- I'm Frederica Freyberg.
Coming to you tonight from a different set,
while our larger studio is being used
for the fundraising auction.
Tonight on "Here and Now," a "First Look" at how things are
going for expanded school choice in the Wausau area.
After that, a "Closer Look" at the ongoing trauma of gun
violence in our state's largest city, Milwaukee.
Then, "Capitol Insight" of a proposed cut of what's known as
the state's forestry mill tax.
And our "WisContext" segment, gearing up for deer tick season
on a holiday weekend.
It's "Here and Now" for May 26th.
- Funding for "Here and Now" is provided in part
by Friends of Wisconsin Public Television.
- The statewide school choice program has been
in place for four years now.
For the first time Governor Scott Walker did not propose
an expansion of choice in his budget.
So the issue is not getting as much attention as in years past.
But public and private schools are still adjusting,
trying to determine if the number of schools using vouchers
has stabilized or will continue to grow.
Two years ago we visited Wausau to look at what expansion of the
choice program would mean there.
And wanted to check back in.
As you might expect, Here & Now's Zac Schultz found that
public and private schools have completely different views on
how choice is working.
- Eight, now take eight away.
How much do I have?
- Two years ago, Principal Bill Zuelsdorff in Trinity
Lutheran School didn't have any voucher students.
They had just joined the choice program
and ended up with 15 in the fall.
- The first 15 that we had the first year probably two-thirds
of those were students we already had here.
So we didn't really grow that much.
That's five.
Six. Yep.
- In year two, that has grown to 27 choice students.
18% of their total enrollment.
- Some of the families I have are new families that would be
in public schools but really probably the majority of our
choice families are families that were already here.
- Just from a raw number standpoint,
we're postured to grow.
- A mile away, Newman Catholic School President Mike Martin has
seen choice grow from 13 to 94 students in just four years.
- It's about 14,000 plus students in what's called the
Wausau metropolitan area.
And we have 94 of those students right now.
- Well it's certainly a negative impact on us.
- Kathleen Williams is retiring as superintendent of Wausau
public schools this year and she's not changed her mind on
the dangers of the choice program.
- People look at it at the surface, no big deal.
It is a big deal.
- This year, 82 students that live in the Wausau school
district are attending private school with a voucher.
The state caps the number of kids
that each district can lose at 1%.
For Wausau, that's 86 voucher students.
But that cap will increase to 2% next year.
Meaning they could lose 172.
The nearby D.C. Everest School District
has lost 37 voucher students.
At the 2% cap, they could lose 118.
Add it all up, and next year there's 290 vouchers available
in the Wausau area.
- I probably have about 2,000 Catholic kids
in the public school system right now.
One of my challenges,
how do I get them back into Catholic education.
- We definitely have a lot of seats we could fill yet.
And if it's going to be through the choice program,
that would be a good option.
- The key is how that impact is going to grow.
- Kathleen Williams is concerned
about the increasing cost of choice.
In particular because Wausau public schools
are paying for those vouchers.
And they're required to raise property taxes to do so.
- Those people who are scrutinizing their tax bills are
going to say, "Hey, you know, the Wausau School District is
charging more money."
- Originally, school choice was funded directly by the state.
But in the last budget, the Republican majority shifted that
so each voucher student
counts towards the public school's enrollment.
The school district taxes their local property taxpayers for
that student's voucher cost.
And the state withholds that amount from the school's last
state aid payment and sends the money to the private school.
- That's the significant danger in my mind.
We may be losing those tax dollars and those students,
but I think the greater impact is the fact that most people
don't understand the local implications of that.
That our taxpayers are funding choice.
- Last year, Wausau schools increased their property tax
levy by $428,000 to pay for those 82 vouchers.
That works out to an extra $16 a year
for the owner of a $150,000 house.
But that homeowner would not know it by looking at their tax bill.
Because it's hidden in the public schools tax line.
- How many times have you heard the term,
we need to be transparent?
Well then, let's be transparent.
