Question No. 4: Gregg Underheim Response

Wisconsin is a high tax state. Our incomes are below the national average and our service provision is high; we tax our citizens at a high level compared to other states to provide those services.

What we have in Wisconsin is a revenue problem. We want services at a high level but we cannot and should not increase the tax effort we currently make. What we must do is find a way to increase our tax revenues without increasing our tax rates. We can do that by growing our economy and by retaining our wealthy citizens. Also, we must find efficiencies in government to save money.

First, let me address the revenue problem. We can grow our economy by making Wisconsin a more attractive place in which to do business. That means lower taxes, not higher taxes. Entrepreneurs and their friends look for environments in which they can make money. Currently Wisconsin does not fit the bill. Our high income tax rates and our regulatory environment discourage investment.

Furthermore, wealthy citizens leave this state because of the taxes. We all know people who now make Florida or Texas their home because of the low income taxes. Many of those people who leave would rather keep Wisconsin as their home. Unfortunately, it is just too expensive. When they leave we lose far more than their companionship. We lose their tax contributions, their charitable contributions, their civic contributions, and their investment contributions. There is an irony too delicious to ignore here. At one point WEAC, the teacher’s union, had on its web site instructions to its members on how to avoid Wisconsin taxes. One of the organizations that is most supportive of taxes increases was telling its members how to avoid paying the taxes it supported. (I would point out that WEAC is a strong supporter of my opponent, Mr. Hintz.)

Another goal that must be met is saving money by finding efficiencies in government. Let me provide some specific examples. There are too many school districts in the state of Wisconsin. Some small districts are very close to each other and very small. They should be combined. That would create savings in school costs. In Winnebago County Sheriff Brooks has advocated combining police services.

In healthcare there are saving to be made. In the purchase of drugs a more aggressive negotiating stance can be taken by the state. Provisions very similar to a bill I authored last session were incorporated in the state budget. Those provisions allow the state much greater power in negotiating with drug companies. To date those provisions have saved $16 million dollars. More can and must be saved.

In the Medicaid program a small percentage of the enrollees spend a huge percentage of the dollars. Many of those people have chronic illnesses. It is estimated by some experts that as much as $50 million is available to save. Tommy Thompson’s administration was not interested in the disease management programs that would make those savings available. Governor Doyle’s administration must step up to the plate and find those savings.

Wellness programs for state employees offer the potential for savings. Diabetes, high blood pressure, hip and knee replacements, heart attacks and strokes are all related to the epidemic of obesity. Wellness programs have the potential to provide significant savings of state dollars.

Finally, in corrections alternative-sentencing programs, when done correctly, can save money and not threaten public safety. However, those programs must be based on research tested and proven methods. It would be inappropriate to let each county create its own program when there are already programs that have been proven to work.

In conclusion, if we are to continue with our tradition of high service provision we must grow our economy, retain our wealthy, and find efficiencies in government in order to generate the revenue we need.

Question # 4: Gordon Hintz Response

Gordon Hintz Response

1. Does Wisconsin have too many tax-funded services?
In the debate over taxes, there are two misperceptions: (1) that because Wisconsin government raises most of its revenue through taxes, the state must be spending too much on services, and (2) that we can cut taxes with absolutely no effect on services.

I do not believe that Wisconsin governments are offering too many services, although the service level in some areas may need to be examined. Wisconsin expenditures on public services are somewhat above the national average. This is due to the fact that Wisconsin spends more on education and highways than other states. If Wisconsin spending on education and highways were at the national average, the total expenditure on public services in Wisconsin actually would be below the national average. People may complain about taxes, but they want the services and they are proud of the achievements of this state. They understand that Wisconsin ranks at the top of the nation in student test scores and the state has an excellent system of primary and secondary highways. And for these services we pay more than states with poor school systems and bad highways.

When we speak about tax-funded services, we need first to take into account the fact that there are 1,992 general units of government (counties, cities, villages, towns), 442 school districts, and one state government. Each of these units of government makes decisions about the services and service levels that it offers and the sources of revenue that it uses and, consequently, it is virtually impossible to make an informed judgment about whether Wisconsin has too many tax-funded services.

However, there are several areas where government can do a better job of controlling expenditures. First, there are efficiencies to be achieved in reducing the fragmentation and overlapping of local governments. If we cannot bring about political consolidation, perhaps we can create regional service centers that can contract with local governments. Second, employer-based health insurance must be made more affordable in order to restrain the growth of Badgercare. Medicaid will need attention. Finally, reform of our corrections process along the lines of Minnesota will lower corrections costs.

2. Second, is taxation relied on too heavily to raise revenues for public services?
The issue of how we pay for government services has several dimensions. First is the tax fairness issue. Are individuals and corporations paying their fair share for services? During the past thirty years, the share of income taxes has increased dramatically for individuals and decreased dramatically for corporations. The individual income tax is no longer progressive as most taxpayers pay between 6.15% and 6.75%, whether they are earning $8,420 or $200,000.
Second is whether and when fees should be used instead of taxes to pay for public services.
I support the use of fees for services that (1) provide a direct benefit to the fee payer (such as new construction inspection and boat launch fees), (2) do not have a community spill over effect (such as libraries and parks), and (3) are relatively easy to collect. In general, these fees should cover the costs of providing the services. I do not favor fees for services where low and moderate-income people would be excluded or where the service is very widely used.

Finally there is the issue of changing the mix of income, sales, and property taxes. The property tax is the least popular, probably because it comes as a once-a-year big bill. The income and sales taxes are somewhat less unpopular because they are paid in smaller and less obvious ways. On the other hand, the property tax is the most stable source of revenue for local governments.

Tommy Thompson's revenue secretary Mark Bugher recently headed a study commission that recommended that the sales tax be increased by one cent and used to reduce the property tax. I have reservations about this concept because there is no guarantee that over time the increased sales tax revenue would maintain an equal reduction of the property tax.

Overall, I believe that it is time to review how the state raises revenues through taxes and fees and I support creating a broad-based, blue-ribbon commission to conduct this review.

Question No. 4: Dan Carpenter Response

I have traveled throughout the world in my lifetime. There is no place like Wisconsin; no place I would rather live. We enjoy the greatest level of services imaginable. Our education system is tops and one only needs to look at test scores for proof. Roads in Wisconsin take a beating in the winter, but when you drive the back roads of states like Georgia or Alabama you will see clearly just how important that system is. Environmentally, there is no more beautiful place to live with clean air and water. I don’t favor eliminating any of those services that we all enjoy so much.

Throughout my campaign I have spoken about inefficiencies. We all see them. We have a prison system that is out of control and costing the taxpayers huge sums. 7 percent of our budget or $846 million dollars per year are spent on the system. Our prison population has risen from 6,000 in 1987 to more than 21,000. Are we any safer? No. Are we poorer? Yes. Prison and sentencing reform is an absolute necessity.

A recent audit of our university system revealed that a whopping 25% of the employees are in administrative positions driving up the cost of enrollment and taxes. Our K-12 schools are being hit with unfunded state and federal mandates.

State government continues to expand. Our politicians in Madison have made sure that they have taken care of those who stuff money in their pockets. If and when they all come to trial, we will certainly hear much more as we have with the kickback schemes of Gary George.

A tax by any other name is a tax. You can call them fees, but they’re still taxes. Any parent with children in a school system knows about fees: book fees, athletic fees, class fees, etc. When parents have several children the cost can become staggering. Fees to drop off grass, fees to launch a boat and, maybe, a fee for our children to run on the grass in the park! We pay taxes for something and then pay fees. Before long we may pay a garbage fee, a plowing fee, a pothole filling fee or a street sweeping fee! How long before we pay fees for the fees? Fees are taxes and we do not need more taxes, we need less waste at the federal, state and local levels.

