Nearly three-quarters of voters in Wisconsin say their incomes haven’t kept up over the past four years and more than half say that’s their top issue this fall. The Institute for Reforming Government is out with a new poll that says “kitchen table issues” dominate the minds of voters heading into November. IRG’s poll said 47% of voters said the economy is their top issue for the election. Another 8% said their personal finances. The poll shows that 17% of voters say the border is their top issue. Overall, 71% of voters told pollsters their income has not kept pace with inflation.

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Western Wisconsin’s congressman says he was assaulted at Milwaukee’s Republican National Convention, but a women’s group disagrees. Republican Congressman Derrick Van Orden took social media Tuesday to say a protester with the group Code Pink assaulted him while he was standing in line at the RNC. Code Pink almost immediately said Van Orden was the one who bumped into who they called a “visibly Palestinian” woman.

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Wisconsin voters are being asked whether the state lawmakers who currently write the state budget should have any say in how billions of dollars in federal money are spent. There will be two constitutional amendments on the ballot in August, both look to give the legislature some say in how federal money is spent. A new report says it’s a limited, and little-covered question that could have a big impact on Wisconsin’s budget going forward.

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Declining high school graduates in the state, flat or decreasing enrollment, and reliance on student tuition dollars are chief concerns for a study committee on the University of Wisconsin System. With plans to meet through the year and into next, the 18-member panel is considering reform and the challenges the state’s higher education public system faces. The Legislative Council Study Committee on the Future of the University of Wisconsin System’s initial meeting Thursday included pouring over a 20-page brief that laid out the concerns.

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Through tears, people with loved ones inside Wisconsin’s prisons told horror stories, and begged lawmakers for help at the Wisconsin Capitol on Tuesday. The Assembly Committee on Corrections held a hearing seeking answers about a string of recent inmate deaths, to find out more about the former warden at the prison in Waupun, and the eight others who were charged last month in two of those inmate deaths. But the most powerful testimony came from advocates and family members who said there need to be sweeping changes. Former Secretary Kevin Carr, who retired earlier this year, and Govs. Tony Evers and Scott Walker were names mentioned for fault.

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Wisconsin has the most public drinking water systems in the entire country, and almost all passed the standards in the state’s latest water report. The Department of Natural Resources this week released their Annual Drinking Water Report for 2023. The state has 11,206 systems statewide. The report said in part, “During 2023, more than 99% of Wisconsin’s public water systems provided water that met all the health-based Maximum Contaminant Level standards for regulated contaminants. Only 70 systems experienced MCL exceedances. Exceeding a maximum contaminant level does not necessarily mean that consumers experienced adverse health effects from drinking the water, but it does require a water system to notify consumers and take action to correct the problem.”

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The League of Women Voters is joining a host of groups in Wisconsin that are asking voters to reject a pair of constitutional amendments that would give state lawmakers some say in how Wisconsin spends billions-of-dollars in federal money. The League released an open letter that says the amendments are “purposefully confusing” and create “more red tape.” The proposed amendments will be on the August primary ballot.

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Nearly a third of Wisconsin’s public schools are going to get less money from the state for the next school year. The state’s Department of Public Instruction on Monday announced the general state aid estimates for July. “Estimated general school aids for 2024-25 total $5.58 billion, representing an increase of 4.2% from 2023-24,” DPI stated. “Payments to districts will increase an estimated $234.3 million because of two factors: 1) an increase of $224.9 million per the state budget as passed by the Wisconsin State Legislature; and 2) the decrease in the required Milwaukee Public Schools funding for the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program due to statutory changes.”

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Full story: https://www.thecentersquare.com/wisconsin/article_d0642e54-37d9-11ef-b05f-338380484a81.html