Progressive Thinking

ALTOONA, WI - We live in crazy and unpredictable times politically. The Republican Party descends into madness in so many respects and grows more self-destructive by the day, yet for now remains the majority party in America both nationally and at the state level. That says a lot about the Democratic Party’s weakness and lack of appeal.

In most statehouses across the country and most of the time in Congress, liberal or progressive ideas do not have the upper hand in policy debates and haven’t for quite some time. Progressive advocacy groups are regularly losing in the political arena, watching helplessly as right-wing forces successfully chip away at old progressive policies and programs or dismantle them altogether.

In searching for explanations, many rightly point to the corrupting influence of money in politics. Indeed, the exponential growth in money’s role in election campaigns and lobbying – and, just as importantly, the fact that so much of that money is supplied by so few – does cripple efforts to advance policies that promote the common good or serve the broad public interest.  A privileged few pay for politics, and a privileged few benefit from politics.

But here is modern-day progressivism’s great dilemma….

Ideas favoring the commoners among us instead of the royals don’t stand much of a chance of becoming the law of the land as long as the vast wealth of a few holds policymakers in such an iron grip. For there to be a chance of progressive values being reflected in government actions, something clearly needs to be done about money in politics. But campaign finance reformers aren’t faring any better than any other progressive policy advocates. They too are watching helplessly as old safeguards against government corruption are stripped away and the floodgates are opened ever wider, allowing more and more money to flood into elections and lobbying. They are powerless to stop political inequality from breeding still more political inequality. Growing political inequality then produces greater economic and social inequality. And the more government is seen working for just a few at everyone else’s expense, the more the masses despise government. The more government is despised, the easier it is for a wealthy and well-connected few to control.

This vicious cycle is the progressive quandary.

The recipe for breaking the cycle is undoubtedly a complicated mixture, but three ingredients are required for sure.

Repair the broken bonds between rural and urban people and their communities. When elected officials put policies and programs in place in the past that promoted greater equality and broadly shared prosperity, they did so with the support of both city and country folks. Rediscovering common ground that now-estranged rural and urban populations once stood on together starts with examining the reasons rural-urban political unions have fractured and rural and suburban interests have coalesced around a right-wing agenda. Then new counteractive measures for the 21st Century that both rural and urban voters can get behind have to be cooked up.

Weaken and eventually break the grip of the political industrial complex that strangles our democracy. Our political system has been commandeered by professionals. Now more than ever, the involvement of people with a life outside politics is needed. It’s quite possibly never been harder in our nation’s history for people who don’t practice politics for a living to gain a foothold in the public arena. But given how Americans are feeling about politics and politicians and government these days, there probably hasn’t ever been a time when such a rich reward awaits those willing to swim against the powerful currents of political professionalization.

And to do that….

Put non-monetary political currencies that have been largely forgotten back into circulation. One such currency is organized people. Another is provocative ideas. Those who call themselves progressives have been playing defense for more than a generation. They have become America’s true conservatives. They need to start playing offense. They need to start thinking big again.

A high-profile investigation into claims of child abuse at the Lincoln Hills Juvenile Detention Center and serious assaults on correctional officers this year at Green Bay, Racine, Columbia and other correctional facilities across Wisconsin have prompted Democratic legislators to take action.

MADISON - Amid growing concerns with the rise in assaults at Wisconsin’s correctional facilities, Democratic legislators here are urging immediate action to strengthen worker protections and improve public safety.

A high-profile investigation is currently looking into claims of child abuse and assaults at the Lincoln Hills Juvenile Detention Center. In addition, serious assaults on correctional officers have been documented this year at Green Bay, Racine, Columbia and other correctional facilities across Wisconsin.

While Republican leaders have known about these serious safety concerns for more than a year, conditions have deteriorated as a result of additional state budget cuts and worsening staff shortages.

In an effort to improve safety in correctional facilities, Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton), Sen. Dave Hansen (D-Green Bay) and several Assembly Democrats are putting forward a package of legislative proposals. The bills aim to improve worker training, limit the use of forced overtime, increase workplace safety, strengthen reporting requirements and ensure appropriate staffing levels for first responders.

“Safety in our Department of Corrections institutions in not a new issue. The staffing shortages that were a direct result of Governor Walker’s Act 10 have never been resolved by the administration or the DOC. The burden for staffing shortages continues to fall solely on the backs of officers working in our institutions. They are the ones who have to live with more consecutive days of overtime because of inadequate staffing levels,” said Senator Erpenbach in a statement released this morning.

“Safety within our corrections institutions should be a top priority in light of the growing number of incidents we have seen take place, in large part due to the inability of Corrections officials to recruit, properly train and retain staff,” said Senator Hansen, noting that 500 positions are currently unfilled in the department putting public safety at risk. “As a result we are asking fewer officers to take on more shifts and more responsibility to the point that it is putting their safety at risk.”

Hansen has announced he will join Senator Erpenbach and corrections officers at a press conference at the Brown County Courthouse at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 7th to discuss the growing crisis in Corrections and to announce his support for the package of bills.

Currently seeking co-sponsors, Erpenbach and other authors of the proposals expect introduction of the bills next week. To receive a copy of the draft legislation, contact Senator Erpenbach's  office at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 608-266-6670.

As part of the Corrections Reform package, Senate Democratic Leader Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse) and Rep. Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) are introducing the Correctional Officer Workplace Safety Bill (LRB 4225). The proposal will restore the right of correctional officers to collectively bargain over workplace safety issues.

“The lack of urgency by Gov. Walker’s administration and the Republican majority to address complaints of child abuse and assaults in our correctional facilities is appalling,” said Sen. Shilling. “In the past two months, serious assaults and nearly-fatal suicide attempts have shocked families and communities who had been told not to worry about safety concerns in our correctional facilities. Wisconsin children, families and public safety officers can’t afford to continue waiting for action. It’s time to address the serious safety issues in our correctional facilities before this dangerous situation spirals further out of control.”

When does your neighbor’s property right limit your own rights? What if your neighbor built a fireworks factory next door? Or a large hog operation? Or an industrial sand mine?

A new bill introduced in Madison just before Christmas could take away local control over land use ordinances and zoning rules that protect our communities and the individual rights of neighbors to protect themselves.

ALMA, WI - “My neighbor likes to expand his lot,” Kelly told me. “First he put up a stone fence on our property and then he built a jungle gym for his kids on his other neighbor’s property.” The fence stayed but the jungle gym came down.

Laws and fences help make good neighbors.

Often these “laws” are ordinances passed by local communities. We decide collectively what works for our neighborhood, and what works in some areas will not work in other areas. You can’t have roosters in most cities. But in some cities, you can keep a few hens.

Moving at warp speed in the Capitol is legislation that would change what your neighbor could do on his/her property and would limit your local community from taking a position to protect you and your other neighbors.

When does your neighbor’s property right limit your own rights? What if your neighbor built a fireworks factory next door? How about a large hog operation? Or an industrial sand mine?

