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Conservatively Speaking
State Senator Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin) represents parts of four counties: Milwaukee, Waukesha, Racine, and Walworth. Her Senate District 28 includes New Berlin, Franklin, Greendale, Hales Corners, Muskego, Waterford, Big Bend and parts of Greenfield, East Troy, and Mukwonago. Senator Lazich has been in the Legislature for more than a decade. She considers herself a tireless crusader for lower taxes, reduced spending and smaller government.
October 2008 - Posts
By Mary Lazich
Friday, Oct 31 2008, 09:11 AM
Wisconsin’s business tax climate continues to be one of the worst in the country. The nonpartisan Tax Foundation in Washington D.C. has released its 2009 State Business Tax Climate Index, ranking Wisconsin number 38 (Wisconsin was number 39 last year). The annual study is significant because it demonstrates how states compare to one another in competitiveness.
Here are the five specific areas the Tax Foundation reviewed in each state to come up with its Index and how Wisconsin scored on each: corporate taxes (29), individual income taxes (44), sales taxes (18), unemployment insurance taxes (25), and property taxes (31).
American companies confront a double-whammy. They pay one of the highest corporate tax rates of any of the industrialized nations. The top federal rate on corporate income is 35 percent. On top of that, some states institute harsh tax systems that make competition difficult. Companies will go where they have the best advantage. As the Tax Foundation correctly reports, “States with the best tax systems will be the most competitive in attracting new businesses and most effective at generating economic and employment growth.”
While booming job creation overseas can’t be overlooked, the U.S. Department of Labor reports most significant job relocations are from one state to another. A state like Wisconsin must be more concerned about jobs moving to Indiana (Business tax climate number 14), Michigan (number 20) or Illinois (number 23) than India or China.
The ten states with the best business tax climates are, in order, Wyoming, South Dakota, Nevada, Alaska, Florida, Montana, Texas, New Hampshire, Oregon, and Delaware. Wyoming, Nevada and South Dakota do not have corporate or individual income taxes. Alaska does not have individual income or state-level sales taxes. Florida and Texas do not have individual income taxes. New Hampshire, Delaware, Oregon and Montana do not have sales taxes. States that are able to draw adequate revenue without one of the major taxes will be more competitive than states that impose every possible tax.
Some factors contribute to Wisconsin’s poor ranking. The income level at which a state’s top rate kicks in determines what amount of income is subject to the top rate. Wisconsin scores badly here because it is one of the states that has arranged its multiple tax brackets so that the top rate takes effect in the middle range of income ($152,140).
Wisconsin has an Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) that is modeled after the federal AMT. The Tax Foundation says the AMT is, “an inefficient way to prevent tax deductions and credits from totally eliminating tax liability,” that puts states like Wisconsin through, “needless tax complexity.”
Then there is our gas tax, the fourth highest in the country at 32.9 cents. Because gasoline constitutes a large expense, states with lower gas taxes are more competitive.
How can states like Wisconsin improve their business climates? What about tax incentives and subsidies? The Tax Foundation’s position and I concur, is that, “if a state needs to offer such packages, it is most likely covering for a woeful business tax climate. A far more effective approach is to systematically improve the business tax climate for the long term so as to improve the state's competitiveness.”
Surely, other factors play a role in a state’s business climate including how close it is to raw materials and transportation centers, the quality of schools, the skill of its workforce, and the state’s quality of life. Some of these areas lie beyond the scope of state lawmakers to directly control. However, legislators can make policy decisions that directly impact a sate’s tax system, and thus, the state’s business climate.
I agree with the Tax Foundation that writes:
“Taxes matter to business. Business taxes affect business decisions, job creation and retention, plant location, competitiveness, the transparency of the tax system, and the long-term health of a state's economy. Most importantly, taxes diminish profits. If taxes take a larger portion of profits, that cost is passed along to either consumers (through higher prices), workers (through lower wages or fewer jobs), or shareholders (through lower dividends or share value). Thus a state with lower tax costs will be more attractive to business investment, and more likely to experience economic growth.”
