With the new budget, the Durand-Arkansaws School District receives just over $11,000 in funding per student, which is one of the lowest in the area. Durand-Arkansaws Superintendent Ryan Nelson says it is frustrating. Nelson is hopeful for positive changes to the state funding with the new budget in 2027.
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation is asking for the public’s input on the reconstruction of the Rush River Bridge on Hwy 29 between River Falls and Spring Valley. The project would replace the bridge in 2030. The DOT is accepting public comments through December 4th.
Eau Claire city council members are proposing several changes to the city's downtown paid parking program. The proposal comes less than four months after paid parking began and drew criticism from community members and business owners. One proposed change would eliminate the 50-cent-per-hour on-street zone fee. Other changes include shifting paid on-street parking hours to 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and providing one free hour in city-owned parking ramps on Saturdays. Council members will introduce the proposal at the November 10th city council meeting.
A school employee is in custody in Jackson County after allegedly making terroristic threats at Alma Center-Lincoln High School. Sheriff's deputies arrested the worker Friday following a brief investigation into a handwritten message found in a school bathroom. School officials contacted law enforcement Thursday evening after discovering the note, which threatened violence against teachers on a specific date. Authorities identified the employee after reviewing security camera footage and conducting interviews on campus.
In Vernon County, members of the Stoddard-Bergen Fire Department came to the rescue of three duck hunters on Saturday. The trio was on the Mississippi River when their boat flipped, throwing them into the water. The men -- ages 18, 42 and 60 -- were found wearing flotation devices. No injuries were reported.
Low vaccination rates are driving Wisconsin’s measles outbreak. It’s the state’s largest outbreak in more than 35 years. And, according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, transmission has been concentrated in close-knit southwestern Wisconsin communities and social networks where vaccination coverage is low, primarily within some Amish and Mennonite communities. Reported case counts likely understate how far measles has spread, because not everyone who gets sick seeks care or is tested. Nearly all cases have occurred in people who were unvaccinated. As of Friday, the DHS website showed 477 reported cases, of which 474 were in unvaccinated individuals. There have been nine hospitalizations, and last week’s reported death of an infant was the state’s first measles death since 1990.
A court ruling is protecting millions in Wisconsin public safety funds. Attorney General Josh Kaul says a multistate coalition won a lawsuit blocking the Trump administration from tying federal law enforcement grants to immigration enforcement requirements. The ruling preserves more than six million dollars that Wisconsin risked losing, including funding for local law enforcement, violence prevention programs, and juvenile justice initiatives. Kaul says the decision ensures states can access congressionally approved public safety grants without what he calls unlawful conditions.
A Wisconsin State Patrol trooper has been released from ICE custody after being detained at an airport. Carel Aaron Van Der Merwe was detained Thursday while waiting to board a flight at Dane County Regional Airport. The South African national has been waiting seven years for an asylum hearing and holds a valid work permit through 2030. The Department of Homeland Security says Van Der Merwe overstayed his visa in 2019, while his attorneys argue he has federal work authorization. Van Der Merwe was released Friday under electronic monitoring and regular immigration check-ins while his case remains pending.
We Energies customers are facing higher electricity bills after state regulators approved a rate increase. The Public Service Commission approved smaller increases starting in 2027, though exact amounts remain undetermined. The utility originally proposed raising monthly bills by 14-to-15-dollars in 2027 and another eight-to-nine-dollars in 2028. We Energies says the revenue will fund renewable energy projects, infrastructure improvements, and higher operating costs. The commission is expected to finalize the rates in the coming weeks.
Wisconsin Democrats are promising swift action after sweeping both houses of the state legislature for the first time in 16 years. Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer told the Journal Sentinel lawmakers plan to move quickly to lower costs for working families and restore reproductive rights. Early legislative priorities include providing free school meals, capping prescription drug costs, and expanding property tax credits for renters and homeowners. Leaders also aim to address labor laws, public education funding, and gun safety measures in the upcoming session.
Former Governor Tommy Thompson says Wisconsin is back to being a blue state. Thompson made that declaration Wednesday on Wisconsin Public Radio's Wisconsin Today program following Republican election losses. "Wisconsin is a blue state, and it was before I got elected governor, and it's gone back to that." Thompson says victories scored by U.S. Senator Ron Johnson and President Donald Trump were narrow. Democrats have won nearly every state wide race since 2016, including wins for governor, attorney general, and four state supreme court seats. Democrats will have total control of governor’s office and legislature when the next session starts in January.
Minnesota Governor-elect Amy Klobuchar is signaling she'll appoint her own replacement in the U.S. Senate. CBS Minnesota reports state law gives the governor the power to fill the seat temporarily. Whether Klobuchar or outgoing Governor Tim Walz makes the appointment depends on when she resigns from the Senate. Klobuchar takes office in January and has yet to publicly name any candidates. Voters will choose who serves the rest of her Senate term in a special election in November of next year.
A catch of a lifetime breaks a long standing state record. W J F W reports Austin Schiefer of Menasha was fishing on the bay of Green Bay last month when he reeled in a massive smallmouth bass. He quickly contacted the Department of Natural Resources to get it officially recorded. The smallie weighed 9 pounds 11 ounces, 10 ounces more than the previous record set in 1950. The grandson of the previous record holder even reached out to Schiefer to congratulate him on the catch. He's planning to get replica mounts of the fish made for Fox Valley tackle shops to display.
No comments:
Post a Comment