Author: Michelle Felber

Regents to Meet Thursday, September 8

The Board of Regents will meet on Thursday, September 8 to discuss the President’s Response to the President’s Advisory Committee on the Roles of UW System Administration. The report is a result of the 2011-13 state budget requirement that UW…

Senate Recall Elections

Nine Wisconsin State Senate recall elections have been held, and Republicans will have a slim one-vote majority in the Senate after losing two seats on August 9. Republican incumbents Randy Hopper (R-Fond du Lac) and Dan Kapanke (R-La Crosse) were defeated…

Legislature Passes Fast-Tracked Redistricting Plan

Every ten years, the legislature tackles legislative redistricting — redrawing legislative lines to account for changes in the state’s population. The process is often partisan and contentious, and occasionally lands in the courts. The Assembly voted yesterday along largely party…

Board of Regents Meeting

The University of Wisconsin Board of Regents is meeting today and tomorrow in Madison to discuss the 2011-12 annual budget and a proposed 5.5 percent tuition increase for all 2- and 4-year campuses. Two-year campuses have not had an adjustment…

Senate Recall Elections

Legislatively speaking, summer is usually a quiet time with the legislature in recess and elected officials back home in their districts visiting with constituents at picnics and parades. This summer, however, is not typical and the legislature has been consumed…

Governor Walker Signs Budget Bill; Uses 50 Vetoes

Governor Scott Walker signed the 2011-13 biennial budget into law in Green Bay yesterday, using his powerful line-item veto 50 times. Details about the vetoes began trickling out of the Capitol on Friday and continued over the weekend. The $66…

Concealed Carry Passes Assembly

The Wisconsin Assembly passed Senate Bill 93 yesterday on a bipartisan vote of 68-27. Governor Scott Walker is expected to sign the bill into law, which could go into effect as early as October 1. The bill allows adult citizens…

Senate Passes Budget

The Wisconsin State Senate, voting along straight party lines, passed the 2011-13 biennial budget 19-14 last night. Republicans rejected all Democratic amendments and offered no amendments of their own before approving the Assembly version of the bill. The Assembly had…

Collective Bargaining Update

A group of labor unions filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday to the block the reinstatement of collective bargaining legislation. The lawsuit addresses collective bargaining only and does not seek to stop implementation of increased payroll deductions for pensions and health…