The best tax system is one that is simple and fair to all businesses that shuns excessive business taxes and keeps costs for adhering to the system down. Until Wisconsin adopts policies to enable a business climate that encourages growth, it will continue to have problems competing.
You can find the 2009 State Business Tax Climate Index here.
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By Mary Lazich
Thursday, Oct 30 2008, 10:18 AM
I’m not talking about the frigid cold or heavy snow. I’m talking about rough travelling conditions due to a shortage of road salt.
The Appleton Post-Crescent reports, “Dave Vieth, director of the state's bureau of highway operations, said the state purchased an amount about 40,000 tons short of what it requested during an early-year buy. It plans to increase the use of additives to stretch supplies and truck salt from different parts of the state as necessary.”
Why the shortage? In a nutshell, demand is high, supplies are down, and costs are up. The Post- Crescent reports, “Road salt prices now range as high as $250 per ton in the upper Midwest, and some would-be buyers are finding it hard to come by at any price.” It could have been worse, but Wisconsin, unlike some other states, put in bids for road salt early.
One state official told road maintenance supervisors to use only enough salt to “keep the snow plowable,” as well as anti-icing and de-icing additives.
Heavy snowfall last winter resulted in the United States dumping a near-record 20.3 million tons of salt.
Here are more details from the Appleton Post-Crescent and USA Today.
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By Mary Lazich
Wednesday, Oct 29 2008, 05:00 PM
There is still time to apply for an absentee ballot in Wisconsin. You must complete the proper form and mail it to or turn it into your municipal clerk's office. The application must be received by 5:00 this Thursday, the Thursday before the election in order for an absentee ballot to be mailed to you.
Here are instructions on how to apply for an absentee ballot in Wisconsin.
During May, I blogged about the trend of voting via the Post Office. As one election official put it, “There is no line at your mailbox.” Just how popular is the absentee ballot? The Associated Press reports that nationwide, about a third of the electorate is expected to vote before Election Day, November 4, 2008.
The numbers show an increasing percentage of voters want to take advantage of the absentee ballot because they are travelling, they are elderly and have difficulty getting to the polls, the convenience of considering their choices in the comfortable confines of their home, or simply because they can. Twenty-eight states, including Wisconsin, allow anyone to vote absentee, no questions asked.
During 2000, 16 percent of voters in the United States cast their ballots early. The number increased to 22 percent in 2004.
Statewide in Wisconsin, according to the Government Accountability Board’s Kyle Richmond who was quoted by the Associated Press, about 365,000 people used absentee ballots or cast early votes at clerk’s offices in 2004, about 12 percent of the voting age population in the state. The number is expected to grow this year to 15 percent.
At least 40% of California’s registered voters already have decided they want to vote by mail. The LA Times reports that according to the Early Voting Information Center at Reed College in Portland, Oregon, a majority of voters prefer their mailbox over the ballot box in Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado. Oregon did away entirely with polling places during 2000. Washington state is getting close to 100% vote-by-mail.
Here is an Associated Press story on the popularity of Post Office voting.
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By Mary Lazich
Wednesday, Oct 29 2008, 04:49 PM
Wisconsin’s highly-acclaimed Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) has released two audits about the Wisconsin Health Insurance Risk-Sharing Plan (HIRSP) Authority. The HIRSP Authority offers medical and prescription drug insurance for those unable to obtain coverage in the private market or who have lost employer-sponsored group health insurance.
Financial records of the HIRSP Authority for the final six months of 2006 and all of calendar year 2007 were reviewed. The LAB did not find what it called, “significant concerns,” but it does advise that the HIRSP Authority work with the federal government to settle a federal cash management issue.
