Can you afford to pay higher car insurance? Can you afford to pay more to throw out your garbage or more on your property taxes? If not, you should come to Case High School on Monday and let the members of the Joint Finance Committee know your opposition.

Last week, the Joint Finance Committee - a committee of which I am the leading Assembly Republican member - listened to testimony from agency heads who all defended the major parts of Gov. Jim Doyle's budget. In total, there are $3 billion in new tax increases in this budget when you factor in the Doyle budget bailout bill passed in February.

Racine County residents will have a chance on Monday to express their opinions regarding the governor's budget. A public hearing will be held on Monday at Case High School from 10 a.m. to

4 p.m. Upon arrival, speakers will be given a number and will have three minutes to testify when their number is called.

Since Gov. Doyle introduced his budget in mid-February, many have combed through the 1,700-page document in an effort to fully understand everything it contains. A few weeks ago, the Legislature received an analysis from the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau that outlines certain provisions the governor may not have explained clearly and highlights parts that were previously unmentioned.

In addition to the tax increases, there are numerous policy items contained within the budget that are raising red flags with people throughout the state. In past years, there have been concerted efforts to remove the items that have no fiscal impact. However, there is talk that these policies may stay in the budget because it's the only way Gov. Doyle can pay back his major campaign contributors. In most cases, if these policies were exposed to a public debate, they would simply die in the process.

For instance, there is an insurance provision called joint and several liability. On a basic level, the provision says that if you are in an accident but only 1 percent responsible, you could still be stuck with 100 percent of the cost. Another insurance provision would raise the cost of the average driver's yearly premium more than $400 annually by increasing the minimum coverage requirements.

To appease the unions, Gov. Doyle has proposed massively expanding what is known as the prevailing wage rate provision. Under current law, in cases where public funding is used in construction projects costing more than $150,000, workers must be a paid an inflated (prevailing) wage. The expansion of this provision would say that if the project cost more than $2,000, an inflated wage would have to be paid.

This provision will have a huge impact on purchasing affordable housing and creating family-supporting jobs in our communities. Because houses are many times built in what are known as Tax Incremental Finance districts as a way for local governments to promote economic development, home builders, when paying the assigned state rate, will now be forced to increase their costs by 20 to 40 percent. As a result, that cost will be passed on to the homebuyer.

Additionally, this provision will have a terrible impact on our local workers and also on minority workers. In Milwaukee, where they have a much looser prevailing wage standard than is proposed in the budget, studies have shown that two-thirds of all work was performed by firms and employees located in Waukesha County. So the economic development benefit has not gone to residents of Milwaukee County. In fact, a recent article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel indicated that this budget proposal would have an even worse effect on the Milwaukee County economy.

Studies also indicate that the prevailing wage has an adverse effect on minority populations. A 1998 study found that an inverse relationship exists between the strength of prevailing wage laws and the rate of participation of by blacks in the construction trades.

I believe this provision is going to have a terrible impact on Racine County's economy. While many believe that paying a union wage means you are getting a better-quality product, that decision should be left up to consumers, and not forced upon them by an ill-conceived hastily-placed piece of policy designed by Gov. Doyle to reward his major financiers.

Healthy public debate is one of the most important parts of our democratic process, and I would highly encourage anyone who is interested to come to the public hearing next week to testify on provisions in the budget they feel strongly about. It's extremely important for legislators to hear how the state budget will affect our families and communities.

State Rep. Robin Vos,

R-Caledonia, represents the 63rd Assembly District.