Budget committee signs off on GOP roads plan
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republicans who control the Legislature’s finance committee have voted to erase the transportation portion of Gov. Tony Evers’ state budget and replace it with their own plan.
Evers’ proposal called for pumping an additional $623.7 million into road work, largely through increasing the gas tax by 8 cents per gallon and raising heavy truck registration fees.
The finance committee stripped the governor’s plan from the budget and inserted their own proposal on an 11-5 vote Thursday night.
The GOP proposal doesn’t raise the gas tax but it does increase title fees by $95, increase the $75 registration fee most car owners pay to $85, impose a new $75 fee on all hybrid vehicles and shift revenue from the petroleum inspection fee the state imposes on every gallon of gas to road projects. The plan also would limit spending on security for Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, the state’s first African American to hold the post.
Overall, the Republican plan spends about $184.6 million less on roads than Evers’ proposal.