Every quarter, the HIRSP Authority should remit to the federal government interest earned on advances of federal funds. The LAB found that a $4,422,935 grant was awarded to Wisconsin for HIRSP during September 2006 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant program. The entire amount was drawn by the Wisconsin Department of Administration (DOA) during November 2006 and transferred through the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance (OCI) to the HIRSP Authority during the first week of January 2007.
The LAB reports the HIRSP Authority had spent only $2,333,710 of the federal grant when it received the funds during January 2007. The remaining $2,089,225 was spent from January through June 2007. The HIRSP Authority did not remit to CMS any interest earned on the federal funds it received.
How could that happen? The LAB explains that there was a change in the administration of HIRSP effective July 1, 2006. Control was transferred from the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services to the HIRSP Authority effective July 1, 2006. Prior to that time, OCI received federal funds to be paid to the HIRSP Authority. State law was then changed to allow federal grant funds to go directly to the HIRSP Authority. As a result, the LAB reports, “the HIRSP Authority may owe interest to CMS on the advance of $2,089,225 it received in January 2007. Potential interest earnings on those funds are estimated to not exceed $33,000 for the period January through June 2007.”
The LAB writes that when the administration of HIRSP changed, staff members at the HIRSP Authority were unaware of and not informed about the cash management requirements. The audit recommends that the HIRSP Authority work with CMS, DOA, and OCI to resolve this issue and take measures to meet federal cash requirements in the future.
I commend the LAB for their consistently outstanding work. You can read their audits here and here.
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By Mary Lazich
Wednesday, Oct 29 2008, 04:00 PM
Under Wisconsin law, employers must allow workers time to vote on Election Day. Here is the Wisconsin statute:
6.76 Time off for voting.
(1) Any person entitled to vote at an election is entitled to be absent from work while the polls are open for a period not to exceed 3 successive hours to vote. The elector shall notify the affected employer before election day of the intended absence. The employer may designate the time of day for the absence.
(2) No penalty, other than a deduction for time lost, may be imposed upon an elector by his or her employer by reason of the absence authorized by this section.
(3) This section applies to all employers including the state and all political subdivisions of the state and their employees, but does not affect the employees’ right to holidays existing on June 28, 1945, or established after that date.
History: 1977 c. 394; 1991 a. 316.
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By Mary Lazich
Tuesday, Oct 28 2008, 12:52 PM
Wisconsin incomes continue to lag behind the rest of the nation. The non-partisan Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance (WISTAX) has broken down Wisconsin incomes by county, and found that most of the state’s 72 counties are experiencing problems with income growth.
The ten fastest growing counties were in Bayfield, Buffalo, Door, Florence, Green Lake, Kewaunee, Langlade, Ozaukee, Vilas, and Waukesha. But WISTAX points out these counties are small, with less than 11 percent of the state’ population.
Overall, the news is disappointing. WISTAX reports:
“During the 2003-2006 period, state income growth lagged the nation. While national incomes climbed 5.2% per year, Badger State incomes rose 3.9% annually. From 2003 through 2007, only metro Milwaukee (Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington, and Waukesha counties) and Sheboygan had income growth topping the state average. However, both areas were in the bottom half of 365 U.S. metro areas studied.”
You can read the WISTAX news release here.
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By Mary Lazich
Monday, Oct 27 2008, 07:05 AM
Wisconsin isn’t cheap when it comes to funding education, especially our area of the state. The Public Policy Forum’s October 2008 Research Brief indicates school spending is above average in the southeast part of Wisconsin and higher than the state as a whole.
Our region is behind the rest of the state in graduation but surpasses the state in ACT and AP scores.
You can read more about these and other findings in The Public Policy Forum’s October 2008 Research Brief here.
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By Mary Lazich
Saturday, Oct 25 2008, 08:33 AM
Take a look at this list of states:
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Indiana
Louisiana
Michigan
South Dakota
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Kentucky
Missouri
Montana
North Dakota
Ohio
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Virginia
Washington
You will notice Wisconsin is not on the list. That is because the list includes states that either request or require identification to vote.
