Rep. Gae Magnafici: Lowering Your Taxes

MADISON, WI -- Representative Magnafici (R – Dresser) issued the following statement regarding lowering your taxes.

“Tax Day is April 18th, and if you’ve filed your taxes already, you may have seen a larger than expected tax refund from the state. Your lower tax bill results from Republicans passing the most significant tax cut in state history, which cut the typical Wisconsin family’s income tax liability by $900 over the two-year budget through property tax relief and reducing other burdensome taxes on our local businesses.

In his 2019-2021 budget, Governor Evers advocated for $1 billion of tax increases, including hiking the gas tax and indexing it to inflation. These tax hikes would have expanded government and paid for hundreds of new bureaucrats at the expense of Wisconsin residents and businesses. A recent memo from the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau shows that if it weren’t for Republicans, Wisconsinites would be paying 42 cents per gallon of gas, just in taxes—over a 30 percent increase from three years ago. At a time when families struggled to recover from Evers’ economic shutdown and the Democrats’ inflation and high gas prices.

During our budget listening sessions throughout the state, Republicans heard from concerned Wisconsinites that these new tax increases weren’t suitable for our state. Instead, Legislative Republicans passed a budget that would have reduced taxes by $3.4 billion—including $2 billion of income tax cuts and $650 million of property tax relief. Our budget also provided $200 million to eliminate the personal property tax, which is a substantial financial and administrative burden on our local businesses and limits their ability to grow.

Unfortunately, Governor Evers couldn’t let our entire $3.4 billion tax cut stand. He slashed these provisions by over $1 billion, reducing the savings for citizens and businesses. This veto was in line with his previous action—vetoing a middle-class tax cut in 2019, another tax cut in 2020, and proposing substantial tax increases in his budget proposals.

Ultimately, Republicans believe that our citizens know how to spend their money better than the government, so we’ve prioritized cutting taxes and ensuring Wisconsinites keep more of their hard- earned wages. The result of Republican tax cuts has saved Wisconsinites nearly $22 billion since 2011. I am proud of the progress we’ve made in reducing the tax burden in our state over the past decade, and I look forward to continuing to advocate for lower taxes.”