Paul Soglin: Waxing America

Madison and Miami Suffer Winter Arts Blues

...the new performing arts center here, one term became something of a mantra among the project’s boosters: world-class...

...Center for the Performing Arts, is in administrative upheaval and struggling financially... the project was built too big and too soon, and without enough certainty that the city could even support such an ambitious venture. They say the center is yet another case of...overreaching...

“Miami is a land of speculation,” said Mary Luft, founder and executive director of Tigertail Productions, a performing arts production company. “They want it big, they want it fast, they want it now. And they got it!”

...a prominent civic activist, calls the center,... “a total misappropriation of money,” given the pressing social demands of the city, which has one of the highest poverty rates of any major city in the country.

“It’s a building inappropriate to the scale and need of the place,” said Mr. Farago...

The center was designed by Cesar Pelli and... But when the center opened ...it was already in something of a public relations and financial hole.

It opened...about $100 million over its budget at groundbreaking in 2001.

Some artists and cultural groups complained that money for the center could have been channeled into existing organizations and performing arts companies in desperate need.

The quotes above are from the New York Times.The link to the entire story which appeared December 27, 2007 is below.

We all know the consequences of certain Madison leaders failing to understand the economics of operating the Overture Center.

 Shows are booked into Overture on a regular basis. Most shows are well attended. That tells us that the facility was overbuilt.

 Layoffs will take effect January 16, 2009. Those affected are being notified today. Most of the staff affected will have the right to move into other City of Madison jobs.

 

There are simply not enough dollars in the pockets of south central Wisconsin residents to pay to keep the facility operating. There are not enough open dates or open seats to make up the operating deficit.

Raising ticket prices will only drive away more customers who are already finding it difficult to pay ticket prices and the accompanying fees and surcharges.

Meantime in Florida we learn:

Fits, Starts and Painful Bumps for Carnival Center in Miami

WMC: Wisbusiness.com Covers Changes - consensus on state business climate

Mike Schramm was kind enough to remind me that the new WMC strategy is reported in wisbusiness.com by Brian E. Clark

WMC effort looks for consensus on state business climate

With Democrats soon to control the state Assembly, as well as the Senate and governor’s office, the state’s largest business lobby is shifting gears to deal with what it calls the “new political landscape."

Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, which has often been at odds with Gov. Jim Doyle, is reaching out to diverse groups -- including labor -- to develop plans to stimulate the state’s slumping economy....

Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce: Moving Wisconsin Forward

This past week we discussed Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce's (WMC) new program, Moving Wisconsin Forward, which is described in their publication What Will It take?

While WMC refers to improving or growing the Wisconsin economy and improving the business climate, which are not the same, their new program is a significant departure from previous WMC government relations ventures.

In past legislative sessions, WMC attempted to unilaterally drive through the legislature new laws, or even constitutional provisions, such as TABOR. They took no prisoners.

The reality of Republican minorities in both houses of the legislature set in and now WMC speaks of "reaching out,'" "building coalitions,'" and "collaboration."

Regardless of the motive, the new approach is refreshing and welcome.

The real test for WMC is demonstrating that it comprehends that an improved Wisconsin economy is not synonymous with lower taxes and less environmental regulation.

Wisconsin needs investment in infrastructure and and investment in human capacity. That means more transportation systems, more energy, more workforce development, and more education.

Unlike the federal bailouts, which come with virtually no oversight or regulation, growing Wisconsin must be put in perspective.

Just as some knee-jerk liberals say, "no' to anything that is good for business development, WMC must realize that they cannot say "no" to oversight or regulation that demands green technology or that extends education and training into poor neighborhoods.

There may be public investment that creates new jobs and builds factories, but it is not unreasonable to stop that programming if the jobs are located in suburbs with no public transit. There are solutions - build in the inner city or minimally require access to public transit.

Workers need training and education.  It costs more money to educate young men and women who are in households below the poverty line. In rural and urban areas WMC must support access to education, even if the cost is significant. The cost of not doing so is too expensive.

One of the biggest wastes of taxpayers dollars is the price of incarcerating so many of our state's residents. WMC must participate in discussions and solutions to end the rising crime in our state and that means more than conventional law enforcement. Real community policing is expensive.  Providing the childcare, transportation, job development, health care, and economic literacy training is costly. Again, not doing so is even more expensive.

