A reminder that Wild Wisconsin offers a new way for hunters to get information on the go. An array of web series segments, podcasts, and even wild game recipes, will give Wisconsin hunters a more in-depth look at all things deer.
Assembly Legislative Floor Session Update
The full Assembly was on the floor twice last week to vote on a number of bills to wrap up a busy 2017 in the legislature. I once again had the opportunity to fill in for Speaker Pro Tempore Tyler August during last Thursday’s floor session. Below you can find a list of some of the bills that were passed last week.
November 7 Floor Session
AB 501:Relating to: FoodShare healthy eating incentive pilot program and making an appropriation.
AB 112:Relating to: grants for treatment and diversion programs.
AB 326:Relating to: employment of minors as lifeguards.
AB 479:Relating to: limiting the authority of local governments to regulate development on substandard lots and require the merging of lots.
AB 515:Relating to: the responsibility to comply with the one-family and two-family dwelling code for a manufactured home owner.
November 9 Floor Session
AB 275:Relating to: the prohibition against adults knowingly permitting or failing to take action to prevent the illegal consumption of alcohol beverages by underage persons.
AB 310:Relating to: funding for first responder and emergency medical technician training and certification and making an appropriation.
AB 351:Relating to: body cameras on law enforcement officers.
AB 384:Relating to: the expiration of administrative rules.
AB 422:Relating to: creating the Hire Heroes program to provide transitional jobs to veterans, granting rule-making authority, and making appropriations.
AB 508:Relating to: apprentice-to-journeyworker ratios in apprenticeships and the minimum duration of carpentry and plumbing apprenticeships.
AB 512:Relating to: the tuition grant program for national guard members administered by the Department of Military Affairs.
SB 69:Relating to: operating a motorboat towing a person on water skis.
SB 119:Relating to: growing and processing industrial hemp, granting rule-making authority, and making an appropriation.
Broadband Stakeholder Workgroup Meeting
Broadband expansion in the Northwoods continues to be a top legislative priority of mine. On Tuesday, November 14, I attended the Wisconsin Broadband Stakeholder Work Group meeting, which consists of a consortium of members from the public and private sectors that are working to expand broadband throughout Wisconsin. I, along with Rep. Bob Kulp (R-Stratford) and Sen. Tiffany (R-Hazelhurst), serve as the three legislators for the work group. Stakeholders represented in these discussions include the State Broadband Office, Wisconsin’s Chief Information Officer, UW and UW-Extension, AT&T, CenturyLink, Frontier Communications, WI State Telecommunications Association, the Department of Public Instruction and the Department of Justice.
Broadband Stakeholder Workgroup Meeting on Tuesday, November 14
A portion of the discussion centered on broadband expansion grants that are going to be awarded in the upcoming two years. The PSC will be awarding $7.5 million in broadband expansion grants in fiscal year 2018 and $7 million in grants during fiscal year 2019. In addition, the group touched on the Broadband Forward! Community program, BadgerNet, FirstNet, and NextGen911, which will enhance the 911 system to create a faster, more flexible, resilient, and scalable system that allows 911 to keep up with communication technology used by the public.
For more information on broadband expansion in Wisconsin, please visit the Wisconsin State Broadband Office website. I would like to thank all parties who work tirelessly on this issue and remain committed to upgrading broadband capabilities in rural areas of the Wisconsin.
Wisconsin DOT Hill Farms Tour
In August of 2015, the State Building Commission, of which I am a member of, voted unanimously in favor of the construction of a new Department of Transportation headquarters in Madison.
Last week, I had the opportunity to accompany several of my colleagues on the Building Commission in a tour of the new Hills Farms office towers. The building is ahead of schedule and is estimated to be completed at the end of January, 2018.
The new Hill Farms building will be home to more than 2,000 employees who work for the state’s Department of Transportation. It will also house the Department of Employee Trust Funds, the Public Service Commission, the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance, the Department of Financial Institutions and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation.
Broadband Forward! Community Certification
This week, I had the chance to attend a Broadband Forward Community event in Land O’ Lakes. The Town of Land O’ Lakes in Vilas County was certified as a Broadband Forward! Community by the Wisconsin Public Service Commission.
Through their outreach and planning efforts, the Wisconsin Public Service Commission encourages broadband development and deployment by certifying local communities as being “Broadband Forward!” A “Broadband Forward!” Community Certification signals that a local unit of government has taken steps to reduce obstacles to broadband infrastructure investment.
Rep. Swearingen, State Broadband Director Angie Dickison, Sen. Tiffany and Land O' Lakes Town Board Chairman Dan Balog
If you would like to find more information on Broadband Forward! Communities or apply for a certification, please click here.
Below is a comprehensive list of broadband expansion grant projects done in Land O’ Lakes since 2014.
2014:
Land O’Lakes and Presque Isle: $13,874.00
2016:
ChoiceTel Land O’Lakes project: $249,093.00
2017:
ChoiceTel Land O’Lakes, Phase II: $131,475.50
2018:
ChoiceTel Land O’Lakes, Phase III: $72,846.40
Expera Dedication Ceremony
Yesterday, Expera Specialty Solutions held a dedication ceremony celebrating their new facility on Kemp Street in Rhinelander.
The Kemp Street building, which was the former home of Printpack, will now house the subsidiary of the company called Expera Coated Products and a new state-of-the-art coater to make release paper for its graphite fiber composite products. Expera Coated Products was formed as a stand-alone company within the mill to make technical products used by the aerospace industry.
