WED PM Update: Walker, Dem leaders trade barbs over road funding for Foxconn

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Gov. Scott Walker and Dem legislative leaders today traded barbs on whether road funding tied to a planned Foxconn plant in southeastern Wisconsin will pull money from other projects around the state. The Walker administration has argued savings it found within DOT would pay for the Foxconn work. But the Legislative Fiscal Burea… Please log in to access subscriber content. If you don’t have a subscription, click here for a WisPolitics free trial and to view the different subscription options. Username or E-mail Password * Remember Me     Forgot Password

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PACE: McFarland State Bank: First in-state lender to finance PACE Wisconsin projects

Contact: Kim Johnston, Marketing Manager Cell: 608-516-5653 Office: 608-729-6900 [email protected] MADISON, Wis. —McFarland State Bank is the first Wisconsin-based financial institution to close a PACE financing through PACE Wisconsin. The bank recently approved PACE financing for energy efficiency updates to commercial properties located in Stoughton and Waterloo, Wisconsin. Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) is a means of financing energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy installations for commercial and industrial properties. PACE financing can fund up to 100% of the cost of building improvements like HVAC, lighting insulation, roofs, renewable energy, water efficiency products, and more. Uniroyal, based in Stoughton, Wisconsin, is utilizing

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DOJ: Armed drug dealer sentenced to 8 years in federal prison

CONTACT:  RITA M. RUMBELOW PHONE: (608) 264-5158 TTY: (608) 264-5006 WWW.JUSTICE.GOV/USAO/WIW MADISON, WIS. — – Scott C. Blader, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Maurice Johnson, Jr., 29, Madison, Wisconsin, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson to eight years in federal prison, followed by a three-year term of supervised release, for possessing heroin with intent to distribute it and being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Johnson pleaded guilty to these charges on December 6, 2017. Johnson was arrested in Madison on June 26, 2017, because a vehicle he was operating had been reported stolen.

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Wisconsin AFL-CIO: Endorses Rebecca Dallet for Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice

Contact:  Karen Hickey, 414-573-7579, [email protected] Wisconsin AFL-CIO Endorses Rebecca Dallet for Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice “Rebecca Dallet believes in the values of justice and fairness for all people and will be guided by those principles while on the bench,” said Phil Neuenfeldt, President of Wisconsin AFL-CIO. “Her experience and dedication to putting the constitutional rights of the people first and ignoring special interests has wholeheartedly earned the endorsement of Wisconsin’s working people.” “It’s time to end the era of special interests calling the shots in Wisconsin’s highest court,” said Stephanie Bloomindale, Secretary-Treasurer of the Wisconsin AFL-CIO.  “Rebecca Dallet will bring a thoughtful approach to the laws

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Rep. Kremer: Assembly Passes Rep. Kremer Employee College Affordability Act

For Further Information Contact: State Representative Jesse Kremer (R-Kewaskum) (608) 266-9175                                                                                Republican College Affordability Bill Heads to Governor Walker’s Desk Madison, WI – Last week the Assembly passed Rep. Jesse Kremer’s (R-Kewaskum) and Sen. Dan Feyen’s (R-Fond du Lac) bill to address a two-fold problem in Wisconsin: attracting and retaining employees and college affordability. The “Employee College Affordability Act” builds on a popular college savings program – 529 savings accounts.  An individual who currently contributes to a 529 plan can deduct up to $3100 when calculating their taxes, thus providing an incentive to save.  This tax benefit

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Milwaukee Public Information: Register now for 8th annual Girls’ Day at City Hall

Contact: Alderwoman Milele A. Coggs (414) 286-8640 Young women looking to find out more about a future in public service and leadership can now register to have the opportunity to meet and be inspired by a number of local leaders during the 8th annual Girls’ Day at City Hall, hosted on Wednesday, March 14 by Alderwoman Milele A. Coggs. Space is limited, and registration for Girls’ Day ends at the close of business on Wednesday, March 7. The online registration form can be accessed at milwaukee.gov/commoncouncil/District6/girlsdayreg. Registration check-in on the day of the event starts at 8:30 a.m. and the program will run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. For additional information contact the District 6

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Dept. of Natural Resources: Public hearings throughout Wisconsin will gather input regarding fall waterfowl hunting season structure

CONTACT: Taylor Finger, DNR migratory game bird ecologist, 608-266-8841 or Trenton Rohrer, DNR assistant migratory game bird ecologist, 608-261-6458 MADISON – Public hearings regarding Wisconsin’s proposed 2018 waterfowl season structure will be held March 12-15. After public comments have been collected, final season structure will be set by the Natural Resources Board at its Apr. 11 meeting in Madison. “The 2018 waterfowl seasons will be based on the 2017 continental waterfowl population estimates which were at near record estimates since USFWS surveys began 62 years ago. With average to above average precipitation last fall and this winter in Wisconsin, we expect populations to remain high

