Brewers fan’s costly ‘call ICE’ comment (MILWAUKEE)
An interaction between an LA Dodgers fan and a Milwaukee Brewers fan at Tuesday night’s NLCS game at American Family Field has gone viral – and apparently its cost the Brewers fan her job. Ricardo Fosado was recording on his phone when a 7th inning home run extended the Dodgers’ lead to 4-1. Fosado, a Latino US Navy veteran, was ejected for swearing at the Brewers fan who suggested calling ICE. But the woman, identified as Shannon Kobylarczyk (koby-LAR-check) was let go from her job at Milwaukee-based Manpower Group, and resigned from the board of directors at Make-A-Wish Wisconsin. Kobylarczyk did not respond to a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel request for comment. Fosado has asked the Brewers for a ticket refund, but told the Journal Sentinel his overall experience at his fist ever Brewers game was good one.
State Journal reports firing Fickel could be costly (MADISON)
Firing a college football coach doesn’t come cheap. Badgers Coach Luke Fickell is the highest paid state employee in Wisconsin, his annual salary more than seven million 500 thousand dollars. Losses to Alabama, Michigan, Maryland last weekend’s 37-0 Camp Randall loss to Iowa has many fans wanting to fire Fickell. The Wisconsin State Journal has crunched the numbers, and the amount a fired Fickell would be owed depends on when he’d be fired. His buyout would be about 28 million dollars if let go following this Saturday’s game with Ohio State. If he hangs on until April of 2029, that would drop to a bit shy of six and a half million. The State Journal reports the UW Athletic Department could tap its cash reserves or solicit donors to foot part or all of those costs.
“No Kings 2” happening Saturday (UNDATED)
“No Kings 2” is set for Saturday. The NoKings-dot-org website proclaims “No Thrones, No Crowns, No Kings” and that millions of Americans are rising again to show the world: America has no kings, and the power belongs to the people. There are events scheduled across the country and around Wisconsin, mostly at midday Saturday, from Superior to Kenosha, La Crosse to Green Bay and Madison, where some 15,000 people turned out for the first No Kings Day June 14 – the same day as President Donald Trump’s military birthday parade in Washington, D.C.
Cap Times investigation finds DPI investigations kept from public (MADISON)
The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction is accused of keeping the public in the dark over accusations of sexual misconduct or grooming by educators. A yearlong investigation by the Cap Times of Madison found DPI investigated more than 200 educators from 2018 to 2023 on accusations of sexual misconduct or grooming behaviors toward students. The paper used DPI’s own internal records and discovered that at least 44% of 461 teaching license investigations during that period involved such allegations – and that 227 educators investigated for various types of misconduct either voluntarily surrendered their license or had it revoked. A DPI spokesman told the Cap Times that the Wisconsin Legislature has failed to adequately fund the agency, which has one full-time and one part-time investigator to handle more than 100 investigations each year. In a statement, state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos accused DPI of “falsely blaming the legislature for underfunding,” and said that “the lack of transparency is shocking and alarming.”
Evers seeks action on Corrections overhaul plan (MADISON)
Governor Tony Evers wants to move forward with ambitious plans for Wisconsin prisons. The Democratic Governor wants Republicans on the State Building Commission to sign off on $15 million set aside by the Legislature. That would allow Department of Corrections to move ahead with the $535 million plan he introduced as part of his budget plan in February, and which DOC Secretary Jared Hoy pitched to the legislature’s finance committee in April. Hoy said the changes would allow DOC to not just contain problems, but resolve them. Among other things the plan would close the aging and overcrowded Green Bay Correctional Institution, renovate and repurpose several other facilities, and expand the number of inmates eligible for DOC’s earned release program. The Building Commission meets at the end of October.
Wausau mayor disagrees with city ethics finding against him on ballot box incident (WAUSAU)
Wausau Mayor Doug Diny says he’s ready to move on from this week’s city ethics board decision against him. The Mayor says he obviously doesn’t agree with all of the determinations made by the four-member panel, who determined that he violated the city’s ethics code when he moved a municipal dropbox into his office- the same box that city clerk Kaitlyn Berarde had intended to use to collect completed absentee ballots during the 20-24 election, but he is ready for the city to move on from the issue. Diny also released the board’s eight-page findings, which noted they would not fine or recommend additional punishment for the Mayor because of costs already rung up by multiple attorneys, and the ongoing DOJ investigation into the incident.
Wisconsin ending fiscal year with major budget surplus again (MADISON)
Wisconsin is ending the budget year with more money than it expected, again. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau says the state government will end the year with a general fund surplus of over 4 and a half billion dollars, about 270 million more than expected. The state brought in over 22 billion dollars in taxes, up about 5 percent from last year. Governor Tony Evers says he’s looking forward to making smart and strategic investments with the surplus. Republican state representative and legislative Joint Finance Committee chair Mark Born says Republicans are responsible for the surplus, by refusing to pass Governor Evers’ budget proposals.
Wisconsin elk hunting season kicks off this weekend (UNDATED)
Wisconsin’s elk hunting season kicks off this weekend. It’s the eighth season since reintroduction of elk in Wisconsin and the first year with anterless harvest opportunities. Thirteen hunters were randomly selected to participate in this hunt from a pool of more than 26,000 applicants. There’s an eight-bull quota in the Clam Lake Elk Range, with four licenses going to state hunters and four going to Ojibwe tribes. Five anterless and four bull licenses were issued to state hunters in the Black River Elk Range. You can apply for the 2026 elk hunting season by visiting the DNR’s website.
DWD says federal government shutdown is impacting Wisconsin workers (UNDATED)
The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development is highlighting how the federal government shutdown is impacting Wisconsin workers. DWD Secretary Amy Pechacek says DWD isn’t able to release monthly job data, which helps organizations make crucial fiscal decisions. Pechacek says there’s about 8,000 federal workers in Wisconsin and they could also be impacted if the Trump administration decides not to give them any back pay. Finally, Pechacek says certain migrant work visas aren’t being processed, which will impact the ag industry if they shutdown lasts too long. Thursday marked the 16th day of the federal government shutdown.