
Rewind: Budget clash over K-12, property taxes; Dem convo highlights
WisconsinEye Senior Producer Steve Walters and WisPolitics.com editor JR Ross discuss the big stories of the week as they relate to state government.
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WisconsinEye Senior Producer Steve Walters and WisPolitics.com editor JR Ross discuss the big stories of the week as they relate to state government.
… Please log in to access subscriber content. If you don’t have a subscription, please contact schmies@wispolitics.com for subscription options on the WisPolitics-State Affairs platform, which is the new home for WisPolitics subscriber products. Username or E-mail Password * Remember Me

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,

The state Department of Health Services Wednesday asked the Trump administration for permission to add drug screenings, premiums and time limits for childless adults on Medicaid. DHS submitted its request with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, whose leadership
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

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

Republican divisions over the state budget took a Monday today as Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald raised the prospect of his house doing its own version of the document. Bypassing the JFC would be unprecedented in the 106-year history of
The Joint Finance Committee is dropping plans to meet tomorrow with Assembly and Senate Republicans hitting an impasse on major pieces remaining in the budget such as K-12 funding, transportation and taxes, according to the offices of the co-chairs. JFC
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

Dem Chair Martha Laning, fresh off her re-election, said party activists gave her another two years at the helm because they’re “seeing real change happening” with the ground game she’s building in Wisconsin. The party suffered historic losses in 2016,
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
Outagamie County Exec Tom Nelson, coming off a 25-point loss for the 8th CD last year, isn’t ruling out anything for 2018. Nelson has been regularly sending fundraising appeals through his email list, catching the attention of some insiders on

WisconsinEyeSenior Producer Steve Walters and WisPolitics.com editor JR Ross discussed the big stories of the week as they relate to state government.
The four candidates for state Democratic Party chair all have different views on how the party should be organized coming off of a crushing 2016 general election. While they differ on whether the state should employ a bottom-up versus top-down

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

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

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says he’s confident an agreement can be reached on the transportation budget, but the end result may be neither side getting what it wants. “The agreement might not be what either of us want,” Vos said

Two potential Dem guv candidates will have hospitality suites at next weekend’s state convention, but none of them will have a speaking spot. State Dem spokesman Brandon Weathersby said the party decided there were too many potential candidates and not

WisconsinEye Senior Producer Steve Walters and WisPolitics.com Editor JR Ross looked back on the week in politics in Wisconsin.

The Joint Finance Committee Thursday green-lighted Gov. Scott Walker’s proposal to drug test Medicaid recipients, adopting a GOP motion that also left intact many of the other changes to both Medicaid and food stamps the guv was pushing for. In

WisconsinEye Senior Producer Steve Walters and WisPolitics.com editor JR Ross discuss the big stories of the week as they relate to state government.
… Please log in to access subscriber content. If you don’t have a subscription, please contact schmies@wispolitics.com for subscription options on the WisPolitics-State Affairs platform, which is the new home for WisPolitics subscriber products. Username or E-mail Password * Remember Me Forgot Password

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

The state Department of Health Services Wednesday asked the Trump administration for permission to add drug screenings, premiums and time limits for childless adults on Medicaid. DHS submitted its request with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, whose leadership has said they’d like to give states more flexibility on
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

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

Republican divisions over the state budget took a Monday today as Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald raised the prospect of his house doing its own version of the document. Bypassing the JFC would be unprecedented in the 106-year history of the committee, according to Legislative Fiscal Bureau Director Bob Lang.
The Joint Finance Committee is dropping plans to meet tomorrow with Assembly and Senate Republicans hitting an impasse on major pieces remaining in the budget such as K-12 funding, transportation and taxes, according to the offices of the co-chairs. JFC had planned to meet Tuesday and Thursday, and Co-chair Alberta
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

Dem Chair Martha Laning, fresh off her re-election, said party activists gave her another two years at the helm because they’re “seeing real change happening” with the ground game she’s building in Wisconsin. The party suffered historic losses in 2016, losing the state’s electoral votes in a presidential race for
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
Outagamie County Exec Tom Nelson, coming off a 25-point loss for the 8th CD last year, isn’t ruling out anything for 2018. Nelson has been regularly sending fundraising appeals through his email list, catching the attention of some insiders on whether he’s planning a bid next year. He insisted in

WisconsinEyeSenior Producer Steve Walters and WisPolitics.com editor JR Ross discussed the big stories of the week as they relate to state government.
The four candidates for state Democratic Party chair all have different views on how the party should be organized coming off of a crushing 2016 general election. While they differ on whether the state should employ a bottom-up versus top-down approach, or some kind of mix, they all agree that

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

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

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says he’s confident an agreement can be reached on the transportation budget, but the end result may be neither side getting what it wants. “The agreement might not be what either of us want,” Vos said on Sunday’s “Upfront with Mike Gousha,” which is produced in

Two potential Dem guv candidates will have hospitality suites at next weekend’s state convention, but none of them will have a speaking spot. State Dem spokesman Brandon Weathersby said the party decided there were too many potential candidates and not enough time to have them all address the convention. So

WisconsinEye Senior Producer Steve Walters and WisPolitics.com Editor JR Ross looked back on the week in politics in Wisconsin.

The Joint Finance Committee Thursday green-lighted Gov. Scott Walker’s proposal to drug test Medicaid recipients, adopting a GOP motion that also left intact many of the other changes to both Medicaid and food stamps the guv was pushing for. In addition to making Wisconsin the first state to require certain