(H/T – WisPolitics via Charlie Sykes)
The Legislative Fiscal Bureau released some new tax projection numbers yesterday, and despite (or is it because of?) $1.4 billion in new taxes in Wisconsin’s budget repair Porkulus out to the end of June 2011 (the end of the FY2011 year), the projected tax take of Wisconsin is expected to be $1.603 billion less than it was estimated to be in January. In a state where the 3-year tax take was originally estimated to be $37.691 billion, that’s a rather big haircut, to the tune of 4.25%.
So, what are the politicians and AFSCME doing in the face of losing all that revenue? I’m glad you asked. WLUK-TV in Green Bay is reporting (H/T – Fred over at the MacIver Institute) the unions are balking at a proposal asking them to forego a 2% pay hike. To compare, the entity that the Legislative Fiscal Bureau used in their estimate, IHS Global Insight, estimated that personal income would drop by 0.8% this year, and climb by only 1.8% next year.
I guess they’re counting on the Obama administration doing to Wisconsin what it is doing to California. It has threatened $6.8 billion of stimulus Porkulus money slated for California unless it reverses $74 million of scheduled reductions of subsidized pay for unionized health care workers.
Meanwhile, the first order of business for the Dems on the Joint Finance Committee was to increase the number of revenuers. I guess they haven’t heard of that it’s impossible to get blood out of a dehydrated turnip.
Fuck ’em.