97.5 W F H R and 105.5 W I R I. Your Wisconsin Rapids Home or locally grown radio. Here's
your Daily News Roundup.
From the Wisconsin Rapids local newsroom, I'm Alyssa K. A Wisconsin sheriff is calling
out a local news outlet on their ice reporting.
Marathon County Sheriff Chad Billab says inaccurate and misleading claims made in a channel
nine news story undermines public trust and creates unnecessary fear in the community
about how Marathon County deputies handle immigration enforcement practices, while Marathon
County does have a 287G agreement with ICE that only applies to the jail setting. According
to a statement from Sheriff Billab, deputies have not and do not request immigration documentation
during traffic stops, investigations, or any routine law enforcement interaction. Deputies
are neither authorized nor directed to conduct immigration enforcement in the field.
You may hear F-35 aircraft after dark this week. The 115th Fighter Wing of the Wisconsin
Air National Guard will be doing evening training flights through Thursday. You may see
or hear F-35's flying overhead until approximately 7.45 pm now through February 12. Pilots will
follow flight paths designed to minimize noise to area residents, but you'll likely
still hear them in some areas of central Wisconsin this week.
Wood County snowmobile trails are closed, starting today because of deteriorating trail conditions.
Powers bluffs ski and tube hills are open this weekend, and Dan Volert of the Wood County
Parks and Forestry Department says the hills are in good shape. The multi-use trail is open
for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and biking. Napcole County Park multi-use and cross-country
ski trails are open, but conditions are deteriorating. Richfield 360 County Forest multi-use
trails are also open, but the warmer weather is taking its toll.
Local news at the top and bottom of every hour throughout the day, or on demand any time
at WFHR.com and WIRI.FM. From the Wisconsin Rapids Local Newsroom, I'm Melissa K.
For Civic Media News, I'm Lisa Hale.
It's the end of an Evers era. Governor Tony Evers delivered his eighth and final
state of the state address Tuesday night. In it, he called out lawmakers itching to hit the
campaign trail, saying there's still work to be done in Madison.
Folks, I know many of you are up for the election, but here's the deal.
After years of delivering historic bipartisan winds for our state,
Wisconsinites have high expectations for the work we can do together over the next 10 months.
And they should. Just look at what we've accomplished over the last seven years.
During his administration, Evers signed more than 800 bills with more than 97% passing with
bipartisan support. He touted bills to improve the justice system, expanded tax credits
lowering the cost of childcare, and Medicaid coverage for telehealth services.
We've also managed to do all of this important work while still saving where we could and paying down
our state's debt. We've saved taxpayers over $600 million by paying off about $3 billion of our
state's debt. He continues. After 30 consecutive years of our state's checking account running
a deficit, we've ended every full fiscal year. I've been governor with a positive balance.
Evers says bipartisan efforts to cut taxes will result in more than two billion dollars in
tax relief annually. Wisconsin is as purple as ever, but we've shown we can put politics aside
and work together to get good things done. Compared to all the chaos, dysfunction, and recklessness
in Washington, D.C. Here in Wisconsin, we've worked, we've worked a lead by example.
And a big part of that is the fact that today, lawmakers are elected under fair maps,
I signed into law. Evers announced he's calling a special session of the legislature this spring
to take up a constitutional amendment to ban partisan gerrymandering in Wisconsin.
A new bill addressing school opioid overdose prevention is being introduced in Madison.
Civic Media's James Kelly reports. State Senator Jeff Smith and state representative
Jody Emerson have introduced new legislation to provide funding for schools to reimburse
the purchase of Narcan. The goal of the proposed bill is to ensure every school in Wisconsin has
access to Narcan, which can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose and an emergency.
State Senator Smith explained what the legislation would do if passed into law and how they can keep
the cost of purchasing the Narcan down. Mandate that every school has a kit in it and helps them
get that kit and pay for that kit. We put it, we put a hundred thousand dollars into the bill
because talking to groups who already actually donate the Narcan to schools or to anyone who
asked for it, this is not going to be a big cost to them down the road.
For Civic Media News, I'm James Kelly. Wisconsin's U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin joins fellow
Democrats in introducing the Healthy Families Act, ensuring paid sick leave for American workers.
Civic Media's Joanne Croulott's breaks it down for us. The bill would ensure that every American
worker has up to seven paid sick days each year to be used to recover from their own illnesses or
care for a child or family member. The U.S. remains the only major country in the world that does
not provide paid time off for short-term illnesses. Currently nearly 27 million workers lack any
paid sick time entirely without guaranteed paid sick leave. Workers are forced to make choices
between getting a paycheck and keeping their jobs on the one hand and caring for their own and
their family's health on the other. However, workers with access to paid sick leave are 28% less likely
to suffer non-fatal occupational injuries and employers who provide paid sick leave see 25%
less turnover in their workforce. According to a study by the Institute for Women's Policy Research,
a universal paid sick day policy would reduce preventable visits to the emergency room
and result in cost savings of $1.1 billion per year including $500 million in savings
for public health insurance programs like Medicare and Medicaid. I'm Joanne Croulott.
President Donald Trump's move to infertile limits on climate pollution could cost
with constant billions of dollars over the next 20 years. WPR is reporting that environmental
groups and attorney general Josh Cal say they will fight the rollback in court warning that it
could raise fuel costs and harm public health. The EPA says the plan will save money by giving
drivers more choice but state officials say ignoring science puts communities and jobs at risk.
Meet processors in the state have an opportunity to apply for grants now through February 23rd.
Civic Media's Melissa K reports. The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer
Protection is inviting meet processors in the state to apply for the meet processor infrastructure
grant program. This program is aimed to grow the meet industry and improve the long-term
viability of the state's livestock sector. Projects must increase harvest capacity or production
with a goal of a 20% increase. Funding can be used for operating expenses directly related to the
grant project including engineering equipment installation and more. Processors must provide a
match of 100% of the grant amount up to $50,000. I'm Melissa K. Find out more at datcp.wi.gov.
For Civic Media News, I'm Lisa Hale. For news anytime visit our website at civicmedia.us.
The Packers Rich Bessacea Resigns. Hi, I'm Mike Clemens with Sports, NFL. After four seasons,
the Packers special teams coordinator and assistant head coach Rich Bessacea is decided to step away.
Just last week Packers GM Brian Goodigan said he'd hoped he'd be back.
Rich brings to this our culture and this football team. He's a very impactful coach around here.
You know, certainly, you know, I thought we'd been better on teams the last years. We've been in
a long time. Our cover units have been better. Now I got a lot of faith in Rich and his staff
and what they do around here. Not only the X's and O's and what they bring to the field, but what
they bring to this place culturally is really important. College basketball, the Badgers lose at
Ohio State and it wasn't close. 86 to 69. Bruce Thornton led the buck eyes with 27 points with
constant now 18 and eight. Kiwaskam Speed skater Jordan Stolls scheduled to compete for his third
gold medal tomorrow morning in the men's 1500 meter race at the Winter Olympics in Milan. With sports,
I might climbers mostly cloudy with a few scattered showers this afternoon. We could see a
little light snow by this evening. His temperatures drop are high today in the low 50s. The wind will
be a bit gusty. Wested about 15 to 25. 27 tonight tomorrow. Sun in the morning. More showers in the
afternoon with a high of 42, IBD orologist Sean cable. That's your Wisconsin Rapids News Roundup
from WRI and WFHR locally grown radio. Find more news anytime at WFHR.com and WRI.FM.
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