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As I See It

With Governor planning to spend more on roads, is county wheel tax necessary?

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As the election nears, Scott Walker has suddenly become the road governor. He has already labeled himself the education governor, but after ignoring our crumbling roads, may be given the label of road governor as well. That’s because he has apparently had an epiphany that our roads really do need repair. When Walker spoke a couple weeks ago to a meeting of the Wisconsin Counties Association in La Crosse, Walker pledged to up the state’s share of road money to the state’s counties. Now he has followed that up in a speech to the Wisconsin Towns Association, promising to increase state spending on town roads as well. Walker said his proposal would be the largest amount of transportation funding for municipalities the state has ever provided. The pricetag is estimated at $53 million, and its not clear where the money would come from or if the legislature would approve Walker’s request. But now the reality is that Walker is suddenly on board with fixing our roads. This news comes just weeks before voters in La Crosse County are going to be asked to approve some form of a new tax, perhaps a wheel tax, to fund local road repairs. But if the state is going to increase its share of spending, as it should, do La Crosse County voters need to approve this referendum? We have seen resistance to the idea. La Crosse Mayor Tim Kabat, who pushed the idea of a city wheel tax, has pulled that proposal in the wake of a lack of support. It is not clear how La Crosse county voters feel about a proposed wheel tax, but if Walker is sincere that the state will pay more to fix our roads, then it seems like the problem is on its way to being solved.

Scott Robert Shaw serves as WIZM Program Director and News Director, and delivers the morning news on WKTY, Z-93 and 95.7 The Rock. Scott has been at Mid-West Family La Crosse since 1989, and authors Wisconsin's only daily radio editorial, "As I See It" heard on WIZM each weekday morning and afternoon.

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