MADISON — A Republican budget proposal that rejects Democratic-backed tax increases relies on deep cuts to education and state government operation in order to balance.

More a wish list than anything that likely will become law, the plan — released Monday and to be debated today — would cut the University of Wisconsin System by more than $100 million, reduce funding for public schools by $85 million and require state employees to pay more for health insurance.
Not in the plan are Democratic-supported plans to institute a universal health care system, impose new taxes on big oil companies and hospitals, and raise taxes on tobacco products.

The Assembly Republican proposal, just like its counterpart in the Senate that passed last month, will see many changes before it becomes law.

It will take a special bipartisan committee of lawmakers from both chambers to reach a consensus on the budget and Gov. Jim Doyle, a Democrat, will have to sign off on it. And even then Doyle will get a chance to rewrite the budget with his broad veto power.

While Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch has said the Republican plan worked by cutting government and not raising taxes, Assembly Minority Leader Jim Kreuser, D-Kenosha, said it was not workable or reasonable in the long haul for the state.

The Republican plan attempts to revive oft-rejected proposals from the past, such as requiring voters to show identification at the polls, while injecting new proposals such as making some sex offenders display bright green license plates.

A prohibition on new nuclear power plant construction would be lifted while a tax break for clay pigeons sold to shooting ranges would be allowed to continue. A child care subsidy that only state employees working in downtown Madison receive would be eliminated but a new tax break would be offered for investments made in certain college savings plans.

Democratic opponents and those representing special interests that were hurt under the plan stumbled over themselves to shoot it down. And given what must happen before it will become law, it is unlikely many of the most partisan changes will be enacted this year.

The Senate passed the $66 billion budget in June, after adding a $15 billion universal health care proposal and approving Doyle’s tax increases on tobacco, hospitals and oil companies to pay for transportation programs and expanding health care.

None of those proposals is in the Republican plan.

Both La Crosse health-care systems’ chief executive officers were pleased that the hospital tax was not in the Republicans’ plan.

Doyle’s hospital tax proposal was based on the state receiving more federal money, and the hospital receiving more reimbursement. “It looked like we would come out ahead if we got the federal money, but we were not assured that would happen,” said Dr. Jeff Thompson, Gundersen Lutheran CEO. “There were too many ifs.”

Dr. Robert Nesse, president and CEO of Franciscan Skemp, said he wasn’t sure if Doyle’s hospital tax plan would work in reality.

“The payback on the tax was not proven,” Nesse said.

Thompson said he was disappointed that the GOP budget didn’t include a cigarette tax. He said a cigarette tax will reduce the number of young people who start smoking and help others to quit.

“Cigarette smoking is a huge burden on the populace and it contributes to the high medical costs,” Thompson said.

Both Nesse and Thompson said they like aspects of the health-care proposals of the Senate Democrats and Assembly Republicans.

“But until you reform the financing with the delivery system, you won’t solve the problem,” Nesse said.

The Assembly Republican budget also proposes limiting tuition increases at the UW System to no more than 4 percent a year while at the same time cutting funding to the university by more than $100 million. Cuts would hit everything from general operations to financial aid.

“Clearly there are some major cuts to the university here,” said UW spokesman Dave Giroux.

University officials were poring over the proposal to tally all the cuts and determine their impacts, Giroux said.

“It’s obviously a version of the budget that would create significant challenges for us,” he said.

While areas like the university were in line for major cuts, Republicans also proposed a variety of new tax cuts targeting retirement income, health savings accounts, college savings and workplace wellness programs.

Tighter lids on property taxes would be in place for the next three years under the plan.

While cutting taxes drew much of the attention, Republicans supported higher fees on car and boat registrations and driver’s licenses.

In fact, Republicans proposed raising the registration fee for heavy duty trucks weighing more than 8,000 pounds an additional 15 percent.

Huebsch has said he has the 50 votes needed to pass the budget in the Assembly. Republicans hold a slim 52-47 majority.

Until the budget is signed by Doyle, agencies will continue operating with the level of funding they received in the budget year that ended June 30. The new budget will be in place until July 1, 2009.

Terry Rindfleisch of the La Crosse Tribune contributed to this story.

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