MADISON – By overwhelming numbers, Wisconsinites think state government should cut spending rather than raise taxes to close the state’s nearly six billion dollar budget deficit according to a new statewide survey conducted for the MacIver Institute for Public Policy.
“Wisconsinites of every political stripe are united in their belief that less spending is the best way to cut the deficit,” said pollster Gene Ulm. “They oppose by a more than three to one margin the Governor’s plan to increase spending by eight percent in the next state budget. The people of Wisconsin believe state government should follow their lead and cut back in these tight times.”
According to Ulm, 83% of the people polled believe the best way to cut the deficit is to cut spending. Only 15% believe the state should focus on raising taxes to help balance the budget. In addition, 75% of the people polled oppose the Governor’s plan to increase the state budget by nearly eight percent, while only 22% thought that was a good idea. The MacIver poll of 500 likely voters in Wisconsin was conducted late last month by Public Opinion Strategies, one of the nation’s largest and most respected political and public issue survey firms. The poll has a margin of error of +/- 4.38%.
Voters oppose most of Doyle’s tax increases
The MacIver Poll respondents were overwhelming in their belief that Governor Doyle’s budget is going about solving the budget crisis in the wrong way.
• 78% of the respondents say they oppose the budget plan, which raises taxes by more than two billion dollars.
• 73% oppose the budget plan to increase Wisconsin’s current tax on businesses and other employers.
• 70% oppose the Governor’s plan to allow local governments to raise property tax levies by 3% rather than 2%.
• 61% oppose the Governor’s budget proposal to raise the capital gains tax by $180 million.
However, voters are willing to support tax increases they feel they are unlikely to pay.
• 53% support extending the sales tax to purchases of Wisconsin products by out-of-state buyers
• 62% support the Governor’s plan to raise income taxes on individuals making more than $225,000 and couples earning more than $300,000.
• 65% endorse the Governor’s proposed increase in the cigarette tax from $1.77 to $2.52 per pack.
“As a general rule, voters don’t like taxes they think they will have to pay,” said Ulm. “But if they think someone else will be stuck covering the costs, then voters may be more willing to accept the tax increase.”
Residents want the state to hold the line on spending
The survey also strongly indicates that residents want state government to curb its spending.
• 74% of residents oppose the Governor’s plan to add 946 positions to state government over the next two years.
• 64% oppose the Governor’s proposal to extend taxpayer funded health care benefits to unmarried partners of state and university employees.
• 51% oppose the Governor’s plan to lift the 3.8% cap on increases in teachers’ salaries and benefits.
The poll is much less clear-cut on whom or what to blame for the current deficit. According to the study, 35% of residents blame the state’s budget woes on the downturn in Wisconsin’s job and economic situation. 19% of the respondents blame Governor Doyle for the budget shortfall, while 15% blame the state legislature as a whole. 12% blame only the Democrats in the legislature, while 9% say the Republicans in the legislature are to blame.
The study was commissioned by The MacIver Institute for Public Policy. The MacIver Institute is a free market think tank using a fresh and innovative approach to advance the idea that individual freedom, limited government, and personal responsibility are the best principles for the development of effective public policies in Wisconsin.