Presenting identification at the polls is not a barrier or hardship to vote. In fact, The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) writes, “In no state is a voter who cannot produce identification turned away from the polls—all states have some sort of recourse for voters without identification to cast a vote. However, in Georgia and Indiana, voters without ID vote a provisional ballot, and must return to election officials within a few days and show a photo ID in order for their ballots to be counted.”
Here is the NCSL rundown on what other states require for voting.
Keep in mind why Wisconsin does not have a photo ID law on the books. Governor Doyle and state Senate Democrats killed any chance of a photo ID requirement being in place for the critical November elections when the governor vetoed photo ID legislation three times and Senate Democrats refused to allow a vote on a photo ID constitutional amendment. A common sense photo ID requirement would not be an obstacle to voting or hamper the process.
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By Mary Lazich
Friday, Oct 24 2008, 05:05 PM
Traditionally, American teachers have seen their salaries rise as years of service and the number of degrees they achieve increase. School districts in eight states are trying something new: offering higher pay and bonuses in exchange for improved student test scores or if teachers opt to work in schools difficult to staff.
Doe the experiment work? USA Today reports, “In dozens of districts, test scores already have earned teachers more money. Do such plans work? A proposed realignment of pay in Washington, D.C., public schools could prove the most sweeping of all. Teachers with as few as six years of experience could earn well over $100,000 — more than twice the national average.”
Michael Podgursky, Professor of Economics at the Harry S. Truman School of Public Affairs and Economics Department at the University of Missouri–Columbia says school districts should at least consider this concept.
“We can’t say, ‘Do this; or this is the right way to do it,’” he said. “However, the preponderance of evidence, when you look at a variety of sources, including the limited number of evaluations and the evidence we have on the variation of teacher effectiveness, suggests that it really is something school districts should be exploring or piloting. Every one of the evaluations has been virtually positive. They all suggest there’s a positive response in terms of outcome measures – including test scores.”
Podgursky and Matthew Springer, Research Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Education at Peabody College of Vanderbilt University and Director of the National Center on Performance Incentives authored a study on this issue during 2007 entitled, Teacher Performance Pay: A Review. Podgursky and Springer conclude, in part:
“In the long run, a pay scheme tends to attract employees who prefer or prosper under it. While the literature is not sufficiently robust to prescribe how systems should be designed, it is sufficiently positive to suggest that further experiments and pilot programs by districts and states are very much in order. School administrators need to channel some of these funds toward more strategic pay experiments designed to raise student achievement. Education policy makers should nurture, expand, and evaluate these local experiments.”
You can read their study here.
I agree. This is an intriguing idea that while in need of further study is worth consideration.
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By Mary Lazich
Friday, Oct 24 2008, 12:28 PM
A report by the non-partisan Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance says, “growth in tax dollars going to the UW has trailed overall state spending, state school aid, and inflation.”
At first blush, the WISTAX finding may sound as though the UW is getting a raw deal. However, it is clear why growth in tax dollars for UW has fallen behind. Given the numbers, keeping pace with the growth in overall state spending and state school aid would be extremely difficult.
Ready for some eye-popping statistics? WISTAX reports, “Between 1983 and 2007, state aids and tax credits for K-12 schools rose 320%, while overall state expenditures were up 222%. By comparison, inflation—as measured by the consumer price index (CPI)— rose 115%, and UW funding, 99%.”
Here is the WISTAX news release.
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By Mary Lazich
Thursday, Oct 23 2008, 01:57 PM
I have been blogging about the various election problems to be expected around the country. Here are some updates:
For the second time, city of Racine election officials have had to mail out hundreds of absentee ballots to city residents. A box of absentee ballots is missing. No one knows where the ballots are.
In Madison, about 20 absentee ballots were sent out without the school district’s $13 million referendum question.
