Despite blizzard conditions that caused state emergencies in 29 counties, Gov. Scott Walker delivered his State of the State address Tuesday, calling for bipartisan unity to solve Wisconsin's sluggish economy and budget problems.
""We can no longer afford to turn a blind eye to the tough decisions ahead,"" Walker said. ""Without swift corrective action, entitlement programs and legacy costs will eat up more and more of the operating budget. Failure to act only makes the problems worse in the future.""
The governor applauded special session legislation that cut taxes and reduced frivolous lawsuits, but said more work needs to be done.
Walker promised to fix the budget deficit by reforming public employee benefits, entitlement programs, regulation laws and the state's relationship with local government, although he gave few specifics about what would be cut.
""It is in these budgets where rhetoric meets reality, where we will show that we will make the tough decisions now to lay the foundation for future economic growth,"" Walker said. ""During the present downturn, Wisconsin's proud tradition of responsible budgeting gave way to repeated raids on segregated funds, excessive borrowing for operations and an addiction to one-time federal dollars. These are no longer options.""
Wisconsin faces a $200 million shortfall in the current budget and a projected $3 billion shortfall in the next biennial budget starting on July 1. Those deficits will have to be fixed because the state constitution mandates a balanced budget, according to UW-Madison professor of public affairs Andrew Reschovsky.
""Around the country, these are big problems,"" Reschovsky said. ""New York, California, Nevada [and] Arizona have much more serious deficit problems than we do.""
Immediately following the speech, Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca, D-Kenosha, gave the Democrats' rebuttal, criticizing the governor for not focusing enough on the economy during the special session and calling for an economic summit to develop an agenda for job creation.
""There's a lost opportunity here,"" Barca said. ""The special session, after all, was called to deal with an economic emergency. We have businesses that are going under. We have people who are unemployed. And they're looking for help immediately.""
