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Budget panel Republicans cut hundreds of items from Evers’ budget

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Democrats on the legislature’s budget committee are calling Republican cuts to  Governor Tony Evers’ proposed budget “foolish and embarrassing.”

Those comments came after the Joint Finance Committee removed a total of 380 items from the Governor’s budget on Thursday.

Representative Evan Goyke said the cuts would leave a “fiscal hole we will not be able to climb out of.” The Milwaukee Democrat expanded on that, in a YouTube video.

Governor Evers is calling on Wisconsinites to contact their lawmakers to push for items to be reintroduced into the budget, including expansion of Badgercare. “This is an embarrassing decision that will cost Wisconsin for decades to come,” said JFC Democrat, Senator Jon Erpenbach said of the Republican decision to reject federal funding for that.

Other provisions axed by the Republican majority included legalization of marijuana, and increased spending for education.

“The budget that we’re going to be adopting, I believe is going to be reasonable, responsible and realistic,” Joint Finance Committee co-chair, Senator Howard Marklein said prior to Thursday’s first JFC work session.

“It’s pretty clear the governor’s budget is unworkable, unrealistic and unsustainable,” said co-chair, Representative Mark Born. “No Wisconsin business or family would budget the way the governor has, and legislative Republicans will not either.”

Republicans will be working up a new budget off of base — that is, from current budget signed by Evers two years ago. A completed budget is expected to be ready by June or July, at which time Evers can use his extensive veto authority to modify it.

WRN’s Raymond Neupert contributed to this report

‘Grim milestone’ – Wisconsin surpasses 600,000 COVID-19 cases

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Wisconsin has surpassed 600,000 cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic. Deputy Health Services Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk called it “a grim milestone” on Tuesday.

“As we pass this milestone of 600,000 cases, let us recommit. Recommit to preventing more cases, and more deaths. Recommit to remembering that these numbers represent people, and that this virus results in loss for far too many.”

DHS reported 721 new cases Tuesday, for a seven day average of 633 daily cases and a total of 600,297. There were also 11 deaths recorded, for a total of 6,850.

Willems Van Dijk stressed that vaccination remains the most effective tool to get through the pandemic.

As of Tuesday, 2,021,685 people, or 34.7 percent of the state’s population, have been fully vaccinated, including 75 percent of those 65 and older.

No Mow May may grow on you

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No Mow May is something you may want to consider for your yard this month.  Communities suspend enforcement of long-grass ordinances for the month, That allows owners to promote pollinator-friendly habitat early in the growing season.

“Yeah, it’s kind of like ‘no shave November’ for your yard,” said Mark Konlok, Director of Horticulture at Green Bay Botanical Garden, who explains that bees and other pollinators can really benefit, from leaving it be.

“And when we mow our lawn, if we have weeds and other things like that in there, we cut off all those flowers. Even dandelions are used by these newly emerging insects,” Konlok said.

Appleton adopted No Mow May last year, and is joined this year by De Pere, Fort Atkinson, Fox Crossing, Hortonville, Kaukauna, Oshkosh, Stevens Point and Wausau.

Konlok said that in addition to being good for beneficial insects, No Mow May can encourage us to think about our lawns.

“And start to think about, maybe we should transition some of that lawn to more plants, maybe native plants or things we don’t spend so much resources, time, energy, carbon dioxide, emissions, mowing, and maybe transition our yard to more of a habitat than just a turf grass area.”

When Appleton adopted Now Mow May last year, increases in bee populations and diversity were documented in the yards of participants.

To reach herd immunity goal, every percentage of vaccinated is critical

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Herd immunity to COVID-19 – what does it mean, and how will we know if we’ve gotten there?

“Herd immunity is the concept that by having a large percentage of a population, or your herd, immune to a particular infectious disease, that even within that herd, there can be people who are not immune who are protected who don’t get the illness, because there just aren’t cases of COVID-19 around due to that large immunity rate,” said Dr. Matt Anderson, senior medical director of primary care with UW Health.

“So, even though somebody’s not immune, they’re not really at risk because the disease doesn’t exist in the community through the immunization immunity.”