I suspect we will be hearing about more and more glitches between now and Election Day.
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By Mary Lazich
Thursday, Oct 23 2008, 11:16 AM
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) is conducting undertaking an environmental and engineering analysis of the Zoo Interchange, the connection between I-94, I-894 and US 45 in western Milwaukee County near the Milwaukee County Zoo, through the end of 2009.The interchange is one of Wisconsin's oldest interstate interchanges, the busiest interchange in the state.
Refined modernization alternatives for each leg (north, south, east, west) and the core of the interchange will be presented at public meetings at the end of this month. Details are contained in the following release I received from the DOT:
Project progress
Over the past 10 years, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) and the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (SEWRPC) have completed a number of studies and analyses that consistently concluded that improvements to the Zoo Interchange are necessary. Recently WisDOT has collected and analyzed data to show current and future traffic scenarios.
Based on the initial results of the traffic analysis and the input received at the January 2008 open house workshops, the Zoo Interchange Team developed seven design concepts for public review and comments. Seven concepts, including the “no build” or “replace in kind” alternative, were presented at public information meetings in May. Nearly 500 people attended the May public information meetings and provided valuable input and ideas on the alternatives. The seven alternatives were further evaluated for traffic operations and impacts to local and environmental features.
Result: The traffic analysis concluded that spot improvements alone would not adequately address congestion and safety issues in the Zoo Interchange corridor. The spot improvement alternatives also did not address the outdated design issues including left hand exit and entrance ramps. At the conclusion of this analysis, and based on comments received from the public, the Zoo Interchange Team determined that the “spot improvement alternatives” would be screened out from further study and the modernization alternatives” should be analyzed further. The “modernization” alternatives feature a multi-level system interchange with right side exits and entrances. This design reduces weaving maneuvers and provides safer operations.
Alternatives to be presented at the October public meetings
The study team will present alternatives for each leg (north, south, east, west) of the project. The alternatives for each leg can be mixed and matched with alternatives of similar lane-width to fit the preferences and needs of the community. The alternatives presented will include the “replace-in-kind” alternative.
The maps and displays will show increased detail of where the new right-of-way lines may be located. Also, there will be artistic drawings to show how the freeway may look, and an electronic “fly over” to illustrate how traffic will flow with the different interchange designs.
What happens next
• October 2008 - The design concepts will be refined and presented in more detail at public information meetings.
• October 27, 2pm-7pm, Tommy Thompson Youth Center at State Fair Park
• October 30, 4pm-8pm, Wauwatosa West High School Cafeteria
• 2009 - A preferred design will be selected, and hearings will be held on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement
• 2009-2010 - Record of decision from the Federal Highway Administration; ongoing analysis and design
• 2010-2012 - Ongoing design and begin to address real estate and utility issues
• 2012-2016 - Reconstruct the interchange
Questions or comments? Please call our project hotline at 262-548-6421.
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By Mary Lazich
Wednesday, Oct 22 2008, 10:39 AM
Today marks the exciting ribbon-cutting ceremony at Northwestern Mutual Life’s expansion project at its corporate campus in Franklin. The $85 million, six-story expansion at the 230,000-square-foot facility will have the space to add 1,100 employees.
The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company (NML) is one of the most prestigious and successful firms in all of Wisconsin, in business for more than 150 years. A solid company with over $1 trillion of life insurance, NML can boast having the highest available ratings for insurance strength from all four major rating agencies: Standard & Poor's, Fitch Ratings, A.M. Best and Moody’s.
FORTUNE Magazine has recognized the strength and stability of NML, designating it “America’s Most Admired” company in the life/health insurance industry for 25 years. NML has been included in the FORTUNE survey of top industry professionals and analysts every year, and is the only company to lead its industry every year of the survey.
Franklin is an ideal location for NML to expand. Despite a rough economy, Franklin continues to beat the odds through prosperity and growth. I appreciate representing Franklin in state Senate District 28 and I congratulate NML and city of Franklin officials for this marvelous achievement.
