Reform Success Continues to Pile Up

This week, activists began circulating papers to recall Governor Scott Walker and a handful of Republican State Senators. 

Their reasoning is that the Act 10 reforms enacted earlier this year were unjust and resulted in major cuts to services. These are extremely serious allegations that warrant further investigation. What follows are some statistics that came to my attention this week as the recalls got started.

The most notable of these numbers is that Wisconsin’s combined local K-12 school tax levy actually decreased by over $47 million this year. This is particularly stunning considering the fact that the combined tax levy over the last ten years, on average, increased by $162 million per year. Over the last five years, it increased by an average of $181 million per year.

So, when compared to the status quo of the last five years, our badly-needed reforms are keeping an extra $225 million in Wisconsin property taxpayers’ pockets. In total, 269 school districts have a property tax levy lower or the same as last year – and 200 school districts not only lowered their levy, but cut their mill rate.

Putting it bluntly, Act 10 has resulted in a substantial property tax cut for many Wisconsin taxpayers.

What about the allegations that Act 10 has hurt K-12 education in Wisconsin?

This week, we received the results of a survey conducted by the Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators, which was answered by administrators representing 355, or 83%, of Wisconsin’s school districts.

Among the results were:

• 98% of school districts have the same number or increased AP courses;
• 94% of school districts have the same number or increased art courses;
• 95% of school districts have the same number or increased music courses;
• 99% of school districts have the same number or increased physical education courses;
• 97% of school districts have the same number or increased the number of foreign language courses.

In addition, it was found that the allegations of massive staff layoffs in school districts all across Wisconsin are totally false.

Consider the following:

• 89% of school districts have the same number or increased technology support staff;
• 73% of school districts have the same number or increased library or media center staff;
• 90% of school districts have the same number or increased gifted and talented staff;
• 74% of school districts have the same number or increased special education staff;
• 85% of school districts have the same number or increased at risk program staff.

The WASDA survey also found that 75% of responding districts have the same K-3 class sizes or are decreasing them. Additionally, 67% of districts are keeping the same or decreasing grade 4-6 class sizes. In 2004, according to the WEAC teacher union, 68% of school districts were increasing class sizes. Today, 92% of school districts are keeping extracurricular activities the same or expanding them. In 2004, according to WEAC, 51% of school districts reduced extracurricular programs.

Finally, the school districts utilizing our reforms were able to hire 38% more teachers than districts that did not use them. Districts that used the reforms were able to hire 6.78 new teachers per thousand students, while districts that did not use the reforms were able to hire only 4.88 new teachers per thousand students. School districts that used our reforms accounted for 32% of all teachers hired, even though only 20% of Wisconsin students attended schools in these districts.

As the recall rhetoric begins to heat up, it is important to have the real facts about how our reforms have impacted the quality of education and the delivery of services – and the burden on the taxpayer.  The WASDA survey, along with the new local tax levy data, seems to indicate we did the right thing.

To contact me with any questions or comments or to sign up for my regular e-updates, please send an e-mail to Rep.Knodl@legis.wi.gov or call me at (608) 266-3796.