Wisconsin

Online Sales Tax Changes Result in $77.4M in Lost Revenue

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A new report says expanded online sales tax collection will result in $77.4 million in lost income tax revenue for the state. A 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision expanded states’ authority to require online sellers to collect and remit sales and use taxes on products delivered to Wisconsin. State law requires the additional revenue to cover…

Democrats Push For Pot Decriminalization in Wisconsin

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, Democratic lawmakers and others are pushing for decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana in Wisconsin. But the measure they unveiled Wednesday is going nowhere in the Republican-controlled Legislature. Barnes and others say decriminalizing the possession of less than 28 grams of pot would decrease racial disparities and inequities in the…

Wisconsin has Widest Achievement Gap on Nation’s Report Card

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin has the widest achievement gap between black and white students of any state based on results of a test known as the nation’s report card. The National Assessment of Educational Progress test results released Wednesday show no significant change from statewide results a decade ago. However, declining scores for the lowest performing students resulted in…

Fall Snowstorm Delivers First Taste of Wintry Weather

MILWAUKEE (AP) – Some Wisconsinites are getting their first taste of wintry weather with a fresh blanket of snow on the ground. The National Weather Service says Neenah has about 4 inches of snow early Tuesday with about 3 1/2 inches in Green Bay and 3 inches near Madison. A winter weather advisory for portions of western, central and northeastern…

UW System President Ray Cross Announces Plans to Retire

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – University of Wisconsin System President Ray Cross is retiring. The 71-year-old Cross said Friday he plans to retire once a new president is selected. Cross has served as UW’s president since February 2014. He previously served three years as chancellor of UW Colleges and UW-Extension and has spent more than four decades in higher education, previously…

Update: Missing Wisconsin Teen Located Safe, According to Mother

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Wis. –  A missing teenager was located safe Wednesday, according to her mother, Susie Moss. Family members along with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office earlier asked for the public’s help in locating Alayna Moss, 16, who had been missing since Sunday.     Categories: News, News – Latest News, Wisconsin

DNR Board Approves E. Coli Water Regulations

The Board Approved the Change Wednesday

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The state Department of Natural Resources board has approved new regulations that change how the department measures bacterial contamination in water bodies. Currently the DNR measures the amount of fecal coliform in water bodies to determine the level of contamination. The new regulations require the department to measure the amount of e. coli in the water…

National Guard Probing Whistleblower’s Reprisal Allegations

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The National Guard is investigating allegations that Wisconsin commanders are trying to force a sergeant out of the service after he complained about sexual misconduct in his unit. Wisconsin Air National Guard Master Sgt. Jay Ellis’ complaint last year has triggered two federal investigations. Both probes are ongoing. Ellis has since alleged Guard officials have blocked…

Wisconsin Governor Calls Special Session on Gun Control

The Bill Wants to Create Universal Background Checks for Most Handguns

(AP Photo/Alan Diaz, File) MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers is calling the Republican-controlled Legislature into a special session to take up a pair of gun control measures that GOP leaders have been unwilling to debate. The move Evers announced Monday does not force Republicans to debate or vote on the bills. But it does give Democrats…

DNR Board Ready to Move Forward on Water Pollution Rules

The Regulations Could Cost Well-Users Millions

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The state Department of Natural Resources board is poised to move forward on extensive rewrites of Wisconsin’s water pollution regulations that could cost well-users, farmers and wastewater treatment plants millions of dollars. The department has proposed restricting manure in areas prone to pollution; establishing limits for polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in drinking and surface water; and…

University of Wisconsin Enrollment Drops 2.6%

In Contrast, UW Superior Enrollment Was Up

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Enrollment at the University of Wisconsin dropped 2.6% percent compared to last year. Preliminary enrollment for the 2019 academic year announced by the university Thursday was just over 167,000 students. That is down from nearly 4,500 students from last year. Enrollment on the flagship Madison campus was up 2% or 879 students. UW-Green Bay, La Crosse,…

Evers Creates Climate Change Task Force for Wisconsin

Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes Will Serve as Chairman of the Task Force

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers has created a task force to develop strategies to deal with climate change in the state. Evers announced formation of the new group Thursday at the Urban Ecology Center in Milwaukee. Evers tasked the group to come up with recommendations to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change by August….

