Wisconsin Budget Would Slash School and Municipal Aid

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http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/us/02wisconsin.html

By MONICA DAVEY and RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr.
Published: March 1, 2011

MADISON, Wis. — Gov. Scott Walker, whose push to limit collective bargaining rights and increase health and pension costs for public workers has set off a national debate, proposed a new budget for Wisconsin on Tuesday that called for deep cuts to state aid to schools and local governments, provoking a new wave of fury.

Mr. Walker, a Republican, called for no tax or fee increases, but cuts of $1.5 billion to items like the schools and local governments — the preferable choice, he said, for solving a deficit expected to arise in the two-year budget period that begins in July.

Mr. Walker presented his fiscal plan under extraordinarily tense circumstances: the sound of hundreds of protesters screaming “Recall! Recall!” and pounding drums outside the Capitol could be heard clearly inside the Assembly chamber, where lawmakers, the State Supreme Court and other dignitaries had gathered for what is customarily a formal occasion peppered with etiquette and tradition

Even as Mr. Walker spoke, many protesters who have crammed the Capitol over the past two weeks were barred from entering the building. This led to a court fight — still unresolved — over whether Mr. Walker’s administration was permitted to limit access to the Capitol, which usually sits open. Scores of law enforcement officers took up posts all over the building, requesting proof of identification and barring those without invitations from entering the Assembly chamber.