Here's the video version of our @wisconsinwatch.org story on how the most seriously injured-on-the-job workers, those declared permanently and totally disabled, haven't had a raise in worker's compensation benefits since 2016. www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4O_...

Wisconsin’s controversial practice of randomly removing ballots to resolve discrepancies between the number of ballots and the number of voters would be prohibited under new draft legislation that requires meticulous audits in every county. Reporting by @alexandershur.bsky.social @votebeat.org

"Sometimes life hits you with full-circle moments. For me, writing this is one of them." - Brittany Carloni, our new state government and politics reporter

In the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination, Wisconsin radio talker Joe Giganti calls on Congress to enforce the Communist Control Act. The 1954 law bans the @communistsusa.bsky.social . It's still on the books, but has been rarely used, @wisconsinwatch.org finds.

The Trump admin announced last week it’s ending grant programs that help fund minority-serving colleges, including more than 600 Hispanic-serving institutions. Wisconsin colleges say they’ll keep up the work regardless of the cuts. wisconsinwatch.org/2025/09/wisc... (via @wisconsinwatch.org)

The video version of our @wisconsinwatch.org story about people like 77-year-old Jimmy Novy. He and others declared permanently and totally disabled by Wisconsin's worker's compensation system have not received a raise in benefits since 2016. www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4O_...

As immigration enforcement increases nationwide, some community members want to better document the activities of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. A Milwaukee organization is training people to confirm or deny reports of ICE actions and document incidents when they do happen.

How might Wisconsin solve its biggest prison problems? We’re discussing that as a staff. The question is tricky because so many challenges outside of prison walls shape the problems within them, whether its barriers to housing, jobs or health care. We'd love to have your thoughts too.

No, National Guard members generally are not trained in law enforcement, @wisconsinwatch.org finds. Donald Trump is threatening to send them to big cities to crack down on crime.

Are US interstate truckers required to read and speak English? We looked into this question after Rep. Derrick Van Orden tweeted "Outstanding." in response to a report that Florida's truck weighing stations will now be checking drivers' immigration status as well as their ability to speak English.

Three years and more than 10,000 lawyer calls after being charged, this Wisconsin mother still doesn’t have a defense attorney wisconsinwatch.org/2025/09/wisc... via @wisconsinwatch.org

Outagamie County Judge Mark McGinnis will resign in February but won’t face criminal charges for jailing a man over a private money dispute he had with a courthouse colleague of the judge. @wisconsinwatch.org first reported the jailing in January 2024. wisconsinwatch.org/2025/08/wisc...

The 2025-27 Wisconsin state budget diverts an estimated $2.2 million annually to the Milwaukee County District Attorney's office that’s supposed to go to a fund for schools, a policy that appears to contradict provisions in the state constitution, reports @wisconsinwatch.org.

The science isn't settled on causation, @wisconsinwatch.org finds. But Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany is correct that research has found a link between marijuana use and psychosis (such as delusions and hallucinations).

The program will pay to send approximately 11,500 low-income students per year to driver’s education classes on a first-come, first-served basis. Interested students and/or their families ages 14 to 19 can go to the WisDot website and fill out an application.

Madison Assistant City Attorney to @liamberan.bsky.social: “Unfortunately, there is nothing for you to do. (Unless you sue us, which I would never suggest!)” isthmus.com/news/news/ma...

Here's the original story from @wisconsinwatch.org in January 2024. At the time the case had been open at DOJ for more than a year. The special prosecutor was appointed in March 2024. wisconsinwatch.org/2024/01/wisc...

NEW: Judge Mark McGinnis will resign Feb. 1, but won’t face criminal charges after jailing a man during a probation hearing for an unrelated financial dispute in December 2021. The cement contractor who was jailed for three days said he may pursue a lawsuit now that the criminal case is resolved.

Out of the infinite stories we could report at a given time, how do we decide which to pursue with our finite resources? Managing editor @jmalewitz.bsky.social writes about our process.

Wisconsin’s constitution says all “clear proceeds” from traffic fines are required to go to the Common School Fund — but the recent state budget redirects $2.2 million in traffic fines revenue in Milwaukee County to the county’s District Attorney’s Office to fund 12 new assistant DA positions.

“It gives you a fresh perspective of being boots on the ground talking to these individuals, you’re kind of looking at the humanity side of things. That’s what drives me, that’s my mission.” -- Cody Oberhuber, economic support specialist for Brown County

As part of the state budget agreement with Republican lawmakers, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers didn't veto $15 million in funding to support two projects in the district of Assembly Speaker Robin Vos as the future of the Knowles-Nelson conservation fund remains uncertain, reports @wisconsinwatch.org.

ICYMI: As of the afternoon of Aug. 18, over 16,500 flood-related service requests had been made to 211 from Milwaukee County and the surrounding counties of Waukesha, Ozaukee and Washington. About 85% of those requests originated from Milwaukee County alone.

Once eliminated in the United States, measles cases are increasingly being reported across the country, and as infections reach Wisconsin, here are answers to common questions about the virus, reports @wisconsinwatch.org.

