The Durand-Arkansaw School District is expecting a balanced budget for the 22-23 school year. Durand-Arkansaw Superintendent Greg Doverspike says there are a few factors that will affect the budget including health insurance and staffing levels. Another factor that will affect the budget is the student population count and how that will affect state aid.
The recent rash of thefts of catalytic converters has law enforcement trying to find different ways to deter the thefts. Durand Police Chief Stan Ridgeway says one of the problems is the scrap yards accepting the converters without asking for proper identification. Recently, the Eau Claire Police Department held an event where people could have their catalytic converter painted to help deter the thefts. Ridgeway says he is planning on asking Eau Claire Police if the event helped in reducing the thefts and looking at the possibility of holding something similar in Durand.
People’s Energy Cooperative is warning its customers after receiving reports of numerous scams. According to Co-op, one member reported being told that he overpaid on his bill and the company was refunding his money, but they needed his bank account information first. Other people reported being told that they would receive a $50 discount if they also gave out their bank account information. People’s Energy Cooperative said it will never request bank or payment information over the phone. All payments go through a secure online management system.
A Hudson man faces several charges including first-degree reckless homicide in a child's death. Thirty-seven-year-old Paul Marshall is accused of killing his infant two weeks ago. Emergency responders were called to a home on February 4th to help a seven-week-old child suffering cardiac arrest. A news release indicates the infant was revived and taken to Children’s Hospital in St. Paul. The victim died three days later. Doctors told police the cardiac arrest was caused by injuries to the child’s head. There were also several fractures, including skull fractures, and the child no longer had any brain activity. Marshall was arrested Tuesday and made a court appearance Wednesday.
Minnesota Congresswoman Angie Craig is sponsoring legislation that would lower federal taxes for small businesses. The Small Business Tax Relief Act lowers the corporate income tax rate from 21 to 18 percent on the first 400-thousand dollars in taxable income for businesses earning less than five million dollars annually. Craig says in a statement," for nearly two years, small business owners have grappled with a struggling economy, ever-changing regulations and tax burdens far higher than that of many Fortune 500 corporations." She says it's long past time that we re-centered our economy around the businesses that make up 93 percent of employers in Minnesota's 2nd District.
People who applied to hunt wolves in Wisconsin will be getting a refund. The Department of Natural Resources will refund the ten-dollar permit application fee following a ruling which put wolves back on the Endangered Species List. That federal court action means Wisconsin does not have the authority to start a wolf harvest season. The DNR will refund all application checks via mail, which should take 4-to-6 weeks. The court ruling also invalidates permits to private landowners, for use of lethal force against wolves, and prohibits the DNR from using "lethal control" methods. Also, dog hunters will no longer be allowed to pursue wolves to train hunting dogs.
Milwaukee already had the infrastructure and planning figured out – then the Democrats didn’t come two years ago. That work may be the biggest selling point for Cream City. T-M-J-4 reports the Republican National Committee isn’t promising anything yet, but the fact Wisconsin’s biggest city is almost “turn-key” is a major selling point for it to host the 2024 Republican National Convention. Former White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus says the locals did an outstanding job of selling when the national Republican delegation spent Wednesday in Milwaukee. The delegation visits Nashville next.
Sales of Wisconsin dairy products were up nearly 15-percent last year and meat products jumped by 10-percent. Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection Secretary Randy Romansky says the state broke the old record for ag exports in 2021. Not all crops were up. Ginseng producers say there’s a chance they might be forced out of business. The tariff battle with China resulted in a 41-percent tax and tariff on Wisconsin products sold there.
The Republican leader of the Wisconsin Senate blames the governor’s use of vetoes for problems like the state's worker shortage and finances continuing to “fester.” Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu says strong leaders are needed during times of crisis. W-M-T-V reports LeMahieu refers to leaders who cast a “bold vision” and “deliver on that vision.” He says that’s where Democratic Governor Tony Evers has failed. LeMahieu says his Republican party has provided the strong leadership the state needed on the budget – and the governor just followed. His comments were the party’s response to Evers’ State of the State address Tuesday.
Allina Health is relaxing visitor rules as COVID-19 case counts continue to fall in the state. The Minneapolis-based hospital and clinic system says they will now allow one visitor per day in both inpatient and outpatient care settings. That change comes as Allina moves its caution level from “red” to “yellow.” Visitors will still be required to wear a mask and in some instances other protective gear. Visitors may also be asked to wait outside if there are too many people in the waiting room at one time. As of Tuesday, the number of people in the hospital with a case of COVID-19 dropped below 900, the lowest mark since last November.
Menomonee Falls-based Kohl’s plans to add Sephora beauty shops to 400 of its locations this year. T-M-J-4 is reporting 16 of the new shops will be in Wisconsin. Kohl’s reportedly already has Sephora's in 200 of its stores and the goal is to have 850 by next year. Sephora shops are called a 25-hundred square-foot store-within-a-store. A Kohl’s spokesperson says the shops have brought in a new, younger, and more diverse group of customers, while increasing sales.
Another candidate has entered the Republican primary for lieutenant governor. State Senator Roger Roth of Appleton joins a primary field that includes state Senator Patrick Testin of Stevens Point. Other Republican candidates include Ben Voelkel, former communications director for U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, Lancaster Mayor David Varnam, and Will Martin, a Milwaukee business owner who served in the administrations of former governors Scott Walker and Tommy Thompson. Roth has been in the Senate since 2015 and was Senate President from 2017 to 2021. He previously served in the Assembly from 2007 to 2011. Incumbent Democrat, Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes is running for U.S. Senate.
Three Milwaukee police officers are accused of carrying fake COVID-19 vaccination cards. Milwaukee police officers aren’t required to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, but there are rules for officers who want to travel as part of the job. The officers in question claimed they got their shots in order to take a work-related trip in December. They’re now under investigation.
All signs are pointing to a pretty normal spring flooding season. Craig Schmidt is a hydrologist with the National Weather Service in Chanhassen. He says soil moisture is pretty close to normal, and frost depth is two-to-three feet in the north and about a foot in the south -- which is also pretty normal this time of year. The snowpack is also very close to normal -- a little dryer in the southwest part of the state and a little more than normal in the north. Schmidt says the only threat of major flooding is along the Red River. He says the snowpack is high in this area and soil moisture is back above normal.
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