A bill that would allow alcohol vendors to sue underage patrons for $1,000 cleared its first step with unanimous passage in a state Assembly Committee Tuesday. All nine legislators on the Assembly’s Committee on State Affairs approved the bill, leaving it available for scheduling for a full vote from the… Read more »

A new bill would require the governor to pick University of Wisconsin System student regents from a list campus student governments make, rather than just considering people students recommend. Sen. Fred Risser, D-Madison, is seeking cosponsors on the bill that changes how the governor appoints new student regents. The bill… Read more »

A Republican-sponsored bill would make guidelines for recalling local elected officials tougher by requiring an ethical or criminal reason to recall them.  The bill, proposed Monday in the Legislature, seeks to make local recalls more difficult by requiring an ethical or criminal complaint for it to begin. It comes after… Read more »

A report released Tuesday put a price to Wisconsin’s excessive drinking problem, showing a overall bill of $6.8 billion in 2012, 40 percent of which taxpayers paid. The report from Health First Wisconsin, which was the first of its kind, showed “staggering” results about the fiscal reprecussions of excessive consumption, Maureen… Read more »

The Assembly passed bills to permit reducing employees’ work hours and to remove the secretary of state’s power to delay enacting legislation Wednesday.  The approved worker unemployment protection legislation creates a work-share program that offers an alternative to laying off workers. The bill would allow employers for six months every… Read more »

The Assembly’s elections committee largely supported a new bill that gives municipalities an option of how to count votes during recall elections. The Committee on Campaigns and Elections held a hearing on the bill, which allowed a municipal canvasing board to choose whether votes should be recounted by hand or… Read more »

A University of Wisconsin professor and the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin filed a federal lawsuit against Capitol Police over their permitting process Monday. UW medical physics professor Michael Kissick and ACLU filed a lawsuit in federal courts against Capitol Police Chief David Erwin and Michael Huesbch, secretary of… Read more »

The Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance reported this week legislators have been too focused on job numbers and have overlooked long-term problems that have led to the state’s job shortages. The report said Wisconsin has long trailed the nation’s already poor numbers in population growth, wages and new firm creation. Since 1996,… Read more »

Gov. Scott Walker said last weekend he has not taken a position on reallocating Electoral College votes, a controversial proposal which would have given President Barack Obama less of the state’s electoral votes in last year’s election.  Walker told media outlets recently he has yet to take a stand on… Read more »

Colleges and student advocacy groups across the state showed their support for a financial aid commission’s report that called for ensuring more students get aid. The Wisconsin Higher Educational Aids Board released a report that recommended improving the financial aid system and offering assistance to more students. The report came… Read more »

A new report from the Wisconsin Budget Project and the Center on Wisconsin Strategy showed income inequality is widening  between rich and poor Wisconsinites. The report showed the “pulling apart” of high- and low-income earners since 1996 using data from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue.  There is a national trend… Read more »

Wisconsin Democrats are pressing Gov. Scott Walker for a new, state-run health care plan versus a program run by the federal government, according to a letter from Democratic politicians.  The letter, signed by U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wisconsin, and U.S. Reps. Ron Kind, D-La Crosse, Gwen Moore, D-Milwaukee, Tammy… Read more »

Tuesday, the Memorial Union’s Great Hall filled with University of Wisconsin employees who debated the Human Resources Design Project’s recommendations.A panel made up of graduate students, professors, Wisconsin University members, the HRDP team and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees prepared five-minute speeches issues regarding the future for… Read more »

Billboards reading “Voter Fraud is a Felony” an anonymous donor funded have gained attention in Milwaukee and prompted some to call them an exposition of “voter suppression.” Clear Channel Outdoor advertising received the money for the advertisements from a “private family donation.” There are more than 20 billboards, and they… Read more »

A Wisconsin state representative has gained the eyes and ears of Wisconsin for stating “some women rape easy,” bringing criticism from all sides of the aisle. Rep. Roger Rivard, R-Rice Lake, first made his comment to The Chetek Alert in December 2011 while discussing the case of a high school… Read more »

The Government Accountability Board of Wisconsin has created a new online tool to help inform voters of the voting process and encourage them to register to vote. According to a GAB statement, MyVote.WI.gov launched Tuesday. Voters can access their voting profiles, look at sample ballots, begin the voter registration process and… Read more »

Former Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson may no longer be the favorite to win Sen. Herb Kohl’s open U.S. Senate candidate, according to a poll that has Democratic candidate Tammy Baldwin ahead of Thompson. According to a poll paid for by Democracy for America and conducted by Public Policy Polling, Baldwin… Read more »