Let's Seriously Review the County Sales Tax

As I have met with neighbors in District 3 over the past few months, one question keeps coming up again and again.  Can we please get rid of the sales tax?

The simple answer is that if we never look at it, we for sure will never be able to do it, so let’s look at it.

My Promise

To be clear, I am not promising an end to the sales tax.  What I am promising is that I will request that our County Administrator and County Board chairman work in 2018 to develop at least 4 different plans for how we could get rid of the sales tax.  I am going to request that at least 3 plans include no new taxes or tax trading, since I want at least 3 plans that are entirely based off of budget cuts and program cuts.  This will give us the ability to see if there is any viable way to end the county sales tax while remain consistent with our values.

Once we have these plans, we can look at whether the cost would be too much for us to bear, or whether it might be possible and achievable to responsibly eliminate the sales tax.  While my gut tells me that the program cuts most likely will have a cost that does not match our values, we won’t really know for sure unless we push ourselves to explore what may be possible. 

And who knows, maybe we’ll surprise ourselves and find a responsible way to eliminate the sales tax without compromising our values.  One thing is for sure, if we never look then we will always have the sales tax, so let’s at least look.

Background Info

The sales tax was put in place long before I was elected.  The community is right to feel disillusionment about the sales tax, since it was originally presented as a temporary tax to provide property tax relief and fund capital improvements.  When the sales tax came up for renewal in 2016, there was no plan for how we could eliminate it, so it would create a massive disruption to the County’s various programs.  I felt like I had no choice but to vote to renew it.

For a long time I have just accepted the common talking point that we only have 2 options for eliminating it:

1)      Replacing it with a different tax.  Sure, we could easily eliminate the sales tax by putting in a different tax, but what does that solve?  Really, all that does is trade one tax for another, what I call tax-trading.  Tax-trading is when one tax is eliminated by replacing it with a different tax, such as a property tax increase, a wheel tax, or another new tax. 

2)      Massive program cuts that don’t match our values.  The option to do massive program cuts would significantly hinder the county’s ability to deliver on many of the things it currently does.  Those services include the Sheriff’s department, Samaritan, maintaining the County Highways, child protective services, and any of the other services the County provides.  Does that really match our values?

Recently I’ve reached a bit of a turning point on the issue.  Instead of sticking with what I think, I’ve decided that it is time to explore what might be possible, and to see what the impact to County programs would be.  When the sales tax comes up for renewal in 2021, I don’t want to be making a decision based on what I think, I want to make a decision based upon what we have studied and what we know.  And if there is any chance of ending the County sales tax, we would need to start working on that now.

That’s why I am promising is that I will request that our County Administrator and County Board chairman work in 2018 to develop at least 4 different plans for how we could get rid of the sales tax.  I am going to request that at least 3 plans include no new taxes or tax trading, since I want at least 3 plans that are entirely based off of budget cuts and program cuts. 

I’ve Kept My Promises from 2016

In 2016, when I first ran for County Board, I made some promises to my neighbors, and I’ve kept every one of them.

I Promised to be Skeptical of Regional Cooperation with Milwaukee and to Oppose Funding Milwaukee’s Trolley

I’ve kept this one.  When I ran in 2016, I knew that anytime Milwaukee started talking about regional cooperation, what they were usually trying to do was to get surrounding communities to fund their extravagant and unnecessary projects like the trolley (streetcar)

When we were asked in 2017 to endorse the Vision 2050 Regional Transportation Plan, I viewed it with a skeptics eye.  I reviewed it extensively, to make sure there was no financial commitment, or funding for the trolley.  When I found that the plan did contain a regional tax structure, and that those regional taxes would fund Milwaukee’s trolley along with other commuter rail projects, I didn’t hesitate.  I alerted the rest of the County Board, and led them in unanimously refusing to endorse that portion of the plan.

See it for yourself here: https://westbend.viebit.com/player.php?hash=5uakhpHf9boW.   

I promised to be fiscally responsible

In my view, being fiscally responsible means avoiding deficit spending, reducing debt, not raising taxes, funding the essential functions of government, developing a sustainable financial plan, and lowering taxes when possible.  Working with the other members of the Board, Washington County has now been rated AAA by Moody’s and now has the lowest tax rate in 100 years, while all of the essentially functions are government are still funded.

I Have Protected Our Parks

Our park system is one of the things that makes our community great.  Protecting our park system doesn’t mean what I thought it did back in 2016.  Levy limits forced the previous board to implement a Priority-based Budgeting System, which put our park system in jeopardy.  The only solution that guaranteed the survival of our park system was to make them self-sustaining.  I supported that decision, and opposed leaving our park system with an uncertain future.

Because I have kept my promises, I asked you to re-elect me on April 3, so that I can keep the promises I have made for the 2018-2020 board session (which you can read at https://district3bossert.blogspot.com/)

Fighting to Force National Retailers to Pay Their Property Taxes

National Retailers are trying to wiggle out of their property tax obligations, and they've found a loophole that lets them do it.  It's called the dark-store loophole (or dark-store theory), and it allows them to shift their property tax burdens onto small business owners and local homeowners.

