By SCOTT BAUER, Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday proposed a $600 million annual tax cut — an election-year proposal that is almost certain to be summarily defeated by the Republican-controlled legislature.
He announced the proposed cut at the same time his Republican rival, Tim Michels, was touring Kenosha on the second anniversary of sometimes violent protests over a police shooting. Michels has made Eves’ reaction to the unrest in Kenosha a key part of her campaign against the Democratic incumbent.
Evers’ proposal, released less than three months before the November election, comes just five months after the Legislature rejected another tax cut he proposed, which was nearly three times larger and included a $150 taxpayer rebate. Evers cited the state’s projected $5 billion budget surplus as the reason for enacting his latest plan.
“Families in Wisconsin have been through a lot over the past few years, and we know that even as our state and economy continue to recover, people are still worried about rising costs and the need to reach families. ends meet,” Evers said in a statement.
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Evers’ proposal would cap the insulin copayment at $35, repeal the state’s minimum mark-up law in an effort to lower gas prices, and cut income taxes by 10% for individuals earning less than $100,000 and families earning less than $150,000. Other proposed tax cuts would benefit seniors on fixed incomes, expand property tax relief for disabled veterans and attempt to reduce the cost of childcare and childcare.
“Our state is in a strong fiscal position, and there’s no reason for those dollars to sit in state coffers when families need help now,” Evers said. “We can help reduce out-of-pocket costs for Wisconsin residents today while providing long-term tax relief and always ensuring we have state resources readily available to invest in our priorities in the upcoming budget. of State.”
The projected state budget surplus by mid-2023 has steadily increased as tax revenues have continued to exceed estimates. The last projected surplus was $3.8 billion, but Evers said Tuesday it should reach $5 billion.
Republicans who control the Legislature hope to defeat Evers in November, giving them the chance to pass tax cuts under a Republican governor. Last year, Evers signed into law a $2 billion middle-class tax cut that the Legislature passed. Evers campaigned on it, angering Republicans who say they should get the credit, especially since they rejected more than $1 billion in tax increases mostly on manufacturers and the rich that Evers had proposed.
Republican legislative leaders did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment on the latest tax cut plan.
In Kenosha, Michels was joined by Republican nominee for Attorney General Eric Toney and Republican U.S. Representative Bryan Steil on a tour of a property that was damaged during protests two years ago. They then held a round table with law enforcement officers.
Michels and other Republicans have criticized Evers’ reaction to the protests, which came after a white police officer shot Jacob Blake, a black man, during a domestic disturbance. Blake survived but was left paralyzed from the waist down.
On the third night of the protests, August 25, 2020, Kyle Rittenhouse shot three men in the streets, killing two of them. A jury acquitted him of multiple counts in November after arguing he shot in self-defense.
Michels posted a video ahead of his Kenosha tour that included footage of Evers from 2020 saying he had “no regrets” about his response to Kenosha’s violence and would not change anything he had done.
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