Serving the Northwoods Communities of Rhinelander, Eagle River, Minocqua, Phelps, Three Lakes, Florence and Forest County.
District Dialogue
August 3, 2015
Milwaukee Bucks Arena Gains Bipartisan Support
Senate Bill 209 (SB 209) was amended in the Senate on July 15, to included a $2 surcharge on every ticket sold at the new arena. This user fee will lessen the amount of state funding that is allocated for the Milwaukee Bucks new arena annually. Every fifty cents that is collected from the surcharge will be distributed to the state, netting an average of $500,000 a year which will lessen the state's four million dollar contribution. Ultimately, at the end of this twenty year cycle, the state of Wisconsin will be out of the arena business, which is something I wholeheartedly support.
On July 28, the Assembly voted to approve the financing of a new Bucks Arena in Milwaukee. After months of debate and discussions with Milwaukee County, the city of Milwaukee, state legislators, and current team owners, the state Senate was able to reach a deal that protected state taxpayers while revitalizing downtown Milwaukee.
On average, Wisconsin collects $6.5 million dollars in income tax revenue from the Milwaukee Bucks and NBA players annually. To help finance a new arena, the state will use $4 million of this revenue to keep the Bucks in Milwaukee.
The current owners, Milwaukee County and the City of Milwaukee will cover the remaining costs of the stadium.
SB 209 was passed by the state Assembly with a bipartisan 52-34 vote. The bill now heads to the Governor's desk; he is expected to support the proposal. Everybody agrees that the Bucks needed to remain in Milwaukee and Wisconsin, this new proposal will keep them here.
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: New Rural Broadband Loans
WASHINGTON, July 30, 2015 - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the availability of loans to build broadband in rural areas, along with changes to the program required by the 2014 Farm Bill.
"USDA is committed to providing broadband to rural areas," Vilsack said.
"Broadband is as vital as electricity was 80 years ago. Since 2009, USDA
investments have delivered broadband service to 1.5 million households,
businesses, schools, libraries and community facilities. But our work is
not done. With program improvements and available funding made possible
by the Farm Bill, we can continue our work to make broadband more
accessible to those who live and work in rural areas."
In a rule published on page 45397 of the July 30
Federal Register, USDA is establishing two funding cycles to review
and prioritize applications for the Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan
Guarantee program. USDA also is setting a minimum level of acceptable
broadband service at 4 megabits downstream and 1 megabit upstream. USDA
urges applicants to design systems that allow for 25 megabits downstream
and 3 megabits upstream to meet future needs. USDA is accepting comments
on these changes through September 28.
To be eligible for funding, an applicant must serve an area where at
least 15 percent of the households are unserved. Applications with the
most unserved households will be processed first.
The minimum loan is $100,000; maximum loan
amount under today's announcement is $20 million. Applications will be
accepted through September 30, 2015. For more information, see page
45504 of the July 30 Federal Register.
The 2014 Farm Bill builds on historic economic gains in rural America
over the previous five years while achieving meaningful reform and
billions of dollars in savings for taxpayers. USDA has made significant
progress to implement each provision of this critical legislation,
including providing disaster relief to farmers and ranchers;
strengthening risk management tools; expanding access to rural credit;
funding critical research; establishing innovative public-private
conservation partnerships; developing new markets for rural-made
products; and investing in infrastructure, housing and community
facilities to help improve the quality of life in rural areas.
Youth Leadership Forum
On Wednesday, July 29, local community members from the
Youth
Leadership Forum visited my office in Madison. The Youth Leadership
Forum is a week long program of high school students with disabilities
across Wisconsin. The Youth Leadership Forum project is arranged
by the Wisconsin Board for
People with Developmental Disabilities, a statewide advocacy group
for disability rights. The students visited the state Capitol to learn
about leadership and how to be more involved in their schools and
communities. Students from all over the state met in Madison to
talk with their state Representatives and Senators. It was great
meeting with you, please visit again!
Pictured Left to Right: Gregory Meyer (Wisconsin Youth Leadership Forum-Vice President), Rep. Swearingen, Alec Shafer, Eric Hamilton
YLF on State Street in Madison
Northwoods Rail Transit Commission
On July 24, I attended the Northwoods Rail Transit Commission meeting in Rhinelander to discuss freight rail preservation issues, Wisconsin's aging log car fleet, and the biennial state budget.
Freight rail preservation is extremely important to the Northwoods economy for manufacturing industries and logging. The state budget included $35 million in freight rail preservation funding. This program was created to keep rail lines in service which otherwise would have been abandoned.
The main topic of discussion at the meeting was the aging log car fleet that is beginning to affect the state as well as the region. By law, log cars are only allowed to operate for a fifty year period and afterwards must be retired. For many of the log cars operating in Wisconsin, they have either exceeded or are nearing the fifty year retirement age. Unfortunately language that was included in the budget for discussion, did not survive the Joint Finance Committee process and as a result the group is looking toward stand alone legislation to address their concerns.