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Democratic Party of Wisconsin: STUDY: Republicans Are Spiking Americans’ Health Care Premiums 

Contact: Brad Bainum, [email protected] GOP U.S. Senate candidates Leah Vukmir and Kevin Nicholson have consistently supported Republican efforts to spike premiums and take care away from up to 30 million Americans MADISON — A new report released this week has found that the “Trump administration’s efforts to loosen health insurance rules will increase premiums for Obamacare plans by double-digit percentages in most states next year.” The analysis, published by the nonpartisan Urban Institute, finds that Trump-led, Republican sabotage of health care markets will spike consumer costs and cause “[m]onthly payments for a traditional health insurance plan sold through Obamacare [to] go up by 18 percent.”

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Sen. Shilling and Rep. Hintz: Walker Administration covers up transportation funding to Foxconn

Contact: Sen. Jennifer Shilling, 608-266-5490 Rep. Gordon Hintz, 608-266-2254 LFB Memo highlights partisan, inaccurate letter from DOT to JFC members MADISON, WI – Today, Senate Democratic Leader Senator Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse) and Assembly Democratic Leader Representative Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh) released a memo from the state’s non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) detailing Foxconn’s effect on the State Highway Rehabilitation Program budget. The memo highlights a $70 – $90 million reduction in funding for other state highway projects in favor of Foxconn-related roads. LFB composed the memo after a letter sent to Democratic Joint Finance Committee members from the Department of Transportation on

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Rep. Rohrkaste Fundraiser

Save the Date!  Monday, April 30, 2018 Fundraiser for Representative Mike Rohrkaste with special guest Speaker Robin Vos 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. More Details to Follow

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Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty: Testifies on Importance of Government Transparency

Tom Kamenick urges lawmakers to prioritize ease and availability of open records Contact: Collin Roth | WILL Research Fellow [email protected] | 414-727-7418 Milwaukee, WI – Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) Deputy Counsel Tom Kamenick testified Tuesday on the importance of open government to the Assembly Committee on Constitution and Ethics. The Committee held an informational hearing on Ethics in Government: Balancing Transparency and Privacy. Six different speakers of diverse perspectives, all with an interest in government transparency, were invited by the committee to give testimony. Tom Kamenick, WILL’s open government specialist, delivered remarks titled Public Access to Government Documents Essential for Liberty. He explained

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Natural Resource Development Association: Getting the Facts Straight – Meteor Timber Project – AB 956 Amendments

Legislators, On behalf of the Natural Resource Development Association, I wanted to share with you the following comments and facts as they pertain to any amendments made to AB 956, and the unnecessary lawsuit brought on by Clean Wisconsin and Midwest Environmental Advocates against Meteor Timber. Instead of working together to make progress, extreme environmental groups like Clean Wisconsin and Midwest Environmental Advocates would rather obstruct the process and obfuscate reality by bringing baseless lawsuits against a good corporate citizen. Meteor Timber has acted in good faith to help create a nearly 40-to-1 acre mitigation plan and their efforts have fallen on deaf ears

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Gov. Walker: Signs Senate Bill 781 into law

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 28, 2018 Contact: Amy Hasenberg, (608) 266-2839   MADISON – Governor Scott Walker signed Senate Bill 781 into law today as Act 139.SB 781 reinforces the exclusive remedy doctrine, (which says that an injured employee’s recovery of compensation under the Worker’s Compensation Act is the exclusive remedy against the employer, any other employee of the same employer and the worker’s compensation insurance carrier) by providing temporary help employees, and loaned and leased employees the right to recover worker’s compensation benefits from their employer for work-related injuries. On February 5, 2018, the Worker’s Compensation Advisory Council unanimously passed a

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Giffords: “America, You Have the Power to Change Our Congress” 

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 28, 2018 CONTACT: Jason Phelps, [email protected] Giffords announces new #VoteCourage campaign with first wave of priority races focused on defeating gun lobby politicians, electing gun safety champions   Voters in suburban districts want to see action to address gun violence  Washington, DC — Today, Giffords, the gun safety organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and Captain Mark Kelly, announced their #VoteCourage campaign focused on defeating politicians who, for years, have refused to pass any gun violence prevention legislation. The campaign will work to bring leaders to Congress who have pledged to support bills that will address the country’s gun

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Sen. Cowles: Farmer-led land conservation bill passes Senate Committee

Contact: Senator Robert Cowles ~ (920) 660-0615 Farmer-Led Land Conservation Bill Passes Senate Committee MADISON– Senator Robert Cowles (R-Green Bay) released the following statement after 2017 Senate Bill 796, authored by Senator Cowles and Representative Joel Kitchens (R-Sturgeon Bay), was unanimously recommended for passage by the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy: “Understanding that no one knows the land better than the farmers who cultivate it, the Producer-Led Watershed Protection Grant Program is working to improve Wisconsin’s water and soil quality by encouraging farmer-led conservation decision making and solutions. By organizing farmers together with industry experts and helping to share the

