Union Challenges Deputy Suspension
12/11/08 - The AFSCME union is appealing a decision by the Dodge County Sheriffs Department Grievance Committee to suspend a deputy. 48-year-old Gregory Weihert was pulled over by a Richland County Sheriffs Deputy on August 31 after making a u-turn; he reportedly had an open container of alcohol and blood-alcohol level of point one-zero (.10). The Richland County District Attorney ruled there was “no reasonable suspicion” to initiate a traffic stop. Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls nonetheless requested the Grievance Committee suspend Weihert for 20-days without pay. Nehls alleges that Weihert had a documented blood-alcohol content that was in excess of the legal driving limit and also noted that he asked the Richland County deputy for “professional courtesy.” Nehls says the request for professional courtesy violates the department’s mission statement. The Grievance Committee upheld Nehls suspension request following a 6-hour meeting on October 31. Lee Gierke with Wisconsin Council 40 of AFSCME confirmed for us that the union will appeal the Grievance Committee decision, and the matter will go to arbitration at a later date. The findings of the arbitrator – for a 20-day suspension or no disciplinary action – will be final. Weihert has not had any disciplinary action taken against him in the 18 years he has been with the Dodge County Sheriffs Department.
Sheriffs Department Focuses on Booze and Belts
12/11/08 - The Dodge County Sheriffs Department is one of several agencies statewide participating in the “Booze and Belts” traffic crash prevention effort. The mobilization aims to stop preventable traffic deaths and drunken driving. The coordinator of the grant, Lt. Trace Frost with the State Patrol, says participating law enforcement agencies will be patrolling in greater numbers and for longer hours to arrest drunken drivers and enforce safety belt laws. Last year in Wisconsin, there were more than 42,000 drunken driving convictions and nearly 68,000 convictions for failure to fasten safety belts. The enforcement period is underway and continues through December 15.
Fall River Budget Approved
12/11/08 - When the annual local tax bills are sent out this month the total mil rate for tax payers in the Fall River area will be at $20.10 per 1,000. That mil rate includes the Columbia County, M A T C, School District, State and Village portions of the tax bill. That number is $.78 cents above last year’s property taxes. The Village portion of that mil rate will increase from $5.15 to $5.36 per one thousand dollars of assessed evaluation …a hike of $.21 cents per thousand.
PAVE Receives Grant Funding
12/11/08 - Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced Wednesday that $35,000 in Sexual Assault Victim Services funding has been awarded to the Dodge County chapter of PAVE, People Against a Violent Environment. With the funding, PAVE anticipates serving 50 sexual assault victims throughout Dodge County. The money will allow PAVE to continue providing services including a 24-hour crisis response phone line, support groups, and community outreach and prevention education services. PAVE is one of 45 agencies selected to share $2-million in grant funding this year.
No Snow On Roads
12/11/08 - Authorities are reminding the public that it is illegal to push snow into the roadway. The Dodge County Sheriff’s Department has fielded several complaints from motorists reporting vehicle damage or loss of control as a result of snow or chunks of ice being left in the roadway. State statute prohibits the placement of such obstacles in the road, and violators face a $186 fine. Deputies on patrol who note the infraction will be making contact with the property owner and giving a verbal warning and ensure the snow is removed.
Clear Snow From Hydrants
12/11/08 - The Beaver Dam Fire Department is asking the public to clear snow from any fire hydrants on their property. Fire Captain Matt Christian says it’s not a bad idea to clear snow from fire hydrants on adjacent properties either, because the build-up can slow efforts to fight a fire. Officials with the Beaver Dam DPW say it is the responsibility of property owners to remove the snow. The department does clear as many hydrants as possible, but they say with all the snow we’ve had so far this fall it takes a while to get to them, and having them snow covered could be a tragedy in the making.
Trash Pick-Up Delayed
12/11/08 - The snow has hampered efforts for area trash collection. Veolia Environmental reports that garbage and recycling collection will be delayed by one day for the rest of this week in the municipalities that contract with them. That includes Beaver Dam and Horicon. Today’s collection will be tomorrow. Friday’s pick-up is on Saturday. The normal pick-up schedule will resume next week. Trash pick-up was also delayed in Juneau; it will happen Friday. Fox Lake will have trash pick-up on Saturday.
