Vetos 4, including child labor, CAHC exemptions, new censorship rules for public educators, and marijuana use prohibitions.

MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers today took action on 18 bills. The bills include: 

Senate Bill 158, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 119:

• Requires the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) to study two means of providing Wisconsin-based Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) accounts, including examining the relative benefits of either implementing and administering these accounts directly or jointly with other states; and
• Requires DFI to report its findings to the Legislature no later than the first day of the seventh month beginning after the bill's enactment.

Senate Bill 242, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 120:

• Makes intentional destruction of a vaccine or drug which includes the intentional destruction, handling, storage or treatment of a vaccine or drug to render it unsafe, spoiled, or ineffective a Class I felony, punishable by fine or imprisonment not to exceed $10,000, 3.5 years, or both. 
  
  

Senate Bill 309, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 121:

• Defines free and charitable clinics as healthcare organizations that use a volunteer and staff model to provide health services to uninsured, underinsured, underserved, economically and socially disadvantaged, and vulnerable populations that meet criteria specified in the bill;
• Creates a statutory reference for funds granted to free and charitable clinics in under Act 58; and
• Defines telehealth and other related terms from the Medical Assistance program statutes for the purposes of occupational licensing.
  
  

Senate Bill 395, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 122:

• Establishes response and investigation requirements for reports of abuse, financial exploitation, neglect, or self-neglect of adults at risk and elder adults at risk. 
  
  

Senate Bill 412, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 123:

• Ratifies and enters Wisconsin into the Occupational Therapy Licensure Compact, which allows an occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant licensed in one member state to obtain a "compact privilege" to practice in another member state, either in-person or via telehealth, without obtaining a license in that state. 
  
  

Senate Bill 425, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 124:

• Allows a metropolitan sewerage commission for a sewerage district that includes a first-class city to finance and construct a dredged material management facility.

Senate Bill 453, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 125:

• Modifies administrative code to remove prior authorization requirements for enteral nutrition products administered through a tube under the Medicaid program. 
  
  

Senate Bill 488, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 126:

• Makes a series of changes to requirements for water supply service area plans for public water supply systems. 
  
  

Senate Bill 571, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 127:

• Repeals obsolete statutory provisions related to six income tax credits that taxpayers may no longer claim, including the farmland tax relief credit, provisions related to the earned income tax credit for tax years before Jan. 1, 2011, the community development finance authority individual income tax credit, the airport development zones credit, the relocated business credit, and the personal exemption credit for natural persons. 
  
  

Senate Bill 607, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 128:

• Increases the threshold amount of timber sold from state, county, or community forests for which certain notice requirements apply from an estimated value of $3,000 to either an estimated value of $10,000 or an estimated volume of 500 cord equivalents. 
  
  

Senate Bill 655, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 129:

• Adds two contract or agreement types to the list of service contracts subject to limited regulation by the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance and clarifies what information warrantors must provide to the commissioner's office regarding vehicle protection product warranties. 
  
  

Assembly Bill 529, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 130:

• Creates a new licensed occupation for naturopathic medicine, including two categories of licensed naturopathic practice which are a licensed naturopathic doctor (ND) and a licensed limited-scope ND, to be administered by a Naturopathic Medicine Examining Board. 
  
  

Assembly Bill 537, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 131:

• Enters Wisconsin into the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact; and
• Creates processes to allow a psychologist and patient who are located in different compact states to participate in telehealth services, to allow a psychologist to provide face-to-face psychological services in a compact state for up to 30 days, and to allow information sharing and enforcement actions between compact states. 
  
  

Senate Bill 491, now 2021 Wisconsin Act 132:

• Requires the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF) to reimburse the counties for subsidized guardianship payments, effective Jan 1. 2022. 
  
  

The governor's veto messages are available below: 

Veto message for Senate Bill 332. 

Veto message for Assembly Bill 86. 

Veto message for Assembly Bill 411. 

Veto message for Assembly Bill 440.

WASHINGTON, DC - The Republican National Committee (RNC) on Friday voted formally to censure both GOP Reps. Liz Cheney (Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) over their criticism of former President Trump and participation in the special House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

Read the developing report here

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/juneteenth-1900-s5.jpgBlack History is American History. Black Americans had and continue to have a key part in building this country.

Green Bay, Door County area has four major projects benefitting from Federal funding.

MADISON, Wis. – Thanks to President Biden, Senator Baldwin, and Reps. Kind, Moore, and Pocan, Wisconsin is receiving over one billion dollars to fund Great Lakes community projects and further improve water infrastructure across the state.

In 2022, the Biden-Harris administration is investing $14 billion from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to fund 500 waterway projects across 52 states and territories. These projects will strengthen U.S. supply chains by reducing shipping bottlenecks and increasing our nation’s resilience to climate change.

