Jim Piwowarczyk

Meeting attendees unloaded on school officials at an informational meeting this week on a possible $91 million Oconomowoc school referendum, with one man telling them, "This is all bullsh*t." One of the biggest items of concern: Officials' desire for a "multipurpose indoor turf facility." Larry Halverson, 74, of Oconomowoc, said that his home assessment has continued to go up, "even though I didn't do a d*mn thing to my house. My taxes keep skyrocketing." Officials gave out a handout that listed $91.15 million in potential costs. They included: $32.9 million for Oconomowoc High School HVAC and roof sections at OHS and Ixonia; $5.75 million for Ixonia Elementary School; $39.4 million for OHS renovations and expansion; and $13.1 million for OHS multi-purpose indoor turf facility. They said the items would increase property taxes by $9 for every $100,000 of property value over the current level. That would be a property tax increase of $31....

The Green Bay Area Public School District is preparing for a "significant fiscal cliff" for the 2024-25 school year once federal emergency funding for COVID-19 dries up. Like school districts across the U.S., federal emergency funds have allowed districts to realize an increase in funding during the pandemic. Federal money for the district's general fund has increased from $12.2 million in 2019 to $33.5 million in 2022, a 175% increase. Total revenues for the district jumped from $275.6 million in 2019 to $304.6 million in 2022, an 11% increase. But the federal emergency funds are running out. The district is projecting $28.5 million in federal funds in 2023, far more than the pre-pandemic days but a $5 million decrease from the year before. While the district has had an increase in funding, enrollment has declined over the past six years, peaking at 21,937 students in 2016-17 and dropping to 19,828 in 2022-23. Green Bay schools' spokeswoman Lori Blakeslee ...

Supreme Court Candidate Janet Protasiewicz sentenced a felon who was accused of randomly abducting a 15-year-old Milwaukee girl and raping her in a hotel room to NO prison time at all. Protasiewicz, a liberal judge in Milwaukee County, could have given Anton R. Veasley, 34, up to 35 years in prison. Instead, she gave Veasley, a convicted firearm offender, time served in June 2021 and released him back into the community. He has already messed up and ended up back in jail on a weapons offense, Corrections and jail records show. That's not surprising; his criminal history shows he's violated extended supervision repeatedly before. According to court records, Anton R. Veasley is currently listed as a non-compliant sex offender and is sitting in the Washington County Jail, where he landed in July. Veasley was charged in Washington County court last August for felon in possession of a firearm. That case is set for jury trial in January, court records show. DOC recor...

The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors will vote on an advisory abortion referendum that would be placed on the spring election ballot Thursday, Dec. 8.   The resolution is sponsored by supervisors Clancy, Taylor, Cloggs-Jones, Martinez, Burgelis, Martin, Johnson Jr. and Wasserman. The resolution will also call for the transfer of $16,500 to cover the cost of placing the referendum on the ballot. A similar resolution failed last July when supervisors voted on whether to have an advisory abortion referendum placed on the November ballot. The resolution was defeated by a vote of 11-6, with Supervisors Deanna Alexander, Patti Logsdon, Shawn Rolland, Anthony Staskunas, Liz Sumner, and Steve Taylor voting against placing a referendum on the November ballot.  

Supreme Court Candidate Janet Protasiewicz sentenced a felon who was accused of randomly abducting a 15-year-old Milwaukee girl and raping her in a hotel room to NO prison time at all. Protasiewicz, a liberal judge in Milwaukee County, could have given Anton R. Veasley, 34, up to 35 years in prison. Instead, she gave Veasley, a convicted firearm offender, time served in June 2021 and released him back into the community. He has already messed up and ended up back in jail on a weapons offense, Corrections and jail records show. That's not surprising; his criminal history shows he's violated extended supervision repeatedly before. According to court records, Anton R. Veasley is currently listed as a non-compliant sex offender and is sitting in the Washington County Jail, where he landed in July. Veasley was charged in Washington County court last August for felon in possession of a firearm. That case is set for jury trial in January, court records show. DOC recor...

"I want to send a strong message to you," Jennifer Dorow told Michael Liu. Waukesha County Circuit Judge Jennifer Dorow was tougher than the law required - and than the prosecutor and defense attorney requested - in the Michael Liu misdemeanor case that has hit the news. When she went beyond the recommendations of the state AND defense attorney to give Liu a tougher sentence in late November, Dorow gave  Michael Liu a stern lecture. “You will actually serve more than the condition time that was being recommended," Jennifer Dorow told Liu at sentencing, court records obtained exclusively by WRN reveal. "I want to hold you accountable. I want to send a very strong message to you, this behavior is not something society condones. And despite your lack of prior record, the violence and the fact the most aggregating factor is violence in front of your children, demands a swift and stiff response by this court.” She also ordered domestic abuse counseling and absolu...

"I want to send a strong message to you," Jennifer Dorow told Michael Liu. Waukesha County Circuit Judge Jennifer Dorow was tougher than the law required - and than the prosecutor and defense attorney requested - in the Michael Liu misdemeanor case that has hit the news. When she went beyond the recommendations of the state AND defense attorney to give Liu a tougher sentence in late November, Dorow gave  Michael Liu a stern lecture. “You will actually serve more than the condition time that was being recommended," Jennifer Dorow told Liu at sentencing, court records obtained exclusively by WRN reveal. "I want to hold you accountable. I want to send a very strong message to you, this behavior is not something society condones. And despite your lack of prior record, the violence and the fact the most aggregating factor is violence in front of your children, demands a swift and stiff response by this court.” She also ordered domestic abuse counseling and absolu...