I would not support a higher sales tax for any purpose whether it is for education, lowering taxes of general revenue. Our focus needs to center on efficiency and waste, not higher taxes and fees. Sales taxes are regressive and would hit the business community resulting in fewer jobs, which in turn would lower the amount of income taxes collected.

George H.W. Bush said, “Read my lips” and he lied. People of this community who have known me will tell you that I would never do that. Honesty is a pillar upon which my candidacy is built.

Question #4: Tony Palmeri Response

1. Do you believe Wisconsin has too many tax-funded services?

No. The overwhelming majority of residents of the 54th district want a quality public education system, police and fire protection to keep the community safe, necessary social services, and a clean environment. The residents understand that none of this can be done without money drawn from taxes. BUT THE RESIDENTS ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT WISCONSIN’S CURRENT TAX SYSTEM IS NOT FAIR.

How are Wisconsin’s taxes unfair? First, let’s look at individual income tax rates. According to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, from 1972 – 1985 Wisconsin’s lowest rate was 3.1% and the highest rate was 11.4%, Today, the lowest rate is 4.6% and the highest is 6.75%. This means that whether your income is $40,000 or $400,000 you are still at 6.76%.

According to the Fiscal Bureau, as of 2001 only four states applied a higher tax rate than Wisconsin’s to their lowest bracket (Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oregon), yet 15 states applied a higher rate than Wisconsin to their top income brackets.

A study by the The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy in 2002 showed that the richest 1% of Wisconsin taxpayers paid 8.1% of their income in state and local taxes, and only 5.9% after federal itemized deductions. Middle-income taxpayers paid 11.9%, or 11.3% after the federal offset. The poorest 20% of taxpayers paid 10.2%.

Fairness dictates that the lowest bracket be returned to the its 1972 level of 3.1%. Fairness also dictates that the top bracket be increased for persons making more than $200,000 per year. A recent study by the reputable Feldman Group showed that 75% of Wisconsin’s residents favor increasing taxes on individuals making more than $200,000.

Second, big corporations in Wisconsin are not paying their fair share of taxes.

Former Governor Tommy Thompson’s Administration secretary Mark Bugher told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the corporate tax is "so shot full of exemptions and loopholes and credits and exceptions and complications that it becomes almost irrelevant to the revenue stream of the state." Corporations would be paying at least $600 million more in state taxes this year if they were still paying the same share as in 1979. Meanwhile corporate tax-dodging schemes cost the state at least $100 million per biennium. And in what was perhaps the biggest outrage of the last legislative session, the governor and legislature adopted a “single sales factor” formula for big business taxes that will rob still another $45 million per year from the budget beginning in 2006.

The argument for corporate tax breaks is that they create jobs. Yet no credible evidence exists to show that job creation has in fact occurred, and in fact the evidence seems point in the opposite direction. The Center on Wisconsin Strategy’s “State of Working Wisconsin” Report has shown consistently that Wisconsin lags behind other states in the creation of jobs that come with high wages and good benefits.

The Feldman Group study cited earlier showed that 80% of Wisconsinites favor closing tax loopholes. I will fight to get the loopholes closed when I become your representative.

If 75% of Wisconsinites favor raising taxes on people making more than $200,000 and another 80% favor closing corporate loopholes, why haven’t those things happened? Simply because we have the most corrupt legislature in the United States. Our tax code is the result of huge campaign contributions and high priced lobbyists. It’s shameful and it needs to stop.

2. Would you support altering the state sales tax as a means to pay for state government and/or lowering property taxes?

I am opposed to any increases in the state sales tax. The sales tax is a regressive tax, and to increase it while the corporations are getting away with tax dodging murder is unconscionable.

I could support the Wisconsin Counties Association’s “Fiscal Fairness Plan” of a few years back that that would apply the sales tax to all but a few items (food, prescription drugs, and a few others) while reducing the sales tax rate from 5.0% to 3.0%. They estimated that such a change would have increased revenues by $745 million in fiscal year 2003. I say I could support this change rather than DO support it because I would first want to see the WCA’s numbers validated by the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. I would also want to hear testimony on the effect to small businesses of expanding the sales tax.

Let me close my answer with two additional thoughts. First, the massive tuition increases in tuition paid by college students and their families is in fact a TAX. For the governor and legislature to say they have not raised taxes while they have supported massive tuition increases is simply disingenuous.

Second, I agree with Democratic Representative Spencer Black, who says: ”Democrats have been losing the debate over taxes in the public arena because of timidity. Instead of trying to avoid the issue or offering a pale version of Republican tax rhetoric, it is long past time for Democrats to take on the big business lobby and the right wing on taxes.” Why Representative Black remains in the Democratic Party is a mystery to me. Only the Greens are willing to fight for the principle of progressive taxation and for the principle that all taxation should be based on ability to pay.

Question No. 4

Many have described Wisconsin as a “high tax state.” Others argue that high taxes bring a high level of services, which may have to be reduced if taxes are brought down.

Do you believe Wisconsin has too many tax-funded services? If so, which services do you feel should be reduced or eliminated? If you don't believe the problem is the services that are provided but rather inefficiencies in the way they are delivered, please explain what specific efficiencies you would recommend as a way of controlling or reducing taxes.

If you believe that the tax burden can be controlled by expanding the use of fees, as Gov. Doyle has suggested, please explain which fees you would raise.

Another approach to the issue of taxes that has been suggested is increasing or altering the state sales tax as a means to pay for state government and/or lowering property taxes. Would you support this approach? Please explain your answer.

Question No. 3: Tony Palmeri Response

Tony Palmeri did not respond to this question by the deadline. A comment appears below.

Question No. 3: Gregg Underheim Response

Let me begin by stating what I support.

1. I support providing more information about cost and quality in healthcare
2. I support the Badgercare program
3. I support acquiring prescription drugs from Canada
4. I support the Seniorcare program that gives significant help to senior citizens for drug purchases
5. I support expanding the legislation that the legislature passed to allow for the pooling of small businesses to buy insurance.
6. I support low interest loans from WHEFA so that hospitals and clinics can move rapidly to electronic medical records
7. I support Healthcare Saving Accounts

Healthcare cost is one of the two most important issues facing the people of the 54th Assembly District and the people of Wisconsin; the other, of course, is taxes. People face hardships because they cannot get healthcare. Insurance premiums put pressure on middle class budgets. We must solve the problem of health care costs. That problem is a product of several forces.

First, there has been as explosion of technology in healthcare. It is ubiquitous and expensive. It has greatly improved the quality of care we receive; but, it has driven up cost. Second, in Wisconsin many hospital/physician networks have sprung up. We all know their names—Touchpoint, Affinity, Aurora, Marshfield, Gundersen, Dean, and Bellin, to name a few. Those networks have great power in the negotiation between insurance companies and self-insured businesses. Because there are a small number of networks in each geographic region those networks can and have negotiated very favorable reimbursement contracts. That drives up overall cost. Third, as a population we are getting older. As we age we enter the years during which we use more healthcare. Fourth, government is a problem. By underpaying for the care it buys, Medicare on the federal level and Medicaid on the state level, government drives up the cost in the private sector. Additionally, government frequently adds mandates—specific coverages that must be included in an insurance policy—that drive up cost. Fifth, healthcare providers must care for people who enter the emergency room, even if those people cannot pay. That drives up the cost for those who do pay. Fortunately, in Wisconsin, we have successfully addressed the Medical Malpractice problem in Wisconsin. Other states have not been so lucky.

