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State Democrat introduces bill to legalize marijuana

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Another attempt at making marijuana legal is headed to the state legislature.

State representative Melissa Sargent is taking another try at marijuana legalization. She says legalizing the plant will save the state millions of dollars in law enforcement hours, as well as ease the burden on the state prisons.

“According to an estimate by the ACLU, Wisconsin stands to save over 44 million dollars, through the legalization of a plant.”

Sargent says legalization will also save the state money and generate revenue through increased taxes. 

“Legalization provides true economic benefits at no costs to taxpayers, with real proven results, unlike the unsuccessful tax giveaways and empty promises that we’ve seen with corporations like Foxconn.”

Part of the measure would also release people in prison for non-violent marijuana convictions, and make it easier to get those crimes expunged from your record.

“Although as African Americans use marijuana at the same rates as white individuals, they are almost 4 times more likely to be arrested on non violent marijuana possession charges nationally, and almost six times more likely to be arrested in our great state.”

Republicans in the Legislature are unlikely to pick up the bill and stand opposed to full legalization.

Foxconn founder eyes Taiwanese presidential run

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The future of Foxconn’s Wisconsin project is in question as its founder eyes a presidential run.

Bloomberg reports that Foxconn founder Terry Gau has announced his candidacy for the Taiwanese presidency. This came after rumors that he’d be stepping down as CEO of the technology company.

Gau was crucial in the debate and planning of the project, personally making the trip to the US multiple times to meet with Governor Walker and President Trump in order to work out the deal to build a factory in the state. Those plans have since been scaled back, and it appears that Foxconn will not open a full LCD construction facility in the state, but rather use Wisconsin as a research hub instead.

There’s no clear successor in the path if Gau does step down to run Taiwan, leaving more doubt in the proposed construction of the Foxconn plant in Racine.

Governor Evers creates new task force to fight shady hiring practices

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Governor Evers is moving forward with a plan to crack down on employers failing to pay workers fairly.  

The Department of Workforce Development is getting more resources to stop employers from falsely claiming actual employees as independent contractors. State unemployment administrator Mark Riehl says the state wants to protect both taxpayers and employees.

“Employers who misclassify are not paying their unemployment insurance taxes. Usually they don’t have workers compensation.”

Riehl says that also means taxpayers are likely not seeing any income taxes or business taxes on work that’s being done, costing everyone else in the state more per year. The practice can also unfairly depress wages for everyone else. 

“What we have to have here is a level playing field, so that everyone can compete by the same rules.”

Riehl says the issue is a national one, but with very real implications for Wisconsin workers.

“I don’t think that this has had the same priority at the federal level, and so I think it’s up to the states, really, to address this problem.”

 

Study: Wisconsin failing to attract and keep young people

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A new report reveals troubling trends for the future of Wisconsin’s workforce. Simply too few young people to replace retiring baby boomers over the next 15 years, despite the state still having a lot to offer, like good schools and low crime.

“Soemthing else has changed, but we’re not exactly sure what that is,” said Forward Analytics Director of Research Dale Knapp. “We’re now losing among what has been the most critical age groups for Wisconsin, that we typically gained among young families, which is a real problem not only for the short term but the long term for the state.”

Knapp says it can’t be pinned on our winter weather. “Iowa has been doing very well among the groups that we seen to have been losing. Minnesota the same way, and Minnesota has had much worse winters than we have.”

During 2010-2015, the state lost population among key groups. Most concerning, a net out migration of young families. The report, issued Monday, is entitled “Falling Behind: Migration Changes and State Workforce,” Forward Analytics is a new non-partisan research arm of the Wisconsin Counties Association.

 

Ryan named to board of new Fox Corp.

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Former House Speaker Paul Ryan has been named to the board of the new Fox Corporation. The newly spun-off media company will house assets including Fox News Channel and Fox Broadcast Network.

It’s a new phase for billionaire Rupert Murdoch’s media business after the sale of Twenty-First Century Fox film and television assets to Walt Disney Company. Ryan and Murdoch are friendly – in 2014, Murdock named Ryan as a presidential contender he had “particular admiration for.”

Ryan served as House Speaker from October 2015 to January of this year, when he retired from Congress. The Janesville native represented Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District from 1999 until his retirement, and was Mitt Romney’s running mate in the 2012 presidential campaign.

 

 

Creditors sue owners of Shopko over allegedly fraudulent dividends

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A lawsuit against the owners of Shopko is moving forward as the company works through bankruptcy. 

Creditors are trying to reclaim over a hundred million dollars in stock dividends paid out to the owners of the private equity firm that owned Shopko, claiming that the company borrowed money to make those payments.

Creditors are worried that there might not be enough assets left to pay everyone that’s owed money.

Shopko announced that they are closing down all of their stores starting this week.  

Foxconn announces Gen6 facility groundbreaking

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Foxconn Technology Group announced Monday the next steps in construction of its Gen6 advanced manufacturing facility in the Wisconn Valley Science and Technology Park in Racine County. The next phases of construction will begin by Summer 2019 and the facility will begin production in the 4th quarter of 2020, according to a press release.

“Our commitment from day one has been to establish a winning formula for Foxconn and for Wisconsin,” said Dr. Louis Woo, Special Assistant to Foxconn Founder and CEO Terry Gou said in the release. “We continue to expand our presence around the state, create jobs, and deepen our partnerships while innovating and adapting to meet changing market needs. We’re investing in Wisconsin because we know manufacturing here is going to drive even greater success and growth for Foxconn and for the community.”

The initial Gen6 facility will manufacture LCD screens for use in a variety of product applications, including vertical solutions for industries such as education, medical and healthcare, entertainment and sports, security, and smart cities. The plant is expected to begin production in the 4th quarter of 2020.

Wisconsin gas pumps and retail scales get nearly perfect grade in 2018

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State officials say you can reliably trust gas pumps, registers and scales across Wisconsin.

Rochelle Miller from the Department of Weights and Measures says tests on these devices were accurate in 99 out of 100 tests last year. 

Not only were they checking gas pumps for accuracy, but also for skimmers and devices.

“Any time that we would find a skimmer, we would make sure that all sales were suspended off that device so it’s no longer used, and then we would notify the local enforcement along with federal enforcement.”

Crews checked over 258,000 devices at over 6,500 stores and businesses in 2018.

Congressman Kind pushes for tariff exemptions for Wisconsin farmers, manufacturers

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A bill being passed by Congressman Ron Kind is looking to ease the pain of tariffs on manufacturers and farmers here in the US.

The bill would allow for exemptions from tariffs if a producer absolutely can’t source one of their materials from the US. He says it’s a stopgap until the Trump administration can end the trade war.

“Any economist will tell you. These tariff wars don’t work the that you would expect, and it’s ultimately the American consumer that bears the brunt.”

He says there haven’t been any winners here.

“We’ve applied tariffs on Mexico, Canada, the EU, China, and they retaliate against us. And it’s ultimately our manufacturers, our family farmers that are getting hurt by this.”

Kind says Wisconsin taxpayers have paid $194 Million in additional tariffs since the trade war began.

State’s largest business lobby has safety concerns with Evers’ marijuana plans

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The state’s largest business lobby has concerns about workplace safety if marijuana is decriminalized.

In a statement Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce president Kurt Bauer says that Evers’ stance on decriminalization puts the state at odds with federal law, and will make the workplace unsafe.

“The safety of our workers in this state should be of utmost concern for the governor and legislators.”  

He says there’s not enough research to show if pot can be used safely, and that there is research that shows it makes people unable to safely use heavy equipment.