There’s a pitch at the Wisconsin Capitol to add watermarks to the state’s absentee ballots.
State Rep. Scott Allen, R-Waukesha, said absentee ballots in Wisconsin need to be more secure.
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The $4.4 billion tax cut plan approved by Republicans at the Wisconsin Capitol is the latest piece of the new state budget that Gov. Tony Evers is promising not to sign.
Republicans on Thursday okayed a tax cut package that will lower income taxes for everyone, but will give top earners in the state a larger tax cut.
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The fate of a Republican sponsored bill that seeks to compel the state’s parole commission to post its decisions online about who has been granted and denied parole is now in the hands of Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers.
By a 29-4 vote, the Senate recently advanced the measure with some changes after an earlier version of it previously passed the Assembly on the strength of bipartisan support. Under the parameters of the newly proposed measure, the Department of Corrections would be required to post the names of individuals granted parole, denied parole or returned to prison following the revocation of parole.
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The top Republican in the Wisconsin Senate says there are not enough Republican votes to change the plan for a Milwaukee sales tax increase.
Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said on UPFRONT over the weekend that he doesn’t have the 17 votes needed to pass a plan that would allow Milwaukee and Milwaukee County leaders to raise taxes, as opposed to putting the question to voters.
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Republican lawmakers at the Wisconsin Capitol want to stop local governments from paying people just because.
A plan at the Capitol, AB 146, would ban local governments across Wisconsin from using public dollars to pay for a guaranteed income program.
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Jail guards in Wisconsin can now buy into a better pension.
Gov. Tony Evers on Thursday signed a new law that includes jail guards into Wisconsin’s “protective occupation participants” in the Wisconsin Retirement System.
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Wisconsin’s governor says he will 100 percent veto a flat tax, and the top Republican in the State Assembly says he knows that.
Both Gov. Tony Evers and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos talked about the proposal to take Wisconsin to a 3.25 percent flat income tax during appearances on TV over the weekend.
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The latest reading readiness proposal at the Wisconsin capitol, with the backing of the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) in tow, may have a chance at becoming law.
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by Benjamin Yount Wisconsin’s Senate majority leader says there is plenty of money available to reconfigure the state’s personal income tax rates. State Sen. Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, on Friday said Wisconsin’s record $6.6 billion surplus will help get the state over the hump. “So, for sure in the first…
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Gov. Tony Evers is already taking things off the list of possible compromises at the Wisconsin Capitol.
The governor told WISN TV on UPFRONT that he will not sign a flat tax or universal school choice plan if Republicans send him one.
“A flat tax, if that’s part of the budget, that could end it. If it’s universal school choice across the state for education, that could be a killer too. But we’ll see. I don’t think any of those things are going to happen, so I’m planning on signing a good budget.”
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Madison East High School will host a “family friendly” drag show later this month, a taxpayer-funded woke event that is “Exhibit A” for expanded school choice, according to a parental rights activist.
East High parents recently received an email announcing the event, sponsored by the Gender and Sexuality Alliance. The show is scheduled for 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Jan. 19, according to the school’s calendar. The festivities will take place in the high school’s Margaret Williams Theater.
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Wisconsin’s governor has issued more pardons than any governor in modern history.
Gov. Tony Evers last week issued another 171 pardons, bringing his four-year total to 774.
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Wisconsin’s governor says he wants to provide local governments with more state money next year. But he’s not saying how he plans to convince Republican lawmakers to go along.
During a series of interviews and appearances this week, Gov. Tony Evers reiterated that increasing shared revenue is one of his top priorities in the New Year.
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Gov. Tony Evers’ office dictated where to spend most of Wisconsin’s $5.7 billion in supplemental coronavirus relief money without writing down or tracking how he came to those decisions.
A new report from the Legislative Audit Bureau dings the governor for a lack of transparency.
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The top Republican in the Wisconsin Assembly says he’s willing to work on “solutions” with Gov. Tony Evers.
Speaker Robin Vos on Thursday said he sees Republicans offering the governor compromises on abortion, school choice and taxes.
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A new report says Gov. Tony Evers’ goal to get Wisconsin carbon-free by 2050 comes with a $250 billion price tag.
The Center of the American Experiment released its report on Wednesday. It explains that Gov. Evers’ pledge to move electric generation in the state completely away from coal and natural gas will drive energy prices in the state even higher.
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Gov. Tony Evers scored better than three of Wisconsin’s four neighbors on a new state budget report card, but reformers in the state say less-bad is not the same as good.
The Cato Institute this week gave Gov. Tony Evers a “C” on its Fiscal Policy Report Card.
Read MoreWisconsin’s governor wants abortion 100% legal or nothing at all.
Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday told the crowd at the Rotary Club of Milwaukee that he would not sign a new law allowing for abortions in Wisconsin in cases of rape or incest.