The last issue I want to discuss is so important it deserves it’s own section. The issue is third party payment. In most instances of purchase of a service there is a direct payment relationship between the provider of the service and the recipient of the service. In healthcare that is frequently not true. The patient receives the healthcare; the provider gives the care; the insurer pays for the care. In that equation there is no incentive for the patient to seek cost effective care because the patient does not realize any direct or immediate economic benefit from seeking cost effective care. Let me hasten to add that there are many instances when seeking cost effective care is not reasonable or possible. When someone is experiencing a heart attack it is absurd to think anyone would make economic considerations. Find an emergency room!! There are, however, times when it is very reasonable to make economic considerations. Knee replacements, hip replacements, and early stage prostate cancer, are examples of surgeries that can incorporate price considerations. Additionally, some expensive tests could be subject to price considerations as well.

Let me hasten to add this as well. Along with a price consideration there must be a quality consideration. No one wants to get cheap bad care. To avoid that there must be good information about quality.

Once there is good information about price and quality there must be insurance mechanisms that allow people to see a reward for seeking high quality and reasonably priced health care. That tool is available but it is not yet widely used. It is called the Healthcare Savings Account (HSA). It is an insurance product that includes a catastrophic insurance policy and a saving account. In a group policy the employer would buy the catastrophic plan and contribute to the savings account. He would make the same total contribution that he currently makes. In fact, in some instances the employer makes a larger contribution than he does now because he believes this insurance tool would save money. The employee owns the savings account portion of the plan. He may take it with him if he changes jobs. The money is his to take at retirement. Under this plan there is an incentive for the employee to make cost effective decisions. The employee wins because he shops smart. The employer wins because some costs are avoided and because, when costs are incurred, they are smaller than they would have otherwise been.

Some strongly oppose HSA’s on the basis that healthy people will choose them and unhealthy people will not. There needs to be a serious test to determine the viability of HSA’s. I propose that they be implemented in Wisconsin by using the legislature and its employees as an experimental group. I am aware that they are currently being used successfully in private business. Nevertheless, the doubters must be placated.

The great benefit of HSA’s is that individuals will not longer be at the mercy of their employer’s choice of healthcare plans. Each individual will be able to choose his or her own doctor.

Irrespective of HSA’s, information is a key to controlling cost and quality. Employers need good information when they negotiate with insurers or when they negotiate with providers as self-insured businesses.

There are additional steps that must be taken in Wisconsin as well. First we must maintain the Badgercare program. That program has provided insurance for many low-income Wisconsin citizens. Also, we have initiated a pooling plan that allows small businesses to join together to form larger negotiating pools. That should be expanded. We also must avoid adding costly mandates to insurers.

Let me close by saying this. There is no issue that is more important to people than their health. Government must act in ways that control cost and ensure quality. We must do all we can to make health care available without hurting quality.

#3: Gordon Hintz Response

Gordon Hintz on Health Care

Let us all begin by acknowledging that health care involves a very complex set of issues about vital services of enormous magnitude. The primary issues are (1) access to health care, (2) the cost of health care, and (3) the quality of health care. These issues are related to each other.
My vision for Wisconsin is that all people have access to quality health care at an affordable cost.

Access
In Wisconsin, approximately 91% of the population has health care insurance, either through an employer-based plan, Badgercare for lower income employees without employer coverage, or Medicaid. Yet even with this coverage, nearly 440,000 residents in Wisconsin do not have health care insurance, many of whom are young and working. Lack of coverage is particularly high in rural areas.

For immediate access for uninsured people who currently do not have the money to pay for traditional health care, I support the operation of health clinics around the state, such as the Living Healthy Clinic at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. These clinics can deal with many non-acute health problems and have been incredibly efficient and effective despite limited budgets.

For more comprehensive coverage, I support the expansion of health insurance plans with larger numbers of participants. Participants should match the demographic and health profile of the state, rather than being selectively chosen because of low health care needs. I also favor plans that reduce the costs of marketing, overhead, and administration, which currently run at 20% to 25% of every health care dollar. Of particular interest is the proposed Wisconsin Health Care Plan, which would have parallels with the Wisconsin Workers Compensation and Unemployment Insurance systems.

Cost
The rapidly rising cost of health care is of great concern to individuals paying for their own insurance, employers providing coverage for their workers, and the state which insures not only its own employees but hundreds of thousands of people through Badgercare and Medicaid. As costs increase, many small business consider dropping insurance coverage with the result that the State faces increased Badgercare costs for uninsured workers.

Cost increases are due to many factors: an aging population, unhealthy lifestyles, improper use of health care, new technologies, new drugs, fragmented insurance providers, government mandates, and oversupply of medical services in some areas. Some of these factors bring inevitable increases, but several of them we can do something about.

First, I support and applaud the efforts of some health care providers to take initiatives with regard to disease and lifestyle management. The catastrophic and chronic problems of 6% of the population use 57% of health care resources. Through more education and better disease management, the demand for expensive health care can be reduced significantly.

Second, I support an initiative to re-introduce some regulation or certification of need for hospital construction and expansion. New hospitals and technologies in areas already served by hospital facilities do not lower health care costs, in spite of the claim that there will be competition. Rooms and equipment that must be paid for are not used at optimum capacity. While returning to the previous certificate of need program may not be the proper approach today, at a minimum the legislature should consider reducing current government incentives for hospitals to build. The Wisconsin Health and Educational Facilities Authority (WHEFA) assists health care institutions obtain the broadest, low-cost private capital market financing possible by issuing bonds without a review of the impact of this construction. This contributes to higher health costs and reduces the availability of specialized care in our immediate area.

Third, I support incentives to health care providers for investing in systems that will control costs. A prime example is the legislative proposal by Representative Sheldon Wasserman, a practicing physician, to have the State grant a 1% increase in Medicaid reimbursements to hospitals that invest in electronic records and physician order systems, a move that will save both lives and money. To date, Gregg Underheim has refused to hold a hearing on the Wasserman bill even though it has widespread support in the medical community as well as the support of members of both political parties.

Fourth, I believe that there should be a careful review of government mandates for commercially provided health insurance programs. While the State has an obligation to prevent sub-standard health insurance, it also has an obligation not to require every feature in all plans.

Fifth, I support educational efforts to increase the number of qualified health care workers in order to stabilize labor costs. An expansion of the College of Nursing at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh would be a good step. We may not have a nursing shortage in this area yet, but with the impending retirements of experienced nurses that are part of the baby-boom generation, it will be essential that Wisconsin be prepared.

Sixth, I support initiatives to negotiate lower drug costs and to purchase drugs from Canada.

Quality
Improvements in the quality of health care are important for all of us.

First, I support professional review and accreditation programs.

Second, I support initiatives such as the Wisconsin Collaborative for Healthcare Quality, an effort by health care providers, businesses and unions to develop comparative measures of quality, cost and value of care delivered by doctors, hospitals, and other providers. While this information may not help individual consumers, it should be helpful to major purchasers of health care services.

Third, I would consider incentives in the Medicaid reimbursement rates for health care providers that could demonstrate consistent improvements in the quality of health care.

Comment on the Approaches of the Other Candidates

Gregg Underheim
The status quo--what we have now--has to be called the Underheim Plan since he has been chair of the Assembly Health Committee since 1995. Wisconsin still has a sizable number of uninsured citizens. It still has rapidly escalating health insurance premiums. Representative Underheim is a proponent of "transparency" and competition, neither of which are going to do anything to promote access and control cost. They are "one-size-fits-all" approaches to a far more complex environment. We need bold action and ideas, not eight more years of studying the issues.

Tony Palmeri
Mr. Palmeri, to my knowledge, advocates a universal health care system. While I support the goal of universal access to health care, I do not believe that a single provider of health care is totally necessary, beneficial, or practical. Given the tremendous investment in the current provider system and general opposition to a single health provider system, the likelihood of such a change is extremely remote. Moving further than the federal government would have unintended consequences for Wisconsin as well.