Papers Available for BD Aldermanic Race
12/11/08 - Nomination papers for Beaver Dam residents interested in running for a two-year term on common council are available at the city clerk’s office. Odd numbered aldermanic seats are up for election in April 2009. The deadline to file declaration of candidacy and nomination papers is Tuesday, January 6. Incumbents have until Friday, December 26 to file non-candidacy papers. The seats up for election are currently occupied by Clancy Knaup, Glen Link, Aaron Onsrud, Robert Ballweg, Mark Born, Jon Litscher and Laine Meyer. The election will be held April 7, 2009, with a primary date of Tuesday, February 17, if needed.
State Budget Problems Unprecedented
12/11/08 - State Senate President Fred Risser has been in office for 50 years, but he's never seen budget problems like the ones facing the state right now. The Madison Democrat says it will take two million dollars a day in new revenue, or spending cuts, just to balance the budget by the end of the current biennium, next June. Risser says the problems could grow worse, as lawmakers try to figure out how to plug a 5-point-4 billion dollar hole in the budget for the next biennium. He says that could require the state to come up with an extra 7-million dollars a day in revenue for the next two years. Statistically speaking, Risser says it's as bad as he's ever seen the state's financial situation.
Petri Votes Against Bailout Package
12/11/08 - Two Wisconsin House members voted against the 14-billion-dollar auto industry rescue package that was approved last night. Fond du Lac Republican Tom Petri and Appleton Democrat Steve Kagen were among the 170 lawmakers voting no. 237 favored sending the package onto the Senate, including Republican Paul Ryan and Democrats David Obey, Gwen Moore, and Ron Kind. Menomonee Falls Republican Jim Sensenbrenner did not vote. Kagen opposed federal aid for Chrysler – whose parent company also owns the New Page paper mills that closed this year in Kimberly and Niagara. Kagen says Chrysler should get its own money by selling the mills and other assets. He also opposed the appointment of a federal “car czar” to make sure the automakers take steps to avoid bankruptcy. Kagen said it would have Congress running the auto industry. But Kind, a La Crosse Democrat, said the “car czar” would make sure the federal aid is a “bridge loan to somewhere” instead of a bridge to nowhere. Kind said letting the Big Three fail is not an option. A Senate vote could come as early as today. Wisconsin Democrat Russ Feingold said he’s still considering the package. But he criticized a resistance by some senators to help workers, while being eager to help Wall Street.
Doyle Asks for Budget Help
12/11/08 - Governor Jim Doyle says Wisconsin can start up to three-point-seven billion dollars in building-and-environmental projects by next spring – if Congress can approve a stimulus package by then. Doyle responded yesterday to President-elect Barack Obama’s request for projects the various states can do right away, to create jobs and put a jolt into the stagnant economy. But Doyle’s list raised eyebrows when it included 280-million-dollars in school building items that voters rejected in referendums. Assembly Republican Leader Jeff Fitzgerald says Doyle is ignoring the will of the taxpayers. But spokesman Lee Sensenbrenner says the governor is simply listing what can be built now – and a priority list for the various projects is far from being set. Today, Doyle will ask the House Appropriations Committee for federal help in fixing Wisconsin’s five-point-four-billion dollar deficit in its next budget. Wausau Democrat David Obey chairs the panel. Doyle’s wish list includes three-quarter billion dollars for public school projects. There’s also 600-million to clean up more cancer-causing P-C-B’s in the Fox River -- 300-million in highway projects, including the expansion of Interstate 94 from Milwaukee to Illinois – and almost a billion dollars in public-and-private energy conservation projects.
DNR Targets Deer Carcass For Deficit
12/11/08 - You won’t have to pay more for a deer hunting license – but you might have to watch more deer rot along the roadsides. That’s one way the state D-N-R plans to help cut the state’s huge deficit in the next budget. Secretary Matt Frank told the Natural Resources Board yesterday he has no plans to raise any license fees for hunting, fishing, or trapping – especially with the rough economy and so many job losses. That means the agency will cut spending – and one proposal is to stop paying vendors to remove dead deer from the roadways. Over 13-hundred deer were removed this year in Waukesha County alone, and officials there call the proposed cut a poor decision. Meanwhile, D-N-R officials say other spending cuts are possible on programs involving biology, land maintenance, and law enforcement. The final list will go to Governor Jim Doyle, who will decide which cuts to ask legislators to make.
