Capitol Update
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2015 State of the State Address
On Tuesday, Governor Walker gave his annual State of the State address to the State Legislature. I am interested in hearing more about the plan to merge agencies that Governor Walker outlined in his speech. This idea is worth debate, especially if it reduces bureaucratic red tape and burdensome government regulation.
I am supportive of Governor Walker’s commitment to reduce property taxes. Property taxes statewide fell last year and we need to do all we can to keep property taxes low.
I am committed to working with my colleagues to bring good-paying jobs to Wisconsin. My highest priority is to make Wisconsin a great place to work and raise a family.
As we begin a new year, I am looking forward to working with both Republicans and Democrats alike to use good ideas to help the communities in Southwest Wisconsin.
Outstanding Principal on State Bonding Programs
As a member of the Joint Finance Committee (JFC), I have begun reviewing materials on the state budget as we begin the budget process for the next biennium. One item that I have found particularly interesting in my overview of state debt and bonding is the outstanding principal on state bonding programs, which shows our outstanding debt from year to year. As a CPA, I will continue to monitor our debt levels to assure that our future debt payments are affordable by our taxpayers.
Outstanding Debt-December
| Types of Bonds | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 |
| General Obligation: GPR-Supported | $4,654,153,581 | $4,919,237,037 | $5,314,548,734 | $5,208,529,003 | $4,885,766,328 |
| General Obligation: PR & SEG-Supported | 2,168,618,400 | 2,459,373,282 | 2,700,156,786 | 2,819,002,241 | 2,970,919,274 |
| Transportation Revenue Obligations | 1,866,138,000 | 1,768,193,000 | 1,806,153,000 | 1,872,903,000 | 2,034,983,000 |
| Clean Water Revenue Obligations | 968,165,000 | 897,475,000 | 855,510,000 | 822,940,000 | 764,745,000 |
| PECFA Revenue Obligations | 188,610,000 | 188,610,000 | 188,610,000 | 164,445,000 | 139,100,000 |
| Appropriation Obligations: Pension | 1,836,825,000 | 1,816,775,000 | 1,791,395,000 | 1,754,890,000 | 1,682,140,000 |
| Appropriation Obligations: Tobacco Settlement | 1,522,865,000 | 1,517,080,000 | 1,511,230,000 | 1,504,600,000 | 1,497,090,000 |
| Total | $13,205,374,981 | $13,566,743,319 | $14,197,603,520 | $14,147,309,244 | $13,974,743,602 |
*Legislative Fiscal Bureau, January 14, 2015
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In the District |
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Monday, Jan. 19, 2015 The second listening session will be Monday, January 26th in Reedsburg at the Reedsburg Public Library. This session will be held with Representative Ed Brooks. Monday, Jan. 26, 2015 I am looking forward to hearing opinions and
concerns from my constituents. This is a great opportunity for
myself and Representative Brooks to connect with our
constituents and receive input as we begin to discuss the state
budget and legislative priorities for the 2015-2016 session.
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Helpful Information |
State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB):
Preliminary Returns Positive
This week, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB)
announced positive preliminary returns for the end of the year.
This equates to modest increases in monthly pension amounts for
retirees and interest rates credited to active employee
accounts. The Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) Core Fund ended
year with preliminary return of 5.7%. The preliminary five-year
return on the Core Fund is 9.3%. The preliminary market value of
the Core Fund is $88.7 billion. These results have surpassed one
year benchmark of 5.6% for the Core Fund.
The Variable Fund, which is an option stock fund targeting
domestic and international equities ended the year with a
preliminary return of 7.3%. This equates to a preliminary market
value of $7.3 billion for the Variable Fund. Unfortunately, this
is slightly behind the benchmark of 7.5%. Total assets under
SWIB management amount to $103 billion as of December 2014. This
includes approximately $96 billion in WRS trust funds, which
provides benefits to over 588,000 current and former state and
local employees. This makes WRS the 9th largest public pension
fund in the country and the 25th largest public or private
pension fund in the world.
State Capitol - Room 8 South - Post Office Box 7882 - Madison, Wisconsin 53707 - Phone: (608) 266-0703