Governor Scott Walker is calling for a special legislative session for lawmakers to take up the $504 million tax relief plan he announced during Wednesday night’s State of the State address. Walker issued an executive order Thursday morning that calls for the session to begin immediately.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) says he wants a public hearing held on the property and income tax relief package next week, with a vote in his house on February 11. However, state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau) has indicated he does not believe he has enough votes yet to pass any tax relief plan.
Some other Republicans are predicting the final package will include a smaller tax cut, with more of the surplus going toward the expected structural deficit at the start of the next budget in mid-2015.
Under Walker’s proposal, the average homeowner would get a $101 property tax break over the next 17 months. Income taxes would be cut by $44 to $58 a year per filer. The governor’s plan would also add about $100 million to the state’s rainy day fund, and direct $35 million in existing state funds toward worker training and technical college programs.