Let's let everybody fully understand
where their dollars are going.
- Those choice dollars have become a critical part of the
choice school's budget.
Each voucher is worth around $7,300 for grades K-8 and $7,
500 for high schoolers.
- That's about a $700,000 amount of money coming into
Newman to help educate those students.
That's real money in my lexicon.
- For Trinity Lutheran, it adds up to $190,000 this year.
- It's a good chunk, yes.
Our budget is a little over a million dollars, so about 10%.
- Neither Trinity nor Newman had to hire additional teachers,
since so many of those students were already in house.
But how they've used the money shows how politically unstable
the choice program is viewed.
- We have to have this plan that this may not always be here,
and what happens then?
- Neither school has given their teachers a raise
due to the extra income.
- We would not tie teacher salaries
to that part of enrollment.
- At Newman, they have a list of upgrades to the facilities.
- One of them is offsetting some of the costs
of the new roof we put on the high school here.
- At Trinity, the church congregation gets the break.
- What the choice program has done is helped us pay those
regular expenses we have so the church does not have to put in
as much.
- Everyone is aware the next election could shift power
in Madison.
And lead to changes in choice.
But Trinity and Newman hope by then the program will be so
established, it won't be so easy to roll back.
- The longer the program is going
and as long as it's showing to be a positive thing,
I think that's less likely to happen.
- The ship has already sailed in the sense
it is so popular now that it's probably here to stay.
- The Joint Finance Committee has not yet taken up the portion
of the budget that deals with K-12 education and choice.
On other items, the legislature's
Republican-controlled budget writing committee late this week
did vote to approve Governor Walker's proposal to make
Wisconsin the first state in the nation to require some adults to
work and take drug tests to receive Medicaid.
The same would hold for some Food Stamp recipients.
The committee also acted on UW funding.
WPT is part of the UW System.
Joint Finance rejected the governor's tuition cut but voted
to freeze tuition again.
In all, the Republican budget would increase UW funding by $36
million over two years, most of it tied to performance measures.
Majority Republicans call it a major investment.
Democrats on the budget committee call it an effective
cut by not funding the tuition freeze.
- Our future growth in new businesses,
in new start-ups where we know we get the majority of our new
jobs is directly tied to the investment that we make in the
UW System.
It is an economic generator.
What is the place that has the highest job growth in Wisconsin
over the last five years?
It's in Dane county.
Why is that?
Because we have a highly educated population.
- At the end of the day I think you owe us a plan as far as
what's going to give?
Are property taxes going to go up?
Are income taxes go up?
Are we going to cut other things like Medicaid because we cannot
afford Medicaid additions plus the $1.1 billion?
I mean I think it's responsible to have both sides of the ledger
and the end of the day, here's where we sit.
If we're sitting with six years consecutively now of frozen
tuition.
- The city of Milwaukee's health department has released a
draft of its "Blueprint for Peace." The newly released
program focuses on prevention while looking a root causes of
violent crime.
Another plan offered by select city council members there
focuses on enhanced police enforcement.
The "Blueprint" authors say prevention and enforcement are
not mutually exclusive.
But this discussion around how to combat crime and stop gun
violence highlight how the city is grappling with the problem.
While well-meaning work goes on, in tonight's "Closer Look,"
we hear from the mother of a recent victim.
She reached out to us after we got to know her in the course
of our reporting work on gun violence in Milwaukee.
- It's nice.
They have a really nice garden over here.
- We first met Nora Sheridan two summers ago as she and her
sister strolled the Milwaukee neighbor where they experienced
a very difficult childhood.
- Just think, how long ago was that, 1968?
- We interviewed the sisters as part of reporting
on escalating gun violence in the city.
Their family was featured in a 1968 documentary representing
poverty and broken families going back generations
in Milwaukee.
- It's just nerve wracking.
You ain't got no peace in the home now.
- One question was, could the multi-generational conditions
be one reason for current day spikes in violence?
Nora Sheridan thought the answer was yes.