12/11/08 - The AFSCME union is appealing a decision by the Dodge County Sheriffs Department Grievance Committee to suspend a deputy. 48-year-old Gregory Weihert was pulled over by a Richland County Sheriffs Deputy on August 31 after making a u-turn; he reportedly had an open container of alcohol and blood-alcohol level of point one-zero (.10). The Richland County District Attorney ruled there was “no reasonable suspicion” to initiate a traffic stop. Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls nonetheless requested the Grievance Committee suspend Weihert for 20-days without pay. Nehls alleges that Weihert had a documented blood-alcohol content that was in excess of the legal driving limit and also noted that he asked the Richland County deputy for “professional courtesy.” Nehls says the request for professional courtesy violates the department’s mission statement. The Grievance Committee upheld Nehls suspension request following a 6-hour meeting on October 31. Lee Gierke with Wisconsin Council 40 of AFSCME confirmed for us that the union will appeal the Grievance Committee decision, and the matter will go to arbitration at a later date. The findings of the arbitrator – for a 20-day suspension or no disciplinary action – will be final. Weihert has not had any disciplinary action taken against him in the 18 years he has been with the Dodge County Sheriffs Department.
Sheriffs Department Focuses on Booze and Belts
12/11/08 - The Dodge County Sheriffs Department is one of several agencies statewide participating in the “Booze and Belts” traffic crash prevention effort. The mobilization aims to stop preventable traffic deaths and drunken driving. The coordinator of the grant, Lt. Trace Frost with the State Patrol, says participating law enforcement agencies will be patrolling in greater numbers and for longer hours to arrest drunken drivers and enforce safety belt laws. Last year in Wisconsin, there were more than 42,000 drunken driving convictions and nearly 68,000 convictions for failure to fasten safety belts. The enforcement period is underway and continues through December 15.
Fall River Budget Approved
12/11/08 - When the annual local tax bills are sent out this month the total mil rate for tax payers in the Fall River area will be at $20.10 per 1,000. That mil rate includes the Columbia County, M A T C, School District, State and Village portions of the tax bill. That number is $.78 cents above last year’s property taxes. The Village portion of that mil rate will increase from $5.15 to $5.36 per one thousand dollars of assessed evaluation …a hike of $.21 cents per thousand.
PAVE Receives Grant Funding
12/11/08 - Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced Wednesday that $35,000 in Sexual Assault Victim Services funding has been awarded to the Dodge County chapter of PAVE, People Against a Violent Environment. With the funding, PAVE anticipates serving 50 sexual assault victims throughout Dodge County. The money will allow PAVE to continue providing services including a 24-hour crisis response phone line, support groups, and community outreach and prevention education services. PAVE is one of 45 agencies selected to share $2-million in grant funding this year.
No Snow On Roads
12/11/08 - Authorities are reminding the public that it is illegal to push snow into the roadway. The Dodge County Sheriff’s Department has fielded several complaints from motorists reporting vehicle damage or loss of control as a result of snow or chunks of ice being left in the roadway. State statute prohibits the placement of such obstacles in the road, and violators face a $186 fine. Deputies on patrol who note the infraction will be making contact with the property owner and giving a verbal warning and ensure the snow is removed.
Clear Snow From Hydrants
12/11/08 - The Beaver Dam Fire Department is asking the public to clear snow from any fire hydrants on their property. Fire Captain Matt Christian says it’s not a bad idea to clear snow from fire hydrants on adjacent properties either, because the build-up can slow efforts to fight a fire. Officials with the Beaver Dam DPW say it is the responsibility of property owners to remove the snow. The department does clear as many hydrants as possible, but they say with all the snow we’ve had so far this fall it takes a while to get to them, and having them snow covered could be a tragedy in the making.
Trash Pick-Up Delayed
12/11/08 - The snow has hampered efforts for area trash collection. Veolia Environmental reports that garbage and recycling collection will be delayed by one day for the rest of this week in the municipalities that contract with them. That includes Beaver Dam and Horicon. Today’s collection will be tomorrow. Friday’s pick-up is on Saturday. The normal pick-up schedule will resume next week. Trash pick-up was also delayed in Juneau; it will happen Friday. Fox Lake will have trash pick-up on Saturday.
