#WalkerAt20: The Only Things Certain in Life? Taxes and Walker Failure

MADISON, Wis. — In his twenty years in office, Scott Walker has amassed a truly astounding record of failure. To commemorate the looming anniversary of his first election to office, One Wisconsin Now is highlighting a different and depressing failure of Gov. Walker every day, for twenty days. On the final day of scheduled debate on the 2013 budget, we look at the intersection of the certainty of taxes and Gov. Walker’s failure.

“Very few things in life are certain but it’s been said that taxes are one of those things. Another, based on his record, is Gov. Walker doling out big tax breaks for the wealthy at the expense of the rest of us,” said Scot Ross, One Wisconsin Now Executive Director.

Gov. Walker’s tax failures include:

• Raising taxes by nearly $70 million on those that could afford it least, senior citizens and working families, in his 2011 state budget; [Legislative Fiscal Bureau, State Tax and Fee Modifications Included in 2011 Act 32, 7/5/11]
• Doling out $2.3 billion in tax breaks over the next ten years, that will overwhelmingly benefit the wealthy and corporations; [2011 WI Act 32; 2011 WI Act 5; 2011 WI Act 1]
• Endorsing a tax scheme as part of his 2013 budget that doles out a larger proportion of tax breaks to the wealthiest, giving merely $87 to people with income between $40,000 and $50,000 but over $1,500 to filers with incomes in excess of $300,000; [Legislative Fiscal Bureau, Distributional Impact of Individual Income Tax Proposal, 6/5/13]
• Promoting the 2013 budget as having a property tax “freeze”, despite a nonpartisan analysis that shows the budget would increases property taxes in each of the next two years [Legislative Fiscal Bureau, Property Tax Estimates Governor Versus Joint Finance, 6/11/13]

One Wisconsin Now is commemorating over 20 days, the failings, scandals and imbroglios of Gov. Scott Walker’s 20-years in elected office. Gov. Walker, who was first elected to the State Assembly on June 29, 1993, has spent virtually no time in the private sector and has enjoyed nearly half his life on the taxpayers’ dime, including receiving well over $1 million in salary alone, as well as health care benefits for he and his family.

Previous information compiled by One Wisconsin Now about Scott Walker’s failure as Milwaukee County Executive is available at www.ScottWalkerFailureFiles.com, his first disastrous year as Governor is available at WalkerFailure.com and the millionaires and billionaires behind it all at http://pinterest.com/onewisconsinnow/who-s-buying-gov-scott-walker