The League of Wisconsin Municipalities has calculated that this loophole, if fully implemented by all of the big box retailers in West Bend, could cost the average West Bend homeowner $253.89 per year in additional property taxes.

I first learned about the dark-store theory when City Alderman (and candidate to represent District 4 on the County Board) Chris Jenkins authored an advisory resolution on the city level to support efforts to end the dark-store loophole. 

After researching this issue, I realized how important it was to end this loophole.  I quickly worked to author a similar resolution on the County level.  When the resolution was scheduled to come up in front of the County Board, I asked West Bend City Assessor Jeff Yoder to speak to the impact this loophole would have on the City of West Bend.  With the support of chairman Gundrum, and County Board Supervisors including Tim Michalak and Denis Kelling, the resolution I authored easily passed the County Board.  For a copy of the resolution, click here: https://www.wicounties.org/uploads/r641617-advisory-res-property-tax-loopholes.pdf

Since then, I have worked with state legislators like Senator Duey Stroebel and Assemblyman Rick Gundrum (formerly our County Board chairman) to express the County's support for ending this tax loophole and protecting homeowners and small business owners.  While it looks like this issue did not get enough support yet at the state level, I am confident that it will during the next legislative session.  I will continue to work with our state legislators to help pass end the dark-store loophole.

My 4^th promise to my neighbors in District 3 relates to the History Center.  I promise that, as long as the History Center remains committed to working towards significantly decreasing their reliance on County Funding, I will be an ally in supporting them and their efforts.

As some background information, Chairman Gundrum formed the Quasi-Governmental Agency Committee.  He gave it the goal of working with the Economic Development Washington County (EDWC),  the Washington County Visitor’s Bureau, the Agricultural and Industrial Society (AIS) which runs the County Fair Park, and the History Center.  Because of my interest in History and the History Center, Chairman Gundrum asked me to join the Committee.

In February, the EDWC came back to us with a plan, which we approved, which enabled them to become fully self-sufficient.  They developed the plan, tested it, explained the risks and what they were doing to mitigate the risks, and how it would benefit both the EDWC and the County.  All we had to do on the Committee was approve their plan, which we did.  Christian Tscheschlok and his team have always been consummate professionals, and they have always impressed me.

At the same meeting, the History Center spoke about their efforts.  County Administrator Joshua Schoemann summarized their report this way:

The Washington County Historical Society (WCHS) also presented to the committee regarding the initial findings of a feasibility study they did for their organization and the future of the Old Courthouse Museum.  They indicated to the committee that this study proved to them that it is feasible to investigate a strategic reframing of the organization, directed toward a new relationship with the County.   WCHS also laid out a rough timeline for the next step in the process, developing their Strategic Plan which will help to create a proposal for working toward financial independence for the ad hoc committee’s consideration.

Everyone on the committee had gone into this assignment believing that the History Center might be our toughest challenge.  We were all surprised and impressed to see that the History Center was stepping forward, to follow the example set by the EDWC.  I commended them on the courage it takes to look inward and face the need to change, and for taking the initiative to start shaping that change.

It is especially important that we transition all 4 of these organizations off of the tax levy within the next few years.  Projecting forward, it is clear that by about 2021 or 2022 we will not be able to fund any of these 4 organizations at any more than a token amount.  Rather than pulling the rug out from under them in 2022, working with them now to prepare them for self-sufficiency is tremendously important.

As someone who has an avid interest in History, and who once gave serious consideration to becoming a History Teacher, I am proud that the History Center is taking the approach they are taking, and I will stand with them as an ally in their work to become self-sufficient.  We may not agree on every detail, but I’m confident we’ll be able to work through those differences, and in the next few years we’ll have an even stronger, more independent History Center.

Past Promises:

I will reintroduce resolution to reduce County Board Supervisor pay and end per diems.
http://district3bossert.blogspot.com/2018/02/campaign-announcement-1st-promise-for.html

I will continue to refuse all mileage and per diem payments

http://district3bossert.blogspot.com/2018/02/campaign-announcement-2nd-promise-for.html

I will support reducing the size of the County Board

http://district3bossert.blogspot.com/2018/03/campaign-announcement-my-3rd-promise-to.html

Announcing my Endorsements

I am proud to have the following endorsements, which include our incoming Assembly Representative, a prominent Assembly Candidate, 2 Mayors, 12 other current County Board Supervisors, 3 City Alderman, and the Chairman of the Washington County Republican Party.

