Here's your Daily News Roundup from 97.9 WGBW.
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 wins 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.
You'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 $2 billion 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 $100,000 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 US 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 US 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
Wisconsin billions of dollars over the next 20 years. WPR is reporting that environmental groups
and Attorney General Josh Call 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
Guttacans said he'd hoped he'd be back. Rich brings to this our culture, this football team.
He's a very impactful coach around here. Certainly, I thought we'd been better on teams
the last few years when 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 exes of
the nose 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 Wisconsin now 18 and 8. 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'm Mike Clemens.
It is going to be mostly cloudy with a few scattered showers possible right away this morning and
then again late this afternoon into this evening. Our high today upper 40s tonight down to 30 tomorrow.
Partly cloudy with a little more late day light rain, more rain likely tomorrow night.
I'm meteorologist Sean Cable.
That's your Green Bay News Roundup from 97.9 WGBW.
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