Do you spend enough time outside? Veronica Rueckert and Rob Ferrett hear from the Wisconsin Green Building Alliance (WGBA), which is launching a statewide challenge to Wisconsinites to spend thirty minutes outside, unhooked from electronics every day in June. Then they round up the week’s state news and explore why Wisconsin and the Midwest lag behind the rest of the country for entrpreneurship.
Featured in this Show
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Weekly News Round-Up: National, State Lawmakers From Wisconsin Retiring
Every Friday, WPR assistant news director Noah Ovshinsky shares his top state news stories from the past week with “Central Time”.
Here are the stories he shared on Friday:
- U.S. Rep. Tom Petri Won’t Seek Re-Election: On Friday, U.S. Rep. Tom Petri said he will formally announce that he won’t run for re-election. The announcement comes a week after state Sen. Glenn Grothman said he would run against the Republican for Congress. The congressman said he will hold an event in Neenah on Monday to declare his retirement.
- Ellis Says He Won’t Seek Re-Election: ‘The World Has Changed’: This week, state Senate President Mike Ellis announced he won’t seek re-election. The news came a few days after a video surfaced in which Ellis talks about setting up an illegal independent political action committee to attack his Democratic opponent. Ellis said in a statement he’s dropping out of the race because of the lack of compromise at the capitol.
- Deadly Bat Disease Found In Southwest Wisconsin: For the first time, the state Department of Natural Resources found bats with white nose syndrome in Wisconsin. The agency found the bats in an abandoned mine in Grant County. The disease is caused by a fungus and has killed millions of bats around the country. DNR officials said the aim now is to prevent white nose syndrome from spreading to other caves.
- Wisconsin 2012 Elections Ranked Third In Nation and Wisconsin Gets High Grade For Government Spending Transparency: Two reports out this week show state government in Wisconsin is improving. The Pew Charitable Trusts ranked Wisconsin’s 2012 elections as the third best in the nation because of high turnout, the amount of information the state provides voters, and the relatively short wait times for voting. The U.S. Public Interest Research Group gave Wisconsin an A- on their annual report card that looks at spending transparency. Wisconsin Government Accountability Board Director Kevin Kennedy said elections could be improved even more if Wisconsin adopted online registration.
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Wisconsin Among Worst-Performing States For Entrepreneurship
According to a new report, Wisconsin continues to rank among the worst-performing states for entrepreneurship in the country. Wisconsin’s lack of start ups is echoed across the Midwest, where entrepreneurship lagged behind the rest of the country. The highest rate of business creation was found in the western United States.
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The Green Building Alliance Is Challenging Wisconsinites To Spend More Time Outside, Unwired
The Wisconsin Green Building Alliance (WGBA) is putting it to Wisconsinites across the state to join its 30X30 Challenge. The challenge was established by the David Suzuki Foundation and asks those involved to spend 30 minutes outside for 30 days in a row, disconnected from electronics like cell phones and tablets. The WGBA is holding the challenge for the entire month of June and this is the first time an entire state will have the opportunity to take part.
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State News Round-Up For April 11th, 2014
WPR’s assistant news director joins us for a look at what’s making news in Wisconsin this week.
Episode Credits
- Rob Ferrett Host
- Veronica Rueckert Host
- Amanda Magnus Producer
- Galen Druke Producer
- Noah Ovshinsky Guest
- Kathleen Gallagher Guest
- Korinne Haeffel Guest
- Melissa Vernon Guest
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