Dan Carpenter
Mr. Carpenter's approach stresses looking for efficiencies in the provision of health care. I also believe that achieving efficiencies is important, but it is a limited approach. What would be the role of the State in encouraging efficiencies?

Question No. 3: Dan Carpenter Response

First of all, don’t throw the baby out with the bath water. We have the greatest health care system ever. We have the finest doctors and personnel, state-of-the-art equipment and wonderful hospitals. We just need to make adjustments to the way we make that care available to the public.

Previously, I mentioned efficiency. I agree with Gordon Hintz about regulating medical facility construction. I am extremely reluctant, however, to have the state do the regulating. I would much rather see the industry attempt to come to an agreement within itself. Pharmaceutical companies have not responded to the need to lower prices and continue to gouge the public. Even as the public has sought more affordable drugs from Canada, the industry has attempted to block the supply.

I would like to see drug advertising go the way of cigarette advertising. Personally, I am tired of seeing endless commercials that I know are costing a fortune and increasing the cost of prescriptions. This money could be spent more wisely on research and savings to the public. My goal would be that no person should be required to forego the use of a drug because of cost.

I disagree with Tony Palmeri about universal health care. Unfortunately, if we don’t act soon that may be the direction we’re headed. In countries with universal care there have been mixed results with horror stories of waiting lists a mile long.

Gregg Underheim has done some good things in health care. Unfortunately, it just hasn’t been enough. Creating drug purchasing pools is fine but if the drugs are still too expensive from the manufacturers it doesn’t solve the problem. We have to go to the core and institute real changes not just band aids at the end of the line.

Here in the 54th District, lack of efficiency is clearly evident. Beautiful facilities sit almost beside each other. They are often occupied far beneath capacity and sometimes not adequately staffed. While we often see expensive advertising of services, most people are locked into one facility and one plan. Efficiency is not just an issue at the state level, but must also be addressed locally.

Question No. 3: Health Care

All four candidates have cited health care as a key issue while proposing different ways of addressing the problem.

In his position statement, Dan Carpenter said that efficiency was the key to fixing the system. Gordon Hintz proposed insurance pools. Tony Palmeri called for universal health care. Gregg Underheim cited the need for greater information disclosure.

Please explain more fully your approach to making health care more accessible and affordable, and tell us what your goals would be, that is, how we would measure the success of your plan.

In your answer, please explain specifically how your ideas differ from or overlap with those of the other candidates.

Tell us why your approach would best serve the citizens of the 54th Assembly District.

Question No. 2: Gregg Underheim Response

Fairness dictates that there be a correlation between the level of pay of Wisconsin’s private sector employees and Wisconsin’s public sector employees. The taxes of private sector employees pay for wages, health care benefits and pension benefits of Wisconsin’s public sector employees. Therefore, it is important for both private and public sector employees that we enjoy a vibrant economy in Wisconsin.

When the economy turns down, as it recently did, many private sector employees were laid off or lost their jobs entirely. Public sector employees are not frequently laid off. However, some may lose jobs when government revenues are affected by a weak economy. Additionally, public sector jobs may be eliminated when the person who filled a specific job retires.

Currently there are mechanisms in place to control the rate of growth of public sector employees. The most widely known is the QEO provision which controls the rate of growth of teacher compensation. It came about because for many years WEAC (the teacher’s union) was able to successfully manipulate the mediation/arbitration laws and receive compensation increases at a rate well above inflation. I support maintaining the QEO provisions currently in law. I would point out that Mr. Hintz has promised WEAC that he would support eliminating that law.

Concerning public employee health care benefits, I do support finding ways to control those costs. The state of Wisconsin has done an excellent job of controlling cost increases recently. Their approach was to create three different tiers of health care choices for state employees. Each tier was based on the cost of health care providers in that tier. The premiums that state employees paid were determined by the tier of the plan which they chose. I support this approach.

Additionally, the state has formed drug-purchasing pools for state employees. Those pools are open to private sector businesses also. I support continuing this initiative and expanding it to individuals, too.

Furthermore, allowing municipalities to form larger pools, in different ways must be considered. Under current law there is a pool for municipalities; however, other forms of pool organization should be considered.

Finally, I do not support additional pension benefit increases for public employees. The Wisconsin Investment Board invests money for public employee benefits. Frequently, when the economy is good there seems to be a surplus of money in the fund. However, when the economy turns down, that “extra” money evaporates. Unfortunately, when the economy is good there is pressure to increase pension benefits. All too often the legislature complies. Then the economy turns down; the stock market falls; and the taxpayer is stuck with the obligation for pension benefits increases. Currently many units of government are stuck with unfunded pension obligations, which they will take from the taxpayer in the form of higher taxes.

Question #2: Gordon Hintz Response

1) How would you approach the issue of paying Wisconsin’s public employees?

This is a complex question for several reasons. First, "public employees in Wisconsin" covers a very broad range of occupations from custodian to university president. There are different labor markets for different positions. For some positions, public employers must compete in a national market; for other positions the labor market is local. Second, there is an equally broad range of employers from small townships to the state government. The rules for determining compensation are not the same for local and for state employees. Third, the rules are not the same for represented and non-represented employees.

With these observations in mind, let me state some guiding principles about public employee compensation.

First, salaries and wages for all occupational positions have to be high enough to attract qualified applicants. This does not mean that the public sector has to be at the top of the range, but it does need to be competitive.

Second, public employees deserve at the minimum annual salary and wage increases equal to cost-of-living increases. Over the course of a career, they should receive more. State employees, both represented and non-represented, have been penalized during the last several years with regard to compensation increases. This is because the state legislature has not yet come to terms with the irresponsible cycle of "spend excessively during good times/cut back severely during bad times." Until the legislature actually builds a rainy day fund to smooth out the effects of the business cycle, there are going to be continued difficulties with employee compensation.

2. Do you favor taking steps to control public employee health care costs?

I believe that efforts need to be made to establish larger health insurance pools and negotiate drug costs to help restrain health care cost increases. Employee cost-sharing in premium payments should be on the table for discussion as long as the end result is not a loss of overall compensation. I certainly understand why public employee groups have been reluctant to bargain about premium cost-sharing without any guarantee of salary and wage increases.

3. Do you support any additional pension benefits for public employees?

I believe that the Wisconsin Retirement System provides fair retirement benefits for public employees and I do not favor any changes at this time.

Question No. 2: Dan Carpenter Response

This is a very good question. As a public employee for thirty-four years and a taxpayer, I have experienced both sides of the issue. None of us wants to pay higher taxes and public employees want to be treated fairly. There are several steps that need to be taken to see that this happens.

First, the State of Wisconsin is extremely inefficient. Governor Doyle has been taking steps to reduce the deficit, but much more must be done. For example, we spend far too much on our prison system. We incarcerate three times the number of inmates that Minnesota does and we aren’t any safer. There are other ways to punish non-violent offenders. However, we have chosen to spend huge sums of money to build more and more prisons. For the $26,000 per year that we spend to incarcerate a non-violent person, we could send them to one of our best private universities. This money would be spent much more wisely on the people that provide us with the services we enjoy. I am truly puzzled when our legislature passes a law to incarcerate a person at a cost of $19,500 for stealing a shopping cart when that money could be spent much more wisely.

Second, I feel that all public employees deserve to have access to binding arbitration. When two sides disagree, why not let a third party resolve the issues. In the past this has sometimes failed because arbitrators were allowed to choose between one side or the other. I would propose that three arbitrators be assigned to hear an arbitration and that they be allowed to pick from each side to arrive at a fair settlement for both.

Third, health care costs are out of control everywhere. The public sector is not alone here. Again, efficiency is the primary issue. Should hospitals be allowed to build across the street from each other? Should staffing requirements be mandated? How about a common database? The inefficiency is driving up costs all over. Business, health care, insurance and government need to sit down and come to a conclusion about how to make health care more affordable. If we don’t do this soon, more of us will be uninsured driving up the cost to those that are and creating a downward spiral to a total collapse.