We have highlighted some of the shortcomings of WMC's approach. We also recognize the value of WMC changing its strategy, its agenda, and broadening the discussion.

WMC, welcome to twenty-first century Wisconsin.

Becky Young: Mom, Lawyer, Legislator, Educator, Friend, Environmentalist

Becky Young never asked for anything in return.

She simply did the right thing.  Rather than worry about the political consequences or the political payback, she asked nothing more than you do the same.

Whether it was transportation planning or children, family enhancement or university expansion, she demonstrated real leadership. She engaged citizens and colleagues, with purpose, because the reward was the successful program or plan, not personal aggrandizement.

She came from what I call the 'Tom Sawyer' school of management. She got everyone to paint the fence, though unlike Tom, she never sat by idly; she was a full participant.

Eloquently, George Hesselberg in the Wisconsin State Journal, best described her, Rebecca Young, pillar of Madison politics, dies at 74

Rebecca Young, an approachable icon of congenial modesty and achievement for 30 years in Madison's political landscape, a steady and informed advocate with a welcoming ear for issues involving women, children, transit and the environment, died Tuesday at home of cancer at the age of 74.

She took buses, raised four daughters with her husband, Crawford Young, and kept a breathtaking schedule from the moment she arrived in 1963, starting with the League of Women Voters. She ran for election 12 times, winning every time, including County Board, School Board and seven terms in the state Assembly.

She moved up the political ladder, in stature and influence, never plotting her next step. The only course she followed was her political compass heading towards a better life for kids.

There is a lesson in there somewhere.

 

Wisconsin's Financial Crisis

Sunday's Wisconsin State Journal published an insightful article  State budget blame game, plenty to go around

At least $1.6 billion of the state’s massive budget shortfall stems from a spend-now, pay-later attitude pervasive in both political parties in the state Capitol, analysts said.
Gov. Jim Doyle and other state leaders have blamed the two-year projected budget shortfall, which threatens everyone from taxpayers to students and the poor, on the country’s souring economy.

There will be the usual budget cuts.

The only way to solve this problem is to increase taxes, end the accounting techniques that mask the problem, and institute a quality management program that improves the effectiveness and efficiency of Wisconsin government.

Before any of this happens, legislators from both parties must demonstrate the will to fix the structural problems.

If Republicans hang back, hoping to pin a tax increase on the Democrats, nothing will happen. If Democrats refuse to insist upon tax increases that are both progressive but also give consideration to Wisconsin's business environment, nothing will happen.

The difference is most other states are better prepared for the economic crisis, having set aside in rainy day funds and reserves an average of 11.5 percent of yearly spending from their main accounts, the report found.

By comparison, as of June 30, Wisconsin had set aside just $130 million in reserves, or less than 1 percent of the $13.5 billion of state spending that year.

It was Republicans in the legislature who prevented the adoption of a budget with realistic estimates for the 'rainy day fund.' It is those same Republicans who insisted upon cutting taxes when a tax increase was needed.

We all know what happened with the so-called 'hospital tax' that was killed by the extreme right wing in the Assembly last session.

Now it is up to the Democrats to apply pressure to these Republicans and insist that they be part of a realistic solution.

The Partnership for Wisconsin

The Partnership for Wisconsin is a collaborate effort of business, labor, professional, and academic leaders committed to a sound Wisconsin economy. The Partnership is a non-profit organization whose members share a common value, namely the importance of education for the growth, security and happiness of the individual, the family, and society.    The participants share a common belief that a highly educated and trained workforce is a critical element in making Wisconsin a better place to live, work and play.

The Partnership for Wisconsin acknowledges the benefits to the individual and society of an education.

A safe and healthy community is one that provides economic security and ensures economic opportunity for all of its members. Studies show that education is indispensable if individuals and their families are to fully realize the benefits of their labor.

Male college graduates earn well over $60,000 a year from the age of 35 to 60. High school graduates in the same age range earn under $40,000. The differential for women is similar. Women college graduates will earn over $40,000 a year while female high school graduates earn about $23,000 a year.