In a bill, introduced just before Christmas and due to have a public hearing before you read this, the simple action of applying for a driveway permit or a state culvert permit could “freeze in place” any local ordinance or state law.

For example, on the date a person applies for a driveway permit and discloses a proposed project, the ordinances and rules of all levels of local and state government could be frozen in place on that date provided the driveway is constructed within a stated deadline – even though some aspects of the project may not be completed for many years.

Expanding a little known part of the law related to housing developments, the bill (Senate Bill 464 and its companion Assembly Bill 582) creates a loophole so big that the approval of a culvert permit in Kenosha could affect a development in Eau Claire.

In addition, if the developer first sought permission from the state for a minor permit, locals might not even know the granting of that state permit would mean the entire project had become a “vested right” of the developer.

“Vested Rights” is a common law idea that means some version of – because I have the property, I have an absolute, unconditional complete right to do what I want on the property. Obviously, I can’t build on your property, as in my first example. But what if what I do affects you? What if I create an industrial site that pollutes your water and air? What if I create a new activity (like sand mining six years ago) that effects your enjoyment of your land?

The bill is written so broadly that an action in one part of the state could affect land owned by the same company in another part of the state. The bill also gives “vesting rights” retroactively. Meaning, if the bill is passed into law, the new law would apply to any project that has not yet been finally approved by the time the bill passes. The bill could also affect any pending court cases.

The provisions related to projects not yet approved and pending court cases make me think there are many unknown implications.

One consequence of the bill is to create a race between a developer, builder or contractor against a local community. If the developer can get the project started before the local community takes final action, an inappropriate “non-conforming” use is created and may be continued indefinitely.

Other parts of the bill stop a county from taking a “breather” (development moratorium) while a comprehensive zoning amendment is considered. In addition, non-conforming structures on a lake or river could be torn down and a new (probably much larger) non-conforming structure built in its place.

Land use ordinances, zoning, subdivision and shoreland zoning rules all came about to protect our communities. We, collectively through local elected leaders – want nice places to live and raise our families.

This bill is just one of several bills that take away the collective rights of a community and the individual rights of neighbors to protect themselves. Lawmakers should reject this bill and others like it.

In 2016, Wisconsin’s voter ID law is in place for all elections. Voters, even veterans and older people who are registered and have voted many times before, will not be able to vote this year without a proper government-issued identification. For many the voter ID law will just be inconvenient, but for the elderly, college students, city dwellers who rely on public transportation, people who have moved and those who frequently travel, it may mean the lose of the right to vote.

UNION, WI - “I spent all day trying to get an ID for my mother,” Joe from Union Township told me. His mother, age 84, recently gave up her driver’s license because of a vision problem. She’d moved into an apartment in Eau Claire.

By changing her address and surrendering her drivers’ license, Joe’s mom was without the necessary current “government ID” she needed to legally vote in 2016.

Happy New Year! And welcome to Wisconsin, a state that now has some of the strictest voter identification laws in the nation.

Even if you’re registered and have voted many times before, you will not be able to vote this year without a proper government-issued identification. And “government-issued” doesn’t always mean what it says. For example, a veteran cannot use an ID issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs for voting.

After four years in the courts, Wisconsin’s voter ID law is in place for all elections.

Voters in 2016 will go to the polls for nonpartisan primaries on February 16th. On April 5th Wisconsin will elect a new Supreme Court justice and many local officials including every county board member. April 5th is also Wisconsin’s Presidential Preference vote. Delegates, who will be elected in separate partisan caucuses, will be sent to the national conventions to nominate presidential candidates.

The partisan primary (not including president) will be on August 9th. The General Election for President, all members of the State Assembly, half the State Senate and other local partisan positions will be held November 8th.

For eighty percent of voters the voter ID law will be no more inconvenient than remembering to take your wallet to the polls. But voting will be more of a hassle for some elderly, college students, city dwellers who rely on public transportation, people who have moved and those who frequently travel.

To increase confusion, and despite firm opposition by the local election clerks, the nonpartisan Government Accountability Board will not exist after June. In a bill recently signed into law by the governor, two partisan commissions will replace the nonpartisan GAB.

As Joe found out, the process of getting an ID may take longer than you planned. The place to start is the local Department of Motor Vehicles office. For many rural residents these offices have severely limited hours. For example, in Buffalo County, the office is only open from 7am to 5 pm on Monday and Wednesday.

DMV office locations can be found at http://wisconsindot.gov/Pages/online-srvcs/find-dmv/default.aspx.

IDs are free. You will need to bring proof of your name, date of birth, Wisconsin residency and your social security card (if you have one).

If you cannot vote at the polling place, you will need to vote by mail or during much-restricted early voting hours. For those who travel, hours are so restricted you will likely need to vote by mail. You need a copy of your ID to vote by mail unless you are military or a permanent overseas voter. You can find more voter ID details at http://www.bringit.wi.gov.

While the state’s political focus will be largely on the 2016 presidential election, the state legislature will continue its One-Hundred and Second Regular Session throughout the spring. Rumors in the Capitol are that this session will adjourn earlier than its scheduled April conclusion.

Expected to pass this spring, with large bipartisan support, are a series of bills aimed at reducing drug addiction. Wisconsin, as well as many other states, has seen an alarming uptick in drug related deaths. These bills will increase funding for treatment alternatives to incarceration – the highly effective Drug Court Program; encourage best practices in prescribing pain medication; federalize some rules related to drug treatment facilities and make illegal the manufacture and use of synthetic urine used to avoid drug tests.

At the end of the session all bills not passed will die. I’ll be working to kill several bills that take away local powers to decide, among other things, where industrial sites and sand mines are located and certain actions of school boards.

Wishing everyone a very happy and prosperous 2016. Exercise your right to vote, and remind your friends and family to get that Voter ID now!

The federal government has notified the state Department of Health Services that Wisconsin’s waiver to renew SeniorCare through December 31, 2018 has been approved. Green Bay's Sen. Dave Hansen gives credit for bi-partisan support to thousands who signed petitions to save SeniorCare.

MADISON - The federal government recently notified the state Department of Health Services here that Wisconsin’s waiver to renew SeniorCare through December 31, 2018 has been approved. The approval is good news for the more than 85,000 people who are currently enrolled in the popular prescription drug savings program.

The fate of SeniorCare was in doubt when Governor Scott Walker released his budget this year that included plans to eliminate the popular plan. Green Bay area state Senator Dave Hansen, other Democrats and SeniorCare advocates collected more than 13,000 signatures in a petition drive that helped create bi-partisan opposition to the Governor’s attempt to eliminate it.

“This is good news for everyone who depends on SeniorCare to afford their needed medications,” said Hansen who voted to create SeniorCare. "And it’s good for taxpayers too who save $90 million per year as a result of SeniorCare’s ability to negotiate for lower prices directly with drug companies."

Over 4,300 people from Northeast Wisconsin signed the petition that helped save SeniorCare. As a result, Democrats and Republicans opposed the planned elimination and the program was restored in the state budget. It just goes to show that when people get involved legislators will listen.

