News of the Day

Nonfarm payrolls grew far more than expected in February as companies continued to hire amid a growing coronavirus scare.

The Labor Department reported Friday that the U.S. economy added 273,000 new jobs during the month, while the unemployment rate was 3.5%, matching its lowest level in more than 50 years. An alternative measure of joblessness that counts those not looking for work and holding part-time jobs for economic reasons edged higher to 7%.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for payroll growth of 175,000 and a 3.5% jobless level. Average hourly earnings grew by 3% over the past year, in line with estimates, while the average work week, considered a key measure of productivity, nudge up to 34.4 hours.

There was more good news for the jobs market: the previous two months’ estimates were revised higher by a total of 85,000. December moved up from 147,000 to 184,000, while January went from 225,000 to 273,000. Those revisions brought the three-month average up to a robust 243,000 while the average monthly gain in 2019 was 178,000.

Yesterday, Governor Evers announced that 152 Wisconsin communities will  receive grant awards from the Multimodal Local Supplement (MLS), which is a one-time $75 million funding program for local transportation projects. Statewide, 84 towns, 34 cities and villages, and 34 counties will receive funding from the program.

The Governor was joined by Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) Secretary-designee for this announcement in Brown County near County Highway M. Through the MLS program, County Highway M will be receiving $1 million towards widening and improving the road, and adding sidewalks, bike lanes, and a controlled pedestrian crossing.

The MLS program was designed to allow communities to prioritize their transportation needs and submit projects ranging from roads and bridges to harbors and railroads, to transit equipment and pedestrian and bicycle accommodations.

Over 1,600 applications were received, largely for road projects. Local government officials attributed the large number of applications both to the need and to the streamlined application design of the MLS program.

Just as it did almost eight years ago, the Supreme Court will once again weigh in on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate.

The Supreme Court has already rejected a challenge to the  constitutionality of the mandate once. In 2012, Chief Justice John Roberts agreed with the court’s four more liberal justices that the mandate was constitutional because the penalty imposed on individuals who did not buy health insurance was a tax, which the Constitution allows Congress to impose.

But in 2017, Congress enacted an amendment to the ACA that set the penalty for not buying health insurance at zero – but left the rest of the ACA in place. That change led to the dispute that is now before the court: A group of states led by Texas (along with several individuals) went to federal court, where they argued that because the penalty for not buying health insurance is zero, it is no longer a tax and the mandate is therefore unconstitutional. And the mandate is such an integral part of the ACA, they contended, that the rest of the law must be struck down as well. California and the other states joined the lawsuit to defend the mandate.

Yesterday, the Supreme Court granted California’s petition for review, which asks the justices to weigh in on three questions: whether the challengers have a legal right to sue at all; whether the mandate is now unconstitutional; and whether, if the mandate is unconstitutional, it can be separated from the rest of the ACA. The justices also granted a cross-petition filed by Texas, which asks the court to decide whether the district court was correct in deeming the entire ACA invalid.

The justices will hear oral argument in the case next fall, with a decision likely to follow sometime in 2021.

On Friday, the Federal Communications Commission today proposed targeted changes to its White Space device rules to pave the way for improved broadband coverage for rural Americans.  White Space devices operate in portions of the broadcast television bands that are not used by television stations and can be used to provide broadband and other wireless services.

The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposes updates to the Commission’s rules that would allow for more robust service and efficient use of White Space devices particularly in rural areas, without increasing the risk of harmful interference to protected services in the TV bands.  These updates would also provide flexibility for these devices to more fully participate in the Internet of Things.

Specifically, the Notice proposes to permit higher transmit power and antenna height above average terrain for fixed White Space devices in less congested geographic areas.  If adopted, these changes would allow White Space devices to reach users at greater distances, resulting in better broadband coverage.  It would also permit higher power mobile operation within defined geographical areas and revise the rules to provide flexibility for these devices to more fully participate in the Internet of Things.

Additionally, the Commission is seeking comment on methods that could be used to allow higher power operation by White Space devices when adjacent TV channels are occupied.

The action proposed today could provide additional opportunities for unlicensed White Space devices operating in the TV bands and spur continued growth of the White Space device ecosystem, which could provide affordable broadband service to more rural and underserved communities and help close the digital divide.

The state of Wisconsin is going to get a share of a $1.6 billion settlement with the largest maker of generic opioid pain pills in the U.S.

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul announced the settlement framework on Wednesday.

The company, Mallinckrodt, will pay $1.6 billion into a trust that will be used to help cover the costs of the opioid crisis in individual states.

“Getting accountability from pharmaceutical companies is an important part of our strategy for fighting the opioid epidemic,” Kaul said. “With this agreement, more resources will be available to help combat this crisis.”

The settlement also binds Mallinckrodt to future limits on how it can market and sell its opioid pain pills. 

Wisconsin is one of several states suing the makers of opioid pain pills for the damage those drugs caused.

Last year, Kaul joined a multi-state investigation into opioid distributors AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson. Wisconsin also joined the lawsuit against two Purdue Pharma entities, and the company’s Richard Sackler for deceptive and false marketing practices in the sale of opioids.