- The black family is being destroyed.
The majority of the black family does not have a father.
- She was speaking about gun violence
as a worry for the larger community.
This spring, the devastation ripped her own world apart.
- He said that your son-- he said,
"Do you have a son Rainier?"
And I said, "Yes, I do."
- Detectives called Nora Sheridan home from work
to break the news
that her 36-year-old son, Rainier,
had been shot and killed.
They thought it happened outside her house.
And that he had stumbled inside to call for help.
The noodles he was cooking for lunch, she was told,
were still cooking on the stove.
- He said that when he arrived to the hospital,
he died at the hospital.
- Rainier's mother says he lived at home with her and was
in a good place.
Working a good-paying job at a chemical plant in Milwaukee.
- They were so pleased with his performance that he was employee
of the month for consecutively.
And at the funeral, they shut down a department just to come
to the funeral.
- What his mother wants to know is who shot her son and why.
Milwaukee police can only say they are currently seeking a
motive and searching for suspects.
- Because I need to know the truth.
I, I want justice and I want justice for him.
I want the people or person who did that to him
to be held accountable for killing him.
That's what they did.
They took him from his children.
They took him from his sisters.
They took him from his brothers.
They took him from me.
You know,
and right now I'm starting to get angry.
I just want justice for him.
- Sheridan wonders, was it a car theft gone wrong,
burglars, what else.
The not knowing, she says, makes his loss even worse.
Entire neighborhoods in Milwaukee already
keep their draperies closed day and night
trying to hide out from violence.
Hers included.
The extra security of her home surveillance camera captured
images only after the fact of responding police.
- We need to stop all this.
All these shootings.
Every night I hear someone shooting.
I don't know whether I should hit the floor, call 911.
Sometimes I'm afraid if I call 911 that they will tell who,
or the police will show up at my door and they'll find out who,
who the person who called and they might retaliate against me.
I'm not the only one that feels like that.
Other people in the neighborhood feels that way too.
So, we just--something needs to be done about all these
shootings around here, period.
- Still, Sheridan says she is not afraid to stay in her house,
even though someone shot her son there.
Their home, she says, makes her feel close to him.
- Every second, every minute, every hour I think about him.
Everything that I do in this house I think about him.
- She says despite this, she's able to sleep at night because
of something an officer told her.
- When I asked him where did they find him,
they said he was in my bedroom.
And I feel comfort there for some reason.
I feel comfort there.
- The most recent numbers show so far this year 35 people have
been murdered in Milwaukee.
Most of them shot to death.
In 2016, there were 141 homicides.
Again, mostly the result of gunfire.
Governor Scott Walker's budget proposes eliminating the state
portion of the property tax.
For the average homeowner that would mean about a $27 savings.
But in all, the tax raises about $180 million over the biennium.
And it goes specifically to fund state forestry programs like
tree management, invasive species research,
even toward fighting forest fires.
Part of the revenue also helps pays debt on Wisconsin's
stewardship land program.
Under the budget plan, that revenue for forestry would come
from the state's general fund instead.
In tonight's "Capitol Insight,"
support and opposition to this change.
We start with the Wisconsin Realtors Association,
and Tom Larson who favors the tax cut.
Thanks for being here. - Thank you.
- We just said that it was an average savings about $27 for
the average homeowner, it seems small.
Why do you support this elimination?
- The important part is it actually takes something
off the property tax.
Wisconsin has among the highest property taxes in the country.
We're ranked fifth in the United States.
And every opportunity we have to take something off the property
tax lowers the burden for both property owners and businesses.
- And speaking of businesses or larger commercial properties,
that's who this would benefit much more, though, right,
than the average homeowner with that $27.
Is that the intent?
- Remember, the property tax has to be uniform.
So we apply the same mill rate across the board
and depending on the value, the impact would be greater.
The higher the value, the higher the impact.
- What do you say about people who say that's the intent?
Helping, you know, the large property owners.
- Well, I think the intent is to help the average homeowner.
