Gov. Jim Doyle called for cuts to government spending to help address the additional $1.6 billion budget shortfall, and outlined priorities for remedying the state budget deficit May 21.
Doyle said the current deficit has risen to over $7 billion. He introduced a 5 percent cut across the board for state agencies but said there would be exceptions for areas already expected to receive cuts, such as the UW System. Doyle said over 1,000 state employee layoffs are likely.
The Legislature's Joint Finance Committee also voted unanimously May 22 to cut $100 million from the UW System. The committee's actions would need to be approved by the full Legislature and signed by Doyle to become law.
""While the committee's action includes funding reductions that are necessary to help address the state's fiscal condition, the committee also protected important priorities: the recruitment and retention of faculty and staff, interdisciplinary research, bioenergy and domestic-partner health insurance for state employees,"" said UW-Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin in a statement.
Doyle emphasized that no new taxes will be imposed and overall spending from general-purpose revenue during the next biennium will be 3.4 percent lower than anticipated in the previous budget.
""We have worked hard to protect the middle-class tax payers of this state,"" Doyle said. ""While our financial situation has dramatically worsened since February, we agreed we will not close this new budget gap by raising taxes.""
Over the course of the current biennium, state spending will be cut by $2.7 billion. Doyle said education and police and fire department funding will be cut by 2.5 percent but federal aid will help offset reductions.
The Joint Finance Committee met in executive session Friday and Saturday to discuss budgetary issues.
State Sen. Mark Miller, D-Monona, co-chair of the JFC, said members of the JFC have worked with Doyle to ""protect the core values of jobs and education.""
Jim Bender, spokesperson for state Rep. Jeff Fitzgerald, R-Horicon, said theoretically the size of government needs to be reduced, but Doyle has given few details and failed to produce any ""updated budget language.""
""It's refreshing that they are getting there … but it is too little, too late,"" Bender said.
Bender said holding the executive JFC meetings over Memorial Day weekend allowed Democrats on the JFC to pass budget items such as domestic-partner benefits without the eye of public scrutiny.
Although the JFC met on the holiday weekend, Miller said it is the JFC's responsibility to finalize the budget in a ""timely way.""
""I think all members of the Legislature recognize that we have been hit with a financial tsunami,"" he said.
