Gov. Walker not a fan of new Wisconsin transportation plan

Walker firmly against raising state gas tax.

A legislative plan in Madison to raise $600 million in new road revenue doesn’t please Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.  

In La Crosse on Friday to promote tourism, Walker said he needs some time to figure out where he stands on a new Wisconsin transportation plan.

“I think, because of the complexity of the plan, one of the things I said Friday in the capitol was, I’ll probably wait a few days,” Walker said. “We want to have time to go through it. 

“It is such a detailed plan, not only when it comes to transportation but the proposals for income tax.”

Walker has been firmly against raising the state gas tax to raise money for road construction. He says the new Assembly plan would raise taxes on fuel by more than $400 million.

Walker was asked if some of the $20 billion generated by tourism in Wisconsin each year could be used to help pay for highways. 

The governor said the tourism already helps indirectly because more people pay gas taxes when buying fuel.

“Because as more people come in, as they pay sales tax when they buy food, when they go to hotels and other things like that, that money does go back into the economy and particularity at the county level, those dollars are put back into county infrastructure needs, which obviously includes transportation,” Walker said.

The Assembly bill would lower Wisconsin’s gas tax, while applying county and state sales taxes to gasoline.