More than 85,000 people are currently enrolled in SeniorCare, and benefit from the program's simple enrollment process, $30 annual fee, income-based deductibles, and $5 co-pays for generic drugs. Most participants save hundreds of dollars each year, over what their costs would be on Medicare Part D, and taxpayers save $90 million per year through SeniorCare’s direct negotiation with drug companies.

"SeniorCare saves money and SeniorCare saves lives, and that's why so many people were willing to sign their names and share their stories, in support of the program," said Hansen. "Thanks to their efforts SeniorCare will be here to continue helping Wisconsin seniors save money on their prescription drugs.”

***

Legislative staffer Jay Wadd contributed to this story.

KENOSHA, WI - As my fellow Democrats and I speak with people around the state, people often tell us they believe “politicians don’t care about people like me.” And given what Governor Walker and Republican legislators have done over the past year – and what they have left undone – it’s not surprising that people feel that way.

First, I want to make it clear that my Democratic colleagues and I care about ordinary Wisconsinites and the issues that will build the middle class, such as education and training, job development, lower student loan debt, family leave and other important issues. We have put forward ideas and advocated for your agenda – not the extreme special-interest policies that dominate the Republican agenda.

Assembly Democrats are focused on creating jobs and strengthening our middle class, and we have brought forward numerous bills and ideas to help accomplish those goals. Our “15 for 2015” Economic Opportunity Agenda is comprised of 15 bills Democrats have introduced that are designed to help create good-paying jobs, connect workers with available jobs, increase wages and make us more competitive in a global economy. Our “Bring Back the Middle Class” package would boost retirement security and provide relief from high child-care costs and student debt. These are ideas that have broad support from our citizens, and they deserve to have bipartisan support as well.

Unfortunately, Republicans have refused to advance a single one of these bills, despite the fact that under their watch, our job growth is stalled at 37th in the nation, our middle class is shrinking faster than any other state and mass layoffs are on pace to potentially double last year’s totals. Instead, the Republicans’ number one priority is to consolidate their own power and feather their own nests, which opens Wisconsin to corruption and puts an end to clean, open and transparent government in our state.

Mounting evidence – from public opinion polls to our conversations in communities across the state – makes it clear that Wisconsinites don’t trust legislative Republicans, and there are many good reasons why. Republican rule in Wisconsin has meant more money for political campaigns with less transparency and fewer tools for prosecuting political corruption. Republicans have also turned our nonpartisan government watchdogs into partisan lapdogs. Republican legislators have also harmed our economic future by cutting a quarter billion dollars from our world-class universities and diverting millions of taxpayer dollars from public schools to unaccountable private voucher schools.

Meanwhile, the governor and Republican legislators have done nothing to provide relief for the million Wisconsinites burdened by student loan debt, taken no meaningful action on job creation and economic development, and provided no solution for fixing our crumbling roads and bridges.

I believe that Wisconsin does best when we have strong public schools, a thriving university system, robust infrastructure and a prospering middle class. My colleagues and I are doing everything possible to make that vision of Wisconsin a reality.

This year, the difference between Democrats and Republicans couldn’t be clearer. While legislative Republicans continue to pursue an agenda focused on helping special interests and their own self-interests, legislative Democrats will continue to advocate for the people’s agenda in 2016 and beyond – but we need your help.

I encourage you to talk to your neighbors, friends and families about the direction our state is headed. Get engaged and make your voice heard. Together, we can continue to advocate a people’s agenda that fosters economic opportunity and supports middle-class families struggling to get ahead.

MADISON - News reports last Friday exposed that top Walker aides have encouraged communicating official state business through private channels to limit public access. By doing so, it appears that Gov. Scott Walker is continuing the "secret email network" policy he pursued at Milwaukee County. The Milwaukee County network was uncovered during the John Doe 1 investigation in 2011 that led to the indictment and conviction of several Walker aides.

“Gov. Walker is either deliberately misleading the public and press or he’s woefully out of touch with what his top cabinet officials are doing", said Senate Democratic Leader Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse) and Assembly Democratic Leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) in a joint statement on Friday. "Either excuse is unacceptable."

“This latest scandal to limit public records is a gross abuse of political power that follows the typical pattern of Republican secrecy we’ve come to expect", the statement continues. "Simply put, Gov. Walker and legislative Republicans can’t be trusted to do the right thing for our state."

“Legislative Republicans have been laser-focused on covering up Gov. Walker’s political scandals. In doing so, they have undermined Wisconsin's tradition of good government and opened our state to fraud and corruption. Instead, Democrats believe we should be helping working families, investing in our communities and creating economic prosperity”, Shilling and Barca conclude.

This week, as the holidays draw near,  Sen. Kathleen Vinehout does an overview of the issues about which Wisconsin constituents contacted her.

ALMA - Happy Holidays! While Santa is making a list of who is naughty and nice, I spent time making a list of what folks cared about enough to call or write.

I am always impressed by how many people take the time to become engaged in their government. “Democracy” is truly a verb for the 7,007 individual people who communicated with me in 2015. Many offered their opinion not once but several times. My office recorded a total of 15,811 contacts with citizens.

This year was a budget year. It was also the year the Governor ran for President. Both had an influence on the amount and type of communication I received.

People did not favor the Governor’s budget. Many wrote on several budget issues. Seven topics really stood out based on the number of contacts I received.

Most concerning, in terms of a common complaint, was the Governor’s proposal to dramatically cut back SeniorCare. The program helps elders of modest means afford prescription drugs. The Governor wanted to replace Wisconsin’s program with Medicare Part D. Over 800 people contacted my office to oppose this plan. Many of these people had never contacted me before on any issue.

No one contacted me in favor of the plan. The immense amount of citizen involvement against the proposal led legislative leaders to drop SeniorCare changes!

Deep cuts to the University of Wisconsin System troubled many citizens. Over 250 people wrote specifically about the cuts to the UW System. Not one citizen wrote or called in favor of the cuts.

Changes at the Department of Natural Resources riled 145 people enough for them to contact me specifically asking to stop the changes, which included eliminating the powers of the Natural Resources Board, cutting DNR scientists and the stewardship program. Citizen action did help restore the powers of the boards at both Natural Resources and the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. The DNR is now suffering under budget cuts to its programs. No one contacted me in favor of these changes.

Over 100 people contracted me to oppose changes in FamilyCare and IRIS. This issue stands out as one that got people really engaged. Many wrote impressive and personal snail mail letters. Some came to the Capitol in wheelchairs and with caregivers. Others came to one of more than a dozen town hall meetings I held on the budget. For many people this was the first time they became involved in the political process. I received no contact from anyone in favor of the changes.

Changes to education, including teacher standards, cuts to public radio and television and changes to the public open records laws rounded out the list of major specific issues people took the time express an opinion. In every case, people expressed opposition to the governor’s budget provision.

