MADISON . . . Two state Legislators have pushed forward a proposal to ensure all Wisconsin property taxpayers receive accountable representation by their technical college district boards by changing their governance structure from appointed to elected, according to state Senator Alan Lasee (R- Rockland) and state Senator Alberta Darling (R-River Hills)
“Property taxpayers are beginning to take notice of their local technical colleges, but unfortunately it’s not for their positive effect on their local economies or the qualified employees they are producing. Instead, it’s for their excessive tax levy increases,” said Lasee. “Too many tech college boards, made up of appointed members, have made it their standard practice to approve annual budget increases that dwarf those of their other local governments that are run by elected members.”
SB 576 requires that taxpayers in each technical college district elect nine people to serve four year terms. The elections for the nonpartisan positions would be held at the annual spring general election. Each prospective board member must be a resident district from which he or she is elected, and the terms of the board members would be staggered so that at least two are elected every year. Nomination paper signature requirements, contribution limits, and spending guidelines would be the same as for state Assembly races.
“The bill is not about the quality, quantity or effectiveness of the technical colleges, for me it’s about accountability first and property tax relief second,” said Darling. “My desire to change the governance structure of these boards is not based on an over-reaction to unacceptable tax levy increases. This is about accountability, and making sure units of government are responsible for their actions
Lasee and Darling both say they will not disparage the recent annual budgets approved by Wisconsin’s 16 appointed technical college boards. Instead, they believe those with the power to levy hundreds of millions of tax dollars should also have the responsibility of enduring candid public accountability through the annual election process.
