Assembly approved pre-existing conditions bill; Evers says doesn’t go far enough

The Assembly today passed a bill that would provide state protections to those with pre-existing conditions after adding an amendment GOP authors said “mirrors” the Affordable Care Act’s protections to bar annual and lifetime caps. Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz slammed the legislation, which cleared 76-19 on a bipartisan vote after four hours of debate, as “a Band-Aid at best.” “You can’t say you support repealing the ACA, you can’t say you support staying in the lawsuit to repeal the Affordable Care Act, but then come here and campaign and say, ‘but we support protecting pre-existing conditions,’” said Hintz, who

Read More »

TUE PM Update: GOP leaders knock Evers’ planned State of State call to fix state’s economy

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — GOP legislative leaders say they’re perplexed about Gov. Tony Evers’ planned call in his State of the State address for lawmakers to work on “fixing” the economy. In excerpts released ahead of the 7 p.m. address, Evers planned to there’s “more to an economy than counting job creation. And the state of our state is more than our… 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

Read More »

Legislature approves pushing back to Feb. 28 deadline for Evers to deliver budget

The Legislature today voted today to give Tony Evers until Feb. 28 to deliver his budget address, short of the extension the guv wanted until March 5. The changed cleared the Senate 29-3, while the vote was 95-0 in the Assembly. Ahead of the Senate vote, Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, said he and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, thought the guv’s request was “too far out.” According to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, Gov. Scott Walker’s 2011-13 budget was the latest introduced since at least 1979. It was delivered on March 1, the first Tuesday of the month. Evers had

Read More »

Senate approves session rules

Senate Republicans today voted along party lines to approve new rules for the chambers, including a provision banning anyone in the gallery from recording the proceedings. Republicans shot down five Dem proposals to add new rules, including one that would’ve allowed the Senate to again consider an appointment after it’s been rejected by a body despite a change in state law last month barring that. Another sought to require majority Republicans to release provide details on payments to outside attorneys within seven days of receiving a bill and another to require a two-thirds vote to approve legislation between a general

Read More »

WisPolitics Midday: Jan. 22, 2019

In today’s WisPolitics Midday update: Assembly Republicans to introduce an amendment to the Pre-Existing Conditions bill. Gov Evers to deliver his first State of the State address.

Read More »

Madison Mayor Soglin: Snow is on the way – make sure you check in with your neighbors

Contact: Katie Crawley 608-266-4611 Madison — With roughly eight inches of heavy wet snow forecast for the Madison area, residents are being reminded to check in with your neighbor, especially if they are elderly or handicapped and be ready to lend a hand. The National Weather Service reports that the bulk of the snow will arrive after midnight tonight, making morning drive slow, so proceed with caution, and give yourself extra time. Madison Metro buses will be in service, but may be running behind schedule due to road conditions and traffic. There are many cancellations of area schools and events,

Read More »

Voces de la Frontera: Trump’s “offer” is no offer at all

Contact: Sam Singleton-Freeman, sfreeman@vdlf.org, 414-469-9206 MILWAUKEE – Late Monday night, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell published the text of a bill that he says he will put forward for a vote in the Senate later this week. Instead of the restoration of DACA protections for immigrant youth and TPS protections for refugee families that Trump claimed he was offering on Saturday, the bill is full of further attacks on immigrant communities and poison pills that ensure it cannot pass the House or Senate. This is unsurprising, considering that no Democrats were involved in crafting the legislation. Among other things the bill would: Extend nonrenewable Deferred

Read More »

Evers will re-affirm call for two-thirds funding, urge lawmakers to fix economy in State of the State speech

Gov. Tony Evers tonight will re-affirm his call for the state to again pick up two-thirds of the costs for K-12 education and plans to tell lawmakers the “investment we make in our kids today will yield dividends for generations,” according to excerpts released this afternoon. Evers also will call for lawmakers to strive for an economy “that works for all of us” and will tell them he expects the L… 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.