Democratic Governor Tony Evers vetoed a Republican-backed tax cut bill Wednesday and signaled he could support a compromise that invests in schools and provides broad property tax relief.

Evers also said he’s open to considering an income tax cut or an additional state debt payment.

“Investing in our kids and our schools and reducing property taxes should be something everyone can agree on,” Evers said Wednesday morning at Lincoln Elementary School in Wauwatosa. “We don’t have to choose between investing in our kids and reducing property taxes — we can and should do both.”

Republicans in the state Senate and Assembly passed the $248 million ongoing income tax cut Thursday. The overall bill would have cost the state $392 million in the next budget.

It would have also included about $45 million to offset a new property tax cut for manufacturing businesses and $100 million for a one-time payment on state debt.

No high school diploma, no work experience, no problem. That’s what more manufacturing companies in northeast Wisconsin are saying to job seekers according to the state’s Workforce Development Board.

In years past the board says that higher education and experience were often times a requirement to get a foot in the door of many manufacturing companies. But according to employment specialists today at the Fox Valley Workforce Development Board many employers are so hard up filling positions that they’re willing to train candidates with the right attitude and willingness to work.

“The baby boomers are retiring more and more everyday and the high school classes are producing smaller numbers of graduating seniors, which means you have really just a smaller pool of people to work with. Employers are desperate for labor and they’re desperate not just for skilled labor, they’re desperate for any labor,” says Anthony Snyder the Chief Executive Officer of the Fox Valley Workforce Development Board

Governor Tony Evers has selected Brigadier General Paul Knapp as the next Adjutant General of the Wisconsin National Guard. Brigadier General Knapp will serve a 5-year term as the head of the Wisconsin National Guard and the Department of Military Affairs.

Brig. Gen. Knapp has served in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Air Force Reserve since 1992. On active duty, he served as a Special Agent for the Air Force Office of Special Investigations prior to attending navigator training. He served two operational tours as an F-15E Strike Eagle weapon systems officer and one as an air liaison officer to the U.S. Army in South Korea. He separated from active duty in August 2003 and joined the 95th Airlift Squadron of the 440th Airlift Wing, General Mitchell Air Reserve Station, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, flying the C-130H Hercules. Brig. Gen. Knapp has served as an Instructor, Evaluator, Flight Commander, Squadron Commander, Deputy Operations Group Commander and Vice Wing Commander.

Brig. Gen. Knapp’s appointment fills a vacancy created by the resignation of Maj. Gen. Donald Dunbar in December. Governor Evers called for the resignation after a top-to-bottom review of the Wisconsin National Guard detailed system failures in its handling of sexual assault, sexual harassment, and retaliation allegations.

Brig. Gen. Knapp is a native of Antigo, Wisconsin. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the U.S. Air Force Academy and a Master of Science degree from the University of Maryland. He resides in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, with his wife, Dr. Renee Knapp and their two children.

Lawmakers approved millions of dollars to aid the struggling agriculture industry, sending some bills to the governor’s desk.

The Assembly passed a pair of bills that would cut taxes for farmers by nearly $30 million a year, the Senate passed the proposals on Wednesday.

The measures now await Gov. Evers’ signature and come after he first called lawmakers to take immediate action to address the farm crisis.

Republicans tweaked some of the governor’s original proposals which called for spending $8.5 million which didn’t include any tax cuts.

The proposal that passed would allow farmers to apply for tax cuts up to $7,500. To be eligible farmers would need to make at least $35,000 a year in farm income.

Another proposal includes spending $5 million to expand exports of agricultural products such as milk, meat, specialty crops, and other products. Tax breaks would also be offered to deduct the cost of health insurance on farmer’s income taxes.

The legislature also approved allowing small dairy farms to apply for a $600,000 grant if they produce no more than 50 million pounds of product a year.

Republican Representative Travis Tranel of Cuba City, who’s a dairy farmer, said he acknowledged the package is expensive but called it necessary to help an industry that’s losing an average of two dairy farms a day.

“Farmers are pretty realistic people but they’re also full of common sense and no matter how many of us stand up here and say we know what you’re going through — the reality is there going through a hard time paying their bills,” said Tranel.

Two other proposals approved by the Assembly require the UW system to study problems facing farmers and examine how current programs are supporting the industry. Another also requires the UW to conduct a research study focused on science and technology in agriculture.

The Senate has yet to vote on these proposals.

Wisconsin’s premier telecommunications industry association applauds last night’s unanimous, bipartisan Senate floor vote in support of Assembly Bill 344 (AB 344). The Senate voted 33-0 in support of legislation to incentivize rural broadband deployment through targeted tax exemptions for investments in rural or underserved communities.

Senator Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) and Representative Romaine Quinn (R-Cameron) authored AB 344 and the companion bill, Senate Bill 321. The legislation creates property tax exemptions for telephone company property used to provide broadband service to a rural or underserved area. Unlike most Wisconsin property taxes, which are paid to local governments, the telephone company property tax is paid to the state. Because the telephone company property tax is collected by the state, there is no fiscal impact on local governments.

The policy in AB 344 will complement existing state and federal programs focused on broadband deployment. In the 2019-2021 Biennial Budget, the Legislature approved and Governor Evers signed an historic increase in funding for the Broadband Expansion Grant Program.