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Wisconsin lawmakers are once again planning to ignore a call from Gov. Tony Evers’ for a special session, and they are once again calling it a political stunt.
The governor on Wednesday said lawmakers need to come back to the Capitol in Madison in two weeks and start work on a constitutional amendment that would allow voters in Wisconsin to vote on binding referendum questions that would create new state law.
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Another Wisconsin lawmaker is criticizing the governor for the back-up at the state’s licensing agency.
Rep. Alex Dallman, R-Green Lake, on Monday said doctors, nurses, hairdressers, and thousands of others have been waiting weeks and months for the state to issue them a license to work.
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Wisconsin’s governor says he wants to cut taxes in the state.
After proposing more than $1 billion in new taxes and new spending in each of his two proposed state budgets, Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday proposed a $600 million tax cut and price cut plan.
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Republicans in Wisconsin are offering a glimpse at their strategy for this fall’s campaign against Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos on Wednesday said Evers will be tough to beat in November because he hasn’t screwed-up in years.
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Democratic incumbent Gov. Tony Evers (D-Wis.) warned supporters this week if he is not re-elected this November, oversight of elections in his state could be at risk of being turned over to state lawmakers.
“We will see elections change to the point where the Legislature makes the final decision and that should scare the living crap out of everybody in this room,” said Evers at a campaign stop in the capital city of Madison.
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Wisconsin’s governor is warning gas stations in the state not to raise prices too high.
His new executive order, however, is unlikely to make gas any cheaper.
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There are new questions about who is running public schools in Wisconsin following the release of emails between Gov. Tony Evers and the state’s largest teachers’ union.
Empower Wisconsin on Wednesday broke a story showing the Wisconsin Education Association Council, or WEAC, was in regular contact with Evers’ office about the plan to reopen schools in the summer of 2020.
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The $1,500 reward for information about the firebombing at Wisconsin Family Action’s Madison office is coming with a plea and some sharp words for Gov. Tony Evers.
Julaine Appling, president of Wisconsin Family Action, announced the reward Tuesday.
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Nearly two dozen shot outside an NBA playoff game. A notorious murderer almost released on parole. A Christmas massacre carried out by a repeat felon released on low bail. Record car thefts and drug overdoses.
While most of the country braces for a pocketbook election driven by runaway inflation, record gas prices and baby formula shortages, the key battleground state of Wisconsin is seething over a crime wave driven by policies that are shaping up to be an Achilles heel for Democrats running the state, like incumbent Gov. Tony Evers and Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm.
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Nurses in Wisconsin say Gov. Tony Evers is making it harder for folks in rural parts of the state to get care.
Evers last month vetoed a proposed law that would have allowed advanced practice nurses to work more independently. Advanced practice nurses currently can provide care, but need to collaborate with a doctor.
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Wisconsin’s two U.S. Senators, governor and candidates for public office are talking about the future of Roe v. Wade.
Gov. Tony Evers took to Twitter Monday night after a report on a leaked draft of a Supreme Court decision first made headlines. He vowed to fight to continue legal abortions in the state.
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The new Clean Energy Plan from Wisconsin’s governor would mean a huge change in how the state gets its electricity, and how much people will pay for it.
Gov. Tony Evers unveiled his plan on Tuesday.
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A disagreement over who should get free access to high speed internet in some parts of Wisconsin likely means no one is getting a new connection anytime soon.
Gov. Tony Evers last week vetoed SB 365, which would have expanded high speed internet service in rural parts of the state.
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State laws governing such hot-button topics as absentee voting to school choice and concealed carry in Wisconsin will not be changing.
Gov. Tony Evers on Friday vetoed 43 pieces of legislation from the Republican-controlled Senate and Assembly.
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Gov. Tony Evers on Thursday asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to take the U.S. Supreme Court’s invitation to accept more evidence if it wishes to reconsider his state legislative maps.
The nation’s highest court on Wednesday reversed and remanded the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s March 3 decision to adopt Evers’ proposal, calling the first-term Democrat’s maps a racial gerrymander that violated the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.
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Drug users in Wisconsin can get a test to see if their pills or powders contain fentanyl.
Gov. Tony Evers on Wednesday signed a new law that legalizes fentanyl test strips.
“Tragically, fentanyl has played a serious role in overdose deaths across the country,” the governor said. “[This law] is an important step toward reducing substance misuse and overdose deaths here in our state.”
Fentanyl strips are small strips of treated paper that change color if a drug contains fentanyl. Up until Wednesday, they were classified as drug paraphernalia in Wisconsin.
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Drug users in Wisconsin can get a test to see if their pills or powders contain fentanyl.
Gov. Tony Evers on Wednesday signed a new law that legalizes fentanyl test strips.
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The average price of gas in Wisconsin is over $4.00 per gallon and rising, but it’s not just the war in Ukraine that’s keeping prices in the state high.