Public employees enjoy good pension benefits. There are businesses that provide better and some that provide less. It should be understood that pensions of public employees are held in trust and employees make decisions about their own accounts that allow them to be flexible about how their money is invested. If an employee makes the correct decision and allows the fund to accumulate, that employee should not be criticized for having a comfortable pension. Of course, when the topic of Milwaukee County or the bonuses given to some state employees in Madison by outgoing officials arises, we are talking about abuse that is quite different. That is not the norm. Most state employees are hard-working people who deserve to be treated fairly.

Question #2: Tony Palmeri Response

Some public employees in Wisconsin are underpaid if you compare their salaries to those of their peers in other states. This may be contributing to the state's "brain drain." On the other hand, the state has a structural deficit that needs to be addressed, and one way of managing the state's budget would be to look at employee compensation costs, including fringe benefits.

How would you approach the issue of paying Wisconsin's public employees?

First, the Democratic governor, Republican legislative majority and Democratic minority need to stop blaming public employees for the state’s fiscal mess. The mess was created by the politicians, not the public employees. The decimation of the state workforce being carried out by Doyle, the Republicans, and the Democratic sheep will have profound and disturbing impacts on the state’s ability to provide needed services.

Second, the state must bargain in good faith with the 19 represented public employee units. For the state to give special raises of up to 12% for 822 higher wage, non-union employees at the same time it demands sacrifice from low wage employees is outrageous. The special raises must be repealed and adjusted to reflect the same pain experienced by all other state workers.

Third, UW faculty must be allowed to have the ability to bargain collectively if they choose to do so. Our university system CANNOT recruit and maintain excellent faculty if the state continues to drive their salaries and benefits further behind those of peer institutions in other states.

Do you favor taking steps to control public employee health care costs?

The question seems to assume that we are stuck with the current health care system, which is a grotesque creature of the private insurance lobby. If we are stuck with this horrible system, then of course it makes sense to ask public employees to contribute more to their health plans. But I do not accept that we are stuck with a health care system that is immoral, inefficient, and costly.

I support taking steps to control health care costs for everyone, including public employees. The fairest and most effective way to do that is to pass a state run, universal health care plan. This of course should be done at the federal level, but with Washington even more under the grip of the private insurance lobby than Madison, it is not likely to happen there. Thus, Wisconsin needs to once again become the progressive leader and pass universal health care legislation at the state level. A universal plan would be paid for by private and employer contributions just like the current system, but the removal of private insurers would cut administrative costs dramatically and thus save money for everyone.

Before being booted out of office, Mary Panzer created a special Senate committee charged to look for ways to control health care costs at the state and local levels. Sadly (but true to form), Panzer did not ask the committee to look at a State universal coverage option or the inferior (but still better than what we have now) AFL-CIO Wisconsin Health Care Plan which has been endorsed across the state by many elected officials and labor leaders.

Do you support any additional pension benefits for public employees?

I am not sure I would call it an “additional benefit,” but I support the creation of statutory language that would solidify the principle that THE STATE PENSION FUND BELONGS TO THE RETIREES, NOT TO THE STATE.

In order to protect retiree pensions, the State System is in serious need of reform. First, all proposed reforms of the System must come with an actuarial analysis. The legislature passed and governor Thompson in 1999 signed Act 11, a significant reform of the system, without a complete actuarial analysis. That is simply irresponsible and reflects a failure of the legislature or governor to lead.

Second, elected officials must be removed from the pension system so that they do not have a conflict of interest when voting on it. The only way to remove them from the system is to return to the citizen legislature, in which all elected representatives are expected to have employment outside the legislature.

Finally, pension reform deals need to be discussed openly. Writing of Act 11, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said: “It was passed quickly with little debate and without a full actuarial study; it was wrongly described as having no impact on taxpayers; it sweetens a plan that was already very generous; its sweetest benefits go to top officials with the most seniority and the highest salaries.” Those who do not mind the flawed process that gave us Act 11 because they feel it was a good reform should realize that the same government that does something positive for the public in secret can just as easily screw that same public. For proof, just look at the mislabeled “Jobs Creation Act,” a sweetheart deal for big developers largely developed outside the view of the public.

Question No. 2

Some public employees in Wisconsin are underpaid if you compare their salaries to those of their peers in other states. This may be contributing to the state's "brain drain." On the other hand, the state has a structural deficit that needs to be addressed, and one way of managing the state's budget would be to look at employee compensation costs, including fringe benefits.

How would you approach the issue of paying Wisconsin's public employees?

Do you favor taking steps to control public employee health care costs?

Do you support any additional pension benefits for public employees?

Please explain your answers.

Question #1: Gordon Hintz Response

Wisconsin faces many challenges, but it also has many opportunities to build upon a progressive tradition of good education, sound infrastructure, and excellent quality of life services.

I believe that the three fundamental issues in the 54th Assembly District election are (1) economic development, (2) health care, and (3) leadership.

Economic development

The manufacturing component of the Wisconsin economy has suffered during the past few years as plants have closed or reduced their operations. Many high paying jobs have been replaced by lower paying service sector jobs. While the state and the region certainly have offered competitive conditions for business—Forbes magazine ranked the Oshkosh and Appleton area the 16th best place for business in the entire country—the pressures of global competition have been severe. Wisconsin needs to focus on an economic strategy of strong education at the pre- and post-secondary levels, customized labor retraining, a responsive regulatory climate (but not at the expense of the environment), regional initiatives such as joint municipal industrial parks, strong transportation and utility infrastructure, and aggressive recruitment efforts. In the 54th district, we have excellent educational institutions that can play a significant role in economic development initiatives.

Health care

There are three major dimensions in health care: access, quality, and cost. All three dimensions are very important, but they cannot be dealt with by a single strategy. For example, access can be expanded by providing a strong network of clinics such as the Healthy Living Clinic at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and extending Badgercare. Quality can be promoted by greater outcomes information and quality controls. Costs can be controlled by larger insurance pools, greater efforts to reduce the administrative costs of health care—24 cents of every dollar, negotiated price bulk purchases of drugs, and Canadian drug purchases. I will support a variety of efforts to increase access and quality and to control costs.

Leadership

Representative Underheim has spent 17 years in the State Assembly and he needs to be held accountable for his record.

Representative Underheim has spent 17 years in the State Assembly and he needs to be held accountable for his record. He has voted for state budgets that dramatically increased state spending leading to a $3.2 billion structural deficit and, at the same time, restricted shared revenue payments to municipalities, thus putting greater pressure on the property tax and resulting in higher fees across the board. He has refused to hold hearings on major health care initiatives. After having doubts about it, he now is campaigning in favor of the so-called Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights, which more properly should be called the Legislators’ Protection Act. He can hide behind the state constitution and avoid making tough choices on issues facing Wisconsin. In all of his discussions on taxes, there is very little detail on spending, what should be cut, and what the impact of those spending cuts will be. I believe that legislators have an obligation to tell citizens the whole truth and to make tough choices.

Question No. 1: Tony Palmeri Response

The 54th district is in the midst of what is the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Thousands of good paying, good benefit providing manufacturing jobs have been lost. In my door to door campaign I have met a substantial number of unemployed and under-employed people near panic about what the future holds. Many of those fortunate enough to be employed are concerned about losing their jobs, wages not keeping pace with the cost of living, not being able to afford health care, and not being able to afford a college education for their children. Meanwhile Father Carr, the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, and other relief agencies are facing record demands for services.