Darryl Landeau and Wendy Gehlhoff at the NRTC Meeting
Oneida County Fair
Congratulations to Nancy Gehrig, Oneida County Fair Coordinator, and all additional volunteers and contributors who made the Oneida County Fair once again a success. I want to take a moment to thank Nancy for inviting me to the opening ceremonies of the Oneida County Fair to address the crowd before the festivities began.
As always, the fair proved to be a fun community event that included great food, music, and who could forget the "ugly lamp" contest!
Oneida County Fair
Rep. Swearingen at the podium to kick of the Oneida County Fair.
I was honored to serve as a judge for this year's Ugly Lamp Contest with Jeanine Ilacqua from WJFW Channel 12
It was a busy weekend in Northern Wisconsin with community picnics and events. On Sunday, I attended the Arbor Vitae Fireman's Picnic as well as the Presque Isle Fireman's Picnic.
The Arbor Vitae community once again had an awesome turnout at the picnic, along with great music, drinks, and food. In addition, the Fireman's Picnic included fireworks, a car show, and the always entertaining water fight.
Thank you Rich Schmalzer and all from the Presque Isle Volunteer Fire Department for the invitation to attend the annual event. It was great to meet with folks in northern Vilas County. I had a great time!
Presque Isle Fireman's Picnic
Presque Isle VFD Fire Chief Jim Nelson with Rep. Swearingen
Arbor Vitae Fireman's Picnic
Water Fight at Arbor Vitae Fireman's Picnic
Great to see some old friends, Patti and Barry Rabl from Woodruff
DNR Outdoor Report
Northern Region
Superior DNR Service Center area
Brule River State Forest - The early part of the week has been hot and
humid leaving everything sticky, and quite frankly, unpleasant. Heavy
winds Tuesday into Wednesday brought needed relief from the heat
temperatures and should be much more pleasant as we near the weekend.
USGS stream flow rates as of July 29, show river levels flowing below
average. American gold finches are nesting and sandhill crane colts are
growing tall. From varying reports, berry reports have been hit-or miss.
The sand country to the south of Hwy. 2 is your best bet when targeting
places to find blueberries. Road-side ditches are filling with an
abundance of wildflowers, adding changing color to the lush green canvas
so popular around this time of year. Hot, humid weather, with little to
no rain seems to provide a perfect environment that allows insects to do
what they do best...bug us. Be sure to keep this in mind as you plan
your outdoor adventures and make sure that you are keeping an eye on
your pets. - Edwin Koepp, visitor services associate
Ashland DNR Service Center area
Amnicon Falls State Park - The park had three wedding last Saturday
afternoon. Park use was heavy with over 350 vehicles coming past the
contact station before 6 p.m. Warm/hot summer days have brought out many
people to enjoy wading in the water. - Kevin Feind, property supervisor
Pattison State Park - Pattison State Park has had several large picnics
and family reunions. There is a snake and reptile interpretive program
being offered on August 8 at 6 p.m. This is our third snake program for
the summer. The previous programs had very large attendance, 61 and 74
respectfully. - Kevin Feind, property supervisor
Park Falls DNR Service Center area
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and
inland Ashland and Iron counties) - With the north in the midst of the
dog days of summer, angling success has hit the mid-summer low point -
while recreational boating pressure continues to be high. Largemouth
bass have been providing the most consistent action as the fish have
been showing a typical summer pattern. The best success has been coming
from the shaded areas and thick cover--in the down wood, the thick reed
and lily pad beds and under mats of vegetation. Top-water baits and soft
plastics have been the most productive lures and the key has been to
work them slowly through the cover. Smallmouth bass have remained a bit
tough to find with just a few nice fish being caught on a slow
presentation of plastic finesse baits worked near cover in the 6 to 12
foot depths. Musky action has also slowed up in the last week, with many
anglers becoming frustrated with the variable success. The warm
temperatures seem to have pushed the fish to deeper water and no
consistent patterns have been found. Some anglers have reported a fair
number of follows and sightings, but catches have mostly been of small
fish in the 28 to 36-inch size, with the bigger fish seeming to be
suspended off in deep water. Stick baits, smaller bucktails and bulldawg-type
baits have been the favorite lures. Walleye success has also continued
its erratic trend. Some days have produced some fair catches in and
around mid-depth weed beds, and others days would find a person
wondering if there's any fish in the lake! Weedless jigs fished with a
leech or crawler-half have been the most productive baits. Panfish
action has been fair. Larger bluegill have been tough to find but some
decent catches of perch, crappie and rock bass continue to be reported.
- Skip Sommerfeldt, senior fisheries biologist, Park Falls
Flambeau River State Forest - ATV trails are good condition. Both the
north and south forks are in excellent paddling condition. Swimming is
excellent at the beach and water temps are warm. Milkweed and sumac are
flowering. Fawns are showing up and we are seeing lots of broods of
turkeys and grouse that are starting to fly. Young eagles are off the
nests and flying. - Judy Freeman, visitor services associate
Woodruff DNR Service Center area
Oneida County - It is hard to believe that we are two-thirds of the way
through summer and that children go back to school in about a month.
