Co-chairs: Finance will not meet Thursday

The Joint Finance Committee will not meet tomorrow, according to the offices of the co-chairs. It’s the second planned meeting this week the committee has canceled amid a continuing standoff between Assembly and Senate Republicans on education funding, transportation and

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Lawmakers debate ‘constitutional carry’ bill

Democrats and school advocates in a public hearing Wednesday blasted a “constitutional carry” bill, saying repeal of the state’s school gun-free zone law would endanger students’ safety. But gun rights advocates and GOP backers defended the measure, arguing it simplifies

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GOP campus speech bill passes Assembly committee

A GOP-backed campus free speech bill passed the Assembly higher ed committee Tuesday, after a few heated debates and over Dem objections it would stifle the exchange of ideas at Wisconsin colleges. The bill advanced with a key amendment from

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Cow manure, faulty septic systems taint wells in Kewaunee Co.

New results from a study on the contamination of private wells in Kewaunee County leaves stakeholders hopeful for stronger rules to protect drinking water. They also include an estimate of how many people are getting sick from their well water, a result that activists such as Amber Meyer Smith, of

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Co-chairs: Finance will not meet Thursday

The Joint Finance Committee will not meet tomorrow, according to the offices of the co-chairs. It’s the second planned meeting this week the committee has canceled amid a continuing standoff between Assembly and Senate Republicans on education funding, transportation and other issues…. Please log in to access subscriber content. If

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JFC action on budget stalls amid GOP division over K-12 funding

Speaker Robin Vos vowed Tuesday his caucus would not rubber stamp Scott Walker’s budget, while the guv and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald dismissed the Assembly GOP’s K-12 proposal as a non-starter. Backed by members of his caucus, Vos touted the $580 million Assembly GOP plan as a fairer approach

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WisPolitics.com: Dem conventioneers prefer Vinehout for governor

MIDDLETON — More than a third of Democratic Party of Wisconsin conventioneers voting in a WisPolitics.com straw poll favored state Sen. Kathleen Vinehout for the party’s 2018 gubernatorial nomination. Vinehout, of Alma, was favored by 184, or 38 percent, of the 489 delegates, alternates and registered guests who voted in

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Duckworth, Baldwin rally state Dems; party chair election today

U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth called on state Dem party activists at their state convention Friday to “unify behind a new vision for the future.” Duckworth, D-Ill., emphasized unity among all Americans in her speech, telling the crowd in the last address of the night that U.S. citizens “will never give

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Lawmakers debate ‘constitutional carry’ bill

Democrats and school advocates in a public hearing Wednesday blasted a “constitutional carry” bill, saying repeal of the state’s school gun-free zone law would endanger students’ safety. But gun rights advocates and GOP backers defended the measure, arguing it simplifies state law while protecting otherwise law-abiding gun owners from receiving

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GOP campus speech bill passes Assembly committee

A GOP-backed campus free speech bill passed the Assembly higher ed committee Tuesday, after a few heated debates and over Dem objections it would stifle the exchange of ideas at Wisconsin colleges. The bill advanced with a key amendment from bill co-author Rep. Jesse Kremer, R-Kewaskum, which sought to address

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Bill to eliminate personal property tax sees support at public hearing

A bill that would eliminate the state’s personal property tax starting next year was largely supported Wednesday in a public hearing, where backers touted it as a business-friendly measure that would remove unnecessary burdens. But Dems on the Senate committee worried the funds wouldn’t be completely backfilled by state aid,

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New UW-Madison public policy center to be named after Thompson

Wisconsin Republicans Tuesday announced plans for a center at UW-Madison named after former Gov. Tommy Thompson, whose tenure was highlighted at an all-day symposium at the Capitol. They said the center would foster research into public policy and bring speakers to System campuses from diverse viewpoints. Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester,

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