Governor Scott Walker says encouraging new state revenue projections don’t change the need for changes to collective bargaining. The state is projected to collect some $636 million dollars over the next two years, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau and state Revenue Department. Walker said Wednesday that he plans to use the money to pay down debt and pay off bills. And he said local units of government still need to be able to require that employees pay more for health insurance and pension benefits. “For us to be able to balance the budget, and more importantly, to allow school districts and local governments to be able to balance their budgets and to avoid massive layoffs to protect middle class jobs and collect local property taxpayers, they still need to have those reforms,” said Walker, adding that the goal is to achieve longterm financial stability. “Those reforms are imperative for the next two years. Whether it’s ultimately affirmed by the legal process, by the courts acting on this, or if they fail to do by June, if lawmakers ultimately decide to put that in the budget before they pass the final budget, one way or another those need to be in there, because they provide the long term savings.”
