More Doyle Means More Debt

The Wisconsin State Journal used to be the rational counterpoint to the overt partisanship of the Capital Times. With the newspaper industry struggling in the new media environment, I am tempted to believe the editorial board is thinking only about circulation in choosing to endorse Jim Doyle for a second term.

WSJ Opinion: Doyle inherited a record state budget deficit and sluggish economy when he took office in January 2003. … By his second budget, Doyle managed to restore the state's commitment to paying for two- thirds of school costs. And at the Legislature's urging, he adopted spending limits on local governments to ease property taxes.

The editors appear to believe the Doyle budgets are the reason to re-elect him. Of course the National Conference of State Legislators points out the vibrancy of the US economy has most states flush with new revenue. As I noted here, the press coverage last August points out: “All but five states -- Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin -- reported surpluses this year. … The report notes that year-end balances are widely considered one of best indicators of state fiscal health.” Besides a budget is simply a spending plan and not evidence of fiscal responsibility behind the dispersing of the cash. Our former Congressman discusses the ugly truth behind the Doyle Administration of Wisconsin.

Scott Klug: Green will not balance the budget by turning to more borrowing. Instead of cutting $2 billion in spending the last four years, Gov. Doyle added another $2 billion in bonds, or more simply, $2 billion more in long-term debt. According to Standard & Poor's, which rates the creditworthiness of states, Wisconsin's bond rating is the second worst in the country.

For example, he raided more than $1 billion dollars in revenue dedicated to transportation funding, such as gas taxes and vehicle registration fees. Then, to keep building highways he borrowed money. In the future, more and more transportation tax dollars will have to be used to pay that debt rather than pay for new roads or railroads. It's a death spiral we have to pull out of immediately.

More Doyle means More Debt. The Cato Institute grades the Doyle Administration as a D with following analysis.

2006 Fiscal Policy Report: While running for governor, James Doyle pledged to hold the line on taxes, scale back the state payroll, and cut corporate taxes by changing complex rules that taxed companies on their payroll and property, not their in-state sales. Once in office, Doyle was able to deliver on the corporate tax cut, and he eliminated around 2,000 government jobs. Yet the state budget still grew in his first year by nearly 5 percent in real per capita terms according to Census Bureau data. The general fund budget has grown, on average, by more than 5 percent in real per capita terms the past two years—only slightly more than Doyle’s proposed budgets for that period. In fact, Doyle seems to have little interest in really restraining government spending. He has consistently expressed his opposition to a substantial cap on the state budget. On the tax side, Doyle doesn’t seem interested in even holding the line on taxes anymore. He vetoed a plan from the legislature to freeze property taxes. Wisconsin still has the seventh-highest state and local tax burden in the nation. James Doyle has done very little in his first term to change that or to enact policies that might get government under control.

Wisconsin had a record budget deficit when Doyle took office and rather than bringing spending in line with revenue, he simply borrowes for the moment and deferres the bills for the rest of us to pay. This is simply bad government.