Winners in this recession; public employee unions

The big winners are -- surprise, surprise -- the public sector unions, a fourth branch of government in Madison. The new budget would increase use of the "prevailing wage law" -- the state version of the federal Davis-Bacon Act -- to discourage competition by non-union firms for public works projects. The law would also make it easier for labor to sign up workers on state contracts. Spending on health insurance and retirement benefits for public employees would be hiked by expanding eligibility to domestic partners, costing at least $15 million a year. The budget also makes it easier for home health-care workers to become eligible for collective bargaining. "Here we are up to our eyeballs in debt, and we're hiking the budget in nearly every agency," complains Mark Block, head of the Wisconsin Americans for Prosperity.

Then there's a smorgasbord of new taxes to pay for it all. Gov. Doyle and legislative Democrats propose raising the income tax to 7.75% on "rich" people, expanding the sales tax to cover more services, and raising the state cap-gains tax. Some of the proposed taxes are simply bizarre or laughable: a doubling of the garbage tax, higher elk-hunting fees, new vehicle license fees, higher charges for euthanizing dogs and cats in animal shelters, and even a $2,5000 fine on pharmacists who object to dispensing birth control. A new tax on oil companies magically forbids them from passing along the cost to consumers at the pump.