Speaking of "children," the majority of waterfowl broods are nearly full
grown and young geese and ducks are often confused with adults now.
Common loon chicks vary in size (based on their hatch dates) but some of
the first to hatch are as long as their parents and have lost that fuzzy
appearance; a few may even be wearing new Jewelry. Loon Researchers who
use colored leg bands to identify individual loons have been out to
place metal USFWS bands on some of our loons in the area. You may catch
a glimpse of silver or a colored band on the legs of the loons on your
lake. DNR staff will begin conducting summer deer observation surveys on
August 1 and will continue to run summer brood surveys to count grouse
and turkey broods. Young osprey can be seen flapping their wings up on
the osprey platforms around Woodruff, St Germain and Rhinelander. Last
week some of the osprey chicks on the platforms along Highway 47 fledged
(left the nest) and might be seen sitting awkwardly on other power poles
near the nest. Young osprey have more white on the tips of their
feathers giving them a more speckled appearance than their parents. -
Michele Woodford, wildlife biologist, Woodruff
Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest - Loons, loons
everywhere! Campers even spotted three of them at once on our small
Crystal Lake. Crystal visitors have been also been entertained by a pair
of almost ready to fledge pileated woodpecker chicks peeking out and
calling from their nest cavity about 15 feet off the ground. Some bikers
encountered a few turkeys right on the paved bike trail. Watch out for
yellow jacket nests this time of year. Some of our campers have been
stung while out collecting firewood. Lake and stream water levels on the
Northern Highland American legion State Forest are still near normal
levels for this time of year. The area flowages, Rainbow and Willow, are
starting to recede with the Rainbow down what appears to be about 3
feet. The Manitowish River is near normal flow but has been slightly
above normal so far this year. Most lake water temperatures are in the
70s so cool water awaits those who like to swim. Boat Landings and canoe
sites are in full swing as far as activity and day time air temperatures
have been in the high 70-85 range so many people are using the lakes to
recreate. We have just finished constructing and signing a re-route on
the Raven trail Red loop. We also abandoned a badly eroding section that
was very difficult to groom for skiing. Campgrounds were very busy again
this past weekend, with over 80 percent of campsites across the forest
occupied on Friday and Saturday nights. Use will likely remain high for
the next two to three weeks. If you don't already have a reservation, it
might be difficult to find a site in some of our busiest campgrounds
such as Clear Lake, Crystal Lake, Firefly Lake, and Musky Lake. However,
there are always sites available in some of our outlying campgrounds.
Ten of our 18 campgrounds on the forest are entirely first come-first
serve and all campgrounds have some non-reservable sites. Also, some of
the outlying campgrounds rarely exceed half of the sites occupied. You
can check our campsite availability (updated twice daily) on our iPhone
app and on the DNR website. Our third group of volunteer campground
hosts will arrive this Friday. This group of hosts will be here through
Labor Day, and they are the last hosts for the season at most of the
campgrounds. - Kimberly Krawczyk, Visitor Services Associate
Upcoming Community Events
Please click the following links for upcoming community events!
Free Water Ski Show by the Skiing Skeeters: August 5, 8 & 12, Manitowish Waters
Chain Skimmers Ski shows: August 4, 6, 8, 11 & 13, Land O' Lakes
Phelps Farmer's Market: August 8, Phelps
Music in the Park: August 9, Manitowish Waters
Citizen Science Sampler Hike: August 10, Manitowish Waters
St. Germain Flea Market: August 10, St. Germain
Chequamegon Adventure Company Presents Tuesday Paddle Nite: August 4 & 11, Minocqua
Summer Concert Series: August 5, St. Germain
Redikulus Dae: August 5, Rhinelander
Flea, Craft & Farmer’s Market: August 6 & 13, Manitowish Waters
Concert In The Park/Lakeland Community Concert Band: August 6 & 13, Minocqua
Summer Markets: August 6 & 13, Land O' Lakes
Docktoberfest: August 7-8, Minocqua
Friday Flea Market: August 7 & 14, Presque Isle
Minocqua Farmers Market: August 7 & 14, Minocqua
Manitowish River Paddling Trip: August 7, Manitowish Waters
WI DNR Certified Boater Education/Safety Class: August 8-9, Florence
15th Annual Kids Free Fishing Day: August 8, Three Lakes
Chamber Oktoberfest – Jim Pekol Orchestra: August 8, Conover
The Color Dash 5K: August 15, Rhinelander
Please contact me at Rep.Swearingen@legis.wi.gov if you would like to UNSUBSCRIBE from my E-Updates
Office of Representative Rob Swearingen
Room 123 West
PO Box 8953, Madison WI 53708
Office: 608-266-7141
Toll Free: 888-534-0034