Retention and graduation rates are up since Northeast Wisconsin Technical College condensed most of its courses from 16 weeks to eight to help prevent students from dropping out when they face hardships, reports @wisconsinwatch.org.

Special prosecutor weighing whether to criminally charge Outagamie County judge after @wisconsinwatch.org reported how he jailed a man who had an unrelated money dispute with a courthouse employee wisconsinwatch.org/2025/08/wisc...

A special prosecutor expects to decide in early September whether to take the extraordinary step of filing criminal charges against an Appleton-area judge over his actions from the bench.

Decades after contracting measles before vaccines were developed and widely administered, Wisconsin residents recall pain and disruptions that were caused by the disease as state health officials report an outbreak in Oconto County and brace for a broader resurgence, reports @wisconsinwatch.org.

Washington County residents are mobilizing against a proposed power line project by American Transmission Company that they fear will disrupt their rural properties.

‘I did drop a tear’: Camp Reunite helps kids connect with their incarcerated parents. Story via @wisconsinwatch.org.

NEW: Wisconsin’s recently passed budget doesn’t include the extension of a popular land conservation program, but it does include two earmarks for environmental projects in the home district of the state’s most powerful Assembly Republican.

GOP Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden and Democratic Wisconsin U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin gave different takes on social media on what the new federal rescissions law does to emergency alerts. @wisconsinwatch.org sorts it out.

An executive order issued by President Donald Trump seek to bar certain groups of immigrants from accessing Head Start, health clinics, career training, substance abuse treatment and other programs that are funded by the federal government, reports @wisconsinwatch.org.

The Pathfinders Employee Collective held a rally earlier this month, sharing their respect for the agency’s mission, their care for the youths they serve and their need for stronger and healthier working conditions ... “Our working conditions are our young people’s living conditions."

"I've learned that I have more determination than I initially thought, that my voice is louder than I thought it was..." In a piece we've republished from @wisconsinwatch.org, Natalie Yahr reports on quality-assurance testers at Raven Software ratifying their first union contract after three years.

A @uwmadison.bsky.social Division of Extension program named Rent Smart educates renters about how to find affordable housing and what to ask landlords, works to educate landlords about assistance programs, and trains people to teach others in their community, reports @wisconsinwatch.org.

Administrators and instructors say the intensive pace helps students perform better and prevents them from dropping out when they face hardships outside of school … plus the percentage of students who stay enrolled or finish their program from one year to the next has shot up 19 points to 77%.

The Milwaukee Police Department is still undecided about whether to expand its use of facial recognition technology. Since the passage of Wisconsin Act 12, the only official way to amend or reject MPD policy is by a vote of at least two-thirds of the Common Council, or 10 members.

"Public opinion is the camp’s biggest obstacle, said Chloe Blish, the camp’s mental wellness director. Prison and camp staff described hearing and reading concerns over the perception that the program is a safety risk — and that it rewards incarcerated parents."

While much of the outrage over the rising number of immigration detention facilities is focused on Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz,” Georgia is quietly working on building the largest ICE facility in the country.

From One Circus to Another: Professional clown now serves in Wisconsin Legislature Freshman state Rep. Karen DeSanto spent years traveling the world with the Ringling Brothers. Now she’s representing a rural Wisconsin district in the state Assembly. The two jobs are very different, she says.

Did you know that measles can disrupt the part of the immune system that remembers previous infections? This is a phenomenon known as immunity amnesia, and it leaves people more vulnerable to future viruses for two to three years after a measles infection.

An executive order has caused widespread confusion about which organizations must check immigration status of the people they serve and how they could do that. Parts of the order appear to conflict with federal law. Here's how the order could affect health care and education for some immigrants.

The day he announced he wouldn't run for the seat again, ex-Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said the next Wisconsin governor should require 60 minutes of daily exercise for kids in school -- raising the question of whether the state requires exercise at all.

ICYMI: Opioid settlement payouts could help save lives but many counties in Wisconsin have yet to spend theirs. How much has your county been allocated? We've created a simple tool to help you find out: wisconsinwatch.org/2025/07/how-...

Older adults make up 1 in 5 suicides in Wisconsin, with isolation and health problems among the contributing factors — possible solutions include senior-centered organizations, improving Medicare mental health coverage, and reinstating a 48-hour waiting period for guns, reports @wisconsinwatch.org.

"The deal is the latest development in a saga involving some of the video game industry’s lowest-paid workers. It comes after Microsoft purchased Activision Blizzard, Raven Software’s parent company, leaving the roughly two dozen testers to negotiate with one of the world’s largest tech companies."

Local journalism matters!

“I was ill and bedridden for weeks. When I was finally able to get up I was a skeleton. My pants couldn’t stay up and my clothes hung on me.” — Door County resident Pam Goodlet recalls her experience of measles in 1963 as a 13-year-old.

Nine cases of measles have been confirmed in Oconto County. Earlier this year, we dug into the data on vaccination rates in Wisconsin. Use our interactive maps to see data for your county. 👇