Any time you do property tax relief,
it helps a broad swath of people.
It helps homeowners. It helps business.
It helps the middle class.
It helps the lower class, the upper class.
The benefit is widespread.
- What about concerns over the loss of that revenue to maintain
the forest, even things like fighting forest fires?
- Well, as you mentioned, the program is funded in whole
through general purpose revenue, like every other state program.
So, the forestry program is a priority for the legislature.
It's a priority for the governor.
They are just shifting revenue sources.
So, I don't anticipate that changing.
- People are concerned, though, that shifting revenue sources
and making it GPR-funded puts it at risk because
there are so many other competing things
needing that general tax revenue money.
- As long as it remains a priority for the legislature and
the governor, it will continue to be funded,
maybe to the same levels that it currently is today.
- And maybe at the same levels, but if it's not, you know,
as a realtor and representing the realtor's association,
don't property values kind of depend on the quality
of public spaces and those kinds of things?
- It does.
It depends on quality of life, good schools, low crime rate,
clean environment, and the forestry program is a key
component of Wisconsin's quality of life.
- And you don't think it's in jeopardy?
- Not that I've--not that I've heard.
Again, there's broad support for the state's forestry program.
And shifting it over to general purpose revenue does not mean
there is not that same level of support.
- I know you especially like this
because it chips away at the property tax
which you say is overly burdensome in Wisconsin.
What are other kinds of ways we could seek to reduce that
property tax burden?
- Well as I mentioned, Wisconsin is very high, ranked,
our national ranking is very high in property taxes.
But we're low in other revenue sources like the sales tax.
We are ranked 37th in the country.
If the legislature and governor decided they wanted to raise
additional revenues and further lower the property tax burden,
they could increase something like the sales tax to do that.
- As a realtor or representing the association,
how does the property tax affect property sales, for example?
- It has a direct impact on affordability.
There was just some polling done that looked at renters.
And asked them what was the primary reason
why they didn't become homeowners?
And it's affordability.
And property taxes pay, play a big part in that.
It's often the mortgage.
But also the property taxes.
And the lower we make that property tax burden,
the more attainable home ownership will be
for a lot of other people.
- All right. Tom Larson, thanks very much.
- Thank you.
- Now, more on the forest mill tax.
Up next, opposition to cutting the state property tax
and its revenue for forests.
Fred Clark is executive director of the Forest Stewards Guild.
Thanks a lot for being here.
- Great, thank you.
- What's the history of this tax?
- The forestry mill tax was created actually in the state
constitution in 1924 at a time when Wisconsin forests were just
beginning to recover from about a 50 year period of clear
cutting and overharvesting.
And it was really the wisdom of legislators at that time to
recognize that we needed to invest in our forest resources
so they could recover and we could protect the soil,
protect the water, and begin to rebuild our forestry economy.
- And obviously you believe that tax has been successful
in doing that.
- It's been hugely successful.
And in fact, Wisconsin has become a leader among states in
the country in investing, in our 17 million acres of forests.
Investing in both the private sector and public forest lands
in a way that's really been a national success story.
- Why not just fund that work managing forests with general
purpose revenue?
- Well, the general fund in the state is not a bottomless well.
And you know, public schools, parks programs,
and other important programs in the state that are funded
from general revenues see their budgets swing up and down
from year to year.
The dedicated funding provided in the constitution by the
forestry mill tax assures that we have fire control and forest
health and forest products experts that are available to
sustain that resource year in and year out.
Every Wisconsin citizen actually benefits from that investment.
- Your concern is that if it switches to GPR,
that something else will be more of a priority than this?
- I mean, it will have to be. And understandably.
The legislature has a difficult job to do every two years to
balance our budget.
You're already hearing the debate about how we will pay for
roads, how we will pay for public schools that badly need
those resources.
By the governor's proposal, adds $180 million additional draw to
the general fund that legislators are going to have to
figure out how to pay for.
- Now, we've talked about how this would benefit the average
homeowner by a savings of about $27 a year.
