Public Policy Forum
2002 RPAC Awards
by Joe Murray
I'm pleased to announce the REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) fundraising awards for the 2002 election year campaign. Awards are presented at the conclusion of each year's campaign for most dollars raised, highest per capita contributions and highest percent participation.
In addition, two boards were singled-out for special recognition based on their overall performance outside the three categories listed above.
While the Boards receiving awards for the 2002 RPAC campaign are truly exceptional, it should be said that almost all Boards did a terrific job raising funds for RPAC last year. By December 31, 2002 the combined total of RPAC and Direct Giver fundraising reached $382,243. This represents the single best fundraising year in the history of the association.
On behalf of the WRA Board of Directors, RPAC Trustees and staff, a sincere thank you to the 54 percent of the membership who contributed in 2002. Your contributions will ensure that our voices will be heard in Congress, the state Legislature and city halls across Wisconsin. Members like you are instrumental in helping the WRA achieve our legislative goals.
Most Dollars Raised
X-large Board
Greater Milwaukee Association of REALTORS®
Large Board
Central Wisconsin Board of REALTORS®
Medium Board
Door County Board of REALTORS®
Small Board
Dodge County Board of REALTORS®
Highest Per Capita Contribution
X-large Board
REALTORS® Association of South Central
Large Board
LaCrosse Area REALTORS® Association
Medium Board
Door County Board of REALTORS®)
Small Board
Dodge County Board of REALTORS®
Highest Percent Participation
X-large Board
REALTORS® Association of Northwestern Wisconsin
Large Board
Kenosha REALTORS® Association
Medium Board
Door County Board of REALTORS®
Small Board
Dodge County Board of REALTORS®
Special Recognition
REALTORS® Association of Northeast Wisconsin
Western Wisconsin REALTORS® Association
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Revamping School Financing
by Michael Theo
Nearly 10 years ago, the average property tax bill was increasing at double-digit annual rates. The main cause: escalating school costs. The public outcry created sufficient "critical mass" politically that the state legislature-Democrats and Republicans- adopted the current system of school financing. This system dramatically increased the state share of school costs to two-thirds of all costs and thus limited the local property tax share to just one-third. The plan also placed revenue caps and limited teacher salaries and benefits.
The state budget is now over $3 billion dollars in debt and the dramatic increase in state spending for schools is, at least in part, to blame. It's also clear that rectifying the deficit could include significant changes to the way schools are financed in Wisconsin. So, here we go again.
Exactly what Democratic Governor Jim Doyle proposes in his first budget regarding school financing, and what will eventually emerge from a Legislature controlled in both houses by Republicans, is unclear at this point. But many observers say how we distribute school aids is just as important-maybe more so-than how much money we put into the system or where that money comes from.
One state senator, Michael Ellis (R-Neenah) has a detailed plan to radically change the school aid distribution formula. His plan creates a single statewide school property tax levy at a rate of about $8.40 per $1,000 of value. (On a median-priced home in Wisconsin of $138,500, the tax would equal $1,163.40 per year.) The Ellis Plan would then distribute these funds on a per pupil basis, regardless of where the child lives. Each child would receive an annual "foundation" payment from the state of approximately $8,100. The current district-by-district revenue controls, which differs between all 426 school districts, would be replaced by a single statewide revenue cap, indexed for inflation. School districts would then be authorized to establish a separate local school levy for spending above the state foundation amount. This supplemental spending and taxing would be subject to a vote by local taxpayers through a referendum. Finally, the Ellis proposal provides additional funds for three separate categories of special education needs for students with handicaps, learning disabilities, and poverty.
Senator Ellis' proposal spends exactly the same amount of state dollars used to fund K-12 education in 2003 under current law, but the plan allows for local spending (ie., property taxes) to increase. It is unclear at this time whether or not Governor Doyle will include such radical proposals in a budget, where he will likely have to cut school aids in the short term. Moreover, the new governor has just so much political capital to spend to get this budget passed and the creation of a new foundation distributional scheme may be something that has to wait.
The school financing portion of the budget, along with state aids to local units of government, is very important to
Realtors®. Major changes that shift funding for these programs from the state to local school districts and municipalities will directly increase property taxes unless other revenue or cost containment measures are adopted. If the state "devolves" school funding back to the property tax without controls, we could once again see the days of double digit annual property taxpayers - and we're back where we started.
For more information on the Ellis proposal or on likely school financing developments, contact Michael Theo at
mtheo@wra.org.
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How High Are Wisconsin Taxes?
by Michael Theo
Last fall, nearly every candidate-from governor to the state legislators-ran on a no tax increase pledge. It's clear taxpayers/ voters in Wisconsin liked that message and now expect their elected officials to stick to that campaign promise. But is it realistic to assume Wisconsin can fix a $2 billion budget hole, without cutting essential services and programs and without tax increases? The answer is probably not. The cuts will have to be deep or taxes will have to be raised.
So what created this nearly unanimous, bipartisan call for no more taxes? The most important factor is the reality that Wisconsin, quite simply, is a high tax state by almost any measure. The Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance (WTA) detailed this fact in a recent report that compared Wisconsin's taxes to the rest of the nation. Here's what they found:
- State and local taxes in Wisconsin claim 12.94 percent of personal income. The national average is 11.23 percent, which makes us 15 percent higher than the national average-the fourth highest in the nation.
- Wisconsin has had between the fifth and the third highest taxes in the nation since 1990. (The lowest we achieved in the past 30 years was in 1980 when we fell to eleventh highest after a big tax cut.)
- When measured on a per capita basis, Wisconsin ranks eighth highest in the nation, with a tax burden of $3,458 per person. The national average is $3,100.
There are two primary causes for our high tax rankings, according to the WTA study-individual income and property taxes. In 2000, Wisconsin citizens paid about 4 percent of their income on property taxes-which was 11th highest in the country and a full 24 percent higher than the national average! That same year, we paid on average about 4.1 percent of our income in personal state income taxes. This is the fourth highest in the nation more than 52 percent above the U.S. average!
It's interesting to note that in one final category of major tax revenues, sales tax, Wisconsin is below the national average. Wisconsin ranks thirtieth with sales tax claiming 2.58 percent of income. The national average is 2.77 percent. In other categories, Wisconsin residents pay 5.4 percent of their income to schools (seventh nationally), 3.1 percent of their income on welfare programs (22nd nationally), and 2.3 percent of income on higher education (17th nationally).
Wisconsin is a high tax state. But if the campaign promises are fulfilled, the no new taxes pledge, coupled with substantial spending cuts could realign Wisconsin's priorities and drop us out of the top tier of taxing states in the nation. Stay tuned.
For more tax details, contact Michael Theo at mtheo@wra.org.
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