Experts say the U.S. could reach herd immunity when 70 to 90 percent of the population is vaccinated. “Every extra percentage point that we’re getting vaccinated is fewer cases, fewer hospitalizations, fewer deaths,” Anderson said. “More protection for everybody, including those who are most vulnerable.”

Wisconsin DOJ launches new review of clergy and faith leader abuse

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A new statewide initiative, led by the Wisconsin Department of Justice, will review reports of clergy and faith leader abuse.

Victim advocates including Peter Isely of Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, were on hand for a press conference Tuesday. “I know how difficult it’s going to be for many of you to come forward again,” Isely said “I want you to know, this time is different.”

District Attorneys from counties where Catholic dioceses are headquartered will participate in what AG Josh Kaul calls a “victim-centered” process. “And that’s why it’s so important, that we had people here, who had worked on this issue for years and years, to talk about how this is different from what people may have experienced before, and why it safe for people to report.”

“This is a big moment,” said Milwaukee County DA John Chisholm. “This is a moment when we recognize that we have to wrap out arms around victims of clergy abuse, in the same way that we would wrap our arms around a victim of family violence in Milwaukee.”

While Kaul stressed that the effort is not exclusively focused on the Catholic Church, the review will include the archdioceses of Milwaukee, Madison, La Crosse, Green Bay and Superior.

A spokesman for the Milwaukee archdiocese said they were part of a meeting with Kaul on Monday, and that “the publicity has the potential to re-victimize individuals.

Information can be reported online, at SupportSurvivors.widoj.gov or by calling 1-877-222-2620.

 

Labor activists urge Senate passage of federal Protecting the Right to Organize Act

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At the Capitol in Madison on Monday, advocates for organized labor urged U.S. Senate passage of a bill that would repeal right-to-work laws in all states.

Stephanie Bloomingdale is President of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO. “We are happy that Tammy Baldwin has been a sponsor and a co-sponsor from the very beginning of the Pro Act. But U.S. Senator Ron Johnson has still refused to meet with the Wisconsin AFL-CIO, or anyone else in labor, in terms of talking about the PRO Act,” she said.

“Human rights groups will tell you, we don’t have a right to organize and a right to free association,” said  Robert Kraig, the executive director of Citizen Action of Wisconsin. “And the reason is, workers have to go through hell in order to try to organize. And that’s why there is so little successful organizing, especially against big powerful employers like Wal-Mart and like Amazon.”

Wisconsin Democrat, Senator Tammy Baldwin, is a co-sponsor of the PRO (Protecting the Right to Organize) Act, which has already passed the House.

Bill Franks chairs the Labor & Industry Committee of the NAACP of Dane County. “As we know, right to work typically means right to work for less. That hasn’t changed. Wisconsin passed a right to work law in 2015, signed by then governor Scott Walker.”

The city will pay Brown $750,000 for attorney’s fees and damages, issue a public apology and commit to updating MPD standard operating procedures with a focus on anti-racism and de-escalation.

The PRO Act has already passed the House, but Senate Democrats will need 60 “yes” votes to avoid a filibuster by Republicans.

Evers vetoes Republican bills to allocate federal pandemic relief money

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As expected, Governor Tony Evers on Thursday vetoed a package of Republican legislation that would have directed how the state would allocate $3.2 billion in federal COVID-19 relief money.

The Democratic governor also announced some $420 million of the federal funding coming to Wisconsin will fund a grant program to assist small businesses

“This money has to get out quickly,” Evers said during a press conference at a Wauwatosa small business. “It’s much more easy and direct if it’s not going through a hundred hands in the legislature, versus one administration that has done this several times already.”

The governor said about 84,000 businesses with annual gross revenues between $10,000 and $7 million could qualify, for awards of $5,000. More information on the Wisconsin Tomorrow program will come, after the U.S. Treasury provides more details about how the money is to be used.

“We have to make sure that we move forward, as soon as that money flows into our treasury, that it’s flowing right out to the businesses of our state.”

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and other Republicans said they were disappointed that Evers vetoed their plans on how to spend the federal stimulus funding.

