Top Stories November 20th

Walker Aide: $3.3B Budget Shortfall Possible


11/20/10 - Some Wisconsin officials estimate the state could face a budget shortfall of more than two billion dollars over the next two years, but a spokesman for the state’s incoming governor says that number may be too low. The Wisconsin Department of Administration projects a one and a half billion dollar gap between expected revenue and spending requests from state agencies through June 30th of 2013. John Hiller, transition director for Governor-elect Scott Walker, says he believes the budget shortfall is much higher. Hiller says the true budget shortfall could be more than 3-point-3 billion dollars.

Local Educator Critical of Teacher Furlough

11/20/10 - State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald told us on WBEV’s Community Comment this week that teacher furloughs are “something that may have to be done to balance the budget.” That idea is not sitting well with Waupun School Superintendent Don Childs, who says the furloughs are “short-sided.” Childs says he “reads that as wanting to beat-up teachers and not educate kids.” Childs, a former Beaver Dam Superintendent, compares teacher furloughs to cuts in higher education, which he says makes the university system less competitive and leads to “brain drain” with 40% of the states graduates going to other states to work.

Wisconsin Association of School Boards’ Executive Director John Ashley told Channel3000 Friday that the furlough issue is “something…to look at for flexibility as school boards" as a way to “improve student achievement.”

Meanwhile, Fitzgerald says teacher furloughs would not mean less school days for the kids but he says “maybe for the teachers.” The Juneau Republican told us, “what you are going to see is that there are going to be some discussions about how the school day might be structured.” Students in the state are required to be in school 180 days per year, but teachers work for 185 days under many district contracts.

Groups Rally for Madison to Milwaukee Train

11/20/10 - Two groups are trying to change Governor-elect Scott Walker’s mind about high speed rail. The AFL-CIO is holding a candlelight vigil next Tuesday night at the Talgo train plant in Milwaukee, while the Sierra Club has planned weekend rallies in Madison, Milwaukee, Oshkosh, Eau Claire and La Crosse. It’s all part of an ongoing effort to convince the incoming Republican governor to allow a federally funded high speed rail line to be built between Madison and Milwaukee. “Minnesota wants the high speed rail from Chicago to Minneapolis-St. Paul,” said Shar Knutson is President of the Minnesota AFL-CIO. The Milwaukee to Madison was seen as part of larger network that would eventually tie together the cities of the Midwest. Walker has indicated that he would like to see some federal funding used to upgrade Amtrak’s heavily used ‘Hiawatha’ service between Milwaukee and Chicago, but said during the campaign and last week that he didn’t want Wisconsin taxpayers saddled with the ongoing costs of the Milwaukee to Madison line.

Opening Day of the Deer Hunt

11/20/10 - Deer hunters across the state have been cleaning their rifles and stocking up on supplies for the nine-day gun season that opens this morning. Last year hunters harvested more than 240,000 deer statewide during the gun season. At a gas station in Weyauwega, manager Donna Skaar says hunters she's talked to are optimistic about this year's hunt. And she expects a big rush for supplies this morning before business slacks off a little during the week and then picks back up again on Thursday when the holiday weekend begins. The gun season ends on November 28.

Hunters Can Use Texting to Alert Authorities

11/20/10 - The DNR has added texting as an option for reporting hunting violations this year. Steve Sisbach with the Bureau of Law Enforcement says members of the public can text information to TIP-411. Sisbach says the decision to take tips via text was because of the growing number of people who rely on the method to communicate. Also, he says it can allow someone out hunting to discreetly send in a tip without alerting violators who may be nearby. The DNR typically sees a wide range of tips come in during the nine day gun deer hunt. Sisbach says people have been very good about reporting information about illegal baiting, hunting too close to roads, and hunters failing to properly use tags. Texted tips will also be available beyond the season for people to report non-hunting violations of state wildlife and conservation laws.

Columbus Business One of Fastest Growing in the Country

11/20/10 - A Columbus “E-Retailer” – founded in 2003 – has risen to be one of the top 500 fastest growing e-businesses in the country. DiscountOfficeItems.com started just seven years ago buying and selling office supplies via the internet. The dot com company is headquartered on Industrial Drive and currently employs 23 full-time staff members. The e-retailer has doubled sales every year during the first five years of business. According to co-founder Jim Horton a variety of office products, low prices and quick delivery have been keys to their success.

Thompson Concedes in Senate Race

11/20/10 - Ed Thompson concedes he has lost the race for a Wisconsin Senate seat. The younger brother of former Governor Tommy Thompson had paid for the recount in the 31st District race. The initial count had him losing to incumbent Kathleen Vinehout by 439 votes. Thompson said yesterday the recount had only gained his side a few votes and he had called Vinehout to wish her well.

Illegal Voting Case Moving Forward

11/20/10 - A Milwaukee judge lets the case of two African-American men charged with casting illegal votes move forward. Michael Henderson and Olando Maclin had not completed their probation for felony convictions when they cast ballots in the 2008 election. Their attorneys argued Wisconsin's law against voting on felony probation violates federal law due to inherent bias in the state's criminal justice system. They say that bias basically means they can't vote because of their race. Judge Richard Sankovitz says the Voting Rights Act claim should be heard. Sankovitz issued what he called an "unofficial excerpt" of his ruling yesterday. He will offer the full opinion a week from Monday so the Thanksgiving holiday week won't count against the 14 days prosecutors will have to file an appeal. They say they will do that. Nearly two dozen states have eased restrictions on voting rights for felons who have done their time behind bars.

Summerfest Making Change to Schedule

11/20/10 - Milwaukee’s Summerfest will follow a new schedule next year. Marketing Vice President John Boler says the event will still run for 11 days, but there will be no performances on Monday, the Fourth of July. Boler says both the holiday and the Monday in the event’s run have proven to be frequent problems for attendance figures. Officials believe adding a second Wednesday date at the beginning of Summerfest will actually help boost ticket sales. Boler says a growing number of entertainment-related businesses have been closing their doors on Mondays, since consumers are more often staying in on that night of the week. About 856,000 people attended Summerfest earlier this year.