In past years, some people always wrote in favor of some budget changes. This year was exceptional in that I received very little contact in favor of any part of the budget. I suspect the Governor’s run for President led to the ill-conceived proposals for which there was little vocal support.

On other legislative issues, the misnamed “Right to Work” bill garnered the most attention. Ninety three percent of over 300 citizens who contacted me were opposed to the bill. Next of concern were changes to the campaign finance laws and the elimination of the Government Accountability Board (GAB). Ninety percent who contacted me were opposed to these two bills.

Some folks are surprised when I describe about half my job as “social work”. By that, I mean listening and connecting people with resources to help solve their problems. Over 100 people contacted me with significant personal concerns. Some of the issues we assisted people with related to BadgerCare, unemployment insurance, DNR permits or other parts of state government.

A big thanks to my dedicated Senate staff: Linda Kleinschmidt, Ben Larson and Beau Stafford. In addition, thank you all who contacted me this year. You make democracy work!

Sending you and yours fond Holiday Greetings!

Report finds continuing regional disparities on cost, inflation, and quality. Wisconsin health insurance costs have more than tripled since 2000.

STATEWIDE - Citizen Action of Wisconsin released its 10th Annual Wisconsin Health Insurance Cost Ranking report Monday morning on a statewide media call. A full audio recording of the media call can be downloaded here.

The full report includes 11 charts ranking the cities and regions of Wisconsin on health insurance costs, rate of inflation, and quality, and can be downloaded here.

This year’s report finds wide disparities between higher and lower cost regions of Wisconsin, as well as large differences in the rate of health insurance inflation. There is a 30% variation in the for all types of health insurance for premiums and deductibles between the lowest cost metro area (Madison) and the highest cost area (Milwaukee), which amounts to a difference of $2,221.48 per year for single health coverage.

The magnitude of this gap could have significant economic consequences. The report finds that Wisconsin health insurance premiums for large and medium sized employers have more than tripled since 2000, increasing 216% since the year 2000 statewide, and as much 365% in some areas.

This year’s report also finds significant volatility on in the price for health insurance people buy on their own. There is also a $4,470 gap in annual premiums and deductibles between the highest cost area (Wausau) and the lowest cost (Madison) on the individual market.

The report recommends that policymakers in Madison make controlling health care costs a more central focus. The report notes that making better use of all the tools available under the Affordable Care Act, such as taking enhanced dollars for BadgerCare and implementing more robust health insurance rate review could begin the process of moderating health insurance premiums in Wisconsin. Other reforms which go beyond the Affordable Care Act such as more strictly regulating excessive prescription drug prices and surprise medical bills would also lower consumer costs.

“The striking numbers in this report make it clear that state policymakers need to move beyond the divisive debate over the Affordable Care Act and put a sharp focus on health care costs,” said Robert Kraig, the report lead author and the Executive Director of Citizen Action of Wisconsin. “Wisconsin workers and families will not have full control of their own health care decisions until we get health care costs under control.”

Key Findings: Wisconsin Health Insurance Cost Ranking 2016

• Wisconsin Health Care Hyperinflation is a Long Term Trend. Wisconsin large group health insurance costs (premiums and deductibles) have more than tripled since the year 2000, increasing 216% statewide, with regional rates of inflation varying between a low of 170% in Madison to highs of 365% in Green Bay, 254% in Oshkosh, 247% in Appleton, and 226% in Milwaukee, for benefits packages that is less generous.

• Southeastern and Central Wisconsin are Highest Cost Areas, Madison is Lower Cost. According to a new composite measure which combines all types of health insurance, Milwaukee, Racine, Wausau, have the highest costs in Wisconsin while Madison has the lowest.

• Regional Cost Disparities Persist. There continue to be wide cost variations between higher and lower cost areas of the state. The cost variation is even higher in our composite index for all types of health insurance than they are in the large group market. There is a 30% cost variation between the highest cost metro area (Milwaukee) and the lowest cost metro area (Madison), which amounts to a $2,221.48 difference for a single policy each year.

• Regional Cost Disparities Are Greatest on the Individual Market. Although there are large regional cost variations for all types of insurance, the biggest disparities are in the individual market. The highest cost areas (Wausau, Stevens Point, Wisconsin Rapids, and Marshfield) are an astounding 69% higher than the lowest cost areas (Madison, Appleton, and Janesville/Beloit). This amounts to a gap of $4,470 per year for individual coverage.

• Disparities within Regions Suggest Underlying Medical Costs are Not the Only Driver of Insurance Costs. Insurers often claim that their prices merely reflect medical costs. However, there are major variations in relative cost within regions for different types of insurance. This suggest that the numbers measure not only underlying medical costs but also distortions in the insurance market. For example, the Fox Valley has above average insurance rates in large group insurance and well below average rates in the individual and small group markets. Wausau has very high costs for large group and individual market insurance, but relatively low costs in small group. Madison is not nearly as low in the small group market as it is for the other types of insurance. Eau Claire is high in all employer-based insurance, but below average on the individual market.

• Individual Market Costs Increased Substantially Statewide. There was a 28% increase statewide in premiums and deductibles combined from 2015-2016 .

• Striking Price Volatility on the Individual Market in a Major Policy Concern. Some metro areas had very large increases in cost from 2015 to 2016 while others actually saw reductions. Individual market prices increased by over 69% in Racine, and 60% in Milwaukee, while declining by over 8% in Madison and Janesville/Beloit. This 79% percent spread in inflation rates between Wisconsin cities is a warning sign that insurance rate setting practices may require greater scrutiny.

• Price Volatility is also a Concern on the Small Group Market. Although not as severe as the individual market, there were significant disparities in the rate of inflation between Wisconsin metro areas for small employers. While Green Bay and the Fox Valley saw greater than 10% increases, Stevens Point, Wisconsin Rapids, and Marshfield saw cost reductions of over 12%.

• Cost and Quality are not Correlated. As in past reports, the 2016 report finds that there is no clear correlation between quality and health insurance costs, with some of the low cost areas of the state having higher quality insurance plans and some higher costs areas having lower quality plans.

Additional data and 11 ranking charts ranking each metro area in Wisconsin are available in the full report which can be downloaded here.

Today's Republican Party appears to be terminally ill. Gone is Reagan’s optimistic faith that our best days are ahead of us, replaced by a dark fatalism about America’s decline and eventual demise.

MADISON - When political parties die they don’t suffer heart attacks. They contract terminal illnesses. The end does not come abruptly. There is advance notice.

Notice has been given. The Republican Party appears to be terminally ill.

The GOP was the party of Lincoln. It was the party of Teddy Roosevelt. The party of Eisenhower. It was a party dedicated to creating opportunity for all. Today it’s given itself up to the 1%. Today’s Republicans clearly have lost confidence in their ability to peddle their ideas to another 49%, and have resorted to a dizzying array of voter suppression tactics to whittle down the size of the electorate and blatant manipulation of political boundaries in hopes of rigging election outcomes. But they still aren’t sure enough people will buy the feed-the-rich, screw-the-poor policies they are selling, so they desperately turn to shameless — and shameful — appeals to racism and xenophobia to dredge up enough energy to stay alive.