With that as a backdrop, my legislative priorities will center on three broad areas:

1. Developing a job retention and creation strategy for the 54th District.
2. Protecting the Shared Revenue Program.
3. Government Reform (Restore Clean Government to Wisconsin)

1. Developing a job retention and creation strategy for the 54th District:
a. I will organize an Emergency Jobs Summit at which the presence of Governor Doyle, Speaker Gard, and the new Senate Majority leader will be requested. Labor and community activists along with local elected officials and the Chamber of Commerce will be asked to play leadership roles at the Summit. One goal of the Summit will be to create a voluntary Labor/Management Council charged with opening up clearer lines of communication between all key players involved in job creation and retention.
b. I will support raising the minimum wage.
c. I will co-sponsor already introduced legislation that would create a universal health care system for the state of Wisconsin not tied to employment. If we had such a system in place we probably would have been able to keep the Leach jobs here.
d. I will support reforms of the W-2 (“Wisconsin Works”) program. The current program is a financial and human disaster, costing the state $279 million per year more than the program it replaced and not making a dent in poverty. The program’s job training and educational opportunity components need serious upgrading.
e. Key to any jobs strategy is a fully functioning K-12 system. I will support Senator Mike Ellis’ plan to allocate a base amount of $8,100 per child regardless of in what district the child resides. The Ellis plan would provide more money to the Oshkosh Area School District while providing local property tax relief.
f. I will fight to make college more affordable for students who can make the grades. The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education recently gave Wisconsin a grade of “D” in the category of affordability. This is disgraceful and needs to be reversed. I support former Regent Nino Amato’s call for a multi-year tuition freeze.

2. Protecting the Shared Revenue Program: I think it’s wrong that the city of Oshkosh has to raise fees and close down the Pollock Pool because the politicians in Madison recklessly cut our shared revenue funds. The Wisconsin Alliance of Cities is currently developing reforms of the shared revenue program that would provide incentives for regional cooperation. We need to take a serious look at the WAC proposals, and we also need to make sure that local elected officials are involved closely in any debate and policy formulation regarding shared revenue.

3. Government Reform (Restore Clean Government to Wisconsin): None of the legislative agenda mentioned above, and none of the agendas advocated by any other candidate, can be pursued actively as long the legislature remains broken. The corrupt system that produced indictments of top legislative leaders is still solidly in place, with the Democratic governor and Republican legislature together stifling any hope for real reform of our campaign finance system. Our budget woes and inability to afford real needs are in large part the result of the Democrats’ and Republicans’ inability to say NO to their favored interests. Until we get a complete overhaul of our financing system, eliminate the corrupt closed partisan caucus system, and overhaul the State Elections and Ethics Boards, we will forever be mired in legislative mediocrity and will not be able to meet the needs of our citizens.

We all know that the Democratic and Republican leadership in Madison, wallowing in campaign cash and safely tucked away in closed partisan caucuses, will not serve the citizens of the 54th district unless they are pushed to do so by a citizens' movement. When the voters of Oshkosh send a Green to Madison, it will send the politicians a loud signal that the citizens have awakened and want real reform.

Question No.1 Gregg Underheim response

The number one problem in Wisconsin is economic development/job creation. My top priorities all relate to that problem.

My first priority is to continue the progress in improving Wisconsin's tax climate. Over the last decade the legislature, both Democrats and Republicans, and the Governor, have lowered Wisconsin's income tax rates. Additionally, we have created a property tax exemption on computers for businesses. The computer is the tool of the 21st century. If we tax it and other states don't every business that depends on computers will look for other states in which to locate their businesses. But still, by any rational measure, Wisconsin is a high tax state. The Taxpayer's Bill of Rights will restrict the ability of government to spend. When spending is controlled there will be more dollars to put into a rainy day fund which will help bring the state through difficult budget times and will provide money for tax cuts. Entrepreneurs start businesses in places where they can make money. They look at tax rates when considering where to locate businesses. Controlling and lowering taxes means economic development and job creation.

My second priority is to continue my fight against health care cost increases. The top three cost drivers in health care are hospital costs, physician costs and drug costs. If we are to control health care costs those three areas must be addressed aggressively. The first thing we need to do is get accurate and timely information about prices. Right now consumers and patients have no real idea of the actual cost of the health care they receive. Even if patients want to make cost conscious decisions they lack the information to do so. The OSHKOSH NORTHWESTERN recently pointed out the incredible price differences for the same drug at different pharmacies. Pharmacies must be required by law to post prices so that consumers, many of whom pay for drugs out of their own pockets, can shop price.

Additionally, I support more access to Canadian pharmacies in order to create more price competition for drugs. In fact, I sponsored a program here in Oshkosh presented by a business called the Canadian Drug Service so that residents of the 54th Assembly District could get information about buying drugs in Canada. Also, the legislature enacted a law which would allow for greater pooling of businesses to create more leverage for health care purchasers.

Furthermore we must allow the use of Health Care Savings Accounts (HSA's) for those who are interested in them. HSA's are an insurance product that is comprised of a catasthophic insurance plan and a savings account. The savings account is owned by the employee/patient/consumer. If the employee leaves an employer, the savings account would go with the employee. When the employee retires, the savings account would belong to the employee. The advantage of this insurance tool is that if the employee makes smart and economical choices he or she benefits personally. Under the current system it is a waste of employee time to evaluate health care services because he is not able to benefit economically from the work he may do. HSA's change that.

My third priority is to explore whether or not we can find economic efficiencies in K-12 education. When talking about education the only question some are willing to ask is, "how can we find more money?" I believe we must ask the question, "can we provide a quality education and, by using technology more effectively, do it for less money?" Around 40% of the general purpose revenue we spend in Wisconsin goes for education. In Oshkosh the per pupil cost of education is over $9,100 per year. As a side note, that is below the state wide average and below many of the neighboring districts. Nevertheless, that is a large number that continues to grow. Of course, student opinion is important in determining the possible use of more technology. And the success or failure of other states must be explored. However, education, by a significant measure, is the largest expenditure in the state budget. It cannot be exempt from scrutiny.

I also would like to include one of my long term goals. Our current budget situation makes progress on this idea in this budget unlikely; but, it is an initiative I want to pursue. Wisconsin currently has a Foundation for the arts. I am the author of this idea. It is funded by private contributions. Each contribution is eligible for a 5% tax credit. I believe that the tax credit should be increased to as much as 25%.

The arts have never been self supporting. They have always depended on patrons. This foundation would allow private contributions to fund the arts but the contributions would be eligible for a larger tax credit. That credit would encourage more giving and provide greater funding. Here in Oshkosh there are many deserving recipients of funding, The Grand Opera House, the Paine, and The Oshkosh Public Museum to name a few.

Additionally, entrepreneurs look for interesting places to live. They want things to do. Many communities have remade their downtowns and their images around arts themes. Oshkosh certainly has the infrastructure to promote its arts climate.

Question No. 1: Dan Carpenter Response

The top three legislative priorities that I have chosen are intertwined. It is impossible to talk about one without discussing the others.

#1 - HEALTH CARE

This has to be the ultimate issue facing a majority of people today. Part of Governor Doyle’s Kids First Initiative includes early immunization and preventive care. He needs support for the program. Parents need affordable health care for their children and themselves and our elderly are entitled to medical treatment without losing everything they’ve worked for their entire lives. The Bush plan is a disaster that is costing retirees their insurance plan that they have worked for and appreciated for many years.

Our biggest problem facing healthcare is an incredible lack of efficiency. I would propose a "super board" comprised of health care providers, insurance experts and business representatives and give them an ultimatum: find ways to become efficient and cut costs or the State of Wisconsin will.

#2 - JOBS

The 54th District has the worst job picture in the state. Why? Our legislators have ignored the businesses that are not lining their campaign pockets. Governor Doyle is committed to job growth in the state and has designated millions of dollars to stimulate it. His Grow Wisconsin plan would offer seed money for companies with ideas and additional money to educate workers for better jobs that could be created through new technology.

