City-Times Staff

Governor Scott Walker will deliver his State of the State Address Wednesday night at 7 PM.

In his address, the governor will lay out his “Blueprint for Prosperity”- a plan Walker says will put over $800 million back into the hands of Wisconsinites through withholding changes and tax cuts.

Last week Walker’s office announced the state had amassed $900 million in surplus, which the governor said in a statement “taxpayers helped build…and their hard-earned money should be returned to them.”

Walker’s office on Wednesday released the following excerpts from tonight’s speech:

On the State of the State:

The state of our state is strong and improving every day.  The economy is dramatically better and our finances are in great shape.  Still, there is more work to be done. 

Thankfully, the days of double-digit tax increases, billion-dollar deficits, and major job loss are gone.  We replaced them with massive tax cuts, growing budget surpluses, and significant job growth.  Wisconsin is going back to work.

Every time we help someone find a job, it makes for a stronger home, a stronger community, and a stronger state. 

On the surplus:

What do you do with a surplus?  Give it back to the people who earned it.  It’s your money.

On the Blueprint For Prosperity:

Tonight, I propose a Blueprint for Prosperity to help provide more opportunities for the citizens of Wisconsin.  Specifically, I ask you to work with me over the next few weeks to return the vast majority of the new surplus directly to the hard-working taxpayers of Wisconsin…

On property taxes:

For the third year in a row, property taxes actually went down on a median-valued home in Wisconsin.  With the tax controls we already put in place, property taxes on a typical home in December of 2014 will actually be lower than they were in December of 2010.  What a difference a few years make.

On employing people with disabilities:

Filling all the positions available in the state, now and in the future, also requires us to think and act in new ways.  Tonight, I want to share with you the stories of some incredible people.  A few might say these individuals have disabilities, but I want to talk about their unique abilities in the workplace. 

We are looking for ways to help employers hire people who will add value to their organizations. 

On developing the workforce:

We need to recognize the manufacturing advantage we have here in Wisconsin.  It means valuing our sons and daughters, who are high skilled welders and machinists and tool and die operators, as much those who are doctors and lawyers.

On the tuition freeze:

After years of 5.5 percent average tuition increases—we now have a two-year tuition freeze, for the first time in the history of the UW System.

On entitlement reform:

Our reforms are based on common sense.  We ask those receiving unemployment checks to seek work four or more times a week instead of two.  We ask adults without children seeking food stamps to enroll in employment training.  We’re not making it harder to get government assistance; we’re making it easier to get a job.

On access to affordable health care:

This year, for the first time in Wisconsin history, everyone living in poverty will be able to access health care under Medicaid. 

The annual State of the State will air on local television stations tonight and will also be live- streamed here: http://prosperity.wi.gov.