Rep. Brett Davis Proposes Anti-business Cost Cutting Bill; Don't give out State Maps to Find Local Businesses.

Take a look at this odd state cost cutting suggestion as reported at channel3000: "State lawmakers are considering temporarily stopping the presses on state highway maps to save money."

"Lawmakers?" It's really the idea of just one guy, Republican Rep. Brett Davis. Davis would like to ignore the reality of providing those state maps to tourists:

"We are the entry point to the state, right on the Illinois line, and this area has more visitors crossing at that point than any place in Wisconsin. And the first question they ask is, 'Can I get a Wisconsin map,'" said Martha Mitchell, executive director of the Beloit Convention and Visitors Bureau. Beloit's three visitor centers give out 50 to 100 maps a day during slow times and many more in the summer, which is why they're concerned
about the presses potentially stopping. The DOT's surplus 400,000 maps … would only last about six more months. That would leave the state until 2011 without maps.

The clueless Rep. Davis takes the anti-business position that if tourists and interstate commerce can't find their way around Wisconsin, they can make a u-turn and leave:

"This specific bill saves the state taxpayers $250,000 by not allowing the Department of Transportation to print state highway maps. We're going to have to make tough (budget) decisions, so asking someone to drive around, do a U-turn, I think is the least we can ask of people right now," said Davis.

Not only is Davis leaving businesses high and dry during an economic recession and making it even tougher for them to survive and create jobs, but Davis assumes he's being "fiscally conservative."

But according to Mitchell: "We are spending millions to invite tourists to come to Wisconsin. All the cities spend millions printing brochures to attract them to their destination; the state spends millions of dollars on roads to get them there. So why don't we want to show them or give them something to help get them there."

Because Rep. Brett Davis wants everyone to think he's making "tough decisions." Way to kill businesses in Wisconsin Brett. From WISC-TV.