Gone is Reagan’s optimistic faith that our best days are ahead of us, replaced by a dark fatalism about America’s decline and eventual demise. A true love of country and a sincere belief in the inscription on the Statue of Liberty have given way to paranoid obsessions with walls and borders and surveillance.

The Republican Party has lost its way. It has become a party that deserves to die.

It tends to be forgotten that parties have died before. It tends to be forgotten that the American experiment was underway for three quarters of a century before the Republican Party was born. It tends to be forgotten that the GOP’s birth in the 1850s coincided with the death of one of the two major parties at the time. Slavery not only divided the nation, it divided the Whig Party. The Whigs lost their leader in Illinois, none other than Abraham Lincoln, along with most of their northern supporters. The party could not survive the injury.

Like the ill-fated Whigs of the 19th Century, today’s Republicans have lost their right of association with Lincoln. They no longer sound anything like Teddy Roosevelt. They no longer act anything like Eisenhower. They try to evoke Reagan’s memory, but have grown estranged from his ways.

The signs are clear and conspicuous. The Republican Party is on the verge of flatlining.

Mike McCabe of Blue Jean Nation makes the point that Democrats (and Progressives) may gain more in the long run by standing up for their values than by being "smart" campaigners.

MADISON - A great football coach once said “winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.”

That line is often attributed to legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi. Lombardi wasn’t the first to say it. Maybe he heard it first from college football coach Red Sanders, who said it close to a decade before Lombardi made the aphorism famous. Maybe he lifted his signature saying from the 1953 John Wayne movie Trouble Along the Way. It’s doubtful Lombardi actually believed winning is the only thing. Roughly three years after he made the “only thing” remark, he was quoted in a magazine article offering an amended version: “Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is.”

Good coaches are good teachers, and they realize that more can be learned from a loss than a win. They tend to see long winning streaks as fool’s gold, because they know from experience that bad habits have a way of forming while their teams are stringing together wins, and those habits are only exposed as damaging after they lead to a defeat.

So it is in politics. You win some and you lose some. But when you lose, you need to lose with a purpose. Something has to be gained from every defeat. Seeds planted during today’s loss grow into the fruits of tomorrow’s victory. How you lose is what defines you.

In recent times, Republicans have lost much more purposefully than Democrats. Democratic Party dominance in the 1960s and especially Barry Goldwater’s landslide loss in 1964 inspired the 1971 Powell Memo that was a blueprint for a merger of corporation and state and an accompanying Republican renaissance.

The Democratic establishment’s response to what the Powell Memo has wrought has been curious to say the least. I wrote in my book Blue Jeans in High Places about a young woman in rural Wisconsin who ran for a seat in the state Assembly. Democratic operatives coached her to avoid being pinned down on issues and to steer clear of controversial stands. The Democrats’ nominee for governor similarly advised her to be as vague as possible on the issues and said her job as a candidate was to be “present and pleasant.” She followed the script. She lost.

In fact, the Democrats lost twice in that instance. Not only was that election lost, but nothing was said or done to get voters to start thinking differently or challenge the other side’s orthodoxy. Nothing was said or done to create conditions favorable to winning the next election.

Since my book was published, I’ve lost count of the number of former candidates for state and federal offices who have told me they received the same coaching. They followed the same script. They also lost. Twice. Democrats across the country are making a habit of running scared for the sake of “electability” . . . and losing anyway.

You lose in politics sometimes. But every loss has to have a purpose. There was a purpose to Goldwater’s defeat. Present and pleasant serves no purpose.

Phone companies are changing and copper phone lines are expensive to maintain. Modern technology is making copper lines obsolete. But Sen. Kathleen Vinehout wonders if state law should allow phone companies to dump their landline customers in the name of profit.

CHIPPEWA FALLS, WI - “I was furious,” said Cindy from Chippewa Falls. “I wouldn’t have stayed on the phone this long with this dinky cell phone.” She just found out state law allowed phone companies to dump their landline customers.

Cindy waited 40 minutes on her “dinky cell phone” to join a telephone town hall meeting with 7,373 other seniors.

AARP (formerly the American Association of Retired Persons) hosted the town hall. I was the guest senator. We joined forces to promote my “Home Phone” bill – Senate Bill 240. The bill would return state law to pre-2011 language and protect phone customers from losing landlines.

Phone companies are changing. Modern technology may make copper phone lines obsolete. Copper lines are expensive to maintain. That is the industry’s side of the story. The last point – copper lines are expensive to maintain – is what led to Marge’s problem.

Marge lives in Maiden Rock surrounded by the hilly, rocky, rural bluffs. The phone line is aging and quality is poor. But cell phones don’t work unless Marge gets in the car and drives to the top of the bluff. When I met Marge last summer, she had been without her landline phone service for several weeks. At that time, the phone company refused to repair the line. We weren’t certain they would ever do the necessary repair.

Landline home phones are vital to the protection, security and social support of not only seniors but many of the residents in rural areas. Prior to 2011 Act 22, Wisconsin residents were assured of landline telephone service through “provider of last resort” obligations. This law required telephone companies to make basic voice service available to all residential customers within the area in which they operated.

Four years ago, when I fought to stop 2011 Act 22, I was told not to worry because a federal law would protect landline phones. Now, one of Wisconsin’s largest telecommunication providers petitioned the federal government to remove the federal regulation, putting Wisconsin citizens at risk.

The Wall Street Journal reported in 2014 telephone giants “are racing to replace their phone networks with new technology.” Further, the WSJ reported the “FCC decided to allow carriers to launch ‘experiments’ aimed at weaning people off old, circuit-switched phone networks…two carriers, with a total of more than 250 million customers, aren’t shy about their ultimate goal: turning off their old networks forever”.

In our town hall meeting, we heard from seniors who lived through harrowing experiences saved by their landline phone.

James from rural Hayward told us his neighbor would not be alive without the connection of her landline phone to “Life Alert”. Marilyn fell outside in the winter and broke her hip. She pushed the emergency button connected to her landline phone, which alerted emergency responders.

“I used to work for AT&T,” James told town hall participants. When he worked for the company, they were proud to guarantee phone service. “What’s happened?” he asked.

Doris from Cornell said a landline phone is a lifeline for her husband who has a heart condition. The machine that helps his heart beat is monitored through a signal that can only be transmitted over a landline phone. The signal goes to Pennsylvania and then back to a hospital in Eau Claire.

Another concerned participant explained that her 84-year-old Aunt wears a bracelet that connects her to emergency services. The cell phone company will not support the service needed to make her bracelet work. A landline phone is critical to allow her Aunt to stay safely at home.

Cindy from Jump River lives in a low area and said she cannot get any cell reception. She was worried about reaching emergency services. “I have my landline and I wouldn’t want to give it up.”

