
Joint Finance convenes to begin final budget push
The Joint Finance Committee convened shortly after 10:15 p.m. to begin voting again on areas of the state budget, more than 12 hours after its originally scheduled start time.
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The Joint Finance Committee convened shortly after 10:15 p.m. to begin voting again on areas of the state budget, more than 12 hours after its originally scheduled start time.
TOP STORIES Businessmen Michels, Hovde considering return to politics with runs for WI governor… [RPW Chair Schimming] doubted Michels would get in the race: “I haven’t gotten any indication that he is (running).” … wouldn’t be surprised if Hovde runs
From WisPolitics … — The Joint Finance Committee is scheduled to begin its final push on the state budget with GOP legislative leaders hoping to finish work on the document by the end of next week. A spokesperson for Tony
From WisPolitics … — The Joint Finance Committee will vote tomorrow on a request from the Department of Public Instruction to release $49.7 million to fund a literacy package, days ahead of the money lapsing to the general fund without

The Joint Finance Committee will meet tomorrow to restart its work on the state budget with an agenda that includes more than 50 topics, ranging from the UW system to Transportation.
TOP STORIES Supreme Court refuses challenges to the state’s congressional district boundaries… [unanimous] decisions, made without explanation [rejected suits] from the Elias Law Group, which represents Democratic groups and candidates, and … on behalf of voters by Campaign Legal Center.
From WisPolitics … — Republicans are hailing a unanimous decision by the state Supreme Court to reject two lawsuits asking the justices to redraw Wisconsin’s congressional map ahead of the 2026 election. The requests received national attention with control of
From WisPolitics … — Speaker Robin Vos told WisPolitics he’s optimistic lawmakers will wrap up the budget by the end of next week after Assembly and Senate Republicans met in a joint caucus today. Budget talks broke off last week
TOP STORIES Supreme Court sides with Republican Legislature in fight with governor… [unanimously] ruled that Evers improperly used his partial veto on a [science of reading] bill … said the budget committee can legally put money into an emergency fund

News travels at lightning speed these days, but we all need to slow down and think about what we’re reading.
From WisPolitics … — A member of the state GOP’s Executive Committee wrote in an email obtained by WisPolitics that he had been assured by the party’s first vice chair that there would be no further attempts to remove Chair
From WisPolitics … — GOP Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he spoke with Dem Gov. Tony Evers this morning about state budget talks after the Senate stepped away from the negotiations last week. “So we’re staying in regular communication, and

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said he spoke with Gov. Tony Evers this morning about negotiations on the state budget after the Senate stepped away from bipartisan budget talks last week.
TOP STORIES Wisconsin Supreme Court delivers win for environmentalists in fight over ‘forever chemicals’… [5-2 Ziegler, Bradley] ruled [DNR under Spills Law]] can force landowners to clean up emerging pollutants such as PFAS before they are officially designated as hazardous

The state Supreme Court today ruled that the DNR doesn’t have to identify PFAS and other contaminants as hazardous materials before responsible parties must take steps to clean up the pollution. In the 5-2 decision, the court ruled the agency
From WisPolitics … — The Assembly meets today to take up several bills, including measures related to elections, judicial security and nuclear power. One bill would create a process for candidates who have suspended their campaigns to opt out of
From WisPolitics … — UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin today directed schools and colleges to reduce their base budgets by 5% for fiscal year 2025-26, citing uncertainty at the federal and state levels. Mnookin wrote in a communication to faculty and
TOP STORIES To scuttle Evers’ partial-veto authority, Republicans push legislation with no funding… 15 such bills this session … bills could be used to incentivize Democratic votes for the budget, or to ensure that Republicans can control funding for programs
From WisPolitics … — Chief Justice Ann Walsh Bradley, who will retire when her term ends next month, says politicization and the record spending in recent state Supreme Court races is a danger to the future of the court. “It’s
Subscribers: We are sending this PM Update today instead of the usual REPORT, which will return next week. Thank you for subscribing! From WisPolitics … — The office of Assembly Majority Leader Tyler August says a review found no issue

