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In polite, but firm terms, municipal leaders throughout Wisconsin are telling state lawmakers to keep their noses out of local government finances and abandon the Taxpayer Protection Amendment.
But state Rep. Jeff Wood (R-Chippewa Falls), who along with state Sen. Glenn Grothman (R-West Bend) introduced the amendment in February, said he has no intention of dropping it based on a "sky is falling" claim by local officials.
"We keep hearing from officials who just don't want people to have oversight of the government. We keep hearing from government officials and public employees who don't want to give up their power to tax," Wood said.
Said Grothman: "Of course there won't be major service cuts. It helps our cause when opponents make clearly insincere and exaggerated threats."
The proposed state constitutional amendment that would limit local and state government revenue would have disastrous effects on municipalities and lead to dramatic cuts in the services on which citizens have come to depend, the officials say.
"As locally elected and appointed city officials, we share your concern with high property taxes. Taxpayer Protection' sounds simple on the surface, but this amendment creates complex problems for city government," states one letter sent to lawmakers last week by municipal officials from across the state, including Germantown, Racine, Madison, Eau Claire, Marinette, Rhinelander, West Bend and Wauwatosa.
"Citizens depend upon local government, and rolling back our basic services is an extreme response. Police protection,...