Negotiations on the long overdue state budget made significant progress Friday, with K-12 funding decisions nearly wrapping up.
State Senate Majority Leader Judy Robson, D-Beloit, said in a statement that 99.5 percent of state funding for public schools has been agreed upon between the Republican controlled state Assembly and Democrat controlled state Senate.
Real work at the table is netting real results,"" Robson said.
The budget may be finished within two weeks if progress continues, according to Robson.
The two sides agree on $9.5 billion out of $9.6 billion in K-12 funding, according to Robson Communications Director Josh Wescott.
After a series of offers and counteroffers, legislators also reached agreements on proposals for state technical colleges.
""We are four items away from technical colleges' [funding] being done,"" Wescott said.
Even though some developments were made, Republican leaders in the state Assembly said a vote on portions of the budget is still necessary Tuesday.
Assembly Majority Leader Jeff Fitzgerald, R-Horicon, said in a statement that the vote is to prevent a $600 property tax increase that might occur if schools do not know the amount of state funding they are to receive by Sept. 28.
State Rep. Kitty Rhoades, R-Hudson, said in a statement that the vote could prevent increases of around $200 on tax bills per citizen.
""We're the eighth highest taxed state in the whole country, and Wisconsin families can't afford anymore,"" Rhoades said.
Citing a recent memo by the state Legislative Fiscal Bureau to state Sen. Russ Decker, D-Weston, Wescott said if the proposal to be voted on Tuesday were to become law, the state would be $115 million in debt.
Fitzgerald said there is bipartisan support for the vote, as some Assembly Democrats are in favor of it.
According to Wescott, the state Senate will not take action on any similar legislation.
The amount of agreements reached on Friday was also overstated, according to Fitzgerald.
""There is still an $18 billion difference between the two sides,"" Fitzgerald said.
Assembly Assistant Minority Leader Jon Richards, D-Milwaukee, said the Tuesday vote is a ""stall tactic.""
According to Richards, it takes time away from budget negotiations in the Conference Committee, which is made up of legislative leaders.
""They are using George W. Bush style tactics,"" Richards said, ""and George W. Bush style politics don't work anymore.""
Funding for the UW System is another issue yet to be resolved in the state budget. As the Conference Committee meets again today and later this week, Wescott said agreeing on UW System funding soon is a ""top priority.
