Before Gov. Scott Walker took office, Wisconsin was suffering from a bloated government that needed to be pared back and an economy that needed to be put back together. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the unemployment rate had reached 8.1% in December 2010. It was clear that economic growth was being stifled — making it harder for businesses to create jobs for working families.
As a small business owner and job creator myself, I know firsthand the detrimental effects that burdensome regulations can have on businesses and creating jobs. Eight years ago, many of us thought something had to change. Enter Walker and a reform-minded legislature in 2011. As the economy picked up, so did my business. Hiring 60 people in less than a month, my business was booming due to the ability of Wisconsin taxpayers to keep more of their disposable income and spend it on recreation and in other areas.
The Institute for Reforming Government recently issued its second policy paper, highlighting many of the regulatory reforms that Walker and legislators implemented, including the Wisconsin version of the federal REINS Act. Wisconsin’s reforms were helpful in cutting red tape and easing the burden of regulations on businesses like mine so that they could provide more jobs for Wisconsin families.
Walker and the legislature also worked to reduce government waste, fraud and abuse through the lean government initiative. According to RealClearPolitics, it “eliminated 400 unneeded bureaucratic steps in state regulatory agencies, saved nearly 80,000 staff hours, reduced regulatory backlogs by an average of 54% and saved $1.6 million.”
We now know that these initiatives helped lead to an unemployment rate of only 3% by the end of Walker’s time in office in December 2018, according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics. I think we can all agree that when more Americans are working and have more money in their pockets, the economy is stronger, and that’s a positive for everyone. I see it every day in my own business.
There’s no doubt these are the types of reforms that we need in more states — and even at the federal level — in order to get government bureaucracy out of the way and put the people back in the driver’s seat. Reducing the burden on businesses and paving the way for the American people to keep more of their own hard-earned money is what makes the economy move forward.
We all want a better-functioning government, because let’s face it, if we want to stay competitive in the world marketplace, we’ve got to have a thriving economy, and if we want a thriving economy, we need to implement pro-growth strategies.
The numbers clearly speak for themselves and, thankfully, Wisconsin has seen the positive growth that came from many of these reforms. Walker and the legislature found solutions to help grow the economy and give power back to the people. If other states want to pump some lifeblood into their economies, look no further than Wisconsin.
Rob McDonald is a small business owner and the chairman of the Institute for Reforming Government.
