A state tax watchdog group is reporting a large portion of the state budget actually is devoted to property tax relief in one form or another.
President Todd Berry of Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance says property tax relief is the 'tail that wags the political dog in Wisconsin'...
"....we looked at all the taxes and fees spent by the state and close to $10 billion of that, or about 4 in every 10 dollars goes in some way or another to try to reduce property taxes. That could be either through aiding local governments or schools or funding direct property tax credits on tax bills or various credits on the income tax....."
Berry says since starting the income tax in 1911 has provided a lot of money to local governments, counties and municipalities. He says about half of the $10 billion goes to schools at various levels. He says the most effective property tax relief has been the state property tax credits on the local tax bill have been the most effective, while other forms of relief are less direct to local taxpayers.
Berry says only about 12 percent of the budget goes to state agency operations. Berry says it's ironic that the budget puts so much emphasis in controlling property taxes...
"....for all intents and purposes, the state doesn't levy property taxes. The other irony is that in spite of all this Wisconsin's property taxes still rank in the top 10-12 states in the country and are typically up to 20 percent above the state average. Alot of money from the state attempting to relieve something that the state doesn't directly control...."
The full report is on the website wistax.org