Read More »

Dept. of Natural Resources: Seeks comments and data to assess surface water quality

Contact: Ashley Beranek, 608-267-9603, Ashley.Beranek@Wisconsin.gov MADISON – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is seeking public assistance to improve evaluation of the state’s surface water quality. Assistance is requested in two forms: guidance comments and water quality data. The submission period for both runs from January 22 to March 1, 2019. Guidance Comments The Wisconsin Consolidated Assessment and Listing Methodology, known as WisCALM, provides guidance to assess surface water quality and trends against standards set by the Clean Water Act. The methodology is updated for each biennial surface water assessment cycle and the current guidance is being updated for the 2020 cycle.

Read More »

Foxconn falls short of hiring goals to qualify for first round of tax credits

Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz says Foxconn failing to qualify for the first round of state tax credits is the latest sign the company is scaling back from its original plans for the Wisconsin plant.   The company wrote in the letter to WEDC CEO Mark Hogan that it remains committed to creating 13,000 jobs in Wisconsin, though “we have adjusted our recruitment and hiring timeline.”   Hintz, a frequent critic of the incentive package, questioned if the company’s past pronouncements were indeed indicative of its plans or more geared toward helping Gov. Scott Walker in his failed re-election bid.

Read More »

WisGOP: Lt. Gov. Barnes spreads fake news about viral confrontation

Contact: Charles Nichols (608) 257-4765 [Madison, WI] – Yesterday, Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes used an MLK Day event to spread fake news about a widely reported-on viral confrontation between a group of high school students and a Native American protester. Despite numerous reports that shed new light on the incident, including the protester changing his story, Barnes still chose to spread misinformation to fit his hyper-partisan agenda. Once again, Barnes is focused more on scoring political points than he is on demonstrating real leadership. Read the full write-up here.

Read More »

Gov. Evers: Excerpts from 2019 State of the State Address

Contact: GovPress@wisconsin.gov or 608-219-7443 MADISON — Below are excerpts from Gov. Tony Evers’ 2019 State of the State Address as prepared for delivery. Gov. Evers will give his address at 7:00 P.M. today in the Assembly Chambers of the Wisconsin State Capitol: … Before we get started, I also want to recognize someone else who’s here with us tonight. He’s a Wisconsin institution and embodies both the soul of our campus and the spirit of our state, marching band director and director of bands at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dr. Mike Leckrone. … We are a state forged by the Wisconsin Idea–the

Read More »

Senate approves session rules

Senate Republicans today voted along party lines to approve new rules for the chambers, including a provision banning anyone in the gallery from recording the proceedings. Republicans shot down five Dem proposals to add new rules, including one that would’ve allowed the Senate to again consider an appointment after it’s

Read More »

WisPolitics Midday: Jan. 22, 2019

In today’s WisPolitics Midday update: Assembly Republicans to introduce an amendment to the Pre-Existing Conditions bill. Gov Evers to deliver his first State of the State address.

Read More »

Voces de la Frontera: Trump’s “offer” is no offer at all

Contact: Sam Singleton-Freeman, sfreeman@vdlf.org, 414-469-9206 MILWAUKEE – Late Monday night, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell published the text of a bill that he says he will put forward for a vote in the Senate later this week. Instead of the restoration of DACA protections for immigrant youth and TPS protections for refugee families that

Read More »

Dept. of Natural Resources: Seeks comments and data to assess surface water quality

Contact: Ashley Beranek, 608-267-9603, Ashley.Beranek@Wisconsin.gov MADISON – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is seeking public assistance to improve evaluation of the state’s surface water quality. Assistance is requested in two forms: guidance comments and water quality data. The submission period for both runs from January 22 to March 1, 2019. Guidance

Read More »

WisGOP: Lt. Gov. Barnes spreads fake news about viral confrontation

Contact: Charles Nichols (608) 257-4765 [Madison, WI] – Yesterday, Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes used an MLK Day event to spread fake news about a widely reported-on viral confrontation between a group of high school students and a Native American protester. Despite numerous reports that shed new light on the incident,

Read More »

Gov. Evers: Excerpts from 2019 State of the State Address

Contact: GovPress@wisconsin.gov or 608-219-7443 MADISON — Below are excerpts from Gov. Tony Evers’ 2019 State of the State Address as prepared for delivery. Gov. Evers will give his address at 7:00 P.M. today in the Assembly Chambers of the Wisconsin State Capitol: … Before we get started, I also want to recognize

Read More »