisconsin will improve its competitive standing," Sheehy said.
Jimbo will not be able to answer that question, of course.
Confronting a projected $5.9 billion hole in the state's two-year budget, Doyle has proposed, among other measures:
• Increasing the amount of capital gains that get taxed, which would raise an estimated $181 million if passed.
• Boosting the income tax for the richest 1% of taxpayers ($312 million).
• Repealing a tax break meant to reward companies that keep production jobs in the United States ($72 million).
But that's not the trigger for throwing eggs (or pitchforks) at Jimbo.
...one tax stands out as the most onerous: the so-called "combined reporting" provision. It effectively requires Wisconsin-based businesses to pay taxes on money made by their subsidiaries outside the state, rather than only those within Wisconsin.
It was rammed through with no public hearings, no debate, and a general "FU" attitude from the Extreme Left in the Legislature.
Why is "combined reporting" a problem?
"You're talking about a piece of legislation that dramatically alters the corporate tax structure in the state," said Kurt Bauer, president and CEO of the Wisconsin Bankers Association. "Essentially, you're penalizing multistate businesses for headquartering in Wisconsin."
And as UPAF and United Way will tell you, losing a business HQ is devastating.
Leading "multistate businesses" headquartered in SE Wisconsin include M&I Bank, Briggs and Stratton, Bucyrus, Harley, Johnson's Wax and Sensient Technologies. There are more....
And you can bet large money that every one of them has been courted by other States--or other countries.
Where can I buy a pitchfork?
Democrats have taken pride, on both a National and State level, of ramming through whatever they want with either token, or no debate at all. Funny. These same asshats called Bush a dictator.
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