Society also benefits form the earning power of education.  Depending upon race and gender, the additional taxes paid by a college graduate compared to a high school graduate is between $200,000 and $400,000 in the course of a lifetime.

The benefits are not as stark, but still significant, if a high school drop out  were to finish school, or if a high school graduate were to have just one or two full years of higher education.

For example the public benefit of a high school education is $209,000. That amount represents the combination of greater taxes and reduced cost to the public of a high school graduate as opposed to a high school drop out.

From society’s perspective, it always pays to invest in education.

Add to this, the demands of Wisconsin business and industry for what one major employer who described his highest priority as a “need for an intelligent workforce.” Employers need workers who can contribute productively and intellectually.

The Partnership for Wisconsin recognizes that to provide for a sound education system there must be a fair and equitable system of taxation. In encouraging public support for education, the Partnership is committed to a Wisconsin taxation plan that not only adequately funds education, job training, and workforce development at all levels, but fairly distributes the cost among all of the parties who benefit.

The Partnership for Wisconsin recognizes that adequate investment in human capital and infrastructure are critical to stimulating private investment. For that reason, we are committed to encouraging a dialogue between the public and private sectors to set an agenda that acknowledges the many direct and indirect benefits that come from such strategies.

As its first commitment, the Partnership will focus on:

• Ensuring adequate financing of public education in all districts throughout the state of Wisconsin.
• UW System education. Financing adequate so that:
  • no in-state student has to pay more than % of their tuition
  • out of state tuition is not more than 100% of the cost of educating the student
  • Faculty salaries at the Madison campus are commensurate with other Big ten Schools
  • UW system Schools are (needs elaboration from academicians)…..
• A workforce development program through the VATC System  (more detail needed)….
• A tax structure that will most likely require an increase of existing taxes, the expansion of the tax base, and or the adoption of new taxes in order to adequately finance….(identification of educational and workforce development needs) 

The Partnership feels that our state must not only have an educated workforce but that we have an enlightened citizenry that understands the externalities and the consequences, or lack of consequences, from not giving full consideration to appropriate investment in human capacity as well as the learning environment.

For that reason the Partnership for Wisconsin is committed to supporting programs that are designed to provide economic opportunity to all Wisconsinites. A healthy state economy is predicated on strategy that encompasses all areas of the state, urban, rural, and suburban.

The Partnership, from time to time, may support the work of others or engage in its own research and policy development in areas related to education, workforce development, or which support the individual’s ability to further their education and training.  This may also include the examination of collaborations with employers, both for profit and non-profit, that are in need of an ever expanding educated workforce.

The Partnership recognizes that many factors enter into the decisions of investors to locate businesses in a community. Reputable studies show that public safety, efficient transportation systems – both public and private, a sound environment, cultural and recreational opportunities, along with fair taxation and a friendly attitude towards economic development are all critical elements that affect decision making.  For that reason the Partnership for Wisconsin, will convene workshops and forums throughout the state to discuss how to improve the economic climate.

Particular attention will be paid to how the international economic environment impacts Wisconsin business and the need to create sustainable industries that can compete in an economy that will afford greater opportunity to businesses that are ‘green.’

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., noted for his leadership in the civil rights movement could have found an alternative career as a leader in the quality movement when he said “All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”  The Partnership for Wisconsin joins in Dr King’s sentiment and is committed to urging both business and labor to collaborate to the greatest degree possible in providing fair and decent wages and benefits, working conditions and hours, and at the same time appreciating the contribution to improvement that every employee can make.

While the Partnership will not become involved in disputes between employers and organized labor, it will urge that resolution of differences be made with an eye to the long term consequences as well as the short terms needs of both parties.

Wisconsin has a long tradition of utilizing the research capabilities of its universities for the advancement in health, science, nutrition, safety, technology, culture, societal organization, and a greater understanding of the human condition. For that reason the Partnership for Wisconsin is committed to supporting research and academic freedom in all of our institutions of higher learning.

 

author's note: This is a draft written six months ago and now available on another web site. Over the past year I met with many Wisconsin business leaders. They were unhappy with Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC). They felt that WMC should be ignored and that a new organization established in our state. Based on what they were saying and my discussions with labor and academic leaders, I drafted a plan for the Partnership for Wisconsin.

