Government Affairs

While we in the forestry community have been discussing the proposed state budget provision which eliminates the collection of the Forestry Mill Tax and instead will use General Purpose Revenue to fund the Forestry Fund for this budget cycle – the Governor and some legislators have been broadcasting their message of eliminating Wisconsin’s Property Tax.

Wisconsin citizens have been receiving surveys from their State Legislators on the Property Tax issue.  The ones we have seen make all kinds of claims such as – property taxes have gone sky high, hell is freezing over, elimination of the property tax will increase funds for schools, or it will help someone be able to afford a home. What they don’t tell you – WISCONSIN’S PROPERTY TAX IS THE FORESTRY MILL TAX.

The Governor’s weekly radio address  discusses “lasting property tax relief” in the proposed budget.  Sounds good doesn’t it?  Until you realize that he is talking about saving you an average of $26/year by defunding the Forestry Mill Tax. Talk about “lasting” – look at Wisconsin’s beautiful and healthy forests!

Budget Update – Efforts to Save the Mill Tax Last week, the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) concluded their public hearings across the state.  I’d like to thank all of you who came out to share your thoughts on the Governor’s Budget Proposal.  It’s crucial for the Committee to hear what’s important to the folks who live up north.

Members have been asking, what does the Forestry Mill Tax pay for? Funds raised through the Forestry Mill Tax are deposited in the DNR Conservation Fund under the Forestry Account.  The DNR Forestry Account Revenue and Expenditures for fiscal year 2016 have been released.  The Forestry Account shows revenues of $118,289,789 with total state and federal expenditures of $113,628,313.  The Forestry Mill Tax provided a revenue of $83,306,027.

The Joint Committee on Finance (JCF) will hold public hearings on the Governor’s 2017-19 Biennial Budget – Assembly Bill 64/Senate Bill 30 – which contain the provisions to remove the Forestry Mill Tax.  WWOA and other conservation organizations strongly oppose the removal of the Forestry Mill Tax funding in the state budget because it places Wisconsin’s nationally recognized forests and their resulting benefits at great risk.

The Wisconsin Woodland Owners Association authored the following coalition letter to share information about the Forestry Mill Tax’s 2017-19 budget provisions with Wisconsin’s citizens and legislators. An Open Letter to Wisconsin citizens and legislators, Wisconsin forests are at risk in the 2017-19 state budget proposal, which removes the designated stable funding of the Forestry Mill Tax.

To Members of the Wisconsin Forestry Community, No doubt you’re aware of the Governor’s proposal to replace the funding that has been generated through our Forestry Mill Tax since 1930 with what is proposed to be an equal amount of General Purpose Revenue (GPR).  In any of the discussions I’ve had with forestry stakeholders about this I’ve heard strong concerns and a variety of opinions, but I’ve never heard anyone suggest we’d be better off…

The Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau publishes  informational papers  on various aspects of the state budget. The Conservation Fund  paper is a 96 page document detailing revenue and expenditures related to natural resources.  Information on the Forestry Account starts on page 26 of this larger document or the select Forestry Account  to learn  more about this aspect of the state budget.

Governor Walker’s budget bill includes shifting funding for the DNR Forestry Program from the Forestry Mill Tax to general purpose revenues (GPR) for the 2017-2019 biennium.  This shift will jeopardize the stable funding source, which has supported the DNR Forestry Program and may place DNR Forestry and its 100 years of forestry accomplishments at risk.