Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — After plateauing at the start of the month, Wisconsin’s seven-day average for daily confirmed cases is rising. After reporting 537 new COVID-19 cases today, the seven-day average rose to the highest it’s been in nearly three weeks — 459 cases per day.

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Wisconsin’s state and local governments, along with its educational institutions, could receive $8.7 billion from the latest federal COVID-19 stimulus bill, according to an estimate from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. A new LFB memo summarized the package’s wide-ranging impact on programs from

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu told WisPolitics.com this afternoon Senate Republicans won’t extend the suspension of a one-week waiting period so laid off Wisconsinites can begin collecting unemployment right away. The Oostburg Republican said his caucus is hearing from businesses around the

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Gov. Tony Evers says better data on COVID-19 infections and deaths in nursing homes would not have changed precautions or vaccine rollout plans. The Evers administration has been facing GOP criticism for a lag in accurately reporting COVID-19 infection and death numbers

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — DHS Deputy Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk said today she expects enough COVID-19 vaccine supply to achieve herd immunity by the end of June, but that doesn’t mean all Wisconsinites will want a shot. Herd immunity would need about 80 percent of

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — With the April 6 election looming, a Waukesha businessman has asked the state Supreme Court to bar local clerks from filling in missing information on absentee ballot envelopes. But filing deadlines the justices issued today make it unlikely the court will rule

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — People age 16 and older with certain medical conditions will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine shot beginning Monday, a week sooner than expected, Gov. Tony Evers announced today. Originally, the group’s vaccine eligibility was slated to begin March 29. The date

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Wisconsin is getting federal support for a mass COVID-19 vaccination site at the Wisconsin Center in Milwaukee, Gov. Tony Evers says. FEMA will coordinate staffing support to administer the COVID-19 vaccine. Wisconsin has committed to providing at least 7,000 weekly vaccine doses

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore says the House police reform bill named after George Floyd will have a hard time making it through the Senate, but she said the measure will “not be in Mitch McConnell’s graveyard.” The Milwaukee Dem during a WisPolitics.com-Milwaukee

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — The Joint Finance Committee will hit three Wisconsin cities for in-person public hearings on Gov. Tony Evers’ budget with a fourth that will be virtual as lawmakers begin the process of reviewing the two-year plan. The first public hearing will be April

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — New language in the pandemic relief bill would likely mean about 195,000 fewer Wisconsin filers getting $1,400 relief checks, according to figures from the state Department of Revenue. Still, more than 3.2 million filers are in line for the stimulus money under

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — The U.S. Supreme Court today declined, without comment, to hear former President Trump’s appeal of a 7th Circuit ruling rejecting his attempt to overturn Wisconsin’s election results both on the merits and because it was filed too late. The suit was the

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — The Legislature’s top Dem leaders in a WisPolitics.com luncheon today voiced support for Gov. Tony Evers’ budget proposals to raise the minimum wage and allow for expanded local sales taxes. Evers’ budget proposes raising the state $7.25 minimum wage in three steps

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said Gov. Tony Evers’ proposal to allow local governments to increase the sales tax through referendums is dead on arrival. Vos, R-Rochester, and Senate Minority Leader Janet Bewley also had an exchange

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Gov. Tony Evers said today he will continue to push for two-thirds funding for public schools despite GOP opposition and that he’ll work to close down some adult state prisons in the future. Evers in a WisPolitics.com virtual luncheon today said he

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — GOP lawmakers today asked Gov. Tony Evers to prioritize schools that have offered in-person instruction with $20.8 million in federal funding that the governor has sole discretion to distribute. It’s the latest attempt by Republicans to place an emphasis on funding schools

Subscribers: We are sending this PM Update today in place of the usual Friday REPORT. The REPORT will return next week. Thank you for subscribing! Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Gov. Tony Evers’ budget doesn’t envision closing the state’s troubled youth prisons in northern Wisconsin until after a new juvenile

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Wisconsinites laid off since Feb. 7 will be able to capture an additional week of unemployment after Gov. Tony Evers today signed the special session bill to overhaul the UI computer system. Still, it remains unclear if the state will qualify for

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — A Senate committee heard testimony today arguing for laws that would protect conservatives’ free speech rights on campuses. The Senate University and Technical Colleges Committee hearing included testimony from a number of professors and college observers. Committee chair Sen. Roger Roth, R-Appleton,

Exclusively for WisPolitics Subscribers From WisPolitics.com … — Assembly lawmakers this afternoon unanimously approved an amended bill that would, among other things, waive a one-week waiting period for unemployment benefits through mid-March and begin the process of overhauling the state’s UI computer system. The bill would also provide businesses with