RICHARDS Report - Thursday, June 6, 2013

 

Representative Jon Richards -   District  19

After Hours Budget Session Hurts the Middle Class

The Joint Finance Committee passed a state budget yesterday at 6:15 in the morning that will hurt Wisconsin’s middle class if it’s not dramatically rewritten.

Unfortunately, ideology took priority over public schools, affordable health care and tax fairness as the committee worked in the wee hours of the morning while most Wisconsin residents slept.

I and the other Democrats on the committee presented motions to adequately fund public education, expand affordable health care and provide targeted tax relief to the middle class.

The majority shot down every one of our attempts to craft a middle-class budget.

Instead they chose to expand unaccountable vouchers statewide, reject federal health care funding that would insure more people and cost taxpayers less and give an enormous tax break targeted primarily to the wealthy.

On education, I fought to increase state aid to public schools by $275 per pupil (which would restore half the historic cut public schools took in the last budget), repeal any expansion of unaccountable voucher schools and provide adequate funding for special education services.

On health care, I moved to accept federal health care funding available under the Affordable Care Act that would insure 85,000 more people on BadgerCare and save taxpayers $120 million in the next two years alone.

And on tax fairness, I offered a fiscally responsible plan to target millions in tax relief to the middle class.

While our attempts to craft a middle-class budget were thwarted in the finance committee, our work is not done. The debate now turns to the full Assembly, where we are expected to vote on the budget during the week of June 17.

I will continue to keep you posted on budget developments. In the meantime, please feel free to contact me with any questions of if you need more specific information on the state budget.

Sincerely,

JON RICHARDS

State Representative

Assembly District 19

State Capitol, 118 North, Madison, WI 53708, (608) 266-0650