Compeer Financial is partnering with Community and Economic Development Associates to explore and learn the needs of rural communities and implement pilot projects in selected areas, including Western Wisconsin. The goal of the projects is to first determine the needs of the communities and the counties and then develop a possible project. Here in Western Wisconsin Compeer and CEDA will be meeting with leaders from the cities of Durand, Mondovi and Pepin, and Buffalo Counties.
There is a warning in Chippewa Falls about fake cash. Chippewa County's sheriff yesterday said someone is spending counterfeit 100-dollar bills. Police in Cadott nabbed ten of the fake bills. The sheriff says you can spot the fakes because they are stamped with the words 'play money,' and they all have the same serial numbers.
Governor Evers was in Eau Claire yesterday to talk about new buildings at the UW-Eau Claire campus. The governor wants to spend about two billion dollars on new projects at UW campuses across the state. In Eau Claire that would mean a new science building. The Eau Claire campus has been working to replace Phillips Hall for years, the campus needs 231 million dollars more to do it. But it's not clear if the legislature will go along with the governor's proposal.
The public is asked to be on the lookout for a missing man from Rusk County. A missing endangered person alert has been issued for Jason Johnson, who was reported missing from Sheldon back on February 19th. That's the last time he was seen by his family, but the Rusk County Sheriff's Office says his car was seen in Barron February 20th through the 23rd and he reportedly stayed in Millston and La Crosse in the days after that. Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff's office.
A lawsuit filed against the Eau Claire Area School District is dismissed. According to a media release from the district, the lawsuit filed by Parents Protecting Our Children was dismissed February 21. The parents group filed suit in September, claiming district policies on gender identity do not require parents to be notified. The district filed a motion to dismiss, arguing the plaintiffs did not have a protectable interest. A judge in U.S. District Court agreed and dismissed the case due to the lack of standing, according to the release. The group was represented by conservative law firms Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty and America First Legal.
Officials are calling on Hyundai and Kia to issue some recalls due to a massive uptick in car thefts across the Twin Cities metro. The Minnesota Attorney General, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, and St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter sent a letter to the car manufacturers, explaining that certain models lack crucial anti-theft technology. Minneapolis has seen a nearly 900-percent increase in car thefts over the past year, while St. Paul has seen a more than 600-percent spike. The letter says "this crime is preventable and has a clear solution."
There's a new report that says taxpayers are paying millions of dollars for students who are no longer in Wisconsin's public schools. The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty released its report on so-called Ghost Students yesterday. Ghost Students are students who are no longer enrolled in a local public school, but who are still on the state's rolling three-year-average enrollment charts. WILL says nearly 20 thousand students fall into that category, costing 360 million dollars a year. Wisconsin pays for public schools on a per-student basis and has a hold-harmless provision in state law designed to shield schools against a sudden drop in enrollment. WILL's report suggests getting rid of that system.
The University of Wisconsin is asking for its first tuition increase in nearly 10 years. UW President Jay Rothman told lawmakers yesterday that the school would like to raise tuition by five percent next fall. Wisconsin froze tuition at UW campuses back in 2013, and only lifted that freeze back in 2021. Rothman says even with a tuition increase, the UW System will be one of the most affordable colleges in the Midwest. Tuition varies from campus to campus, but in-state students pay just under 11 thousand dollars a year in tuition and fees at UW-Madison. Out-of-state students pay nearly 40 thousand dollars a year.
A bipartisan bill is aimed at a law that prohibits gas stations in Minnesota from selling fuel at below cost. The bill would repeal the state's minimum markup of eight cents per gallon. Lawmakers say the 1999 law has outlived its usefulness. The House version is being considered on the floor. The Senate version was laid over by the Commerce Committee, opening the door for it to be considered as part of an omnibus bill.
It's nearly time to remove ice fishing shelters from lakes in southern Minnesota. The deadline is the end of the day Monday, March 6th, for ice anglers in the southern two-thirds of the state. The Department of Natural Resources says all trash and equipment must be moved from lakes as well. Anglers in the north have until March 20th to remove their ice fishing structures.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is offering some tips on how to stay safe on ice that continues to melt and refreeze. The DNR says the thickness of ice changes quickly this time of year, so it recommends carrying a cell phone, having a rope, and staying away from unfamiliar areas. A full list of recommendations is available on the DNR's website.
A 26-year-old man charged with making a terrorist threat against UW Madison's campus insists it was all a joke. Thomas Hansen was charged Tuesday. A criminal complaint says the threat itself was made on February 23rd on the social media site “YikYak.” Hansen told investigators the series of posts came about after a girl canceled a date with him. Hansen first posted that because he got a haircut, the girl wouldn't know what he looked like. A second post commented on stopping dating and "sneaking guns" into "crowded school buildings." The third post specifically called out Bascom Hall, saying "don't go" to the building "next week." Police ended up taking a "large revolver-style handgun" and two boxes of ammunition from his apartment.
A group of landowners cut off from their homes by a blockade of roads on tribal lands in northern Wisconsin is suing to reopen the roads. That lawsuit was filed Tuesday in federal court and claims that the Lac du Flambeau tribe is endangering the safety of those behind the barricades and that they are unjustly blocking public roads. Those blockades went up earlier in January after the tribe said they weren't getting any good-faith negotiations on expired easements to use the roads. The landowners claim that since the tribe receives federal aid to upkeep the roads they are public property and must be kept open. Tribal leaders want 20 million dollars to reopen the roads, while the town of Lac du Flambeau and the title companies that had the easements have offered much less than that.
Officials in Green Bay describe what led to installing audio surveillance equipment at City Hall. In a 17-page brief filed Wednesday, three incidents from 2021 and 2022 were pointed out. The three involve threats and verbal assaults of a staff member from the City Attorney’s office, a staff member of the Green Bay Press-Gazette, and someone delivering an absentee ballot. The brief notes an email was sent to all city employees in December of 2021 informing them of the recording devices on the second floor, outside the council chambers. Another device was added outside the first-floor clerk’s office. The city opposes a temporary restraining order halting use of the devices.
There is a plan that would make it more difficult for prosecutors in Wisconsin to dismiss certain charges. The Assembly Committee on the Judiciary will hold a hearing today on a proposal that would require D.A.'s to get permission from a judge before dismissing certain reckless driving, domestic violence, weapons, car theft, or harm to a child charges. Republican lawmakers say some prosecutors in the state are too quick to dismiss serious charges against dangerous suspects. The plan may pass the Assembly and Senate, but Governor Evers is not likely to sign it.
The candidates for Wisconsin Supreme Court are drawing some lines around the cases they would not hear. Liberal Judge Janet Protasiewicz yesterday said she will recuse herself from any case involving the Democratic Party of Wisconsin because the party has given her millions of dollars in campaign support. Conservative former Justice Dan Kelly says he will decide which cases he will not hear on a case-by-case basis. Kelly said he could step away from cases that involve the Wisconsin Republican Party or other donors. Protasiewicz said she would not recuse herself from abortion cases, despite criticism that she has all but promised to rule in favor of abortion while on the campaign trail. The two are headed for a showdown next month.
Three former employees of Sun Country Airlines say they were fired in retaliation for their support of the union. The Minneapolis-based air carrier denies the allegations. Last month, fleet employees voted 46-to-32 in favor of forming a union. Sun Country's mechanics also unionized recently, and the flight attendants are in negotiations.
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