Owens on Budget

Rep Carol Owens, Sen Carol Roessler, and other state officials recently participated in a Fond du Lac County meeting discussing the state budget and state issues.

According to the Fond du Lac Reporter:

While an increase in the cigarette tax received mostly favorable reviews from legislators at the county meeting, taxes on hospitals and oil drew grumbles.

State Sen. Carol Roessler, R-Oshkosh, and Olsen agreed the hospital tax would only hurt hospitals and patients. "It's a sick tax," Roessler said. "The sick people are going to pay for it."

Officials also aren't pleased with a tax on oil companies. Doyle has said oil companies would be prohibited from passing the expense on to consumers. Roessler said she doesn't believe the governor's claims.

A tax on big oil would only hurt Wisconsin, Roessler said. If an oil shortage occurred, providers wouldn't sell to Wisconsin. Instead, they would sell to other states that don't have taxes.

Due to the proposed taxes, legislators have a rocky road ahead of them, said State Rep. Carol Owens, R-Oshkosh. "It's not going to be pretty," she said. "That's what I see through my fuzzy, fuzzy crystal ball."