• Rick Gundrum - Assembly Representative, 58th District
• Tiffany Koehler - Assembly Candidate
  
• Craig Sadownikow - West Bend Mayor
• Tim Michalak - County Board Supervisor & Hartford Mayor
• Roger Kist - County Board Supervisor, West Bend Alderman, & former County Parks Commissioner
• Don Kriefall - County Board Supervisor, 2nd Vice Chair
• Kristine Deiss - County Board Supervisor, former Mayor of West Bend
• Denis Kelling - County Board Supervisor
• Brian Krebs - County Board Supervisor
• Rock Brandner - County Board Supervisor, History Center Representative
• Marc McCune - County Board Supervisor, 1st Vice Chair
• Mike Parsons - County Board Supervisor
• Mike Otten - County Board Supervisor
• Tom Niebler - County Board Supervisor
• Chris Jenkins - West Bend Alderman & Candidate for County Board Supervisor
• Adam Williquette - West Bend Alderman
• Jim Geldreich - Chairman, Washington County Republican Party

I led the Charge on Moving Meetings to the Night

When I was first elected to the County Board, I thought it was odd that the full meetings of the County Board were at 9 a.m.  Nearly every city council, village board, town board, and school board in Washington County meets during the evening hours, to increase public accessibility.  Why is the County Board meeting during the daytime.  It almost seemed like the goal was to keep the public away from the meetings.

When an ordinance change was brought forward in July of 2016, I had only been on the board for 3 months.  The proposed ordinance change would move our meeting times from 9:00 a.m. to 7:30 a.m.  I saw an opportunity to try for night meetings, and I took it.  I let Chairman Gundrum know ahead of time that I would be raising this issue, and found an ally in Supervisor Kelling who would stand with me on this issue. 

When the ordinance was brought forward for discussion, I quickly made a motion to amend the meeting time to 7:00 p.m., and Supervisor Kelling quickly offered a second, so that the motion would be considered.  Concerns were expressed, many of which revolved around the concept that we all ran for office knowing that the meetings would be during the day.  When the dust cleared, the motion fell 2 votes short, and I had to settle for 7:30 a.m. meetings, at least temporarily.  Se my comments from after that meeting here: http://district3bossert.blogspot.com/2016/07/night-meetings-2-votes-short.html.

A contentious highway project heightened the attention on night meetings.  Several angry e-mails from residents from the Town of Hartford accused us of conspiring in secret, at daytime meetings that were difficult to attend.  In one instance, I was communicating with a resident from the Town of Hartford, who indicated that her boss would not let her off from work to attend a County Board meeting about this highway project, and interestingly enough, her boss was a fellow supervisor.

Dennis and I worked together, to continue to push this issue.  Chairman Gundrum formed a committee to develop a proposal for night meetings that allayed the concerns many other had.  Both Supervisor Kelling and myself were put on the committee.

In our work, we developed a proposal to move meetings to the 2nd Wednesday night of the month, the same night my kids have 4H meetings.  The cause is bigger than my commitment, and I can work to find ways to make it work, so I supported the effort.  We also realized that it might not pass if we implemented it immediately, so we delayed the effective date until after the 2018 elections.  Our proposal went in front of the County Board, and this time it passed.  Starting in May, just 2 months from now, we will be meeting on Wednesday evenings.  http://district3bossert.blogspot.com/2017/12/night-meetings-start-in-may.html.

We already have the 1st signs that it is working.  In 2016 there were 4 contested races for County Board Supervisor, and 22 races where someone ran unopposed.  With night meetings, we now have 9 contested races.  I look at some of the incoming Supervisors I've seen, and I see a lot of talent.

Comments From the Campaign Trail

Here are some of the comments people are telling me while I'm on the campaign trail.

• "I've e-mailed you a couple of times, and you've always gotten back to me."
• "I'm voting for you because you listened to me."
• "You care about our community, and it comes through in the decisions you make."
• "You're the conservative we need."
• "You have gotten so much done."
• "You have been a great surprise, and a fantastic addition to the County Board."
• "I know who you are, I love what you're doing, you've got my vote."

 

Campaign Announcement---My 3rd promise to voters---Reducing the Board Size

Back in 2015, the County Board voted to reduce its size from 30 board members to 26.  With the current board structure, we have seen a significant increase in efficiency, but I believe that we are also still too large.  Unfortunately, we are only allowed to adjust the size of the board 1 time between census periods.  Consequently, we cannot reduce the size of you board again until after the 2020 census (probably around 2022)

My 3^rd promise to my neighbors in district 3 is that, after the 2020 census, I will support further reductions in the size of the board.  I think a prudent strategy is to be cautious, and reduce to a size of maybe 20-22 members, and long term I could see the County board being reduced to as small as 13-15 members over the next couple of decades.

I am concerned about reducing too much, too quickly.  I have had a few neighbors who believe the County Board should reduce to 5-7 board members.  I worry that too much power in the hands of too few could have undesirable implications.  For example, the West Bend school board has 7 members.  They experience dramatic policy swings whenever 2 or 3 new people come onto the board, only to experience another round of dramatic policy swings in the opposite direction a year or two later.  I worry that a County board that is too small might become similarly inconsistent in its policies, in contrast to the policy consistency that our County Board has generally maintained over the last several decades. 

Because of those concerns, I believe a careful, measured, long-term approach to reducing the size of the County Board will yield the best results in improving efficiency while maintaining consistency in how our County Government is run.

Past Promises:

I will reintroduce resolution to reduce County Board Supervisor pay and end per diems.
http://district3bossert.blogspot.com/2018/02/campaign-announcement-1st-promise-for.html

I will continue to refuse all mileage and per diem payments
http://district3bossert.blogspot.com/2018/02/campaign-announcement-2nd-promise-for.html