WISCONSIN BLUE BOOK 1985-1986


purpose taxes. Revenue from income taxes totaled $2.58 billion. Sales and
excise taxes totaled
$1.5 billion. Other major general purpose taxes include public utility taxes
and death and gift
taxes.
  The 2 major segregated funds had the following balances in fiscal year
1983-84: Transporta-
tion    $160.6 million and Conservation- $45.9 million.
   State-Local Finances - In per capita total state and local government
revenue in fiscal year
 1982-83, Wisconsin ($2,316) ranked 13th nationally from the highest state
(the U.S. average was
 $2.08 1). Alaska and Wyoming ranked first and second, while Arkansas ranked
last. Wisconsin
 ranked 8th among the states in per capita revenue from state taxes ($904).
Alaska ($4,272)
 ranked first, while New Hampshire ($344) was last. The U.S. average was
$735. In total general
 state and local government per capita expenditures Wisconsin ranked 16th
with $2,154 (the U.S.
 average was $1,986). Alaska ranked first ($8,662) and Arkansas last ($1,372).
Wisconsin spent
 more than the national average in all major functional areas.
   Wisconsin ranked 10th nationally in total dollar amount of state payments
to local units of
government in fiscal year 1982-83, with school districts receiving the largest
proportion, followed
by municipalities, counties and towns.
   On a per capita basis, in fiscal year 1982-83 Wisconsin ranked 4th (with
$693) in intergovern-
mental expenditures, following Alaska ($2,273), Wyoming ($789) and California
($713). The
national average was $434.
   Wisconsin returned over $928 million to local units of government in property
tax relief and
shared revenue in fiscal year 1983-84- $212 million in property tax relief
and $716 million in
shared revenue.
   Of $603.8 million in state aid to local units of government in calendar
year 1983 - excluding
school aids- the 3 largest categories were: health and social services ($303.5
million), transpor-
tation ($188.7 million) and conservation ($52 million).
   Property Taxes - Total general property taxes levied in Wisconsin in 1983
amounted to $2.76
billion, with a net amount of $2.48 billion after state property tax relief
is applied. Real estate
accounted for $2.62 billion and personal property $24.9 million. Milwaukee
County had the
highest effective (full value equalized) tax rate ($30.37 per $1,000) and
Waupaca County the
lowest ($16.08 per $1,000).
   Historically, in the last 10 years Wisconsin's general property assessment
has increased more
than two and one-half times (163 percent change), while general property
taxes levied have
doubled (109 percent change).
  State-Federal Finances - Federal tax receipts from Wisconsin in fiscal
year 1983-84 totaled
$10.90 billion, with by far the largest amount derived from individual income
and employment
taxes ($9.02 billion). Total federal funds distributed in Wisconsin in fiscal
year 1983-84- in-
cluding grants, salaries and wages, direct payments to individuals, procurement
and other pro-
grams    amounted to $10.85 billion. This distribution, on a per capita basis,
ranked Wisconsin
(at $2,277) 47th among the states in total federal funds received, with the
District of Columbia
highest ($20,652) and Iowa lowest ($2,176).
  Of these federal funds, the category of federal aids to Wisconsin in fiscal
year 1983-84 totaled
$1.80 billion, of which $244.3 million was channeled to local units of government.
Over 65
percent of this aid was in the functional area of human relations and resources,
followed by
education and environmental resources.
  Indebtedness - Total outstanding state government debt in Wisconsin as
of February 1985
amounted to $2.12 billion, of which $1.20 billion was tax supported, and
$923 million was self-
amortizing. Total state indebtedness at the end of 1983 constituted 1.73
percent of state assessed
valuation and amounted to $436 per capita. Local debt in 1983 totaled $2.49
billion. Among
state political subdivisions, city debt ($1.17 billion) was largest.
  Wisconsin's per capita state and local indebtedness in fiscal year 1982-83
($1,446) ranked 40th
among the states, with the highest being Alaska ($17,649) and Indiana lowest
($968). The U.S.
average was $1,942.
The following tables present selected data. Consult footnoted sources for
more detailed
information.


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