Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz sent a letter to state Sen. Fred Risser D-Madison, Tuesday applauding his opposition to Republican tax legislation such as the Taxpayer Bill of Rights.
In the letter, Cieslewicz wrote that Republican tax proposals such as TABOR 'harm the ability of local governments to provide essential basic services' to citizens by overstepping city governments in applying uniform state laws restricting taxation.
'We need to find property tax restrictions that respect local control and local values,' Cieslewicz wrote, arguing that Republican tax legislation is a 'one size fits all solution to a more complicated problem.'
According to Cieslewicz, Madison has made a concerted effort in recent years to keep property taxes low, eliminating government positions in the hopes of making government more affordable.
'Local government leaders know that property taxes are a problem,' Cieslewicz wrote. 'We need to let people know that we want to work with the Legislature to find solutions.'
