You could see more tax dollars flowing to your town rather than to Madison as a part of a new plan championed by Republican legislators this week. Rep. Joel Kitchens joined other Republicans in Appleton on Thursday to talk about a bipartisan plan to return 20 percent of the state’s sales tax revenue directly to municipalities and create incentives to lower local spending. Every municipality will receive at least a 10 percent increase to what they are already receiving from state tax dollars while also investing millions of dollars in public safety. The plan would also provide millions to update the current 911 system, repeal the personal property tax, and encourage municipalities to share services such as administration, IT, and public safety. State Rep. Tony Kurtz of Wonewoc explained that this would be the first update of the shared revenue formula since 2004.
Citing the public safety-related portions specifically, Kitchens said in a statement that “by investing in new officers, preventing cuts to law enforcement, and investments in EMS and fire departments, our state will be a lot safer with this plan.” Door County Administrator Ken Pabich says he is hopeful that this or something similar to it is approved.
Democrats neither endorsed nor panned the plan, merely saying they look forward to having the necessary conversations and seeing the final framework. Governor Tony Evers suggested the state return 20 percent of the state’s sales tax revenues to local municipalities during his budget address in February.
