CONTACT: WPRI President Mike Nichols, (262) 389-8239 or Mike@wpri.org April 5, 2017 — Wisconsin’s occupational licensing regime is burdensome, counterproductive and in urgent need of reform, according to “Government’s Love for Licensure,” a Special Report published today by the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute. The study also analyzes and offers policy recommendations regarding teacher licensure in the state. “Licensure is often more about reducing competition than safeguarding consumers,” wrote Ike Brannon and Logan Albright, who co-authored the report’s analysis of occupational licensing in Wisconsin. State-mandated skills tests and certification requirements, they concluded, impose unnecessary burdens on job-seekers, drive up consumer costs,

MEDIA CONTACT Mike Browne, Deputy Director mike@OneWisconsinNow.org MADISON, Wis. — To protect the integrity of our courts and maintain public trust in the justice system, judges ought not decide cases involving large campaign contributors. But the current rules governing the Wisconsin state courts and the conduct of judges fall short in preventing the appearance of, or actual, corruption. That’s why One Wisconsin Now has submitted a letter to the Wisconsin Supreme Court in support of an effort initiated by 54 retired Wisconsin judges to change the court’s judicial recusal rules, joining other state and national judicial watchdog groups in supporting

Contact: Tom Evenson, (608) 266-2839 Brookfield – Governor Scott Walker’s biennial budget proposal makes student success a top priority and includes significant investments in K-12 education, including $649 million in new state aids for all Wisconsin K-12 schools. It additionally lifts total K-12 investment to $11.5 billion over two years, an all-time high. Governor Walker traveled to Brookfield East High School today to discuss the impact these investments will have on the Brookfield School District. “Students begin to develop the fundamental skills and knowledge necessary for success at a young age, which is why our budget proposal makes historic investments

Contact: Scott Fitzgerald, (608)-266-5660 [Madison, WI] Yesterday, WEC Energy Group announced that they have reached a settlement agreement with some of its largest business customers that, if approved by the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW), would freeze We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service customer base rates for 2018 and 2019. Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald released the following statement: “I was thrilled to hear that WEC Energy has reached a settlement that would freeze all customer base rates for the next two years. Utilities costs can represent a large portion of residential and commercial budgets and an agreement to

For Further Information Contact: Speaker Robin Vos (608) 266-3387 Madison…Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) released the following statement after Milwaukee area business leaders formally asked the Legislature to restore the I-94 East-West project. “We can’t allow essential projects to be overlooked in the transportation budget. While I’m sympathetic to the business leaders who want the East-West project to be funded, our state already prioritized the Zoo Interchange in that region. “New projects shouldn’t begin in one region at the expense of the rest of southeast Wisconsin and the delays on the I-94 N-S in Racine County have continued for far too

Representative Lisa Subeck (608) 266-7521 Representative Terese Berceau (608) 266-3784 MADISON – State Representatives Lisa Subeck and Terese Berceau today denounced a move by Republicans to call the Assembly back for an unscheduled session day tomorrow solely to appease one realtor who currently serves on the Town of Middleton Board. If both the Assembly and Senate pass the bill it could effectively take away the right of people who live in Dane County towns to vote on whether or not their towns opt out of county zoning. “This petulant power grab is unnecessarily going to cost state taxpayers tens of

Contact:  Wisconsin National Guard Public Affairs Office Office: 608-242-3059 or Cell: 701-212-8710   CAMP DOUGLAS, Wis. – Leadership from the Wisconsin Air National Guard will unveil the unit’s renovated operations center during a 1 p.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony Apr. 7 at the Volk Field Air National Guard Base. The newly remodeled facility, to be renamed the Counterland Operations Center, will be integrated with the state-of-the-art training center there, making Volk Field Combat Readiness Training Center the premiere Counterland Training facility in the Air National Guard. The 4,000 sq. ft. facility will offer a modernized workspace that will better meet the security