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PACE: McFarland State Bank: First in-state lender to finance PACE Wisconsin projects

Contact: Kim Johnston, Marketing Manager Cell: 608-516-5653 Office: 608-729-6900 [email protected] MADISON, Wis. —McFarland State Bank is the first Wisconsin-based financial institution to close a PACE financing through PACE Wisconsin. The bank recently approved PACE financing for energy efficiency updates to commercial properties located in Stoughton and Waterloo, Wisconsin. Property Assessed Clean Energy

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DOJ: Armed drug dealer sentenced to 8 years in federal prison

CONTACT:  RITA M. RUMBELOW PHONE: (608) 264-5158 TTY: (608) 264-5006 WWW.JUSTICE.GOV/USAO/WIW MADISON, WIS. — – Scott C. Blader, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Maurice Johnson, Jr., 29, Madison, Wisconsin, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson to eight years in federal prison, followed by

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Wisconsin AFL-CIO: Endorses Rebecca Dallet for Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice

Contact:  Karen Hickey, 414-573-7579, [email protected] Wisconsin AFL-CIO Endorses Rebecca Dallet for Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice “Rebecca Dallet believes in the values of justice and fairness for all people and will be guided by those principles while on the bench,” said Phil Neuenfeldt, President of Wisconsin AFL-CIO. “Her experience and dedication to putting the constitutional

Read More »

Rep. Kremer: Assembly Passes Rep. Kremer Employee College Affordability Act

For Further Information Contact: State Representative Jesse Kremer (R-Kewaskum) (608) 266-9175                                                                                Republican College Affordability Bill Heads to Governor Walker’s Desk Madison, WI – Last week the Assembly passed Rep. Jesse Kremer’s (R-Kewaskum) and Sen. Dan Feyen’s (R-Fond du Lac) bill to address a two-fold problem in

Read More »

Dept. of Natural Resources: Public hearings throughout Wisconsin will gather input regarding fall waterfowl hunting season structure

CONTACT: Taylor Finger, DNR migratory game bird ecologist, 608-266-8841 or Trenton Rohrer, DNR assistant migratory game bird ecologist, 608-261-6458 MADISON – Public hearings regarding Wisconsin’s proposed 2018 waterfowl season structure will be held March 12-15. After public comments have been collected, final season structure will be set by the Natural Resources Board at

Read More »

Democratic Party of Wisconsin: STUDY: Republicans Are Spiking Americans’ Health Care Premiums 

Contact: Brad Bainum, [email protected] GOP U.S. Senate candidates Leah Vukmir and Kevin Nicholson have consistently supported Republican efforts to spike premiums and take care away from up to 30 million Americans MADISON — A new report released this week has found that the “Trump administration’s efforts to loosen health insurance rules will increase

Read More »

Sen. Shilling and Rep. Hintz: Walker Administration covers up transportation funding to Foxconn

Contact: Sen. Jennifer Shilling, 608-266-5490 Rep. Gordon Hintz, 608-266-2254 LFB Memo highlights partisan, inaccurate letter from DOT to JFC members MADISON, WI – Today, Senate Democratic Leader Senator Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse) and Assembly Democratic Leader Representative Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh) released a memo from the state’s non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) detailing

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Rep. Rohrkaste Fundraiser

Save the Date!  Monday, April 30, 2018 Fundraiser for Representative Mike Rohrkaste with special guest Speaker Robin Vos 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. More Details to Follow

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Natural Resource Development Association: Getting the Facts Straight – Meteor Timber Project – AB 956 Amendments

Legislators, On behalf of the Natural Resource Development Association, I wanted to share with you the following comments and facts as they pertain to any amendments made to AB 956, and the unnecessary lawsuit brought on by Clean Wisconsin and Midwest Environmental Advocates against Meteor Timber. Instead of working together to make progress,

Read More »

Gov. Walker: Signs Senate Bill 781 into law

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 28, 2018 Contact: Amy Hasenberg, (608) 266-2839   MADISON – Governor Scott Walker signed Senate Bill 781 into law today as Act 139.SB 781 reinforces the exclusive remedy doctrine, (which says that an injured employee’s recovery of compensation under the Worker’s Compensation Act is the exclusive remedy against

Read More »

Sen. Cowles: Farmer-led land conservation bill passes Senate Committee

Contact: Senator Robert Cowles ~ (920) 660-0615 Farmer-Led Land Conservation Bill Passes Senate Committee MADISON– Senator Robert Cowles (R-Green Bay) released the following statement after 2017 Senate Bill 796, authored by Senator Cowles and Representative Joel Kitchens (R-Sturgeon Bay), was unanimously recommended for passage by the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and

Read More »