The Budget & Taxes

Too many neighbors and friends in District 1 feel that our taxes are increasing too quickly.  In our next budget process we need to push for more public engagement and involvement.  I would support several public meetings during the budget process from June until November.  I would hope we can hear from citizens in all areas of the city, including District 1.

My budget priorities are:

Public Safety
Basic Services
Economic Development

Public safety dollars need to maintained or even grown for the next budget.  Homeowners and business owners in District 1 are asking for increased attention to their safety concerns.  There is a need to increase police visibility in targeted areas, and there is also a need for an increase in human resource support for neighborhood liaison officers to work with citizen groups like our neighborhood watch and business districts.

Basic services such as: recycling, refuse pick-up, and snow plowing need to be maintained or even strengthened through increased efficiency.  There is especially a need for greater attention to residents of District 1. 

Economic development, specifically supporting the existing businesses in our city is most important.  Besides supporting our existing businesses we need to attract new businesses to our city.  We will need to accomplish this so that we can continue to grow of our tax base.

We will be facing a challenging budget.  The State of Wisconsin will likely change the funding formulas for local units of government.  The City of Madison’s debt service payments will be increasing in 2011-2012.  Revenue projections throughout the state are optimistically higher than last year but we must be prepared for another year of nearly flat growth.  When you combine all of these elements, there is potential for serious a conversation about our shared priorities. 

The City of Madison will likely have three choices:

Raise taxes
Cut services and staff
Increase revenues

I believe that raising our taxes is off the table.  For too long we have seen an increase in taxes without an increase in quality of service in District 1. 

I would hope that we would not have to cut services and staff, but we must be open to all ideas when accurate revenue projections are calculated.

I believe we must grow ourselves out of this difficult situation.  We must re-engage with the business community and work together to find public-private partnerships that will enhance our opportunities.  When we are able to help grow existing businesses, and attract new businesses we will be increasing the opportunities for business owners and our workforce.  This will alleviate part of the strain on our city's residents.