Wisconsin Unemployment Up For Fourth Straight Month

Tied a Record Low for the State

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin’s unemployment rate ticked up for the fourth straight month and is up nearly half a point since May. The state Department of Workforce Development reported Thursday that unemployment in September was 3.2%. That is up from 3.1% the month before and 2.8% in April and May. That tied a record low for the state. The…

Ashland Burger King Franchisee to Pay $400K for Sexual Harassment

Two Former Employees Allege They Were Sexually Harassed by the Store's General Manager

ASHLAND, Wis. – A District Judge has ordered the owners of the Burger King in Ashland to pay two former employees over $400,000 in damages and fines for alleged ongoing sexual harassment by the store’s general manager. According to court documents, the two female employees were hired in 2017 and say the general manager began making “regular sexual advances and…

Wisconsin Waitress Refuses to Serve Couple Over Transgender Comments

Spencer Says she was Told to do her Job or go Home

FOND DU LAC, Wis. (AP) – A Fond du Lac woman says she was fired from a restaurant for refusing to serve a couple who were making disparaging comments about a transgender woman sitting at the bar. Brittany Spencer worked as a server at Fat Joe’s Bar & Grill in Fond du Lac. Spencer says she went to her manager…

Sheriff: Courage of Jayme Closs is Focus of Anniversary

Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald to Hold a News Conference Monday

BARRON, Wis. (AP) – The Wisconsin sheriff who led the investigation into the kidnapping of Jayme Closs and the slaying of her parents hopes the courage and resilience of the 13-year-old girl is the focus on the one-year anniversary of the crimes. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald will hold a news conference Monday, talk briefly about Jayme and honor his…

Wisconsin DNR: New Lead Contamination Rules not Good Enough

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources officials say the Trump administration’s proposed rewrite of lead contamination rules isn’t good enough. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler announced in Green Bay on Thursday that the chances will require water systems to test lead levels at schools and child care facilities, require officials to identify areas with the…

UW Regents OK Staff to Write Free Speech Policy

The Regents Voted During a Meeting Friday

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – The University of Wisconsin System regents have authorized staff to begin drafting formal language implementing a Republican-backed plan to punish students who disrupt others’ free speech rights. The regents in 2017 adopted a Republican-backed policy declaring students who twice disrupt others’ free speech would be suspended for at least a semester. The policy hasn’t taken effect…

Superior Police Say Tube Found Last Week Was Not An Explosive

SUPERIOR, Wis. — The Superior Police has confirmed that a PVC pipe found outside of the Superior fire hall last week was not an explosive. Superior Police Assistant Chief Matt Markon said the pipe appeared to look like a bomb because of the electrical tape wrapped around it, and the cap on the end of the tube. The FBI was…

Former Rep. Sean Duffy and Wife Welcome Ninth Baby

Wis. – Former Wisconsin Rep. Sean Duffy announced the birth of his ninth child in a Facebook post last week. Duffy says in the video post that baby #9 arrived on September 30 at 11:59 p.m. and both baby and mom are doing well. Duffy resigned last month stating that he needed to spend more time with his family after…

Wisconsin Governor Issues State’s First Pardons Since 2010

The Pardons Were Made During Private Meetings on Monday

MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Gov. Tony Evers has pardoned four convicted felons, marking the first time a governor has granted a pardon in Wisconsin since 2010. Evers signed the pardons during private meetings Monday with the recipients. Evers campaigned on the promise to reform the pardons board after his predecessor Scott Walker disbanded it and never issued a pardon over…

Wisconsin Woman Gets 10 Years for Sex Trafficking 16-Year-Old

The 37-Year-Old was Sentenced Friday

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – A Wisconsin woman has been imprisoned for sex trafficking a 16-year-old girl in Iowa and Nebraska. Federal prosecutors say 37-year-old Brooklyn Pohl was given 10 years at her sentencing Friday in Omaha. The prosecutors say officers made contact in November 2016 with the girl at a truck stop in the Omaha suburb of Gretna. Investigators learned…