[media-credit name=’BRYAN FAUST/Herald photo’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]The controversial Taxpayer Protection Amendment garnered statewide attention Wednesday as scores of people flocked to the Capitol to testify at a special legislative joint committee hearing.

Almost 100 people spoke against the resolution, a number of them students who argue its passage would reduce state funding for the University of Wisconsin and force tuition increases.

"At a time when we need more citizens in Wisconsin with college degrees to build a long-term sustainable tax base, TPA jeopardizes our public universities' ability to meet the state's economic development goals," Brian Tanner, legislative director for the United Council of UW Students, said.

But resolution supporters defended TPA, arguing in favor of amending the state's Constitution to place legal limits on state revenue.

Such an amendment, supporters maintain, would cut government spending and lower taxes in an effort to improve Wisconsin's economy.

"Maintaining the great Wisconsin way of life is becoming increasingly difficult due to our high taxes," said Mark Gusho of the Manitowoc Company, a Wisconsin industry with operations around the world. "[TPA] is a long-term solution to Wisconsin's high tax burden."

Gusho added Wisconsin currently has the fifth highest tax burden in the nation — a statistic he said has compromised the state's competitiveness in the global marketplace.

While supporters of the amendment defend the initiative as essential to the wellbeing of the state's economic future, opponents argue it would severely hurt the quality of life of Wisconsin citizens.

According to TPA opponents, the amendment would put vital programs like health care and education in jeopardy while also barring local officials and lawmakers from the recourse they need to protect the interests of their constituents.

"Would you be a little uncomfortable that government would have their hands tied from making good decisions as a result of this amendment?" Sen. Bob Jauch, D-Poplar, asked amendment authors Rep. Jeff Wood, R-Chippewa Falls, and Sen. Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend.

Teachers from across the state also spoke against the amendment, expressing their concern over TPA's effects on public education.

Edward Johnson, a teacher from Clintonville, said the resolution would only exacerbate the already dire funding situation facing Wisconsin schools and leave teachers powerless to respond.

"A formula such as the TPA or TABOR really cuts out the thoughtful, human debate on dollars," he said.

As the Assembly Ways and Means Committee and the Select Senate Taxpayer Protection Committee continued to listen to hours of testimony that lasted long into the evening, a number of Democrats criticized the hearing's structure.

The hearing marked the first time the public was invited to voice their opinions on the issue — but only at a specially designated time that was hours after invited guests were first allowed to speak.

While amendment authors and committee chairs Wood and Grothman attempted to moderate the special hearing, the question-and-answer session escalated into a heated debate that polarized the parties.

The proposed amendment — Senate Joint Resolution 63 or Assembly Joint Resolution 77 — must be approved by two consecutive Legislatures before it goes to the people in a public referendum.