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By Mary Lazich
Tuesday, Oct 21 2008, 03:14 PM
That’s the assessment of a new report by the Pew Center on the States on electionline.org. A record number of voter registrations and predicted high turnouts will put heavy pressure on various voting systems around the country that continue to be plagued by glitches.
The report, “Election Preview 2008: What if We Had an Election and Everyone Came?” sums up Wisconsin:
”The statewide voter registration database was finally completed and made compliant with federal law over the summer, two years later than planned. However hiccups still emerged when the state started matching voter information with information in the department of motor vehicles database and found one in five records did not match due to issues such as typos, transposed letters or numbers, or using middle names for one record but not the other. And as in several other battleground states, there has been partisan fighting over voter eligibility and allegations of fraudulent voter registration forms being submitted.”
Nationally, the report describes America’s voting system as one that, “while still in flux with a host of changes since 2001, will, ready or not, face its greatest challenge in a high-stakes contest with massive turnout.” Here are some of the concerns raised in the report:
1) There has been a huge increase in voter registrations. How the information was gathered has come into questions with labor unions, community groups, advocacy organizations and others coming under heavy scrutiny.
2) Eligibility for college students, especially those who come to universities from out-of-state, has raised eyebrows.
3) Election Day registration is available in eight states, including Wisconsin. The surge in voter registrations makes the timeliness of registration-application processing an issue.
4) As a safety net, voters who believe that they are registered or fail to present proper ID are given d provisional ballots as required by the Help America Vote Act, HAVA. However, there is no uniformity among the states. More than half of the states require voters to be in the correct precinct to have their provisional ballots eligible for counting.
5) Record numbers of provisional ballots are predicted. In close races, decisions to accept or reject ballots could be pivotal to election outcomes.
6) Military personnel and civilian citizens abroad sill face problems, including relying on slow and/or unreliable foreign mail services and rules that can require witnesses or difficult-to-find notaries to substantiate ballots.
Stateline.org has an article on the report.
You can read the lengthy report here.
Read my previous blogs on this issue:
Predictions of an error-filled Election Day appear to be true
A Photo ID requirement is not the problem in our election system
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By Mary Lazich
Monday, Oct 20 2008, 01:10 PM
On February 4, 2008, I agreed with a gloomy election forecast from Dr. Robert A. Pastor, director of the Center for Democracy and Election Management at American University in Washington, DC. I wrote the following:
“Pastor says the majority of states have failed to adopt or even embrace reforms that would restore confidence and trust in America’s flawed election system. As a result, Pastor says problems with this year’s elections are inevitable.
The biggest problem according to Pastor will be voter registration lists. The Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002 gave the states until January 1, 2006 to complete integrated, interactive lists. A few states have yet to comply. There has not been a thorough review to determine the quality of the lists. So a number of problems are still likely to occur in this year’s primary and general elections. Pastor also points out ‘about one third of the states have bottom-up databases that rely on counties and municipalities to retain their own registration lists and submit information to the state rather than the other way around. In contrast, top-down lists typically deliver information in real time.’
There are problems with new computerized systems that have replaced archaic punch card and lever voting. A paper trail is necessary in the event of recounts, but Congress has failed to fund and provide voter-verified paper-audit trails. Some states are so concerned that they are thinking about dumping their electronic voting systems in favor of a paper system prior to the November election.”
The Washington Post is reporting that due to mix-ups in voting systems around the country, thousands of eligible voters will be forced to re-establish their eligibility. This November is shaping up to be the most mistake-riddled Election Day in American history.
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By Mary Lazich
Monday, Oct 20 2008, 12:25 PM
With Governor Doyle predicting a $3 billion deficit in the next state budget, I wholeheartedly agree with positions stated in a Wisconsin State Journal editorial. The newspaper is right on writing:
"The conclusion is simple: State government has desperately been trying to live beyond its means.