Will Flanders with the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty wrote an open letter Thursday asking Gov. Tony Evers to roll back the state’s minimum markup law as a way to help drivers better afford gas.
“[Minimum markup] requires that retailers increase the price of their gas by 9.18% over what they pay at wholesale. This means that gas stations are required to pass on price increases to consumers,” Flanders wrote.
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There are some worries among dairy farmers in Wisconsin about a new water officer position that’s headed for Gov. Evers’ desk.
The Wisconsin Senate this week approved a plan, AB 727, that creates a new hydrologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension.
The Wisconsin Dairy Alliance and the Venture Dairy Cooperative released a joint statement pleading with the governor not to turn the new position into an environmental advocate.
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Wisconsin’s Supreme Court has decided on a new political map, and it’s raising questions about race and judicial activism.
The court ruled 4-3 Thursday to adopt the maps drawn by Gov. Tony Evers.
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Gov. Tony Evers covered a lot of ground during his fourth State of the State, ranging from such topics as farm aid to the internet to tourism.
But Republican lawmakers say the governor ignored two of Wisconsin’s most pressing issues: crime and election reform.
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Republican lawmakers and Gov. Tony Evers are, perhaps surprisingly, on the same page when it comes to spending more money on childcare in Wisconsin.
The state’s budget-writing panel, the Joint Finance Committee, on Wednesday unanimously approved a plan to spend $194 million in federal funds to support childcare across the state.
“$194 million is a lot of money,” Rep Amy Loudenbeck, R-Clinton, told lawmakers. “This is our job as a committee and members of the legislature to have a voice in how these programs are supported or created or expanded. Or in some cases not created and not expanded.”
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Lawmakers in the Wisconsin State Senate on Tuesday approved a measure that would alter the state’s constitution to award the legislature more power when distributing federal funds awarded to the state.
Under current provisions, the governor of the state has the authority to disperse the funds without legislative approval.
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There’s another challenge to another coronavirus stimulus program that gives more benefits to non-white families in Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty sent a letter to Gov. Tony Evers urging him to change the specifics of the Wisconsin Help for Homeowners program.
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Wisconsin’s financial picture continues to improve.
Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday said the state is ending the most recent fiscal year with a $1.8 billion surplus.
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Democrats in the Wisconsin Assembly are looking to a younger woman as their next leader.
Democratic lawmakers on Monday unanimously elected Rep. Greta Neubauer, D-Racine, as their new Minority Leader.
Neubauer is 30-years-old, she replaces 48-year-old Rep. Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, who has served in the legislature for 15 years.
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There is a growing list of people and groups who are not fans of the idea to scrap Wisconsin’s personal income tax.
Former Gov. Scott Walker, University of Wisconsin economist Noah Williams, and a host of conservative reform groups on Thursday proposed eliminating Wisconsin 6.27% personal income tax and replacing the lost revenue with a slight increase in the state’s sales tax.
Walker, and Williams’ analysis, say most Wisconsin taxpayers will save about $1,700 a year with that swap.
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The state’s largest business group says Gov. Tony Evers’ could have done better with his latest workforce development effort.
The governor on Tuesday announced plans to spend $60 million in coronavirus stimulus money to try and get more people back to work in the state.
“There is no one-size-fits-all solution to addressing the workforce challenges across our state, so these funds are critically important to encourage regions and communities to develop cutting-edge, long-term solutions to the unique workforce challenges they face,” the governor said.
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Wisconsin’s governor can continue to exclude certain news organizations from specific news conferences.
The United States Supreme Court on Friday declined to take a case entered by John J. MacIver Institute that challenged the governor’s invite-only press briefings.
MacIver sued in 2019, saying Evers violated the First Amendment by excluding its reporters from the annual budget briefing.
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Wisconsin is taking a huge step to eliminate the sometimes long wait to get a license to work in the state.
Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday signed a plan (AB 218) that fast-tracks occupational licensing in the state.
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Parents across Wisconsin will not get to see everything their kids are learning in school.
Gov. Tony Evers on Friday vetoed the so-called classroom transparency act.
The idea of the plan was to have schools share their curriculum, lesson plans, and assignments with parents so they knew just what their kids are being taught.
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Republicans at the Wisconsin Capitol aren’t sure just how far Gov. Tony Evers’ new $110 million for schools in the state will go.
The governor on Thursday announced the latest round of Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security(CARES) Act spending.
“This $110 million investment is an opportunity for schools to invest directly into programming to help students both in and out of the classroom, allowing schools to hire additional educators and staff, provide more educational and extracurricular opportunities, invest in mental health supports, buy art supplies or computers, or keep the lights on – whatever they need and, most importantly, whatever our kids need,” the governor said.
The $110 million breaks down to about $134 per child.
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