Helen Marks Dicks, AARP’s Associate State Director/Advocacy Director, asked seniors to call their elected representatives and “tell them why landline service is so important to them.” People should “ask their legislator to request a hearing on SB 240.” The bill is in the Senate Committee on Workforce Development, Public Works and Military Affairs chaired by Senator Roger Roth.

You can use the AARP hotline to call for action: 844-254-6876. Call now – while you still can!

Three months have passed since Governor Scott Walker said he would repay taxpayers for bills run up while he was running for President. Has he given himself a no-interest loan?

MADISON - Nearly three months have passed since Governor Walker ended his presidential campaign and the day he promised to repay state taxpayers for costs incurred during his presidential campaign. As homeowners and small businesses begin receiving their property tax bills, the outstanding debt racked up by Governor Walker’s presidential campaign has largely gone unpaid.

The most recent news accounts suggest he still owes Wisconsin taxpayers nearly $70,000 for expenses he charged to taxpayers during the first 6 months of 2015.

“Millions of Wisconsin homeowners and small business owners are in the process of paying their property tax bills while Governor Walker continues to ignore his responsibility to repay taxpayers for the costs they incurred for his presidential campaign,” said Senator Dave Hansen (D-Green Bay). “Essentially he is receiving a no interest loan from state taxpayers. It’s a sweetheart deal that he’s giving himself and it really does seem to straddle--if not cross--an ethical line.”

Hansen and State Representative Katrina Shankland (D-Stevens Point) introduced the Taxpayer Protection Act earlier this year that would require state elected officials running for federal office to report and swiftly reimburse taxpayers for campaign related travel expenses.

Said Hansen, “His lack of concern for taxpayers makes our case for why we need to pass the Taxpayer Protection Act, so this never happens again.”

“So far he hasn’t even repaid taxpayers what he owes for the first part of the year. And we don’t even know how much he owes from the remainder of his campaign. Given his million dollars of campaign debt who knows if taxpayers will ever see a full accounting of what he owes them much less receive full payment from him,” Hansen said.

Earlier this month Wisconsin homeowners and small businesses began receiving their property tax bills, many of them containing an increase. As they begin to pay those bills many might be wondering if it’s time for the Governor to pay his as well.

“At this point I think they should go back and add on interest and penalties to his entire bill", says Hansen. "Most taxpayers don’t get no-interest, sweetheart loans like he’s getting."

"If he is looking for guidance he could consult the state tax code and pay the interest rate and penalties that are added on to the bills of those people who fall behind on paying their taxes", concludes Hansen. "Perhaps that would provide some incentive for him to make good on his promise to repay taxpayers.”

***

Legislative Staffer Jay Wadd contributed to this story.

Guest columnist Senator Jon Erpenbach talks about the value of the Wisconsin Consumer Act in consumer credit transactions in Wisconsin.

MADISON - Maybe it is our strong work ethic because Wisconsin consumers expect to get what we pay for. From services and food monitored and regulated by the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) to the Consumer Act enforced by the Department of Justice, Wisconsin’s consumer laws are a model for many other states and remain one of the most comprehensive laws in the nation.

Nearly every purchase you make, every service you pay for, the gas we buy, the food we eat, the milk we drink and many more products and services are regulated by the laws of DATCP and the Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) including the Consumer Act. The strong values of our state are the framework of our consumer protection laws. Safety, remedy, inspection and the value of every purchase and monetary agreement in this state are important to the people that live here.

The Wisconsin Consumer Act is the state law that regulates consumer credit transactions and debt collection. Consumer credit transactions are transactions that include a finance charge or are payable in more than four installments. Examples of consumer credit transactions are loans, credit cards, credit sales, second mortgages and leases.

Not all credit transactions are covered by the WCA. Transactions not covered are those that are over $25,000, made to businesses or are secured by first lien real estate mortgages. The WCA also does not cover non-credit issues, such as those involving checking or savings accounts.

Major provisions of the WCA:

• Require detailed disclosures in credit contracts and advertisements
• Limit certain interest and non-interest charges assessed in credit transactions
• Provide a three day right to cancel certain contracts
• Require judicial process in certain repossessions
• Prohibit certain collection practices

DATCP also administers the Wisconsin No Call List laws. Every year violations of the “do not call” law top the list of consumer complaints.

If you believe that you have been wronged in a consumer transaction through a faulty product, lack of the service that was promised to you, or unfair practices in general you can file a complaint online at http://datcp.wi.gov/Consumer/Consumer_Complaints/?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1 or you can request a complaint be mailed to you by calling the Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-422-7128.

Good business practices are a core value in Wisconsin and our citizens expect that when they make a purchase or contract for a service they will receive quality. For more information on Wisconsin’s consumer protections law please contact my office at 888-549-0027 or 608-266-6670 or via email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Politicians are fond of saying government should be run like a business. The WEDC is proof of the folly in that philosophy. Business and government are totally different creatures, and they have separate purposes.

MADISON - To the greatest extent possible, government should stick to doing those things private businesses can’t or won’t do.

This rule gets broken all the time, almost always with less than favorable results.

Take Wisconsin’s approach to promoting job creation, for example. The state’s economic development agency has been a complete failure. No wonder. What you have in the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation is a bunch of state bureaucrats pretending to be investment bankers. Wannabe entrepreneurs who’ve sought private financing and had their projects turned down by investment banks, venture capitalists and angel investors are able to make a few well-placed political donations, get some strings pulled, and get financing from the WEDC courtesy of state taxpayers.

Here we have the public sector acting as the investor of last resort for enterprises that private sector financiers won’t touch. That’s not only proven to be a waste of taxpayer money, but a prime example of government getting involved where it does not belong.

Politicians are fond of saying government should be run like a business. The WEDC is proof of the folly in that philosophy. Business and government are totally different creatures, and they have separate purposes.

Successful private businesses have to be able to turn a profit. But not everything that is profitable has social value or promotes the common good. And not everything that is socially valuable or advances the public interest is profitable. Pornography is undeniably profitable and thrives in the private sector, but has questionable social value and is often associated with social ills. Likewise, it is hard to see how gambling makes us better people or strengthens our society but it is a lucrative business. The same can generally be said for sports, fashion and most television programming.

On the other hand, it can’t be plausibly disputed that such things as schools, libraries, parks, police and fire departments, sanitation crews, and military forces are valuable or even indispensable to our society, but none of them would exist if they had to be profitable.

Here is another place where Wisconsin has strayed from common sense. Educating all of our children, regardless of need or disability, is not profitable. The private sector can’t do it. The only sure way to run a school and turn a profit is to cherry-pick students who are easiest to teach and steer clear of those whose needs make them considerably more costly to educate. Wisconsin has chosen to favor schools that are not required to take all comers, rapidly expanding its private school voucher program and sharply increasing funding for voucher schools while cutting state aid for public schools that are mandated to accommodate all students no matter how expensive they are to serve.

Business and government are different creatures that serve separate purposes. Government cannot be run like a business because the public sector’s role in our society is so fundamentally different than the private sector’s. And businesses surely should not be expected to operate like the government. The private sector has its place, and its rules. So does the public sector.