 

I will post next week its origin  and why it relates to our state's economy.

Wisconsin's Three Billion Dollar Hole

It is fun winning elections. It is no fun running a government in miserable economic times. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tells us: State Democrats face $3 billion budget hole

Capitol Democrats, you just got what you wished for. Are you still sure it's what you want?

For at least two years, you'll have to run state government - and it's in a deep financial hole.

...crafting the next two-year budget. That won't be easy because Doyle has said that budget faces a deficit of more than $3 billion.

The problem goes back a decade to flush times when the Republicans spent without limit, cut taxes, and failed to save for a rainy day. Then came the economy collapsing when the dot com bubble burst and the subsequent stock market collapse following 9/11.

The Democratic majority is inheriting a structural problem that goes back to when the Republicans controlled the Governor's office and at least one if not both houses of the legislature. 

In recent years the best Governor Doyle and the recent Democratic Senate majority could do was jerry-rig temporary solutions and hope the economy would recover so that sales taxs and income tax revenues would increase. Assembly Republicans made sure there were no permanent solutions. Matters only got worse.

There are some tough choices facing the legislature and the Governor next session. Fail to raise taxes, and the state's infrastructure collapses and the budget deficit worsens to the point where it can create permanent damage to Wisconsin's economy.

Raise taxes imprudently, and Republicans will exploit the crisis by appealing to beleaguered home owners on fixed incomes. The irony of course, is that the Republicans and WMC enacted numerous tax cuts in the recent years that benefited the wealthy and shifted the responsibility of paying for government onto middle class families with incomes well under $100,000.

Revenue collections must be increased.

The worst way to do it is is to follow the Republican-WMC model by shifting costs to the property tax. Most desirable is increasing the income tax rates and make it more progressive. That combined with modifications to the sales tax open up creative solutions.

Democrats must come to understand that expansion of the sales tax may not be all that regressive. Especially when we consider that a significant portion of it is paid by out of state residents. The legislature must look at increasing the rate, especially to help pay for education, and expanding what it covers while leaving the exemptions for health, shelter, and food, along with modifications to the income tax.

Keep in mind that while WMC bellows about Wisconsin being one of the highest taxed states, that claim is misleading. Government gets revenue from two sources - taxes and fees. Wisconsin is a very low fee state. When fees and taxes are combined, total government revenues collected by Wisconsin put us in the middle of the 50 states.  A reasonable increase in sales and income tax revenues will not change our competitive position.

As for the continual loss of manufacturing jobs, that is a product of Republican-Gingrich-Norquist based trade policies that contend that there should be free international markets even though Asian competitors pay slave wages and their industries are heavily subsidized by their governments.

When Washington fixes the trade problems, Wisconsin will do just fine as long as we have an educated, well-trained work force.

Is it the water or the air in Milwaukee?

It could be Milwaukee's air, or the water, or both.  Last week I posted  What Do We Do About the Parents - Incarceration- Especially Blacks, leading with 

Every time we hear right wing analysis about societal problems, whether it comes from Mark Belling or his protege, Charlie Sykes, the rant is about the parents. The not so unsubtle message is that drug addled, unwed inner city residents, authority dissin' and probably black, are incapable of rearing their children.

Then, before the Internet ink was barely dry, Rick Esenberg was in my face with "Inconvenient Truths?" leading with:

Paul Soglin is upset with right wingers for blaming poor educational results in MPS on the "parents."

Before going any further, would someone, anyone, show Rick where there is a reference to the Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS). I did mention the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD), but not Milwaukee.

But Rick's errant missive does not end with the first paragraph. Writing in paragraph three, the legal scholar observes,

It doesn't seem to be a simple function of racism and poverty and the absence of social programs because the degree of dysfunction has increased as both have decreased.

Rick, go to MPS and get a graph of the number of children in households where they are eligible for the free lunch program. Kids in the free lunch program is a good measurement of poverty in a school district. Compare that over the past twnety years and then come back and we can continue the conversation.

Just for the record, kids in the free lunch program in Madison have increased from 20% in the late 1980's, to 26% in the mid 1990's, to over 48% presently.  Of course most of that is because of the migration of families to the Madison area from other Midwestern cities, including Milwaukee. What is amazing about Madison is that despite this significant increase in poverty, academic standards have not  been severely impacted.

