Brett's Legislation
Below is a brief summary of legislation introduced by Rep. Davis.
LRB 4550 - Stopping the Madison to Milwaukee Train
Costing taxpayers nearly $1,000,000,000 initially and at least $7-10 million every year after its completion, Wisconsin simply cannot afford high-speed rail.
At $60 per round-trip ticket, ridership is expected to low. In fact, more people pass through the Zoo Interchange every day, than would ride the train in an entire year. What's more, the Zoo Interchange is crumbling and needs replacement, but our state's transportation fund is broke. With a $30 million deficit, the transportation fund cannot sustain an expensive rail project that no one will use. Instead we need to focus on maintaining our highway infrastructure, which is so vital to our state's economy.
Therefore, Brett has authored and introduced legislation that would simple halt all spending (federal, state, or local tax dollars) on the project. For the project to move forward, it would require a vote by the full State Assembly and State Senate. Originally, the authority to build the train was fast-tracked through the Finance Committee which required only a handful of legislators to approve it. This bill would simply treat the train project the same way as we currently treat all major highway projects -- full legislative approval.
Below you'll find a link to the actual language of the bill I've introduced. Also, there is a link to an interesting video of Randal O'Toole, an American economist and public policy analyst, who explains the disadvantages of passenger rail.
At $60 per round-trip ticket, ridership is expected to low. In fact, more people pass through the Zoo Interchange every day, than would ride the train in an entire year. What's more, the Zoo Interchange is crumbling and needs replacement, but our state's transportation fund is broke. With a $30 million deficit, the transportation fund cannot sustain an expensive rail project that no one will use. Instead we need to focus on maintaining our highway infrastructure, which is so vital to our state's economy.
Therefore, Brett has authored and introduced legislation that would simple halt all spending (federal, state, or local tax dollars) on the project. For the project to move forward, it would require a vote by the full State Assembly and State Senate. Originally, the authority to build the train was fast-tracked through the Finance Committee which required only a handful of legislators to approve it. This bill would simply treat the train project the same way as we currently treat all major highway projects -- full legislative approval.
Below you'll find a link to the actual language of the bill I've introduced. Also, there is a link to an interesting video of Randal O'Toole, an American economist and public policy analyst, who explains the disadvantages of passenger rail.
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AB 127 - Truth in Budgeting Act
I've introduced this legislation with State Representative Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), which is aimed at restoring honest accounting principles to our state budget process.
Specifically, the bill requires the legislature to achieve a balanced budget according to the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) by the 2015-16 budget. According to the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, Wisconsin has been running GAAP deficits for nearly twenty years, and is one of only two states (Illinois and Wisconsin) with deficits in each of the last ten years.
By achieving a GAAP balanced budget by 2015, we can end the harmful budgeting tricks and gimmicks that have plagued our state's budget for years. Just like families all across the state, state government needs to tighten its belt and make responsible decisions regarding the upcoming budget process. We need to stop putting spending on the state's credit card and need a plan to eliminate the deficit.
Read the bill and track its progress by clicking here.
Specifically, the bill requires the legislature to achieve a balanced budget according to the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) by the 2015-16 budget. According to the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, Wisconsin has been running GAAP deficits for nearly twenty years, and is one of only two states (Illinois and Wisconsin) with deficits in each of the last ten years.
By achieving a GAAP balanced budget by 2015, we can end the harmful budgeting tricks and gimmicks that have plagued our state's budget for years. Just like families all across the state, state government needs to tighten its belt and make responsible decisions regarding the upcoming budget process. We need to stop putting spending on the state's credit card and need a plan to eliminate the deficit.
Read the bill and track its progress by clicking here.
AJR 32 - Reject Pay Raise
Earlier this session, all elected members of the Wisconsin State Legislature were granted pay increases. Due to the current economic situation, I did not agree with the pay raise and rejected it. I did so by writing a check back to the state equal to the raise.
However, the Wisconsin Constitution prohibits the legislature from reducing their legislative pay during the term. Therefore, I have introduced AJR 32 with State Representative Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), which would remove this prohibition.
If passed, this constitutional amendment will allow for smoother the rejection of pay raises.
Read the bill and track its progress by clicking here.
AB 306 - Eliminating the Cap on Virtual Schools
Virtual schools continue to provide high quality public education to parents with children who learn better outside the traditional brick and mortar schools. As you may know, compromise legislation was passed last legislative session designed to ensure virtual schools remain an option for Wisconsin students. Part of the compromise included an arbitrary enrollment cap of 5,250.
I introduced this bill to eliminate the arbitrary cap on virtual school enrollment so Wisconsin students will not be denied the opportunity to attend the public school of their choice.
Read the bill and track its progress by clicking here.
I introduced this bill to eliminate the arbitrary cap on virtual school enrollment so Wisconsin students will not be denied the opportunity to attend the public school of their choice.
Read the bill and track its progress by clicking here.