The Joint Finance Committee convened shortly after 10:15 p.m. to begin voting again on areas of the state budget, more than 12 hours after its originally scheduled start time.
TOP STORIES Businessmen Michels, Hovde considering return to politics with runs for WI governor… [RPW Chair Schimming] doubted Michels would get in the race: “I haven’t gotten any indication that he is (running).” … wouldn’t be surprised if Hovde runs … “He’s got the benefit of time because now he
From WisPolitics … — The Joint Finance Committee is scheduled to begin its final push on the state budget with GOP legislative leaders hoping to finish work on the document by the end of next week. A spokesperson for Tony Evers said there was no deal between GOP lawmakers and
From WisPolitics … — The Joint Finance Committee will vote tomorrow on a request from the Department of Public Instruction to release $49.7 million to fund a literacy package, days ahead of the money lapsing to the general fund without committee action. The committee originally received the request on March

The Joint Finance Committee will meet tomorrow to restart its work on the state budget with an agenda that includes more than 50 topics, ranging from the UW system to Transportation.
TOP STORIES Supreme Court refuses challenges to the state’s congressional district boundaries… [unanimous] decisions, made without explanation [rejected suits] from the Elias Law Group, which represents Democratic groups and candidates, and … on behalf of voters by Campaign Legal Center. … the second [rejection] in as many years. Suits hoped
From WisPolitics … — Republicans are hailing a unanimous decision by the state Supreme Court to reject two lawsuits asking the justices to redraw Wisconsin’s congressional map ahead of the 2026 election. The requests received national attention with control of the narrowly divided House at stake next fall. That’s particularly
From WisPolitics … — Speaker Robin Vos told WisPolitics he’s optimistic lawmakers will wrap up the budget by the end of next week after Assembly and Senate Republicans met in a joint caucus today. Budget talks broke off last week after Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, said his caucus
TOP STORIES Supreme Court sides with Republican Legislature in fight with governor… [unanimously] ruled that Evers improperly used his partial veto on a [science of reading] bill … said the budget committee can legally put money into an emergency fund to be distributed later. [as it did] with the $50

News travels at lightning speed these days, but we all need to slow down and think about what we’re reading.
From WisPolitics … — A member of the state GOP’s Executive Committee wrote in an email obtained by WisPolitics that he had been assured by the party’s first vice chair that there would be no further attempts to remove Chair Brian Schimming. Meanwhile, a former county chair is urging an
From WisPolitics … — GOP Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he spoke with Dem Gov. Tony Evers this morning about state budget talks after the Senate stepped away from the negotiations last week. “So we’re staying in regular communication, and we continue to work through it. I think the most

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said he spoke with Gov. Tony Evers this morning about negotiations on the state budget after the Senate stepped away from bipartisan budget talks last week.
TOP STORIES Wisconsin Supreme Court delivers win for environmentalists in fight over ‘forever chemicals’… [5-2 Ziegler, Bradley] ruled [DNR under Spills Law]] can force landowners to clean up emerging pollutants such as PFAS before they are officially designated as hazardous substances. …. [a defeat for plaintiffs WMC. Reviews PFAS, where

The state Supreme Court today ruled that the DNR doesn’t have to identify PFAS and other contaminants as hazardous materials before responsible parties must take steps to clean up the pollution. In the 5-2 decision, the court ruled the agency doesn’t need to promulgate rules identifying every substance, including its
From WisPolitics … — The Assembly meets today to take up several bills, including measures related to elections, judicial security and nuclear power. One bill would create a process for candidates who have suspended their campaigns to opt out of appearing on the ballot. AB 35 was introduced after Robert
From WisPolitics … — UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin today directed schools and colleges to reduce their base budgets by 5% for fiscal year 2025-26, citing uncertainty at the federal and state levels. Mnookin wrote in a communication to faculty and staff that changes in how much the federal government will
TOP STORIES To scuttle Evers’ partial-veto authority, Republicans push legislation with no funding… 15 such bills this session … bills could be used to incentivize Democratic votes for the budget, or to ensure that Republicans can control funding for programs that are widely popular, said [WPF’s] Byrnes … This year
From WisPolitics … — Chief Justice Ann Walsh Bradley, who will retire when her term ends next month, says politicization and the record spending in recent state Supreme Court races is a danger to the future of the court. “It’s dangerous to the court,” Walsh Bradley said on WISN 12’s
Subscribers: We are sending this PM Update today instead of the usual REPORT, which will return next week. Thank you for subscribing! From WisPolitics … — The office of Assembly Majority Leader Tyler August says a review found no issue in the Assembly’s voting system after Dem lawmakers raised concerns