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MERRIMAC FERRY OPEN FOR 2016
The Merrimac ferry is open for the 2016 season!The ferry serves as Highway 113 across the Wisconsin River between Okee in Columbia County and Merrimac in Sauk County. It operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The craft holds 15 vehicles and accommodates bicycles and pedestrians. A single crossing takes about seven minutes. It is the only ferry serving as part of the state highway system and is listed on the state and national registers of historic places.
In 2015 the ferry made 54,411 crossings and carried 302,915 vehicles. More about the ferry can be found at www.wisconsindot.gov.
HIGHER EDUCATION MORE AFFORDABLE
One of our priorities during this session was a package of bills to make college more affordable for families in Wisconsin. The focus of the legislation was to make university costs more transparent, provide more internship opportunities, and establish grants for students in need. The package builds upon the tuition freeze we implemented in the 2013-14 school year at the UW System. I am happy to say that it is estimated the freeze has saved the average student $6,000 over the course of four years.
Four bills from the college affordability package became law earlier this week:
2015 Wisconsin Act 281 provides grants for technical college students.
2015 Wisconsin Act 282 establishes emergency grants for students in a financial crisis.
2015 Wisconsin Act 283 requires the Department of Workforce Development to help connect students with internships.
2015 Wisconsin Act 284 requires higher education institutions to inform students of educational costs and financial literacy.
MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL
Just a reminder to everyone that the Mackenzie Center Maple Syrup festival is tomorrow! Hope all of you can make it.
April 2
Mackenzie Center Maple Syrup Festival
Features: Each year, the annual MacKenzie's Maple Syrup Festival takes place during the first weekend of April. Begin your day with a pancake breakfast held in our main lodge, hosted by the Friends of the MacKenzie Center. The breakfast runs from 8am to noon and costs $7 adults/ $5 children. The rest of the festival is free -- enjoy guided tours of the sugarbush, demonstrations on tapping a maple tree and making syrup, and learn how Native American and Pioneers made maple sugar and syrup as well as current methods used. Participants will also have the opportunity to watch homemade ice cream being churned with an antique engine, listen to live, old-time, country music and take a horse-drawn wagon ride.
When: 8:00am-2:00pm
Location: Mackenzie Center, Poynette, WI
EAGLE SCOUTS
I was proud to present these plaques to Eagle Scouts Hunter Grams and Dan Robertson in Lodi Troop #592! Congratulations to both of them on their great accomplishment.
CONTACT ME
As in the past, I would continue to encourage you to contact my office with ideas for this next legislative session and on individual pieces of legislation. Now more than ever your ideas and opinions need to be heard, so we can begin to get Wisconsin back to work. Please contact my office at 608-266-3404 or email me at Rep.Ripp@legis.wisconsin.gov, or stop by my Capitol office at 223 North. I look forward to hearing from you. As always, I will continue to work across the aisle to find common ground and move legislation forward.
Please share this update with your friends and neighbors within the 42nd Assembly District and if there is anyone you know who would like to be included, please respond to this email with their email address.