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Bill requires anti-bullying policy

October 21, 2009 By

The state Senate has passed legislation which would require school districts in Wisconsin to have develop plans to deal with bullying. “Too often, parents and teachers say bullying gets swept under the rug,” said Milwaukee Democrat Spencer Coggs. “When bullying is ignored we all lose.” Coggs began working the issue after a Milwaukee television station showed him videotape of a youngster being beaten at a school in his district. The bill would require the state Department of Public Instruction develop a model school policy on bullying, including reporting and investigation.

AUDIO: Senator Spencer Coggs (:13 MP3)

Sometimes victims lose their lives. Elkhorn Republican Neal Kedzie became involved in the issue after a teenager in his district was driven to suicide as the result of school bullying. “This (legislation) is not what some people try to frame as us being a nanny state,” said Kedzie. “This has gone way beyond skipping in front of some other child on the lunch line, taking her lunch money, pulling little girls’ pigtails.” Kedzie noted that the widespread use of social networking websites by students has led to “cyber bullying.” [Read more...]

Filed Under: Education, Politics & Government

Feingold targets government waste

October 21, 2009 By

U.S. Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) is rolling out a major initiative aimed at cutting government waste.

The legislation proposes over 40 reforms and cuts to spending by the federal government, which Senator Feingold says would help save American taxpayers nearly half trillion dollars over the next decade.

Feingold says the plan would accomplish that goal in a variety of ways, such as stopping earmark abuse, giving the president a line-item veto, and ending automatic pay raises for members of Congress.

Feingold says it would also cut several wasteful programs that are funded by taxpayers and return that money to the treasury. Some of the examples he cites include $244 billion in leftover TARP funding, $4 billion by cancelling the C-17 aircraft program, and savings of $30 million by ending radio and TV broadcasts directed towards Cuba.

The Wisconsin Democrat admits the proposal may be a little ambitious, since many of the programs are firmly entrenched in the system. However, he’s also vowing to continue looking for other wasteful spending programs which he plans to add to the package.

Feingold says lawmakers need to get serious about controlling spending now.

AUDIO: Andrew Beckett reports (MP3 :58)

Filed Under: Politics & Government

Doyle supports DNA samples at felony arrests

October 21, 2009 By

Governor Jim Doyle is lining up behind a proposal to change the way DNA samples are collected by law enforcement. Recent weeks have seen the revelation of thousands of DNA samples from convicted felons are missing from a state database. The governor says it makes sense for DNA collection to take place when individuals are arrested for felonies. “They take fingerprints, they take the photograph, they take the other basic information, and I think it just makes sense, that that’s the time that DNA is collected,” said Doyle.

Doyle is throwing his support behind the bill authored by Senator Sheila Harsdorf and Representative Ann Hraychuck. “It insures that everyone who is charged with a felony, everyone who is arrested for a felony, has their DNA swab submitted to the databank,” said Hraychuck, adding that she and Harsdorf have been working on the proposal for several months.

 AUDIO: Bob Hague reports (1:10 MP3)

Doyle and Hraychuck said taking DNA samples at the time of felony arrest will initially put more costs on local law enforcement agencies, but eventually save the state money. Hraychuck, a Democrat with an extensive law enforcement background, said the sampling could potentially save lives, and help to exonerate those who’ve been found guilty of crimes they didn’t commit. Doyle, responding to civil liberties concerns, said DNA samples of those who are found not guilty will be expunged from the state database, and that the samples will not be used for any other purposes.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, Politics & Government
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