Much of the success is the result of the kind of programming that goes beyond direct education of the kids. It impacts the family, it enhances the family, and it set neighborhood standards that even Rick admires. Unfortunately, even Madison is in danger as budget cuts jeopardize many of these programs.

But so long as Rick and his compatriots blame the parents without any recognized programs to break the cycle, Milwaukee will be fighting a desperate losing battle.

Rick gets one thing right. It is something I suggested to him last year as being part of the problem.

Is it the abandonment of poor neighborhoods by the black middle class?

Yes, middle class blacks left the city just as their white middle class counterparts had done years before. So that is part of the problem, but only part of it. There were other institutions and structures available years ago that are no longer effective against poverty and crime.

There are ways to fix the problem. Blaming the parents and leaving it at that is no solution. Frankly, I don't think everyone praying cuts it either.

Rick, racism for middle class blacks may be on the decline, but I am not so sure that poor black families felt any signicant improvement in the past decade.

Government Falls to Right Wing Cynics -Quality of Life Declines

This morning's Wisconsin State Journal showcases this front page story:  Struggling Madison Parks Division looks for private money to maintain city's green spaces.

The park system has become more stressed in recent years as it has added acres but cut staff, and officials say they have been forced to make tough choices about where to scale back maintenance.

They've also made it clear that any new major projects will need private-sector benefactors if they are to become a reality.

This problem is not because the city of Madison, or Milwaukee, which faces the same problems, is less efficient than it was twenty or forty years ago. The problem is not because the proportion of park space is greater than it was years ago.

The problem is because of a cynical shift in taxation and revenue policies implemented by a right-wing Republican legislature and a few Democrats. The inability to support parks, police or health departments is due to the fact that local governments are shrinking compared to previous years when inflation is taken into account. In addition, the taxes and fees collected locally were shifted from wealthier people to the middle class.

We are not better off with local governments with fewer resources.

If history has taught us anything, it is that a strangled government unable to provide basic services is a government that discourages private investment. This principle must be applied beyond the more obvious services such as police, fire and transportation. It includes education, health, recreation and the environment.

It is public investment in infrastructure and human capacity that encourages private investment. That kind of investment is not to be confused with no-bid contracts where pubic monies are outsourced to companies that engage in corporate welfare or lemon socialism. Lemon socialism is typified by the Bush Administration practice of spending billions of dollars on contractors who are the President's friends who provide no value in return.

Looking Inside Mark Belling's Head. We regret to inform you...

Mark Belling's post from June 18, 2008 is probably more informative as to how the brain of the right wing radio entertainer works rather than the content. For this who missed it, Forget mass transit  is one of the more curious rants of the year demonstrating that Belling will not be content until he marches the Republican Party to the edge of a cliff and...over it.

To prove that motor vehicles operating on highways are essential to our daily life, Belling makes the point that the recent closures of Interstate 94 caused disruption and chaos.  He ignores the fact that the interruption of bus and commuter passenger rail can be just as disruptive though I suppose he attributes that to the weakness of the systems.

Surely Belling is probably ignorant of the studies and conclusions of the Partnership for New York City, a pro business lobby that sees Manhattan paralyzed and endangered by the automobile.  They have called for congestion pricing saying that the cost of automobile congestion costs the city $4 billion a year and that does not include the environmental impacts.

No doubt Belling would lump this IBM-AT&T-Verizon-American Airlines driven group as a cabal of left-wing conspirators as he sees the business community move to his dark side.

Not satisfied to malign transit riders, "Unless you’re one of the fringe that actually rides the bus, transit just isn’t that important," and ignorant of all of the studies that prove that subsidized transit rides cost the public less than automobile subsidization, Belling shares these keen insights about Milwaukee's business community:

• The fake "crisis" has been promoted for years by The Business Journal and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
•  The Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC) is becoming increasingly left-wing.
• As a consequence, the MMAC, a once influential business group, is becoming the King of the Taxers.
• As for the "Business" Journal, it joins the Small Business Times as choosing to represent the interests of those who are taxing small businesses to death.

With that, I need no clever conclusion or retort.