Oshkosh and Fond du Lac Rallies Oppose TABOR and Tax Freeze

"We need to be the truth squad," WEAC Vice President Terry Meyer says at the Oshkosh rally opposing TABOR and a property tax freeze.

WEAC members are keeping up pressure against tax gimmicks like property tax freezes and a constitutional amendment to limit local spending.

The Winnebagoland UniServ sponsored rallies in Fond du Lac and Oshkosh on Saturday (June 19, 2004) to let the public and Legislature know that opposition to the proposed Taxpayer Bill of Rights and property tax freeze will not die.

National Education Association Executive Committee member Mark Cebulski urges rally participants to "keep up the pressure."

Participants rally in downtown Fond du Lac.

Their signs urge legislators to say "No!" to TABOR and a property tax freeze.

Anne Abel of Fond du Lac, Cele Preston of Fond du Lac, and Claudia Whitty of Lomira write postcards to their legislators.

Doug Perry of Greenfield, Terry Long of Fond du Lac, Angie Hansen of Fond du Lac, and Craig Whitney of Oshkosh also express their opposition to TABOR and a tax freeze in postcards to legislators.

Legislative leaders had hoped to vote on the two measures this summer, but failed to gather enough support, thanks in large part to opposition from WEAC members and other groups and citizens from throughout Wisconsin.

Legislative leaders now say they will vote on the proposals next year.

"We can't ignore this," WEAC Vice President Terry Meyer told the Fond du Lac rally. "Schools are laying people off and closing down programs. This is nothing more than a slick, hard-nosed attempt to take democracy away."

Meyer called on WEAC members and the public to continue contacting their legislators and ask them to oppose TABOR in any form. He said it would harm Wisconsin's great schools, staff and communities.

"Wisconsin has the best school system in the country," he said. "Why anyone would want to fool with that is beyond me."

WEAC member Tony Prus, who hosted the Fond du Lac rally, said TABOR would be "horrendous for public schools." He said capping local spending would not take into account increases in special education and health care costs.

"American education is buffeted by two cold breezes," WEAC member and National Education Association Executive Committee member Mark Cebulski told the rallies. He said too much standardized testing and not enough funding are harming schools throughout the country.

Cebulski said the reauthorized federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act, misleadingly called the No Child Left Behind law by the Bush administration, is "woven of the same cloth" as proposals like TABOR.

"One size doesn't fit all," he said. "One tax structure doesn't fit every community. One tax levy doesn't fit every school district."

According to Cebulski, communities and school boards should be making decisions based on their local needs.

"It's all about identity," he said, calling TABOR and ESEA "cynical and obnoxious."

Cebulski urged people to inform community residents about the dangers of TABOR and ESEA.

"Keep this going," he said. "It's coming back in January. They'll think we forgot about this unless we keep the pressure up."

"We need to be the truth squad," Meyer told the Oshkosh rally. "They're lying, and we need to tell the truth."

Resource page on the fight against tax gimmicks

Posted June 22, 2004