WisGOPs say they cut your taxes! Aren't you grateful?

Oh, I see that Robbin’ Vos, Scott Fitzgerald and others are talking about all of the taxes that have been cut in our state since 2011.

The cumulative effect of Republican tax cuts has grown to $13 billion in 10 years. This is good news for hardworking Wisconsinites. https://t.co/y9ZfWfLHoQ

— John Nygren (@rep89) September 26, 2019

So don’t you feel notably richer in Wisconsin with all of these lower taxes? NO?

There’s a good reason why. Because if you look at the Legislative Fiscal Bureau memo that the WisGOPs cite, many of the dollars from those tax breaks didn’t give you more money in your paycheck. Instead, they went to the rich and corporate, or were shell games that bought down property taxes by spending more state tax dollars.

Top “income tax cuts”, 2011-2019
Net funding shift to pay off Tech College property taxes $2.65 billion
2013 income tax cut $2.57 billion
Increase K-12 school funding, but don’t increase revenue limits $2.01 billion
Manufacturers/Ag Credit (minus interactive changes) $1.86 billion
2014 income tax cut $677.6 million
2019 income tax cuts $440.8 million
Capital gains deferrals/exclusions $436.1 million
Repeal forestry property tax $383.7 million
Repeal combined reporting for corporations $366.4 million
Increase lottery tax credit with state tax dollars $311.6 million
EVERYTHING ELSE $1.41 BILLION (over 10 years).

And let's talk about the real costs that have resulted from all of these tax cuts. Schools and universities defunded, along with much of those property tax "cuts" being removed after those communities had to pass referenda to keep their schools operating well. We have Scottholes all over the place that make us pay more to catch up on the deferred road repairs, and a tripling in wheel taxes between 2011 and 2017 (with more added since then) because local governments have no other options to keep functioning.

The passing down of taxes and fees to the local level is conveniently not part of the LFB's study, or WisGOP's talking points. And it’s not like our economy boomed as a result of these lower taxes. In fact, it’s pretty clear that Wisconsin was held back from feeling the full benefits of the US expansion during the Age of Fitzwalkerstan.

Not exactly much bang for the buck. And now we are so overextended with these shell games and cumulative tax cuts that when the next economic downturn comes (likely sooner than later), the spending side doesn’t have anything that can be cut back on without serious consequences....outside of the shell games that account for much of these "tax cuts," I suppose. That may be what the ALEC Crew wants, to force Evers and others Dems into a "tax increase vs dysfunction" choice, and lead to a privatizing government services. But it’s not something that the typical Wisconsinite will like, nor should they accept.

As usual, Dems are going to have to make the more legitimate choices to clean up from the GOP recklessness that has messed up this state. And it needs to happen sooner than later, to limit the pain that'll be coming from the adjustments to reality that will have to be made.