On April 9, The Natural Resources Board approved starting a new rulemaking effort to establish groundwater standards for six PFAS compounds, following an earlier attempt initiated in fall 2022 to regulate four PFAS at levels as low as 4 parts per trillion (ppt). The previous proposal stalled because its estimated implementation and compliance costs exceeded […]
Natural Resources Board Restarts Rulemaking for PFAS Groundwater Standards
Date Fri, Apr. 18, 2025 - 8:57am By Hamilton
Child Care Groups Hold Advocacy Day
Date Fri, Apr. 18, 2025 - 8:46am By Hamilton
Earlier this week, the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association (WECA), in conjunction with Raising Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Head Start Association, hosted its Advocacy Day in Madison. Over 350 child care educators and administrators, Head Start leaders, parents, and business owners gathered to hear from policymakers about the ongoing discussions for the 2025-27 state budget. Following […]
Audit and Public Hearing on DEI Initiatives at UW System
Date Thu, Apr. 17, 2025 - 3:10pm By Hamilton
Last Friday, the Legislative Audit Bureau delivered an audit to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee which reviewed certain diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) activities at the University of Wisconsin system and select state agencies. The audit was requested by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee last May and found that certain Wisconsin state agencies and the […]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Upholds “400-Year” Veto
Date Thu, Apr. 17, 2025 - 3:06pm By Hamilton
Friday, April 18, the Wisconsin Supreme Court in a 4-3 decision upheld Gov. Tony Evers’ 2023 partial veto that extended annual school funding increases until the year 2425 by striking numerals and punctuation in the budget bill. The GOP-controlled legislature had passed a two-year increase in schools aids. Gov. Evers used his partial veto authority to, […]
2025-27 Capital Budget Sent to JFC with No Recommendation
Date Thu, Mar. 27, 2025 - 4:04pm By Hamilton
This Tuesday, the State Building Commission (SBC) convened to review Governor Ever’s 2025-27 Capital Budget. In the end, the commission deadlocked 4-4 on the Governor’s plan and are now sending the $4.1 billion proposal to the Joint Finance Committee with no recommendation. This is the fourth consecutive biennium the SBC has deadlocked on the capital […]
JFC Hearings Scheduled for April, but Budget Delays Possible
Date Thu, Mar. 27, 2025 - 2:24pm By Hamilton
In a typical state budget cycle, April marks the end of the Joint Finance Committee’s (JFC) traveling public hearings, followed by agency heads testifying on their respective budgets. By the end of the month, the committee usually begins taking up portions of the state budget to meet the June 30 deadline. But these are not […]
Wisconsin’s Key Races: Supreme Court and DPI Elections
Date Thu, Mar. 27, 2025 - 2:18pm By Hamilton
Control of State Supreme Court Up for Grabs For those hoping to tune out politics for a bit after the ad barrage that happened during the Fall of 2024, sorry, you are out of luck. Wisconsin’s race for the State Supreme Court has become a proxy war for Republicans and Democrats on a national scale. […]
Key Policy Divides Emerge Early in Wisconsin Budget Debate
Date Thu, Mar. 6, 2025 - 4:01pm By Hamilton
Now that the dust has settled and the legislature has begun to dissect the Governor’s 2025-27 state budget, Republican legislators are ready to start over and craft their own budget. Before that, however, the majority leaders plan to introduce their own tax relief proposal using the state’s surplus. Assembly Majority Leader Tyler August has said […]
Marquette University Poll Released
Date Thu, Mar. 6, 2025 - 4:00pm By Hamilton
April 1st Spring Elections According to the poll, voters are still mostly unfamiliar with candidates running for both the Wisconsin Supreme Court and State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Among registered voters, 38 percent don’t have an opinion of former Attorney General and current Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Brad Schimel and 58 percent don’t have […]
Income Tax Cuts over the Last Decade have Resulted in Significant Tax Relief
Date Thu, Mar. 6, 2025 - 3:58pm By Hamilton
In Late February, Forward Analytics released a report and press release highlighting how income tax cuts from 2012-2023 have resulted in nearly $7 billion in tax relief for Wisconsin Taxpayers. According to the report, the groups that saw the largest cuts in percentage terms were single filers with incomes under $48,000 and married-joint filers with incomes less […]