The problem Scott Walker and his party faces is simple. They want to cut taxes but they are constitutionally mandated to balance the budget. There are a number of book-cooking tactics that can get them part of the way, but ultimately they are going to have to cut deep into some of the state's largest financial commitments, including shared revenue that is sent back to the state's localities.
The problem with cutting shared revenue is that it naturally spurs tax increases on the local level, as towns and cities raise property taxes to make up for the drop in state aid. Republicans can prevent this from happening, but only by imposing greater state control over local government a notion that is out of line with the philosophy of local control typically found in GOP rhetoric. The Recess Supervisor comments:
Second, Governor Walker would be well-served to clean up his own house and let local communities decide how they wish to govern themselves. If a local government wishes to tax itself to the hilt (or conversely, little at all), why shouldn't that be a decision made locally?