It's time to stop.
It's time to recognize that to put together a sound state budget for the next two years, the governor and lawmakers need a dose of fiscal reality.
They need to get far more serious about setting priorities. The state can no longer afford everything at once…. fee and tax increases should be viewed skeptically. With recession threatening, taxpayers simply cannot afford to contribute more.”
I disagree with this statement in the editorial:
“To be sure, officials should also aim to maximize the state's revenue. Joining the multi-state Streamlined Sales Tax Project to help collect sales taxes from online and catalog sales should be an obvious choice. These are taxes the state is owned but is now unable to collect.”
The Streamlined Sales Tax would be another big, unaffordable tax increase.
The Wisconsin State Journal editorial comments about it is time to stop are correct and should be taken to heart by Governor Doyle and every state legislator.
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By Mary Lazich
Monday, Oct 20 2008, 07:15 AM
Nearly two-thirds of Wisconsin school districts have experienced enrollment declines in the past ten years. Despite the drop in enrollment, school spending continues to increase. Wisconsin schools spent almost $10 billion last year with 58% going for actual instruction.
These are some of the findings in a report on school trends by the nonpartisan Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance.
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By Mary Lazich
Saturday, Oct 18 2008, 08:56 AM
There is great concern about the safety of fluorescent light bulbs given that the United States is phasing out the use of traditional, incandescent light bulbs and mandating the use of fluorescent bulbs. Most Americans fail to realize their choice of light bulbs has already been made in Washington.
Part of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 approved and signed into law last year calls for a phasing out of traditional light bulbs beginning in 2012 leading to an all-out ban in 2014 in favor of energy-saving compact fluorescent bulbs or CFL’s. CFL’s contain dangerous mercury. When the bulbs are broken, the mercury escapes into surroundings and must be handled with extreme caution.
Blogger John Lott and others wrote about the story of a Maine woman and her terrible experience with a broken CFL. A Maine Department of Environmental Protection employee came out to her home to check for damage and then suggested to the woman that she call in a firm that turned out to be a clean-up process costing over $2,000.
Since this well-publicized account, other stories have reported that it is unnecessary for an environmental clean-up firm to respond to a broken CFL. Even so, pray you never break one in your home. The measures to take suggested by the state of Maine, the site of the above-mentioned story, pose one hassle after another.
During March 2008, two dozen members of the House, including Wisconsin Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner introduced the Light Bulb Freedom of Choice Act. The act repeals the portions of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 that mandate the use of CFL’s unless the comptroller general can offer a report that finds specific financial benefits of using the bulbs, environmental benefits achieved by their use, and evidence that addresses concerns of mercury threats from CFL’s.
On March 14, 2008, the Light Bulb Freedom of Choice Act was referred to the House Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality. Seven months later, the committee, controlled by Democrats, including committee member Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), has yet to schedule a hearing.
I find it amazing pro-choice Democrats refuse to let Americans decide what kind of light bulbs they want in their own homes.
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By Mary Lazich
Friday, Oct 17 2008, 02:52 PM
There will be less money available for the lottery property tax credit this year in Wisconsin. According to the Wheeler Report, the Department of Administration has informed the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee that $119,993,410 will be available for distribution to Wisconsin homeowners this December. The figure is $9.6 million less than last year’s total.
The amount available for the lottery property tax credit is determined by the gross revenues from the state lottery including ticket sales, retailer fees, and other operating revenues. The average credit for 2008 will be determined after November 1, 2008 by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue.
Last year’s average credit was $85. The largest credit was $167 during 1992-93 and the smallest credit was $52 during 1998-99.
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By Mary Lazich
Friday, Oct 17 2008, 02:29 PM
The four-day antlerless deer hunt is underway in Wisconsin. The Department of Natural Resources has a positive outlook, calling the herd “healthy and abundant.”
Be safe, hunters!
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