MADISON, Wis.— The University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents today approved waiving electronic application fees at 10 of its 13 universities for approximately the next two years. The no-cost EApp will save students $25 per application, providing them economic relief amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It is also estimated that the fee waiver will lead to increased applications at UW System universities. The new policy would take effect immediately at all universities except UW-Eau Claire, UW-La Crosse, and UW-Madison, although those universities would be able to waive fees if students meet financial hardship criteria. The Board of Regents vote comes

FORT ATKINSON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) is investigating an officer involved death (OID) near Fort Atkinson, Wis. that occurred on the afternoon of Wednesday, December 9, 2020. At approximately 12:30 pm, Wisconsin State Patrol attempted a traffic stop on Highway 26 between Watertown and Johnson Creek. One driver and one passenger were inside the vehicle. The vehicle stopped for a short time, and the only passenger fled the vehicle, then the vehicle fled the scene. The passenger was later apprehended. Wisconsin State Patrol pursued the vehicle. While pursuing, the individual inside

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and her colleagues, led by Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), are urging Congressional leaders to immediately pass the bipartisan RESTAURANTS Act, legislation that establishes the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) to provide local Wisconsin restaurateurs with funding to rehire workers and deal with the long-term ramifications of COVID-19. “For the second time this year, restaurants and bars are having to limit operations or close their doors completely, raising concerns about their ability to survive the long winter ahead. They need quick relief to keep their workers employed and hold onto their businesses. Congress needs to act

Madison, WI – There’s still time to enroll in health insurance at HealthCare.gov, but the deadline is rapidly approaching. December 15th is the last day people can enroll in comprehensive health insurance for 2021. People who miss that deadline risk being uninsured for all of 2021. “More than 69,000 Wisconsinites have already enrolled,” said William Parke-Sutherland, who specializes in health policy at Kids Forward. “There’s still time for people to sign up, but anyone who needs health insurance should visit HealthCare.gov today. Don’t delay.” Health insurance is more affordable than many people think. In Wisconsin, 62 percent of current marketplace

(MADISON, WI – DECEMBER) Construction trade association groups thank Gov. Tony Evers and the members of the Joint Enforcement Task Force on Payroll Fraud and Worker Misclassification for advancing recommendations from the Task Force’s recent study analyzing the significant economic impact caused by payroll fraud in Wisconsin. Findings, and the recommended solutions, cover a wide range of policy proposals. Still, all seek to tackle the overarching challenge of preventing the more than $200,000,000 in tax fraud and evasion that happens in Wisconsin every year. “Payroll fraud involves non-payment or significant underpayment of taxes and required insurance. These illegal practices have

Madison, Wis. — Spiking COVID-19 cases are compromising Wisconsin’s reopening plan, and PETA is calling on the governor and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services to cut cruel animal experiments statewide—starting with tests on animals  whom institutions deemed to be non-essential in response to the pandemic—and protect human health by having staff not come into laboratories to conduct worthless experiments. In its letter, PETA points out that during the initial COVID-19 shutdown, universities in Wisconsin issued guidance deeming many of their experiments—and the animals used in them—extraneous, which resulted in the apparent euthanasia of numerous animals in their laboratories, including the

MADISON – Gov. Tony Evers’ Joint Enforcement Task Force on Payroll Fraud and Worker Misclassification met today to discuss implementation of its 2020 recommendations and make plans for the year ahead. The Task Force released its first report earlier this year, which included several recommendations to better protect Wisconsin workers and businesses that follow the law against the practice of misclassifying workers and committing payroll fraud. The recommendations included creating a coordinated inter-agency enforcement team and a contractor registration program, among others. The Department of Workforce Development (DWD) expressed its support and commitment to advancing the recommendations in its budget request submitted to the

Former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Janine Geske — appointed to the bench by former Republican Governor Tommy Thompson — outlined in a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel op-ed the importance of the Court to protect the voices of Wisconsin voters. Geske called President Trump’s lawsuits to overturn the election “a dangerous attempt to subvert the law” and disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of Wisconsin voters in just two counties. Read more below: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Opinion: Wisconsin Supreme Court should protect the voices of Badger state voters The people of Wisconsin — and America — spoke on Nov. 3 and elected Joe Biden as

Below are comments submitted to the joint state legislative committees holding a hearing today from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM reviewing the results of the November 3, 2020 election. The committee chairs limited testimony to invitees only, but we are making public our comments that we submitted to the legislators. You can watch (although not participate) in this “public” hearing by going here: https://wiseye.org/live/ ————————– December 10, 2020 To: Senator Kathleen Bernier, Chair, Committee on Elections, Ethics and Rural Issues Senator Alberta Darling, Vice-Chair, Committee on Elections, Ethics and Rural Issues Senator Mark Miller, Senator Jeff Smith, Senator Duey Stroebel

MILWAUKEE – Milwaukee County Clerk George Christenson released a statement Thursday urging Legislative Republicans to prioritize public health over politically motivated hearings, scheduled for Friday, about vague allegations of election fraud. “As I have said previously, the recount of the 2020 election demonstrated that elections in Milwaukee County and Dane County are fair, transparent, accurate and secure. Our elections are a great example of Wisconsin’s proud tradition of good, honest government. “While our elections are secure, the health and safety of every Wisconsinite is not. “Legislative Republicans have failed to develop a plan to protect the public from the ravages of

Madison, WI – State Representative Ron Tusler (R-Harrison), Chairman of the Assembly Committee on Campaigns and Elections released the following names of individuals who have been invited to testify at Friday’s hearing: Dan O’Donnell Tom Sylke Ken Dragotta Dean Knudson Michael Gableman Erick Kaardal Bob Spindell Nathan Pease Scott McDonald Michael Dean Rick Baas Concerned Wisconsin Residents

“I am so pleased that the Scarlett Sunshine Act is that much closer to becoming law. Too many families know the pain of unexpectedly losing a child. My bill takes a needed step towards addressing the heartache families feel and helping save the lives of precious children.” The bill would provide grants to states, municipalities, and nonprofits to for a number of activities to better understand why these deaths happen and to prevent them, including to help improve data collection, to support best practices to reduce sleep-related infant deaths; and death scene investigations for deaths categorized as Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood

Audio file of address. MADISON — Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes today delivered the Democratic Radio Address on the release of the Governor’s Task Force on Climate Change Report, which the task force released yesterday after a year of meetings and listening sessions. Hi everybody, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes here. This week, I’m proud to announce that the Governor’s Task Force on Climate Change has released its full report including over 50 strategies for Wisconsin to begin addressing the climate crisis.    Climate change is having an impact on everyone in our state—whether it be illness caused by air pollution, loss of