Bob Harlan, president of the Packers, declined to comment when told of the sales tax proposal. The memo addressed to the two lawmakers compared the original bill to proposed modifications. Gard said he and Ziegelbauer had been working on a proposal but had not agreed on all the provisions. He hesitated to call it a draft proposal. But we're clearly trying to find things that can produce a bipartisan package, positive changes that make the bill much more responsive to the concerns of the Brown County taxpayers.
Lawmakers have just two weeks before their session ends.
The bill has been stalled in the Joint Survey Committee on Tax Exemptions. Although Gard declined to discuss other changes, he said an alternative he and Ziegelbauer were preparing would include none of the tax exemptions, such as a sales tax exemption on parking at the stadium. He said he was doing that to free the Packers bill from Decker's committee so the Assembly committee could begin work on the bill. He also said his committee would meet Tuesday and would work until it completes action on the bill. The bill would give the district, like any other local governmental body, the power to acquire property through condemnation.