UPDATED Thursday, February 9, 2012 --- 12:43 p.m.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- The Democratic leader of the Wisconsin state Assembly says a new projection showing Wisconsin faces a $143 million budget shortfall illustrates irresponsible action by Gov. Scot Walker.
Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca issued the statement Thursday in reaction to the new estimates from the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau.
Barca says Walker's policies have left Wisconsin fiscally unsound and caused the state to fall behind on the road to economic recovery.
Barca says Walker's economic plan isn't working.
Walker views the new figures differently, saying he believes the state is headed in the right direction after Republicans made tough budget choices last year to balance a $3.6 billion shortfall.
Barca is considering running against Walker in a recall election.
Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.
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UPDATED Thursday, February 9, 2012 --- 11:52 a.m.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Gov. Scott Walker says no emergency budget repair bill will be needed to deal with a projected $143 million shortfall.
The nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau released the new estimate Thursday. As recently as October the state was projected to have a $73 million surplus.
Walker didn't detail what he would do to deal with the projected shortfall next year, other than promising not to raise taxes.
The Fiscal Bureau says the Walker administration is looking at debt refinancing and restructuring to deal with the shortfall.
Republican legislative leaders issued a joint statement saying Wisconsin is not immune to the bad economy and defended their past actions and promises not to raise taxes.
Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.
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UPDATED Thursday, February 9, 2012 --- 11:39 a.m.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Gov. Scott Walker says the state is still headed in the right direction despite a new revenue forecast that shows the budget will be $143 million short by July 2013.
Walker noted in a statement Thursday that there is projected to be a surplus at the end of the first of the budget this July.
Walker didn't detail what he would do to deal with the projected shortfall next year, other than promising not to raise taxes.
Walker says he is confident the state will be able to balance the budget.
The nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau says the Walker administration is looking at debt refinancing and restructuring to deal with the shortfall.
Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.
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UPDATED Thursday, February 9, 2012 --- 11:30 a.m.
Governor Walker Statement on Legislative Fiscal Bureau Projections
MADISON- Governor Walker issued the following statement today regarding the Legislative Fiscal Bureau Projections.
For over a year, we have been committed to making the tough choices to turn Wisconsin around. The numbers from the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau show that our tough choices have us heading in the right direction. According to the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau we will finish this fiscal year with a surplus.
Moving forward, we’re confident in our ability to finish the biennium with a balanced budget. As we have done in the last year, we will continue to manage the Wisconsin taxpayers’ money well, so we can keep the state’s fiscal house in order. We’ll keep our budget balanced without the job-killing tax increases implemented in the years before we took office; tax increases that led to over 150,000 Wisconsinites losing their jobs in the years before we took office. In contrast, we’ve added thousands of jobs this year, have the lowest unemployment rate since 2008, lowered the tax burden and will end the year with a surplus.
Our actions also stand in stark contrast to recent announcements by other states of what they are doing. In Illinois, Governor Quinn is proposing $2 billion in cuts to Medicaid and higher taxes, on top of the massive tax increase he implemented last year. In Maryland, the Governor proposed raising taxes by a billion dollars this year, including raising the gas tax by 18 cents. All told a Maryland family making about $30,000 a year would see their taxes go up 6%.
When compared to the past and to other states Wisconsin is heading in the right direction.
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Posted Thursday, February 9, 2012 --- 11:12 a.m.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Wisconsin's state budget condition has worsened to the point that Gov. Scott Walker and possibly the Legislature will need to take emergency steps to avoid being out of balance.
The nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau on Thursday released the new projections that show the two-year budget will be $143 million short of balancing by July 2013.
Fiscal Bureau Director Bob Lang says in the memo to co-chairs of the Legislature's budget committee that the Walker administration is looking to address the problem through debt refinancing and restructuring.
At the time of the last estimate in October, the state's budget was projected to end with a positive $73 million balance.
A large reason for the change is a projected $273 million loss in tax collections.
Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.
