Property taxes dropped slightly across the state

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Scott Walker’s administration says property taxes dropped slightly last year.

The administration issued a statement Monday morning saying taxes on a median value home dipped 0.4 percent, the first time in 12 years they’ve decreased. The statement credited the governor’s move to strip public workers of their union rights.

The nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau had estimated last year that property taxes on a median value home would increase by nearly a full percentage point in 2011.

The governor’s statement didn’t offer any evidence backing up the numbers. Walker spokesman Cullen Werwie said he expected a memo from the state budget office later Monday that would detail the decrease.

Democrats angry over the union changes have forced Walker and five other Republicans into recall elections later this spring.