MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Republicans will have their biggest majorities in the Wisconsin Senate and Assembly in decades when the legislative session begins in January. Here’s a look at what they likely will face:
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HOW BIG ARE THE REPUBLICAN MAJORIITES? WHO WILL LEAD THEM?
Republicans emerged from Election Day with a 64-35 advantage in the Assembly and a 20-12 edge in the Senate. Senate Republicans could still gain one more member; the race between Republican Dan Kapanke and Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling remains too close to call.
Senate Republicans unanimously chose Scott Fitzgerald, of Juneau, as majority leader on Thursday. He’s served in that capacity since the 2011-13 session. Robin Vos is expected to retain his position as Assembly speaker when Republicans in that chamber meet to make their leadership choices Monday.
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WHAT WILL THE GOP TACKLE FIRST?
Crafting the next state budget. Gov. Scott Walker is expected introduce his executive budget by mid-February. The Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee will then spend months revising the spending plan. The final version will then go back to Walker for his signature. Fitzgerald and Vos will have to move quickly to pick who will serve on the finance committee.
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WHAT’S THE BIGGEST BUDGET ISSUE LEGISALTORS FACE?
Undoubtedly, it is the $1 billion shortfall in the state’s transportation fund. Walker has said he won’t raise the gas tax or fees to fill the gap without cutting taxes elsewhere. He plans to include a proposal in his executive budget that deals with the shortfall by delaying major projects and borrowing. Fitzgerald likes that approach, but Vos has criticized it as a short-sighted political solution. The stage is set for a bruising intraparty battle.
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HEALTH INSURANCE
Republicans will have to deal with the local fallout from changes president-elect Donald Trump makes to the Affordable Care Act, President Barack Obama’s signature health insurance overhaul. Trump has said he wants to repeal the law. About 240,000 Wisconsin residents are enrolled in health plans sold on the federal marketplace and could lose coverage. Both Fitzgerald and Vos said it’s too early to tell what might happen, but they expect to have to adjust. Vos has said he wants to increase coverage but “do it in a way that doesn’t distort the marketplace in creating winners and losers like Obamacare did.” Fitzgerald said he expects a full repeal, which will put pressure on the states to find coverage for people. He would like to make any adjustments as part of the state budget but said wholesale changes will be difficult.
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SCHOOL FUNDING
Assembly Republicans have called for reviewing the state’s school-funding formula and considering moving functions from the state Department of Public Instruction to local districts, which could result in DPI staffing cuts. They also want to explore creating so-called education savings accounts. In other states that use such accounts, eligible children receive several thousand dollars from the state to pay educational expenses. The money can be used for private school tuition, books or other expenses.
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UNIVERSTY OF WISCONSIN SYSTEM
Republicans will have to decide whether to extend a University of Wisconsin System tuition freeze. The GOP has frozen tuition for four straight years and cut $250 million from the system in the last state budget. System leaders have asked Walker to lift the freeze and give them an additional $42.5 million in the upcoming budget.
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CONCEALED WEAPONS
Vos sounds like he’d be open to revisiting whether to allow people to carry concealed weapons on school grounds, which is currently a felony. Republicans last year drafted a bill that would allow concealed carry on school property and let districts decide whether to allow it inside their buildings. Vos didn’t advance the measure because it came so near the end of the session. But he said after the election that people who carry concealed are legitimately worried about getting arrested when they drop their children off at school.
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PREVAILING WAGE
Vos has talked about doing away with the prevailing wage, a law that sets minimum salaries for construction workers on public projects. Republicans included provisions in the last state budget that eliminated requirements that local governments pay workers the prevailing wage for work on government projects.
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TAX CUTS
Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, the state’s largest business group, is pushing the GOP to reduce income taxes. Scott Manley, WMC’s vice president of government relations, said taxes especially need to be reduced for top earners. Fitzgerald has said one of the Senate’s priorities will be reducing the tax burden on Wisconsin residents. Assembly Republicans’ “Forward” agenda includes plans to form a task force on reducing taxes and to create a sales tax holiday.
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