Posted on 01/06/2012 11:19:54 AM PST by afraidfortherepublic
MADISON — The flat tax has arrived in Wisconsin in a manner of speaking.
Property tax bills on average are going up 0.3 percent statewide this year, according to an initial analysis by the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, or WTA.
The WTA, a nonpartisan organization that studies tax issues, attributes the “nearly flat” trend to the budget changes pushed through by Gov. Scott Walker and the Republican-led Legislature, which cut aid to local governments and set stricter limits on property tax increases.
Individual property tax bills are affected by, for example, a local government’s debt, the amount of new construction in the area and whether voters have approved referenda aimed at boosting school funding.
“What we’re seeing this year with all the limits ratcheted down, we’re probably going to see the lowest increase in property taxes really in a long, long time,” said Dale Knapp, the WTA’s research director.
That’s good news for those who don’t want to hand over their money to the government, said Marvin Munyon, founder and president of Wisconsin Capitol Watch, a nonprofit that promotes values-based legislation, and a member of the Rock River Patriots tea party group..
“For the first time in a long, long time we have Wisconsin on the road to financial recovery, and I certainly hope that we continue going down that road,” said Munyon.
The so-called flat tax is bad news for those who think higher taxes are a fair price to pay for better roads, better schools and better services, said Joe Anderegg, a Middleton resident who regularly sings with the Solidarity Singalong at the Capitol, a daily protest of the governor.
“I don’t think we pay too much in taxes. You get what you pay for. If you want all of the things that go along with a good quality of life, you have to pay taxes,” said Anderegg, who supports the recall effort being waged against Walker.
Faced with a projected $3.6 billion budget shortfall a year ago, Walker proposed a budget that slashed state aid to local governments and school districts.
But the governor and GOP lawmakers also pushed through collective-bargaining changes that limited bargaining to cost-of-living salary increases for most public union employees — a move critics called union busting but that Walker said was intended to give local governments the ability to address budget cuts.
The legislation also required public workers to pay for a higher percentage of their health care and pension plans.
Local officials’ reaction to the budget have been mixed, with some welcoming the flexibility and others concerned about the double whammy of state aid cuts and strict limitations on how much local governments can increase property taxes.
Some school districts have approved referendums to help pay for ongoing operating costs, such as the Highland School District, which, at 22.3 percent, had the largest jump in property tax rates of all school districts from the 2010-11 school year to the current school year.
Last April, voters agreed to be taxed an additional $275,000 annually, said Linda Hebgen, director of business for the school district.
The Rio School District had the biggest year-to-year decrease, a 24.7 percent decline, because its three-year referendum ran out, Superintendent Mark McGuire said.
All district staff took a pay freeze this year, McGuire said, and that, combined with some retirements and spending cuts, will get the district through this year.
Next year, McGuire said, the district can rely on its fund balance.
After that, school officials might seek another referendum.
Voters there have approved two, three-year referenda in the past seven years, McGuire said.
“I guess I can say the Rio community has been supportive of their schools,” he said.
WTA’s Knapp said the group’s property tax estimates are just that — estimates, based largely on information that has been collected about what property taxes school districts, counties and technical college districts are levying.
Complete information, including that from Wisconsin’s 1,850 municipalities, however, likely won’t be available until spring, Knapp said.
Wisconsin Lower Taxes Ping
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Scott Walker is my Hero!
MIL’s property taxes in Brookfield dropped $300. First decrease in 41 years.
Mine would have been down close to that if not for the Milwaukee County adder.
That aside, while I am grateful for Scott Walker's leadership in holding the line on taxes, my property taxes are outrageous for the size and style of home that I live in--nearly $5k for a small ranch on a city lot in a metro Milwaukee suburb.
Mine were up $72 and I consider that a victory.
I could move to Ozaukee and get a house twice the size at half to 2/3rd’s the tax, but then I’d have to commute to see the wife and kids at our house in WFB. ;)
We've told our girls to find a nice (warm) spot to settle and WE will join them once we're able.
We moved from Fort Wayne, Indiana to Sun Prairie, Wisconsin last year.
Boy do we pay high property taxes here!!!!
In Fort Wayne 2800 SQFT 4 bedroom house Taxes were $1550 annually.
Sun Prairie 2200 SQFT 4 Bedroom house Taxes are $5200 annually.
Anyone here who says taxes aren’t too high is totally nuts!
Of course mine went up again.
Our libtard school did their sneaky before-the-law contract and I am sure they did it for the full 3 years allowed. So we won’t see any help for another 3 years.
Jerks.
So did my district. My county property taxes raised about $120.00.
Mine were up about $180, which is better than the $300 the year before.
They’re robbing us of $6300 this time. We can pay it (we did) or move.
They’re as bad as the MOB.
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