Papers Available for BD Aldermanic Race
12/11/08 - Nomination papers for Beaver Dam residents interested in running for a two-year term on common council are available at the city clerk’s office. Odd numbered aldermanic seats are up for election in April 2009. The deadline to file declaration of candidacy and nomination papers is Tuesday, January 6. Incumbents have until Friday, December 26 to file non-candidacy papers. The seats up for election are currently occupied by Clancy Knaup, Glen Link, Aaron Onsrud, Robert Ballweg, Mark Born, Jon Litscher and Laine Meyer. The election will be held April 7, 2009, with a primary date of Tuesday, February 17, if needed.
State Budget Problems Unprecedented
12/11/08 - State Senate President Fred Risser has been in office for 50 years, but he's never seen budget problems like the ones facing the state right now. The Madison Democrat says it will take two million dollars a day in new revenue, or spending cuts, just to balance the budget by the end of the current biennium, next June. Risser says the problems could grow worse, as lawmakers try to figure out how to plug a 5-point-4 billion dollar hole in the budget for the next biennium. He says that could require the state to come up with an extra 7-million dollars a day in revenue for the next two years. Statistically speaking, Risser says it's as bad as he's ever seen the state's financial situation.
Petri Votes Against Bailout Package
12/11/08 - Two Wisconsin House members voted against the 14-billion-dollar auto industry rescue package that was approved last night. Fond du Lac Republican Tom Petri and Appleton Democrat Steve Kagen were among the 170 lawmakers voting no. 237 favored sending the package onto the Senate, including Republican Paul Ryan and Democrats David Obey, Gwen Moore, and Ron Kind. Menomonee Falls Republican Jim Sensenbrenner did not vote. Kagen opposed federal aid for Chrysler – whose parent company also owns the New Page paper mills that closed this year in Kimberly and Niagara. Kagen says Chrysler should get its own money by selling the mills and other assets. He also opposed the appointment of a federal “car czar” to make sure the automakers take steps to avoid bankruptcy. Kagen said it would have Congress running the auto industry. But Kind, a La Crosse Democrat, said the “car czar” would make sure the federal aid is a “bridge loan to somewhere” instead of a bridge to nowhere. Kind said letting the Big Three fail is not an option. A Senate vote could come as early as today. Wisconsin Democrat Russ Feingold said he’s still considering the package. But he criticized a resistance by some senators to help workers, while being eager to help Wall Street.
Doyle Asks for Budget Help
12/11/08 - Governor Jim Doyle says Wisconsin can start up to three-point-seven billion dollars in building-and-environmental projects by next spring – if Congress can approve a stimulus package by then. Doyle responded yesterday to President-elect Barack Obama’s request for projects the various states can do right away, to create jobs and put a jolt into the stagnant economy. But Doyle’s list raised eyebrows when it included 280-million-dollars in school building items that voters rejected in referendums. Assembly Republican Leader Jeff Fitzgerald says Doyle is ignoring the will of the taxpayers. But spokesman Lee Sensenbrenner says the governor is simply listing what can be built now – and a priority list for the various projects is far from being set. Today, Doyle will ask the House Appropriations Committee for federal help in fixing Wisconsin’s five-point-four-billion dollar deficit in its next budget. Wausau Democrat David Obey chairs the panel. Doyle’s wish list includes three-quarter billion dollars for public school projects. There’s also 600-million to clean up more cancer-causing P-C-B’s in the Fox River -- 300-million in highway projects, including the expansion of Interstate 94 from Milwaukee to Illinois – and almost a billion dollars in public-and-private energy conservation projects.
DNR Targets Deer Carcass For Deficit
12/11/08 - You won’t have to pay more for a deer hunting license – but you might have to watch more deer rot along the roadsides. That’s one way the state D-N-R plans to help cut the state’s huge deficit in the next budget. Secretary Matt Frank told the Natural Resources Board yesterday he has no plans to raise any license fees for hunting, fishing, or trapping – especially with the rough economy and so many job losses. That means the agency will cut spending – and one proposal is to stop paying vendors to remove dead deer from the roadways. Over 13-hundred deer were removed this year in Waukesha County alone, and officials there call the proposed cut a poor decision. Meanwhile, D-N-R officials say other spending cuts are possible on programs involving biology, land maintenance, and law enforcement. The final list will go to Governor Jim Doyle, who will decide which cuts to ask legislators to make.
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