To each its own.

Sen. Kathleen Vinehout writes about the latest phone scam effecting people across the state and provides information about where people can turn if they received such a call and how to register their phones for the Do Not Call List.

ALMA, WI - “I’ve been getting a lot of calls from blocked and private numbers,” Pat from rural Hixton told me. “We called the phone company and asked them to stop those calls, but I’m not sure what else we can do”. Pat told me many of the calls asked her to change her credit cards to a “better deal”.

Pat couldn’t remember the last time she signed up for Wisconsin’s No Call List. “It was a while ago,” she said.

The No Call List protects people from unwanted calls and texts. Frequently these calls come from telemarketing companies. Sometimes the calls are scammers trying to collect personal information to take advantage of the unwary.

Wisconsin’s Bureau of Consumer Protections staff work to protect people from unwanted calls, enforce laws and alert unsuspecting citizens to scams. The Bureau is housed in the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

Getting all your phone numbers – including the cell phones of teens and college students – helps cut down on fraud and criminal activity. For those who use the Internet to make calls – called VoIP – you can also protect those numbers.

Big changes came to the No Call List last summer. My legislative colleagues and I passed a law to use the federal Do Not Call List as of August 2014. The big change is that once your phone number is registered, it is permanently on the federal Do Not Call List.

Before this legislative change, phone numbers registered with Wisconsin’s No Call List had to be renewed every two years. As I told Pat, two years goes by fast.

If your numbers were not on the No Call List last summer, the numbers are probably not on the federal Do No Call List now. If you’ve gotten a new number in the past year and a half, you definitely need to sign up now.

Getting your numbers protected is easy. You can do this on-line at https://www.donotcall.gov or call 1-888-382-1222 (TTY: 1-866-290-4236). Be sure to call from the number you want to protect.

You can check to make sure your phone numbers are registered by using the previously mentioned toll-free number or this link: https://www.donotcall.gov/confirm/conf.aspx.

Once your number is registered, telemarketers have 31 days to update their lists. If you receive an unwanted call after 31 days, you should file a complaint at the following link: https://mydatcp.wi.gov/Complaints/complaint/create/1443c589-da19-e511-af89-0050568c06ae

Several details of Pat’s story made me suspicious. For one, it is illegal in Wisconsin to use a blocked number for a telephone marketing call. It is also illegal to not disclose the number from which the telemarketer is calling. You can find more details about the rules at this link: http://datcp.wi.gov/uploads/Consumer/pdf/NoCall-TelemarketerFAQ287.pdf

Recently I received a call from a constituent who received intimidating calls from a person who said he was from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). After research, we discovered the IRS does not notify people of problems by phone. They will contact individuals in the form of an official letter. The IRS will only use the phone to address problems if you agree.

When I checked on credit card phone scams, I learned voice mailboxes across the country were being flooded with offers to lower interest rates. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigates credit card scams. Officials warn people who get robocalls offering lower interest rates to listen to the calls with “extreme skepticism” and delete the calls. The callers will charge a fee to find a lower interest rate, which is something you can do for free.

Be suspicious of any prerecorded call selling something. If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. And remember, if you are on the Do Not Call List it’s illegal for a company to solicit your business through a robocall.

Remind your friends and family they should not provide personal or financial information over the phone.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of a credit card scam, report the incident. You can report all kinds of scams – including telemarketing, credit card, Internet shopping at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357 or https://ftccomplaintassistant.gov/#crnt&panel1-1.

A little bit of skepticism goes a long way to protect ourselves. Enjoy the Holiday Season and be safe!

Vietnam era veteran Buzz Davis provides his views on the media blitz working overtime to puff out the fog of WAR that is drifting over America. Are the rich 1%ers, Wall Street bankers and the proponents of the military/industrial/political complex clapping their hands in glee because fear mongering is working so well?

STOUGHTON, WI - For 50 years our presidents and generals have been like losing football coaches who lose year after year but always say, “Just wait ‘til you see us WIN next week – we’re gonna crush em!”

McNamara and LBJ were pros at spinning losses into wins in the media.

But on the ground, millions of Vietnamese and soldiers paid a deathly price for their lying and the public’s gullibility. (I include myself in the gullible -- fortunately I was not sent to Vietnam in 1969.)

A month ago the US presidential primaries were debating inequality because activists, unions, economists and -- an unknown old man named Bernie Sanders had pushed America’s massive income and wealth inequality front and center into the presidential campaigns.

The 1%ers saw Sanders shoot up in the polls between March and now. They see he has smashed the hornets’ nest of inequality. 1%ers and their Wall Street/CEO welfare queens will get bit hard in the pocket book if Sanders wins.

How can they destroy Sanders? Dirty tricks? Dark Money floods? Assassination? Ah, how about MORE WAR? That wouldn’t cost us a dime and we’d actually make a buck.

Bam, almost like an orchestra conductor waving the baton, Paris erupts in screams, shots and terror. The media goes into “fear” overdrive ahla 9/11.

Reality be damned. Let’s do war!

You and I know the real terrorists are our neighbors. We have seen the enemy and it is us boozed up at our local bar.

We have had over 450,000 deaths in alcohol related vehicle accidents in the USA in the last 35 years and millions of injuries – many horrific and many permanent. Drunks are the terrorists Americans should be fighting!

But let’s flip back to the political reality of the 1%ers.

So the consultant says to the 1%er, “Sir, here is my proposal. We’ll pull the old war trick. We puff up the fear of a bearded terrorist behind every tree who steals young girls and does beheadings just like our Saudi pals. We call for worldwide war against terror, Republican candidates salivate like Pavlov’s dogs looking at red meat, we play Sanders as a wimpy lefty/socialist, Clinton will put on her aviator jump suit like Bush and struts like a tough guy, Sanders sinks like a rock, we put Dark Money behind Bush III cause he is the most trustworthy putty in our hands, the race is Bush III against momma Clinton, we drop the dirty trick bag on Clinton that Billy will be running the White House and Bush III wins with our Stop The Vote Drive.

Result: We have another nice hot war for our buddies in the military industrial complex. We make money. The peons forget this BS about income inequality. I figure it will only cost about $2 billion.

What do you think sir?

Do it. Have David cut the checks when you leave.

Thank you Mr. Koch!

Why are military style assault weapons like those used in San Bernardino County Wednesday so easily and legally available? While it is obvious that a ban on assault weapon sales would not stop all types of gun crimes, we can certainly stop handing these murderers the weapon of their choice to kill us.

GREEN BAY – This week's murder of 14 people in San Bernardino County, and the wounding of 17 others by self styled terrorists at a holiday gathering of public service workers has many implications for all thinking Americans, but one question immediately jumps to mind. Why are military style assault weapons like those used Wednesday so easily available to any murderer, terrorist, or nut case who wants one?

Assault weapons are a class of semi-automatic firearms that are designed to kill humans quickly and efficiently. Assault weapons have been used in many high-profile shooting incidents, including Wednesday's massacre in California, the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, the 2012 Aurora, Colorado movie theater, and many others.

