APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) – Outagamie County leaders had their concerns heard Monday.
A group of state lawmakers was in Appleton to discuss local issues pertaining to Wisconsin’s next two-year budget.
Among those concerns is transportation funding.
Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson notes “Wisconsin constantly ranks toward the bottom nationwide in the quality of our roads and bridges.”
According to Appleton Representative Amanda Stuck, “there is a $1,000,000,000 shortfall that we are looking at, and that’s really just to keep up with what (road projects) we already have, and not looking at what needs to be done in the near future.”
Governor Scott Walker has voiced opposition to raising the gas tax or increasing vehicle registration fees to cover that projected shortfall.
A second key concern is property taxes.
Some county leaders believe the ‘dark stores’ loophole is causing them to miss out on tax dollars from big-box retail stores.
Stuck explains the loophole as: “they’re looking at trying to get the stores assessed as though they were not operating, so as though they were closed and just paying for the property. It significantly reduces the amount of taxes they have to pay.”
In the past, retailers have won court battles, stating they should spend the same amount on property tax whether the business is operating or not.
Appleton Senator Roger Roth plans to bring forth legislation that addresses the loophole.
“The bill will introduce really the status quo back to our assessment process and just making sure everyone is paying their fair share.”
The state’s joint finance committee starts deliberations on Governor Walker’s proposed budget next week.
It then goes to the full legislature before getting sent to the governor’s desk.
The two-year spending plan is set to go into effect July 1.