We haven’t even heard about this program in the Oshkosh area. Yet, as I travel throughout the state I hear of millions of dollars being allocated for projects that enhance communities and create jobs.

However, Governor Doyle is a Democrat and our legislators are Republicans. That combination appears to be like oil and water. We suffer for the petty bickering at the state level which is why we need Independent representatives who are not caught up in this constant fighting. Republicans and Democrats just don’t mix and we are suffering miserably. To create jobs, we have to begin cooperating, working together to develop the seeds for a stronger future.

#3 - EDUCATION

I grew up learning that a promise was a promise. When the State says they will fund education at two-thirds, then that is what it needs to do. It needs to get its priorities straight. If it insists on mandating programs then it must fund them. High state standards are expected, but they have to be backed up financially. I would like to see our legislators keep their noses out of education, an area in which few are knowledgeable, and see a bigger role for our State Superintendent of Public Instruction. The people elected her, now give her some authority.
Charter schools can be great tools in education, but we can’t just throw money at them without accountability. The examples of some charter schools in the Milwaukee area should make us acutely aware that we can’t waste tax dollars.

Finally, a recent study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education gave Wisconsin’s public colleges a grade of "D" for affordability. When I entered college, cost was not even a factor. I am extremely concerned that today’s graduates are entering their careers so deeply in debt. Higher education must be affordable for all. This is still another way of creating high-tech jobs for the future.

Reducing health care costs lowers business expense allowing employers to invest in themselves and create more jobs. Combined with better educational opportunities, we can begin to reverse the trend in the 54th District and create an upward spiral of significant job growth and a strong economy.

Question No. 1

If you are elected, what will be your top three legislative priorities and why?

Please post your response by noon on Saturday, Sept. 18.

Question No. 2 will be posted by noon on Sunday, Sept. 19.

Gregg Underheim's Opening Statement

I am proud of my record as your representative in the 54th Assembly District. My policy initiaives have been creative, bold, and in the public interest. The area on which I have focused the most attention is health care.

My health initiative include the elimination of pre-exixting waiting periods in group health plans, which was included as an amendment to the W2 wefare reform bill and the creation of an independent external review(IER) process which allows patients to challenge HMO and insurance company decisions which patients believe are inappropriate. In translation that means if you have high blood pressure or diabetes or any other health condition you may move from one group insurance plan to another without having to wait 6 months for your new insurance to start coverage. The IER provision created an independent review board, a board not affiliated with an insurance company in any way, to which insurance company and HMO denials can be appealed. If the IER board agrees with the patient the HMO or insurance company is required by law to provide the coverage.

Additionally I am regarded as the leader in this state and a leader nationally on the issue of health care data. I was invited to speak in front of my peers at the National Conference of State Legislators this summer on this issue. If we are to control cost and improve quality we must get good information about the health care system. I have fought to make certain that patients and purchasers get good information about health care and I will continue to do so.

Another area in which I have passed creative and visionary legislation is the arts. Because of my efforts Wisconsin has a private foundation for the arts. It is funded by private donations that are eligible for tax credits. This is a public private partnership that seeks to provide additional funding for the arts through private gifts. The arts community is just beginning to focus on this funding opportunity and I expect that this will become a well known tool to enhance the arts.

Wisconsin's future will depend on our ability to keep and attract high paying jobs. To accomplish that objective we must keep our tax climate in line, create a regulatory climate that is hospitable to businesses and provide a quality of life that will encourage entrepreneurs to select Wisconsin as the place they choose to start their businesses.

The key to the tax climate is the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. First, we must see that the government sector in Wisconsin does not grow more rapidly than the private sector. Second, we must continue to find ways to improve our tax climate. Our income taxes are still high as are our property taxes. Candidates whose primary support comes from government will resist efforts to control government growth. Nevertheless, a Taxpayer's Bill of Rights will enable us to improve our tax climate.

Our regualtory environment has been a problem, too. Major employers in Wisconsin have decided to expand in other states, but not Wisconsin, because our regulatory environment is very difficult. The DNR seems to rejoice in denying permits to businesses to expand. They take months and longer to grant approvals. And many times those approvals may not be granted at all. Last session of the legislature, the Governor and the Legislature agreed on significant reforms that will make Wisconsin more business friendly. I am the only candidate in this race who has supported those reforms.

Those who lead Wisconsin into the future must have the courage to stand up to special interests and instead favor the public interest. My record is clear here. I have taken on the insurance industry, the drug industry, government employee groups, corporate medicine, and others. I will continue to fight for the public interest. I ask for your support in the 54th Assembly District election.

Gordon Hintz's Opening Statement

I am running for the State Assembly because I believe that I have the vision, experience, energy, and leadership skills to represent Oshkosh in the Capitol. It is time for a change!

Here is my vision for Wisconsin. This is what I want for Wisconsin.

• All people will have access to quality health care at a reasonable price.
• All people will be able to work in a vibrant, growing economy at a living wage to support a family.
• All students will leave secondary school with the knowledge and skills to compete fully in a knowledge-based economy or to continue their education.
• All students who are qualified can get a post-secondary education regardless of their financial status.
• Senior citizens will have adequate health, housing, and support services.
• All people will enjoy clean air and water and a healthy natural environment.
• All people will benefit from a good transportation system.
• Government will use the peoples’ money wisely and play a positive role in the lives of individuals and communities.
  

As a legislator, I will be guided by this vision. But I am not so naive as to suggest that this vision can be achieved overnight. It will be achieved by very hard work, cooperation, compromise, moving step-by-step in the legislative process, and working within a legislative caucus and across the aisle. It takes 50 votes to get an Assembly bill passed and any legislator working outside of the caucus structure, quite honestly, cannot be effective.

Here is my education and experience.

I was born in Oshkosh and attended the Oshkosh Public Schools. I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Hamline University (St. Paul, MN). After college I worked on the 1996 campaign of the late U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone of Minnesota. Later in Washington DC, I worked on the legislative staffs of Congressman Jay Johnson and Senator Herb Kohl where I was directly exposed to the legislative process. I then entered graduate school at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where I received a master's degree in public policy and administration.

During graduate school, I served as a staff member to the Governor's Commission on State-Local Partnerships (Kettl Commission) and a Department of Transportation employee. I then worked as a management assistant and, later, as a budget analyst for the City of Long Beach, California where I served on the deficit reduction team. I know how to analyze budgets. Currently, I am an associate with the municipal consulting partnership of Public Administration Associates, LLC in Oshkosh.

Here is my position on leadership.

I believe that public officials have an obligation to tell the truth, even if the message is unpopular. They are elected to make hard choices, not to hide behind gimmicks such as the so-called Taxpayers' Bill of Rights, which could be better titled the Legislators' Protection Act. Finally, I believe that serving in the state legislature is a civic obligation and not a career. Seventeen years in office is long enough.

Oshkosh deserves better leadership in the State Assembly!


Gordon Hintz
9/14/04

Dan Carpenter's Opening Statement

My name is Dan Carpenter. I am not a whiz-kid with all this new technology like the "blog" but I’ll do my best and please forgive my lack of technical prowess.

I am the Independent candidate for the 54th Assembly District. If you are familiar with the dilemma we face in Madison you understand clearly why I chose to run as an Independent.

Some have implied that being Independent indicates lack of cooperation with everyone. It is quite the contrary. During my thirty-four years of teaching I learned that it is important to communicate and build cooperation with all those with whom I’ve worked. I can help to rebuild Wisconsin with the cooperation of Green Party, Democrats, Republicans and Independents who will be elected.