A review of 62 mass shootings between 1982 and 2012 by Mother Jones found that assault weapons were recovered in almost a quarter of them. A review of mass shootings between January 2009 and January 2013 by Mayors Against Illegal Guns found that incidents where assault weapons or large capacity ammunition magazines were used resulted in 135% more people shot and 57% more killed, compared to other mass shootings.

A joint report by scholars in Mexico and the United States found that semi-automatic assault rifles sold in the U.S. are the most sought after and widely used weapons by Mexican drug trafficking organizations.

A study analyzing FBI data shows that 20% of the law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty from 1998 to 2001 were killed with assault weapons. Evidence from law enforcement leaders suggests that military-style assault weapons are increasingly being used against law enforcement by drug dealers and gang members.

A report by the International Association of Chiefs of Police recommended that Congress enact an effective ban on military-style assault weapons in order to curb the ability of criminals to “outgun” law enforcement officers.

A strong majority of Americans, including gun owners, consistently support laws prohibiting assault weapons. In a recent survey, 67% of Field & Stream readers polled did not consider assault weapons to be legitimate sporting guns.

In 1994, Congress adopted the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, which made it “unlawful for a person to manufacture, transfer, or possess” a semiautomatic assault weapon. However, the law expired in 2004, despite overwhelming public support for its renewal and semi-automatic, military style weapons banned under the federal law are now legal unless banned by state or local law.

Gun manufacturers, their lobbyists, gun merchants, and the NRA spend millions of dollars each year fighting legislation to reenact the Assault Weapon Ban. We let them put their financial interest to sell guns and ammunition above the safety of our families by buying their bogus claim that somehow they are protecting our “rights”.

Assault weapons allow criminals and terrorists to fire more shots, wound and kill more individuals and inflict greater damage in the most deadly mass shootings. While it is obvious that a ban on assault weapon sales would not stop all types of gun crimes, we can certainly stop handing these murderers the weapon of their choice to kill us.

And if there is no political will to do something in Washington, we can certainly demand action from our political leaders right here in Wisconsin.

It is time for everybody to do something to stop the slaughter. Wake up and smell the bodies!

MADISON - Yesterday, as you may have seen, the Wisconsin State Supreme Court came down with another terrible decision on the John Doe II investigation and essentially fired Special Prosecutor Francis Schmitz on the spot.

I wrote about Justice Shirley Abrahamson’s superb and scathing dissent, which you can read here:

Justice Abrahamson slams the canning of the John Doe prosecutor

We then posted the reaction of Prosecutor Schmitz, which is amazing. He says the rightwing groups he had to contend with in this case were trickier than the “violent criminals and terrorists” he used to have to deal with:

Read the defiant statement of the John Doe II prosecutor

We also sent out a letter to five district attorneys in Wisconsin, urging them to take up this battle and appeal the decision of the State Supreme Court straight up to the U.S. Supreme Court:

Open letter requesting DA intervention in John Doe II case

Now it’s your turn: If you’re in any of the five counties — Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Iowa, or Milwaukee — please call or send an email to your district attorney. Their contact information is at the top of the open letter.

The two likeliest DAs to take this up are John Chisholm of Milwaukee County and Ismael Ozanne of Dane County. So if you live there, be sure to contact them. Here’s their info:

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Phone (608) 266-4211

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Phone (414) 278-4646

We can’t let this horrendous State Supreme Court decision stand.

It would impair our ability to impose sensible limits on campaign spending in the future.

If you believe in fighting for democracy, as I know you do, please contact these DAs today.

Thanks for your activism.

The new “gig economy” has people working as free-lancers or independent contractors. Companies do not have to provide benefits and do not have to follow labor laws. This type of system shifts the risk to workers and the implications for workers and the economy can be great.

ALMA, WI - “If my company followed the rules, they couldn’t survive,” my niece Becky told me as we traveled home from our “Small Business Saturday” shopping trip.

Small retail businesses are owned by local folks and regularly use local workers. The money we spend in our local communities usually stays local.

But in this changing economy, sometimes your small business is not local. Sometimes the company is not even American.

Becky works for a small company that makes “apps” for use on computers or mobile devices.

The company is headquartered in Porta. That’s not a city in Wisconsin but in Portugal. The company hires workers from four continents including Peru, Taiwan, Germany and three employees in the United States.

My niece is a Wisconsinite. She graduated from a Central Wisconsin high school and her folks still live on the farm in Wood County. Becky spent several months in Portugal learning the company business. Now she works out of a Twin Cities co-op type office, which is essentially a basement, converted to free-lancers office space.

She could live and work anywhere in the world that has a good [unlimited data and consistently high speed] Internet connection.

Becky is a free-lancer, a self-employed independent contractor. Her company does not have a Human Resources department because they don’t have employees. Those who work for the company are all on their own. “Internet nomads” Becky says.

What does this mean? And what does Becky’s experience have to do with the way work and workers are changing?

America’s system of work is built on the premise that workers and employers share a social contract: employers gain profits through workers and, in return, workers are compensated and secure through wages, benefits and labor laws.

Health care, unemployment, worker safety protections, sick leave, injured workers’ compensation and retirement savings are all part of this social contract.

But for millions of people who work in the so-called “gig economy” the employer does not hold up their end of the bargain. By dropping benefits and not following labor laws, a company can lower its labor costs – a lot.

Robert Reich, President Clinton’s former Secretary of Labor, recently released a short video describing the problem (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_Snob8-6xM&app=desktop). “In five years over 40% of the American labor force will be in such uncertain work,” Reich says.

I believe it. Just in my family, over half of the “twenty-somethings” are self-employed or temporary workers.

Reich says the change in the economy “shifts all of the risk to workers. A downturn in demand or sudden change in consumer needs, a personal injury or sickness can make it impossible to pay the bills.”

Becky likes the flexibility of the new economy. She is willing to buy her own health insurance if she gains freedom to work when and where she wants. She argues small digital companies could not survive if they followed the labor laws in each of the various countries that make up their workforce. “They only have three American workers,” Becky said. “Imagine how hard it would be to follow the rules in a dozen different countries.”

Some digital companies are not so small. According to the Washington Post, this year Uber – the new economy’s answer to taxicabs – has over 160,000 workers in the United States.

Author Steven Hill wrote about this phenomenon in a new book and for Salon.com: “In a sense, employers and employees used to be married to each other, and there was a sense of commitment and a joined destiny. Now, employers just want a bunch of one-night stands with their employees, a promiscuousness that promises to be not only fleeting but destabilizing to the broader macro economy.”

The implications are enormous. Our state is struggling with the problems even now. Several proposals have been floated at the Capitol to change the injured workers’ compensation insurance system. However, if more workers were a part of this system, the health of the funds that support the insurance would improve.

As Becky and I grappled with the policy challenges, I realized there was no simple answer. But our conversation did help visualize the goal.

“There has got to be a way,” Becky said. “To keep the flexibility for companies and protect workers.”