WRN strongly urges Sheriff Ball to reconsider this move. Bowen will be a disaster as this position will require trust and confidentiality with other law enforcement agencies and the Milwaukee County DAs office. Will Rep. David Bowen be the next Chief of Staff for the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Department? Well-placed sources have confirmed to WRN that Wisconsin state Rep. David Bowen (D-Milwaukee) is being considered by Milwaukee County Sheriff Denita Ball to be her Chief of Staff. We are also hearing that some have expressed concern about the possibility behind the scenes, meaning Ball might reconsider. We hope she does. Bowen, as you'll recall, was present at the scene of the attack on former Wauwatosa police officer Joseph Mensah and his police officer girlfriend in 2020, which resulted in gunshots being fired and a felony arrest made of another man. Bowen refused to talk to police about what happened and later lied about the event in a press release. WRN wrote ...

WRN strongly urges Sheriff Ball to reconsider this move. Bowen will be a disaster as this position will require trust and confidentiality with other law enforcement agencies and the Milwaukee County DAs office. Will Rep. David Bowen be the next Chief of Staff for the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Department? Well-placed sources have confirmed to WRN that Wisconsin state Rep. David Bowen (D-Milwaukee) is being considered by Milwaukee County Sheriff Denita Ball to be her Chief of Staff. We are also hearing that some have expressed concern about the possibility behind the scenes, meaning Ball might reconsider. We hope she does. Bowen, as you'll recall, was present at the scene of the attack on former Wauwatosa police officer Joseph Mensah and his police officer girlfriend in 2020, which resulted in gunshots being fired and a felony arrest made of another man. Bowen refused to talk to police about what happened and later lied about the event in a press release. WRN wrote ...

There will be a Republican vs. Republican race for the open state Senate seat in the Milwaukee suburbs. Rep. Janel Brandtjen, R-Menomonee Falls, on Monday said she is jumping into the race to replace Alberta Darling. “After long hours of consulting with my family, friends and countless political allies, I have decided that the best place for me to continue to represent the people of Wisconsin would be in the 8th Senate District,” Brandtjen said in a statement. Darling announced her retirement about two weeks ago. She’s served the area that includes parts of northern Milwaukee County, southern Washington County, and northern Waukesha County for more than 30 years. Brandtjen is currently the state representative for a third of Darling’s 8th Senate District. She will face the other Republican in Darling’s district, Rep. Dan Knodl. Knodl announced his campaign for the state senate last week. Knodl, who was first elected to the state Assembly in 2008, said in a statement launchin...

Dan Kelly, a conservative who is running for state Supreme Court in the February primary, has been endorsed by a growing list of Wisconsin sheriffs, the most law enforcement support received by any candidate in the race so far. After seeing Kelly tweet out a number of law enforcement endorsements, we asked his campaign for a comprehensive list. Here is the list, as of Dec. 1, 2022. The campaign listed 18, including high-profile WOW county endorsements like Waukesha County Sheriff Eric Severson, Ozaukee County Sheriff James Johnson, and Washington County Sheriff Martin Schulteis. Kelly, a former state Supreme Court justice, is facing Waukesha County Judge Jennifer Dorow, a chief judge who is also a conservative, and two liberal judges in the February primary. The race is for control of the court. Janet Protaseiwicz, one of the two liberal judges, lists only 2 sheriffs (one retired) on her website. Instead, she touts endorsements from defense attorneys, other judges, and liberal ...

Dan Kelly, a conservative who is running for state Supreme Court in the February primary, has been endorsed by a growing list of Wisconsin sheriffs, the most law enforcement support received by any candidate in the race so far. After seeing Kelly tweet out a number of law enforcement endorsements, we asked his campaign for a comprehensive list. Here is the list, as of Dec. 1, 2022. The campaign listed 18, including high-profile WOW county endorsements like Waukesha County Sheriff Eric Severson, Ozaukee County Sheriff James Johnson, and Washington County Sheriff Martin Schulteis. Kelly, a former state Supreme Court justice, is facing Waukesha County Judge Jennifer Dorow, a chief judge who is also a conservative, and two liberal judges in the February primary. The race is for control of the court. Janet Protaseiwicz, one of the two liberal judges, lists only 2 sheriffs (one retired) on her website. Instead, she touts endorsements from defense attorneys, other judges, and liberal ...

Public employee pension systems are some of the largest financial liabilities on state government balance sheets. The 50 states have over $4.5 trillion in cumulative pension liabilities combined, roughly double the amount all 50 states spent in fiscal 2020. For years, state pension systems were woefully underfunded in much of the country, but according to a recent report from the Pew Charitable Trusts , this trend may be reversing. Driven by higher investment from both employees and employers, state pension systems have largely stabilized as of 2020. Since 2007, states across the country have more than doubled annual pension contributions, often cutting funding for other programs to do so. Still, some states are better positioned to pay public sector employees in retirement than others. In Wisconsin, estimated pension liabilities totaled an estimated $118.7 billion in 2020. Meanwhile, the state's pension assets totaled $125.0 billion. Considering both assets and liabilities, Wi...

On Dec. 2nd, Elon Musk released what he described as "the Twitter Files" about "free speech suppression" by the social-media platform. Twitter's new owner  tweeted on Friday "What really happened with the Hunter Biden story suppression by Twitter will be published on Twitter at 5pm ET!"