2009-10 Session Recap - Garthwaite on Property Taxes

With the election just around the corner, it's time to start looking back on Rep. Garthwaite's record from the 2009-2010 legislative session.

Let's start with property taxes.

The non-partisan Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance recently released their assessment of property taxes for 2010.

According to the group, net property taxes increased 4.9% this year and now claim 4.5% of personal income - the highest percentage they have claimed since 1996.

We all know that ever increasing property taxes are harmful to our pocket books, even to renters, and especially during a recession. Based on Rep. Garthwaite's campaign promises from the last two elections, he knows this too.

When Rep. Garthwaite first ran for office in 2006 he promised to pass legislation to reduce Wisconsin's high property tax burden. He touted a Democrat plan called HOPE, which would have eliminated a portion of the property taxes homeowners pay on the first $60,000 in value of their home. To pay for this property tax reduction, Garthwaite's plan would have eliminated an unspecified number of sales tax exemptions on items such as groceries, gasoline, manufacturing and farm equipment, legal services, and other things that are not currently subject to the sales tax.

During the 2007-08 session, the HOPE plan failed to gain traction in the legislature and Rep. Garthwaite was unable to deliver on his promised property tax relief.

When the 2008 election came around, Assembly Democrats altered the HOPE plan. It would still grant homeowners a tax break for the first $60,000 in value of their home, however, it would not be paid for with new sales taxes. Instead, the Assembly Democrats' new HOPE would shift property taxes from single home owners to the owners of rental, vacation, or business properties.

In other words, under Garthwaite's 2008 plan if you owned one home, your property taxes would have been reduced. If you lived in an apartment building, your rent would have gone up. If you owned a second home, your property taxes would have gone up. If you owned rental property... You get where this plan was going...

While I could understand why Democrats like Garthwaite would want to increase property taxes on people who are wealthy enough to own a vacation home, I could never get why they wanted to shift a greater burden of property taxes to renters. It truly baffled me. Why would Democrats, who purport to represent the underprivileged classes of society tout a proposal that would dramatically increase the cost of housing on renters? Perhaps that is why the bill never gained any traction.

Despite having a total lock on state government (the Democrats currently control the Governor's office, the State Assembly, and the State Senate), Rep. Garthwaite's party did not advance HOPE or any other property tax relief proposal. In fact, they accomplished quite the opposite by cutting state aids to local governments and schools by 15%. In effect, Madison politicians like Garthwaite made the locals make the tough decisions that they were unwilling to make. No wonder Wisconsin has a multi-billion dollar deficit.

To Recap:

1. In the 2006 campaign, Rep. Garthwaite promised property tax relief.
- He did not deliver.

2. In the 2008 campaign, Rep. Garthwaite promised property tax relief.
- He did not deliver.

3. Due to Rep. Garthwaite's votes in Madison, property taxes are now the highest they have been in 14 years.