FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 17, 2011

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

STATE SENATOR ALBERTA DARLING 608‐266‐5830

STATE REPRESENTATIVE ROBIN VOS 608‐266‐9171

Sen. Darling, Rep. Vos: Statement on Budget Repair Bill

MADISON‐The co‐chairs of the Joint Committee on Finance, Senator Alberta Darling (R‐River Hills) and Representative Robin Vos (R‐Rochester) issued the following statement after the passage of the budget repair bill:

“Two years ago, the Legislature passed a budget repair bill with no public hearing. By contrast, this week we provided a 17 hour long forum for the citizens of Wisconsin to speak to their elected representatives.

We listened to the many hundreds of citizens who testified on the bill and to the legislators who brought issues to our attention and, as a result, we made changes. The committee increased civil service protections for public employees, retained benefits for limited‐term employees and provided greater flexibility for local governments.

We cannot ignore the fact that Wisconsin is in a fiscal crisis. Our state is $137 million in the red. While some people seem content with doing nothing, the consequences of inaction are dire. By asking for modest cost sharing from public employees, we solved the budget crisis without layoffs and without raising taxes.”