The Mondovi City Council is meeting tonight. Items on the agenda include a discussion on Police department staffing, and the foundational layout for the new library, a discussion and possible actions and recreating the parking regulations in the city, and reports from the mayor and city staff. Tonight's meeting begins at 5:30 at the Marten Center in Mondovi.
A Spring Valley teen was killed in a three-vehicle accident on Saturday in Polk County. According to the Polk County Sheriff's Department, a car with five people in it was going northbound on Hwy 65 at a high rate of speed when the driver lost control, crossed the center line, and hit two other vehicles. 18yr old Masen Powell along with two other people were thrown from the car. Powell was pronounced dead at the scene while the other two were taken to the hospital. That accident remains under investigation.
It's prison time for the Eau Claire man who stole guns, ammo, and some rocket launchers. A judge in Eau Claire yesterday gave 53-year-old Shaun Galloway five years in prison. Galloway pleaded no contest to charges that he stole 15 guns, thousands of rounds of ammunition, and rocket launchers during a break-in in the town of Drammen last fall. Two other people in the case have already pleaded guilty as well, they're due to be sentenced next month.
Police in Chippewa Falls think they have a serial catalytic converter thief behind bars. Officers yesterday said they've arrested 33-year-old Brandon Gee. He's wanted in connection to 15 different catalytic converter thefts in the area. Gee is also wanted for burglary and other crimes in Eau Claire and is wanted in Dunn County as well. Chippewa Falls detectives say more charges in more cases could be coming.
City Clerks and Election managers in Durand and all other local municipalities are giving their voting machines a once-over. Election managers are testing their election equipment ahead of next week's primary. That means running the machines and getting an audit list together. Eau Claire city clerk Nicholas Koerner says not only does the test show that the machines are working, but the test should also give people confidence that they can trust the electoral process on Election Day.
Governor Evers wants to include automatic voter registration in the new state budget. The governor delivered another budget preview yesterday, this time focusing on voting. The governor wants to link the DMV and Elections Commission databases to automatically register voters in the state. He also wants to bring voter registration back to high schools, change UW student IDs to become voter ID-eligible, lower the number of days someone needs to live in Wisconsin before they can vote in the state, and make it easier for people to vote absentee. Evers is also proposing more money for local elections offices. None of the governor's voting suggestions are likely to make the final state budget. Governor Evers will deliver that full state budget tomorrow.
Congresswoman Angie Craig is speaking out after being attacked last week. Craig told KARE11 in an interview that aired last night that she fought off the man who attacked her as she was trying to get out of an elevator in her apartment building. The Minnesota Democrat says the man had demanded to go to her apartment. D.C. police say 26-year-old suspect Kendrick Hamilin has a long criminal history in the area. Hamlin appeared in court yesterday on an assault charge related to the incident.
There's a new plan at the statehouse to define, and ban, strip searches in schools. Three lawmakers from the Green Bay area have a piece of legislation that would make it clear that school officials cannot strip students down to search them. The proposal comes after the superintendent in Suring Schools ordered six high school girls to strip down to their underwear to search for vape cartridges. Prosecutors said they couldn't file charges because Wisconsin law defines strip searches as completely naked. The lawmakers say they want to ban all kinds of strip searches in schools and make sure no other students have to disrobe in front of a teacher or nurse ever again.
One Wisconsin congressman wants President Biden to provide some answers about the objects shot down over the weekend. Congressman Mike Gallagher yesterday said there are times to err on the side of caution, and then there are times to speak to the people. He said the spat of unidentified objects that were shot down over the weekend is a time for the president to speak up. Gallagher is in charge of the new House committee on China, and he said we need to know if these objects are from China or somewhere else, and he said we need to know just how long they've been flying over the United States.
New legislation is aimed at addressing overcrowding at Minnesota hospitals. A bill unveiled yesterday would require hospitals to set up staffing committees to create sufficient nurse-patient staffing levels. The bill would also eliminate boarding patients in ERs. A lack of skilled nursing facilities and at-home caregivers is leading to hospital overcrowding across Minnesota. Officials say delays in releasing patients are leading to backups in emergency rooms as people wait for beds to open up. Lawmakers say they are trying to find ways to adequately address the problem of insufficient transitional care.
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A meat market in Rice Lake is recalling some of its pork products. Prime Cuts Meat Market says it's voluntarily recalling ham and bacon sold in-store between January 25th and February 6th. The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection says the products weren't properly inspected.
Minnesota DFLers are indicating that they might approve legislation to study the use of emerging nuclear technology to meet clean energy goals. A new bill would commission research to investigate the potential costs, benefits, and impacts of "advanced nuclear technology reactor power generation." Republicans attacked DFLers for refusing to lift a ban on new nuclear plants in the electricity regulations signed by Governor Walz on Tuesday. GOP lawmakers are arguing that the newly-signed measure will lead to higher bills and possible rolling blackouts without a steady power source like nuclear energy.
U.S. Senator Ron Johnson says Social Security needs help. The Wisconsin Republican (on WISN’s Jay Weber Show Friday) said the program is "a legal Ponzi scheme" that will become unsustainable. Johnson said younger people who are now paying for current retirees are 'gonna get hosed.' Johnson said putting Social Security in the federal budget every year would not mean sunsetting or eliminating the program but would force Congress to decide what spending needs to be prioritized.
Marijuana remains illegal in Wisconsin while lawmakers in neighboring Minnesota consider expanding its use. Medical marijuana is already legal in Minnesota, where former governor Jesse Ventura said it was effective in treating seizures his wife suffered from. Ventura admitted to the then-illegal treatment during a legislative hearing last week in St. Paul, where lawmakers are considering allowing the recreational use of pot. That remains off the table in the Wisconsin legislature, although there is growing Republican support for some limited medical use.
Wisconsin's largest business lobbying group again tops political spending in Madison. A WisBusiness dot com report shows that Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce spent 1 point 4 million dollars on lobbying in the 2021-22 session of the Legislature. WMC was followed by the Wisconsin Hospital Association at 1 point 3 million and the Realtors Association at 1 point 2 million. All three were also the top lobbyists during the previous session. Overall, groups spent over 67 million dollars on lobbying efforts over the last two years.
A Canadian airline is expanding into the Twin Cities. WestJet will launch its first-ever service between the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and Edmonton, Alberta, in June. The airline is also launching service in Washington D.C. and Detroit, Michigan.
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