K-12 Wisconsin Tax & Spending Climate: A look at Wisconsin's Economic Base

Thomas Hefty & John Torinus, Jr:

Our state motto is "Forward," but Wisconsin is falling behind in the economic race to create jobs and raise family incomes.

As we'll show here, Wisconsin is lagging its own economic performance of the 1990s and losing ground to other states--especially to other upper Midwest states like Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois. It is even failing to meet its own goals--established in 1997 with much fanfare by a blue ribbon commission--for ramping up the state economy.

Although our political and media leaders ignore these failings, Wisconsin residents intuitively understand how our economic anemia has sapped their incomes and diminished their opportunities.

Since 2005, Wisconsin has experienced growing out-migration. Our citizens have voted with their feet, moving to states where they foresee a better future.

In the end, gauging economic success is really pretty simple for most people. Is Wisconsin gaining jobs? Are family incomes rising? Are wages increasing? In a word: No. Yet our state officials go out of their way (perhaps understandably) to emphasize the good news about Wisconsin business while ignoring the bad.

Consider how officials in the Doyle administration have massaged the unemployment rate to make Wisconsin job performance look better than it really is.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at July 22, 2009 1:10 PM
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