Column by State Senator Scott Fitzgerald - February 10, 2010

Senate GOP Unveils Aggressive Plan to Create Jobs

Jobs and the economy have been popular topics lately as our state and nation struggle to climb out of recession. This year, Wisconsin Democrats have been slapping the word “jobs” on nearly all of their initiatives with hopes that voters won’t see through their “clever” wording and remember the $5 billion of tax and fee increases they placed on families and businesses last year.

Governor Doyle’s State of the State address focused on jobs and the economy as he tried to paint a picture of Wisconsin as a business-friendly state that is creating jobs. Wisconsin Democrats are marketing their global warming bill as a job creator, despite the fact that it will increase fuel costs, create fee hikes through new mandates, and result in tighter family budgets. It will result in Wisconsin becoming an island of regulations surrounded by neighboring states with less stringent rules.  

In reality, most Democrats are dancing around the fact that they raised taxes and fees last year by nearly $5 billion and worsened our state’s already poor business climate. It was refreshingly honest to see Senator Jim Holperin (D-Conover) recently admit in an email to a constituent that Democrats have raised enough taxes and fees to “sink a good sized battleship.” Businesses will not want to locate or expand here when the cost to do business will be so much higher. We’ve lost 163,800 jobs or 5.7% of our workforce since the recession began in December 2007, and the additional layer of taxes and burdensome regulations are only worsening the situation in Wisconsin.

That is why my Senate Republican colleagues joined me in creating an aggressive plan to grow our state’s economy. We held roundtable discussions with small business leaders around Wisconsin last year to hear from the job creators themselves on what they need to create and retain jobs in our state. Their ideas were wrapped into our “Wisconsin Jobs Now Agenda,” which will serve as a roadmap to stimulate our state’s economy.

The “Wisconsin Jobs Now Agenda” focuses on controlling government spending, reducing tax and regulatory burdens, reforming health care costs, and reworking the educational system to help train students for the workforce. When Wisconsin ranks the third worst state in the nation to do business, our number one priority has to be job creation. Comprehensive reform is needed to reverse the damage of the past year. The “Wisconsin Jobs Now Agenda” is a blueprint for putting Wisconsin back on the path to economic recovery.

To view a video featuring the Senators discussing the plan or for more information, please visit my website: www.senatorfitzgerald.com