Who would benefit the very most from the elimination
of this tax off the state property tax?
- Well, certainly the people paying the largest property tax
bills, including commercial property owners.
And including some of the highest value property owners
will benefit from seeing the mill tax go away
on their tax bill.
Who benefits the most from having it are rural homeowners
and rural residents who live in the forested parts of the state
who benefit from fire control, who benefit from forest
protection and the very robust forest-based economy
that we have.
- Now, I understand the tax
also helps pay part of the debt on the state stewardship fund?
- Correct.
- So that would go away. What's your reaction to that?
- The Knowles Nelson Stewardship Fund has continued
to receive bipartisan support.
It's an important investment in conservation lands.
The forestry mill tax actually helps pay for about $13 million
of the cost of bonding for that program.
So this is paying the bill for the land conservation
that we agree is important in this state.
If that goes away, additional draw on the general fund,
maybe more kicking the can down the road with additional
bonding, which is really not going to help us
in the long run.
- Is it your expectation this actually will happen,
as the governor would like to see?
- Well, it's not unanimous by any means.
There are Republican legislators
who I know are in opposition to this proposal.
Representative Jeff Mursau who's chair of the Environment
and Forestry Committee in the Assembly has been strongly vocal
in opposing this provision right now.
So has the governor's own council on forestry.
The 18 people he has appointed to advise him on forestry issues
is formally in opposition to this provision.
They believe a more appropriate move right now would be an audit
of the forestry account, to see where those funds are being used
and if appropriate, make changes.
- All right. We need to leave it there.
Fred Clark, thanks very much.
- Thanks Frederica.
- We move from forestry and taxes deeper into the forest
itself and the annual health threat posed by this insect.
The deer tick and the Lyme disease it can carry.
On the eve of a holiday weekend when many of us will be taking
to the woods for camping, we paid a visit to UW-Extension
entomologist and deer tick specialist P.J. Liesch.
- When it comes to the tick forecast this year,
it's always a little bit hard to predict.
- While year to year predictions can be difficult,
due to things like changes in weather and moisture.
UW-Extension entomologist P.J.
Liesch has come to know that in Wisconsin it's always good to be
cautious about deer tick exposure.
- Even if the ticks aren't necessarily booming in Wisconsin
this year, we are one of the hot spots of tick activity
in the U.S.
So folks do need to be on the lookout and be taking
precautions to prevent tick problems.
First and foremost, if you are in an area with good tick
habitat, such as dense wooded areas where we are right now,
if you simply avoid those areas, that may be one important way to
help avoid bumping into ticks in the first place.
Another important thing to do would be
to wear long sleeve clothing.
If you have long sleeve pants on,
and especially lighter colored clothing that may be easier to
spot the dark colored ticks on.
That's one precaution we can do.
And then there's a number of EPA-approved repellents such as
DEET, and certain other repellants that,
when applied correctly and properly,
can help prevent ticks from getting on to you.
- Before you head out to the lakes and woods for the holiday
weekend, here's another look at the deer tick.
To learn more on the topic, visit our news partners at
WisContext.org.
Now for a look at other Wisconsin budget news.
A new research center named after former governor Tommy
Thompson may soon be coming to UW-Madison.
The proposed center would fund academic research on public
policy and government.
It would also connect faculty members with lawmakers in an
attempt to improve public policy.
The center would be funded with $3 million of public money in
the 2017-2019 state budget as well as private funding.
The center already has the support of Governor Walker,
UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank,
and several other state representatives.
Not everyone is a fan of the project however.
Democratic Representative Gordon Hintz of Oshkosh is worried the
center would produce conservative-leaning research,
despite claims that the center would be non-partisan.
Next week, "Here and Now" will be pre-empted for our annual
fundraising auction.
We will return on Friday night June 9.
Until then, I'm Frederica Freyberg.
Have a great holiday weekend.
- Funding for "Here and Now" is provided in part by Friends of
Wisconsin Public Television.