Briefs
U.S. senators request funding to tackle worsening opioid crisis
As the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic plays out across the country, so, too, does the crisis of opioid addiction and overdose death. The spread of COVID-19 hasn’t eliminated addiction, but it has altered treatment access, and added the mental pressures of social isolation. That’s why a group of U.S. senators are requesting more funding […]
Strapped renters get state help from COVID-19 funds
In the latest distribution of Wisconsin’s share of federal COVID-19 relief aid, low-income Wisconsin renters who have lost income because of the pandemic will get financial help to pay back rent, security deposits, and related assistance. Gov. Tony Evers announced the $25 million Wisconsin Rental Assistance Program, funded from the state’s allotment under the Coronavirus […]
Ending Safer at Home complicates PFAS testing for DNR
The decision by the Wisconsin Supreme Court to side with Republican state legislators and throw out the Safer at Home order not only created a scramble as local governments make their own rules, it has also affected certain operations in the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). As the realities of the pandemic began setting in, […]
Is Wisconsin a failing state where government no longer functions?
Distance can offer a perspective that synthesizes familiar, intractable problems into a blunt gut punch. An opinion column Tuesday in The Guardian — a highly regarded outlet based in Britain but with a United States bureau — took a look at Wisconsin politics from a 30,000 foot level. And the author, Nathan Robinson, put forward […]
Evers announces $1B COVID-19 response; OCI tells insurers tests are free
Wisconsin is putting more than $1 billion in federal funds into testing for COVID-19 infections, contact tracing to track the spread of the disease, and other measures to respond to the pandemic, Gov. Tony Evers announced Tuesday. The $1.17 billion investment comes from Wisconsin’s share of the funds spent by the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, […]
Wisconsin has 2nd fewest COVID restrictions in U.S.
Wisconsin is now second among all the states in the nation with the fewest COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, after the Wisconsin Supreme Court tossed out Safer at Home restrictions. The personal-finance and ranking website WalletHub has been keeping tabs on what states are doing to protect citizens and prevent the spread of COVID-19. In the latest […]
‘Important lessons learned’ says Elections Commission report on April 7 absentee voting
A report released Monday by the Wisconsin Elections Commission shows that thousands of absentee ballots were rejected or never returned in the April 7 election, but that proportionally the amount of ballots not counted did not differ from past elections. The April 7 election was held under controversial circumstances as debates rose over the use […]
Counties, cities rescind local stay-at-home orders, citing shaky legality
Several Wisconsin counties and municipalities have rescinded local “Safer at Home” orders, citing legal advice against implementing them in the aftermath of Wednesday evening’s Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling throwing out the statewide order. After the court’s 4-3 ruling against Gov. Tony Evers and Andrea Palm, secretary-designee for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS), Kenosha […]
COVID restrictions to continue within DOC facilities
Although the Safer at Home order has been struck down, the Department of Corrections (DOC) says social distancing guidelines and restrictions will continue for Wisconsin’s incarcerated population. “This decision is being made in the interest of the health and safety of our staff,” reads a press release, “persons in our care, and the public, as […]
Baldwin continues focus on meat industry
In the latest of several actions by Sen. Tammy Baldwin to pressure the federal government for closer regulation of the meatpacking industry, the Wisconsin Democrat signed on Friday to a letter calling on Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to address worker safety. The letter, authored by Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and signed by 29 Senate Democrats, […]
Spring Green’s American Players Theatre cancels its Summer 2020 season
American Players Theatre is canceling its Summer 2020 season of plays because of continuing concern over the COVID-19 pandemic, the company announced Friday. “Right now we’d like nothing more than to be together and gather and take care of each other, but the only thing we can really do is stay apart to keep each […]
Milwaukee-area Assembly candidate collects 1,000 signatures by mail
The coronavirus pandemic has upended every aspect of political campaigns and elections in Wisconsin, including the process for candidates obtaining ballot signatures. With door knocking unavailable because of the pandemic, candidates are forced to think creatively to collect the signatures they need to get their names on the ballot. In the hotly contested 23rd Assembly […]