October 13, 2000

Mark Bugher, Director
University Research Park
610 Walnut St., Room 1265
Madison, WI 53705-2336

Dear Mark:

Since I was not able to attend the afternoon portion of the Kettl Commission meeting Wednesday, I feel it is imperative that I articulate as carefully as possible the City of Beloit’s reaction to your radical proposal to repeal the State Shared Revenue formula.

My comments are intended to be respectful and presented in the context of a municipality who has painfully and aggressively embraced financial planning and solvency as key to its’ economic future. We are committed to exploring and, ultimately supporting reasonable and responsible proposals which would assist this community in reducing its’ dependency on State aid. The key for the City of Beloit is that whatever formula or plan is finally recommended by the Kettl Commission, the plan cannot jeopardize three years of effort to develop an economic plan which has allowed the first phase of financial recovery to occur.

There are several points I would like to make.

1. As a fellow Commissioner, it is my belief we have a responsibility to frame our recommendations within the shared visions established at the beginning of our work. The Commission members embraced and supported the concept of equity as part of our core values. As a City Manager and as a citizen of the State of Wisconsin, I would like to see equity in a foundation formula for municipalities at a level that would not place essential and vital services at risk to those most in need.
2. State Shared Revenue currently supports 62% of Beloit’s general fund budget. Repealing State Shared Revenue is tantamount to demanding the City of Beloit surrender its charter to the State. Therefore, any change being recommended by the Kettl Commission will have to be gradual, incremental and tested to ensure limited financial dislocation to impacted municipalities.
3. Radical recommendations certainly provoke creative and innovative discussions, but they also tend to polarize citizens, community leaders, employee groups and finally, Commission members. Any radical recommendation must contain protections, a strategic planning component, an initial hold harmless clause, and a deliberate and thoughtful citizen education component and finally, fine tuning and testing of the formula to ensure that it meets our core values.

On behalf of the Beloit City Council, I would like to respectfully comment that we are willing to do the necessary hard work by cutting taxes and services to reflect a more responsible relationship to the State of Wisconsin. However, we do expect the State to recognize equity as a fundamental value in a long tradition of financial support for local governments. If Beloit had the natural advantages of other communities, we would not be taking such a hard and aggressive position on the Kettl Commission to find a solution out of this unfortunate predicament we are in.

We will be working with David Riemer in his proposal and hopefully find some solution to what we are all looking for – a better quality of life and a thriving economy for the State of Wisconsin.

Sincerely,

Jane Wood
City Manager
JW:pl

CC: Don Kettl
Rich Eggleston