“It’s not surprising, but it is disappointing the governor vetoed these bills because he still hasn’t put forth a plan of his own on how to help Wisconsin with these relief funds,” Vos said in a joint statement. “I’m glad he announced help for small businesses, but where is the rest of the money? Making vague promises in a press release is not a plan and Wisconsin deserves transparency in this decision making process.”

“The governor just sent a clear message to the people of Wisconsin that they will have little to no say in how their federal tax dollars are spent,” said state Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu. “He has, once again, rejected the opportunity to work with legislators on even a basic spending plan. This is not good government.”

State Senate leader slams the door on legalized marijuana in Wisconsin

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There’s no way forward for legalized marijuana of any sort, in the Wisconsin state Senate.

During a WisPolitics virtual event Thursday, Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oosburg) said law enforcement has a lot of concerns – as do employers.

“That it might . . . cause them more problems with people who are high on the job.”

Some Assembly Republicans are willing to consider medical marijuana. Not in the Senate, LeMahieu said. “I don’t think we have support at this point.”

LeMahieu said marijuana should be dealt with at the federal level. “If there’s advantages to it, if it helps out people I have no problem with it, as long as a doctor’s prescribing it,” he said. “But I think that discussion needs to be done at the federal level, and not have some rogue state doing it, without actual science behind it.”

Twenty states, including Minnesota, allow marijuana use for medical purposes. Another 16, including Illinois and Michigan, allow recreational use by adults. Governor Tony Evers proposed legalized medical marijuana in his state budget.

 

J&J pause proof that vaccine oversight is working

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The Wisconsin Department of Health Services has paused administration of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine in Wisconsin.

Deputy Health Services Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk said the pause is proof oversight is working, and will allow vaccine administrators to reach out, regarding extremely rare instances of blood clots associated with J&J vaccine.

“So I hope Wisconsinites can hear those kinds of actions as ways to increase safety, rather than making them more hesitant and fearful,” Willems Van Dijk said.

The DHS action follows recommendations by the CDC and Food & Drug Administration.

“I want to be really clear, this is a pause, not the end of J&J,” Willems Van Dijk said.
There were six cases of a rare and severe type of blood clot forming, out of the nearly seven million doses of the vaccine so far administered.

Willems Van Dijk said the pause comes as Wisconsin was expecting only 3,000 thousand doses of the J&J vaccine next week, while it maintains about 150,000 doses of Pfizer and Moderna. “Ninety six percent of the vaccines given in Wisconsin, have been Pfizer or Moderna doses,” she said.

Wisconsin public health officials urge continued caution as COVID-19 variants drive an increase in cases

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Wisconsin is “moving in the right direction,” with more than 3,250,000 COVID-19 vaccines having been administered — but state public health officials sounded a note of caution on Wednesday, amid an increase in cases driven by new coronavirus variants.

Deputy Health Services Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk said 35 percent of the state has gotten at least one dose of the vaccine, and just under 22 percent have completed the vaccine series.  She said there is “expanded eligibility, more vaccinators on board, more shots in arms. And we continue to make progress towards our goal of community immunity.”

Until then, Willems Van Dijk urged people not to back off on precautions. “The answer to getting through to the other side of this pandemic is not vaccines or masks, it’s vaccines and masks.”

Dr. Ryan Westergaard, the state’s Chief Medical Officer, said the CDC has identified five COVID-19 variants in the U.S.

“All five of these strains are currently in Wisconsin, and the proportion of the Wisconsin infections that’s caused by the variants of concern is growing, week by week.”

Westergaard said the increase in cases is being driven by infections in younger people and kids. “As of this week, the highest number of cases in any age group is among those under 18. This is a real concern.”

The Department of Health Services on Thursday reported 1,046 cases of COVID-19, the most since February 11, with the 7-day average at 733 cases per day.

“These more dangerous strains of the virus can spread throughout the population, and eventually become the predominant strain that is going around in the community.” Westergaard explained. “And then, we’re left with an epidemic that is more difficult to control than the one we had several months ago. Unfortunately, this is exactly what we’re experiencing now here in Wisconsin, and nationwide.”

“We are not going to get to 100 percent vaccine coverage probably this year. And there’s a danger of the pandemic getting out of control and having unnecessary illnesses and deaths.”