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Politics & Government

Rep. Robin Vos' Top 10 from Madison

Vos looks back on 2011, and lists what he sees as the highlights of the year.

As I look ahead with great optimism for the coming year, I also look back at 2011 and all that we accomplished in the Wisconsin State Assembly. From balancing the state budget to passing important incentives for job creation, I'm proud of what we did for the future of our state. This past month I made a list of the top ten legislative events for 2011 for the WisEye show, Civil Dialogue. Here they are:

10.  January 3: Inauguration of Republican Gov. Scott Walker and Republicans who controlled the Assembly 60-39, and Senate 19-14. This victory allowed us to pass important legislation including the legalization of concealed weapons and the passage of photo ID to ensure the security of our elections.

9.  July 19: Bill to repeal the early release of dangerous criminals from prison signed into law.

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8. April 5, April 6-May 23: In what was called a referendum on the governor, Justice David Prosser wins re-election.

7.  August 9: Six Senate recalls are held with Republicans maintaining the majority in the Senate.

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6. May 3: The state of Wisconsin moves up 17 spots in a business survey of the nation’s top CEO’s ranking of the best state for doing business, signaling a renewed confidence of job creators about the direction the state is going.

5. Dec. 8: Mining Bill introduced. Assembly Republicans announce a bill streamlining mining regulations, which could create 3,000 construction jobs and up to 5,600 mining jobs just in northern Wisconsin alone.

4. Special sessions on Jobs 

January 17: Gov. Walker calls first special legislative session on jobs. The Legislature passed nine special session bills into law, including a tax deduction for small businesses for every new job created and requiring a two-thirds “super-majority” vote to raise taxes. 

October 18: Governor Walker calls a second special legislative session on jobs. The Legislature passed numerous jobs measures including extending the successful Jobs Tax Credit program and setting guidelines for reasonable attorney fees.

3. November 15: DPI reports the state school tax levy drops for the first time in 6 years.

2.  Passage of Act 10.

February 25: Assembly approves the budget repair bill after 60 hours of debate to have save 6000 state employees’ jobs over the next two years and close a $140 million budget shortfall in the 2010-2011 budget. 

March 11: Governor Walker signs Act 10.

June 26: Governor Walker signs a balanced budget, which holds the line on taxes and maintains essential state services. The budget gave Medicaid an additional $1.2 billion. It also placed a property tax cap of less than 1% on county and municipal levies. The balanced budget eliminates the state’s structural deficit which has been around for more than a decade.

Here's to a prosperous and healthy new year for you and your family!

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