Lt. Governor Rebecca Kleefisch Speaking at the Expera Coated Products Ceremony
Expera Coated Products makes key components in the 787 Dreamliner and 777X airliners that Boeing, the world's largest aerospace company, builds. Boeing requires that Expera Coated Products release liner that is used by their direct suppliers to create composite products needed to make Boeing's jetliners.
I would like to thank Jeff Verdoorn, manager of the Rhinelander Expera paper mill, and Oneida County Economic Development executive director Roger Luce for all of their work on this project!
Autonomous Vehicle visits State Capitol
Earlier this year, Governor Walker issued an executive order to create the Governor’s Steering Committee on Autonomous and Connected Vehicle Testing and Deployment. The council has been tasked with advising on how best to advance the testing and operation of self-driving vehicles in Wisconsin. The council includes a mix of industry, technology, regulatory and academic members, and builds upon the selection of the UW’s Traffic Operations and Safety Laboratory as a test bed.
A sample autonomous vehicle made a visit to the Capitol this week and provided us with a view of what the future may have in store!
Rural School Teacher of the Year
Mrs. Kay McLain - 2017 Wisconsin Rural School Teacher of the Year
The WiRSA (Wisconsin Rural School Association) Board of Directors and its Executive Director, Kim Kaukl, recognized Florence County High School business education teacher and Fab Lab director, Mrs. Kay McLain, as the 2017 Rural School Teacher of the Year at its annual conference.
Mrs. Kay McLain is in her 25th year of service to the students of the School District of Florence County. During her tenure she has built relationships between school, community and industry that enhance student learning through real-world application. In addition, several of her course offerings are articulated with Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, saving students both time and dollars in their post-secondary educational endeavors. Mrs. McLain is the District’s school-to-work coordinator, and is in her third year of serving as the District’s Fab Lab Director and lead instructor. Mrs. McLain’s leadership and service goes well beyond the walls of the classroom, as she is available nearly every Wednesday evening for Fab Lab community hours, in addition to taking the lead role in the very successful, annual Florence County High School Tech Fair.
WiRSA’s mission is to advocate for the unique issues that affect rural schools as they seek to achieve the highest quality education for every student.
(Left to Right) WiRSA Board Member, Julie Kodl, Kay McLain and WiRSA Executive Director Kim Kaukl presenting the 2017 Rural School Teacher of the Year Award to Mrs. McLain.
Happy Thanksgiving!
I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! The holiday season always seems to bring out the best in people. I hope everyone is able to enjoy a great day surrounded by friends and family.
Wisconsin'snine-day gun deer season opens this Saturdayand while the rut is starting to wind down in some areas it is still going strong in others with frequent deer movement and sightings of scrapes and rubs still reported. The overall archery deer harvest is running higher than 2016.
Cooler temperatures and light to moderate snowfall, along with wind will likely still impact opening day, particularly in the north. In southern and central areas, temperatures are forecast to be above freezing and most of the snow cover has disappeared, adding its own challenge. There was an ample drop of mast this year and now that most crops have been harvested, animals will be concentrating on those acorns. The lack of crop cover should make spotting easier.
There are somebig changes this year [PDF], including hunters are no longer required to attach a tag to their animal. However, the deer still must be registered. For more information search the DNR website for keyword "deer."
There are antlerless deer bonus carcass tags available for purchase across the state, in many counties on both public and private land; search the DNR website forantlerless deer tag availability. Hunters can also check the DNR website for locations and times where they can have deer tested for chronic wasting disease by searching for "CWD sampling" and clicking on the sampling/registration station database link.
And people visiting Wisconsin state parks, forests and recreation areas during the nine-day gun deer season are reminded that many parks opened for hunting as of Nov. 15. Park and forest visitors should wear blaze orange or other brightly colored clothing. Some properties offer loaner blaze-orange vests at visitor stations. To find maps of what areas within park properties are closed to hunting or to fine properties where hunting is prohibited, search for keywords "hunting state parks."
With last week's cold snap, some lakes had started to freeze over but it's mostly skim ice and not safe yet for ice fishing. A warm up and rain in the forecast could melt ice that has formed. However open water fishing has continued to be good on Lower Green Bay and the Fox River for those who have not put their boats away yet. There were solid catches for musky with anglers reporting fish over 48 inches on the bay and excellent fishing for walleye and whitefish on the Fox. Those whitefish are pushing into the rivers to begin their spawning run and will remain in the river for the majority of winter, feeding on the abundant forage the Fox River has to offer.
The ice that was forming pushed some geese and ducks south but areas with open water were still reporting that mallards, bufflehead, goldeneye, redheads, canvasback and even a lingering wood duck are all being seen.
Opportunities for viewing sandhill cranes have been great with hundreds being seen staging in farm fields through southern and central Wisconsin. There has been an early influx of snowy owls into Wisconsin this year. You can learn more about our snowy owl irruption by searchingdnr.wi.govfor keyword "snowy owls."
2017-2018 Blue Books Available
The 2017-2018 Wisconsin Blue Books are now available upon request. If you would like to request a copy of the 2017-18 Wisconsin Blue Book, please reply to this email with your name and full mailing address. Additional requests can be made by emailing Rep.Swearingen@legis.wi.gov or calling my office at 608-266-7141 or toll free at 888-534-0034. My office will be processing the requests over the next couple of weeks prior to shipping them across the 34th Assembly District.
You can view previous versions of the Wisconsin Blue Book online by clicking here.
Community Events
Please click the following links for upcoming community events!
