Author: Wisconsin Public Radio

Since the start of the pandemic, deaths by domestic violence in Wisconsin have surged to record levels. According to a new report from End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin, domestic violence claimed 80 lives last year, including victims and perpetrators. That is up from 72 in 2019 and 68 in 2020. Around half of the victims were people of color, despite the population of Wisconsin being about 87 percent White. The cases occurred across Wisconsin, but 74 percent happened in urban areas, and the homicides were most concentrated in Milwaukee. While COVID alone did not create this spike in violence, it...

Milwaukee-area commuters will see a widened Interstate 94 on the city’s west side if a new recommendation from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation is adopted. The department announced its preferred plan for the $1.2 billion highway expansion on November 11. It would expand the road from six lanes to eight — four lanes in each direction — on about a 3.5-mile stretch of highway that passes the Brewers’ American Family Field. Its recommendation comes some 12 years after plans for the highway became a political issue, and more than 18 months since the state put it on hold in...

New York has Broadway. California has movie stars you will only see in Hollywood, Maine is known for its lobster, and Iowa has corn. Here in Wisconsin, we are known for a lot of products, but predominately beer. It is the state’s history with the beer industry that often raises the question about what happened to local breweries and alcohol production during prohibition. Prohibition began in the 1920s when the 18th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibited the manufacturing, transportation and sale of intoxicating beverages — it did not make the possession or consumption of alcohol illegal. It was...

As Wisconsin prepares for midterm elections on November 8, clerks are reminding voters that full results are likely to take time, especially with so many people expected to vote absentee. Under Wisconsin law, clerks cannot start processing and counting absentee ballots until polls open at 7:00 a.m. on Election Day. If volumes are large, the process can be lengthy, said Marie Moe, the president of the Wisconsin Municipal Clerks Association. “People are expecting results as soon as the polls close and that just doesn’t happen because the poll workers are busy doing their work, finishing up the election,” said...

After federal lawmakers recently approved new benefits for veterans exposed to harmful chemicals, Wisconsin service providers are working to ramp up and meet the coming needs. Veterans may now enroll in benefits under the PACT Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law August 10 after Republican attempts in Congress to block it. Benefits processing is planned to start in January of next year. 30K to 75K Wisconsin veterans are eligible for new the benefits. James McLain, acting director for the Milwaukee VA Medical Center, estimated the PACT Act will cover 30,000 to 75,000 veterans in the state. He...

On the day he proposed his $1.37 billion budget, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley once again called for the state to allow the county to raise its sales tax. It was a move Crowley said could decrease property taxes and maintain critical services for Milwaukee County residents. Currently, more than 70 percent of local tax dollars go to state-mandated services, according to a draft of the budget proposal. Crowley also said stagnant state aid is an issue that could impact the budget in future years. “In just a few years, Milwaukee County will not have enough money to fund...