WI GOP's #1 Priority.....

Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch (R-West Salem) said property taxes were controlled by limiting the 2008 property tax levies of cities, towns, villages and putting the first limit - 4% - on the levies of vocational colleges.

"That was obviously a No. 1 priority of Republicans," Huebsch said.

Yep, that's right. The Assembly GOP's #1 priority is reducing the amout of money the local units of government can levy.

It is not to keep their own house in order. It is not to find efficiencies in the governmental units that they are elected to oversee. It is, when you boil it down, to pick on those weaker than they.

Why weaker? They are putting limits on local government that they are not following themselves. To quote Huebsch:

As a point of reference, the US Department of Commerce recently announced that Wisconsin's per capita personal income grew at 4.6% in 2006. With the growth in all funds spending averaging 3.3% annually, the bipartisan budget agreement appropriates almost 1.3% per year below personal income growth and lives within the taxpayers' means.

By his own numbers, he is increasing the state budget increase of 3.3% annually as "within taxpayer's means." What does his budget hold city and county to?

State Senate and Assembly leaders ironed out a compromise with Doyle Friday evening that included allowing local tax levy spending to increase the greater of 2 percent or the value of new construction

Yep - 3.3% for them is "within taxpayer's means" but far out of bounds for the local ans most accountable to the citizen's government units.

After watching how the Assembly Republican's managed their budget, I'll thank them to stay out of ours.