Despite every member of the Wisconsin GOP voting against this once-in-a-generation infrastructure investment, the following Wisconsin communities and projects will benefit from this funding:

Western Wisconsin

• $830 million for the Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program to modernize locks and dams on the Upper Mississippi River
• $350,000 for River Falls’ Kinnickinnic River Restoration to complete feasibility study (Pierce County)
• $5.31 million for Arcadia to initiate construction (Trempealeau County)

Northern Wisconsin

• $625,000 for the City of Bayfield’s Apostle Islands Marina Breakwall Restoration Project (Bayfield County)
• $1.935 million for the Red Cliff Band Reservation wastewater treatment (Bayfield County)
• $450,000 for the City of Superior’s Hill Avenue Interceptor Rehabilitation Project (Douglas County)

Green Bay, Door County Region

• $500,000 for dredging on the Big Suamico River (Brown County)
• $50,000 for Central Brown County Water Authority to complete feasibility study (Brown County)
• $19.166 million for Algoma Harbor to repair south breakwater (Kewaunee County)
• $1.5 million for Menasha Dam repairs on the Fox River (Winnebago County)

Southeast Wisconsin

• $75,000 for Kenosha to complete feasibility studies on the South Branch Pike River (Kenosha County)

Great Lakes Region

• $225.8 million for the Brandon Road Project in Illinois to prevent Asian Carp from reaching the Great Lakes

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/forest-products1-s450.jpgState would provide up to $8.2 million in matching funds to secure Industry's $100 million Federal Grant Application. Industry provides high-quality jobs to nearly 63,000 workers statewide.

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/door-county_biking-s5.jpgExperience Greater Green Bay Corporation will receive a $2.5 million grant to help construct the new Visitor Center.

http://newiprogressive.com/images/stories/S5/coronavirus-small-business1-s5.jpgMost of the more than $4.5 Billion in pandemic relief and recovery investments already committed, but some recovery-related grant opportunities still available online.

MADISON - Today, Senator Melissa Agard (D-Madison) and Representative Shelia Stubbs (D-Madison), joined by Dr. James Nosal, introduced legislation to reinstate the 48 hour waiting period on handgun purchases in Wisconsin. The introduction comes on the sixth anniversary of Caroline Nosal’s murder in 2016.

Senator Agard and Representative Stubbs issues the following statements:

Senator Agard:

“Today, we honor Caroline Nosal with the introduction of this bill - we carry her memory with us and come to this building with legislation to prevent this from happening to another family. We cannot continue to stand idly by as our community members are murdered by senseless acts of gun violence. We must have the courage and political will to do the right thing.

“We’re here to say that we can avoid senseless violence like this in the future. We must choose to be a safer, more secure society. We must choose as a society to support policies that save lives. Simply put, every Wisconsinite should have the freedom to live, work, and play without fear of violence. We have the power to create a better, safer future. Let’s work together to accomplish that.”

Representative Stubbs:

“48-Hour waiting periods are a common-sense way to limit crimes of passion and keep our communities safe. The purchasing of a deadly weapon is not an action that can be taken lightly. Every weapon has the ability to permanently impact individuals, families, and entire communities. During this epidemic of gun violence, it is vital that we as legislators take action, and protect our communities.

“I urge my colleagues to listen to the people that are most impacted by inaction on this policy. Dr. and Mrs. Nosal have endured an unthinkable tragedy, and we are forever grateful for their strength in sharing their story. As lawmakers, it is our job to ensure no other family has to face this pain. As Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, so wisely said “The time is always right to do what is right” And now the time is right to reinstate 48-hour waiting periods in the state of Wisconsin.”

MADISON - Wednesday, Senator Melissa Agard (D-Madison) introduced bipartisan legislation to implement teen dating violence prevention curriculum in schools. Joined by Representative Samantha Kerkman (R-Salem) and Senator Jerry Petrowski (R-Marathon), LRB-5627 would require DPI to create and implement a curriculum to teach students about healthy relationships.

Senator Agard released the following statement:

“Teen dating violence is a prevalent problem in the United States where 1 in 3 teens is a victim of physical, emotional, or verbal abuse from a dating partner. Developing healthy relationship practices as a young adult can have lifelong, positive impacts on health, including decreased risk for depression, anxiety, and drug and alcohol abuse.

“Moreover, perpetrating teen dating violence increases the propensity for perpetrating domestic violence in adulthood. To this end, promoting positive relationships and ensuring students learn skills to not only form healthy relationships, but also to identify abusive behavior, is critical to preventing teen dating violence and preventing cyclical abuse patterns.

“I am proud to author LRB-5627, a bipartisan effort with Senator Jerry Petrowski and Representative Samantha Kerkman, to support the building of healthy relationships and prevent teen dating violence in Wisconsin by incorporating essential curriculum into our schools.

“Partner violence is a public health crisis that is completely preventable. LRB-5627 provides common sense solutions to promoting healthy relationship education for Wisconsin teens as well as providing procedures for identifying, preventing and responding to teen dating violence for school district employees.

“Reducing and eliminating dating violence must be achieved through the cooperation of individuals, organizations, and communities, and this bipartisan effort is a real start. This is common sense, pragmatic legislation that we know will save lives once passed.”

Custom boat builder will employ up to 20 skilled workers in Genoa City.