While another candidate has questioned how an Independent can accomplish anything in Madison, I ask "What is being accomplished in Madison now?" Nothing! Democrats and Republicans, Representatives and Senators argue about meaningless legislation that does nothing but reward the special interest groups that have filled their pockets with campaign money.

We have neglected issues like health care, jobs, education and prison reform. "THE DOME IS BURNING" and our politicians, Democrat and Republican alike, are fiddling away our tax dollars rewarding an army of lobbyists at a level never seen before.

I am accepting no contributions for my campaign. I will owe no special interest groups or individuals. The only reason that I am running for the 54th Assembly District is that I strongly believe that there has to be a better direction for this great State and the incumbent Democrats and Republicans have failed miserably.

Anyone who has followed the career of U.S. Senator James Jeffords will understand my position. Members of the "main parties" are frightened by Independent candidates because we are the voice and the conscience of the people. Throughout this country more and more citizens are declaring themselves as Independent. The Republican and Democratic parties are becoming the minorities and they are terrified.

A vote for me, Dan Carpenter, is a vote for yourself, your family and your future!

Tony Palmeri's Opening Statement

Greetings to all blog participants. My name is Tony Palmeri, and I am the Green Party candidate for the 54th Assembly District. I would like to thank Oshkosh News, the League of Women Voters, the Oshkosh Public Library, Professor Miles Maguire, and all others involved in the creation of this blog. I would also like to thank my opponents for participating.

Blogging is a kind of “cutting edge” media activism. As many of you know, I am somewhat of a media activist myself. I operate a daily news website, I write a monthly column of media criticism for the Valley Scene called “Media Rants,” and for many years I produced and co hosted (with former Oshkosh Mayor James Mather) “Commentary,” an award winning public affairs program originating from the Titan-TV studios on the UW Oshkosh campus. (see www.tonypalmeri.com for links to all of the above).

My media activism is in large part responsible not only for my decision to run for the assembly this year, but also my decision to run as a Green Party candidate. Following our legislature very closely in the state’s major media over the last dozen or so years, I have noticed the following patterns:

*The leadership of the establishment, corporate parties (Democrats and Republicans) have become obsessed with raising money.

Madison now features a “pay to play” culture that has given us indictments of top legislative leaders, wealthy special interest hijacking of the state budget, and unconscionable waste of taxpayer money. Want an example? Wisconsin used to pay a state employee about 11 bucks an hour to maintain a road sign inventory. But now, the state pays the HNTB Corp. $80 an hour to do the same job. Why? Top HNTB executives have made $140,000 in campaign contributions to Wisconsin politicians in the last decade, including $46,275 to top recipient Jim Doyle.

*The maverick Wisconsin politician—the man or woman of courage willing to defy party loyalty and vote his or her conscience, has all but disappeared.

Policy is now formulated and moved forward by three key politicians (Governor Doyle, Speaker Gard, Senate Majority Leader Panzer) and special interest lobbyists. The majority of the 99 members of the Assembly and 33 members of the Senate have literally become their leaders’ lapdogs, often voting for measures that have received little or no public input. Want an example? Consider what Attorney General Lautenschlager said about the mislabeled “Jobs Creation Act”: “Not only did those interested in the bill have but one working day to digest and study its multitudinous provisions, but legislative leaders refused to allow an opportunity for further public comment and testimony in regard to the changes that had been made.”

*As the legislature has become less and less responsive to the public’s needs, it has become almost impossible to defeat the incumbents responsible for this mess.

The legislature spent millions of dollars of taxpayer money after the 2000 census to make the legislative districts even friendlier to incumbents than they already were. Half of the incumbents have no opponents and in many of the remaining districts face only token opposition.

Given this pathetic state of affairs, should we find it surprising that Wisconsin faces a billion dollar structural deficit before even beginning to discuss the 2005-2006 budget? Should we find it surprising that a reckless and irresponsible legislature in Madison resorts to gimmicks like raiding the tobacco fund, employing Enron-like accounting methods, and seeking to avoid its responsibility to make tough budget decision by saddling us all with a “Taxpayer Bill of Rights?” Should we find it surprising that major decisions are made in closed partisan caucuses that violate the spirit if not the actual letter of the State’s Open Meetings Laws?

Should we find it surprising that the Democratic Governor and Republican legislature have developed no credible strategy to create jobs (or retain good ones that already exist) in the 54th district? Or that our health care costs continue to skyrocket while the Democratic governor and Republican legislature are held hostage to the private insurance lobby? Or that the Democratic Governor and Republican legislature agreed on a shameful budget deal that resulted in a $250 million cut in the UW budget and subsequent $150 million tuition increase, meaning that students and their families are now paying $150 million more for $100 million less? Should any of this be surprising given what I described above?

The good news is that voters in the 54th District this year have a chance to send a leader to Madison to force a change of course. I say it is TIME FOR TONY!

When you send me to Madison, I will use my skills as a media activist to educate our community about what is happening in the legislature and the Governor’s office, and I will lead a citizens’ movement to force reform. Like a modern LaFollette, I will “call the roll” and let all citizens know what interests are controlling legislators’ votes and actions. When the Democrats and Republicans go into their immoral and possibly illegal closed partisan caucuses, I will hold a Citizens’ Caucus on the steps of the State Capitol. EVERYONE WILL BE INVITED TO MY CAUCUS.

I will meet regularly with the City Council, County Board, and School Board. I will hold regular town hall meetings in a variety of settings. And I will regularly visit our K-12 schools to educate our young people about the importance of citizen activism.

I am currently working full-time, teaching three classes (which include almost 100 students) at UW Oshkosh. But my passion for giving the government back to the people is so strong that I am trying as hard as possible to continue to campaign full-time until November 2nd. If I am slow in posting blogs, it is because my students must come first.

Thank you for the opportunity to communicate with you in this forum.
–Tony Palmeri

Opening statements

The candidates are invited to make opening statements.

Opening statements may be posted between now and noon, Sept. 15, when the first question will be posted.

Candidates agree to online forum

The four candidates who are running for the Wisconsin Assembly in the 54th District have agreed to engage in an innovative online forum that will allow them to debate the issues in cyberspace.

The forum is sponsored by the Oshkosh Community News Network, the Oshkosh League of Women Voters and the Oshkosh Public Library and will be accessible from the OCNN Web site, Oshkosh News, and from the library’s Web site.

The four participants in the forum are independent Dan Carpenter, Democrat Gordon Hintz, Wisconsin Green Tony Palmeri and Republican incumbent Gregg Underheim.

The forum will be conducted using a Web log and will function for approximately four weeks, from mid-September to mid-October. A parallel Web log will also be established where citizens will be able to post their comments about the debate. This will be an added benefit to candidates since they will be able to learn in real time how voters are thinking about and reacting to the issues.

The site will remain available through Election Day, so that voters will have access to this information as they decide how to cast their votes.

The sponsors of this project believe that it will provide a number of benefits, including the following:

• First, the Web log will be available at all times so that citizens who are unable to attend a debate in person or watch it on replay can use the online forum to learn about candidates. Citizens who have not paid a lot of attention to the campaign will be able to consult the Web forum as Election Day approaches to help them make up their minds.

• Second, because it depends upon written answers, the online forum will allow and even encourage candidates to take a longer time to think about their responses. Candidates need not worry about being cut short—they can write as much as they want.

• The interactive format of the forum will also make it easier for candidates to respond to other candidates, offering rebuttals or clarifications as necessary. Candidates can also use hyperlinks to draw citizens’ attention to additional research and information.

• Finally, at a time when national studies show that television and print publications are losing audience share, the use of the Internet presents an opportunity to engage with potential voters, particularly younger ones, who might not otherwise have an effective way to learn about candidates and their positions.

While the League will oversee the process of posting questions, it is not responsible for setting the agenda of the forum. All citizens are invited to provide input, and questions will be solicited from throughout the community.