MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal officials say they're taking steps to create a human vaccine for the bird flu virus that's affected the Midwest poultry industry, though they still consider the danger to be low. Dr. Alicia Fry, an influenza expert with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says they're optimistic there won't be any human cases of the H5N2 strain that has cost chicken and turkey producers nearly […]
Not much change in the local unemployment rate In the latest reporting period. The Department of Workforce Development reports the March unemployment rate in Dodge County is 5.5 percent, down from 5.7 percent in February. In Fond du Lac County the unemployment rate fell from five percent to 4.8 percent last month. The city of Fond du Lac’s jobless rate remains unchanged at five percent.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Scott Walker's proposal allowing Wisconsin driver's licenses to be renewed online one time has been scaled back by the Legislature's budget committee. The Joint Finance Committee voted Wednesday to allow online renewal only for new drivers moving from an instructional permit to a probationary license and then to a regular license. Walker wanted to allow any driver to renew online one time. But that elicited […]
A Fond du lac man accused of sexually assaulting his adopted special needs daughters over a period of more than a decade is on trial this week. Sixty seven year old Kenneth Kirchner is charged with three counts of child sex assault and one count of child abuse. According to a criminal complaint Kirchner adopted the three sisters after they were removed from their original home after being sexually assaulted […]
The Fond du Lac city council has elected LeeAnn Lorrigan as its new president. Lorrigan was elected president and councilmember Gary Miller was elected vice president at Tuesday night’s organizational meeting. Lorrigan says she’s pleased at her new role and looking forward to tackling several important issues this year. She replaces Sam Meyer who did not seek re-election this year. Councilmembers elected to office earlier this month were sworn into […]
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The state Senate has approved a Republican bill that would eliminate Wisconsin's decades-old 48-hour waiting period for handgun purchases. The Senate passed the bill on a voice vote Tuesday. The proposal now goes to the state Assembly. Republican Gov. Scott Walker, a likely 2016 presidential candidate, supports the bill. The waiting period was enacted in the mid-1970s. The bill's chief sponsor, Sen. Van Wanggaard, a Racine […]
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The state Senate has signed off on raises for two public worker unions. Gov. Scott Walker's administration negotiated new contracts with the Wisconsin State Attorneys Association and the Building Trades Negotiating Committee that would give those unions' members a 1 percent pay raise. The deals are for the current fiscal year only. The 1 percent raises are equal to raises other state employees have received. No […]
MADISON, Wis. (AP) A new study shows poverty rose slightly in Wisconsin from 2012 to 2013, despite some job gains. The report released Tuesday by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers says the Wisconsin Poverty Measure rose to 10.9 percent in 2013, up from 10.2 percent in 2012. That measure was roughly 2.5 percentage points lower than the official Wisconsin poverty rate from the federal government. The Wisconsin Poverty Measure takes […]
MADISON, Wis. (AP) The co-chairman of the Legislature's budget committee says he wants to ensure that "decaying, disgusting deer along the side of the road" continue to get removed. Gov. Scott Walker's budget would eliminate $700,000 in funding to the state Department of Natural Resources to pay for removal of deer hit by cars. The Joint Finance Committee was scheduled to meet Wednesday to vote on the idea. Committee […]