— Business groups representing manufacturing, real estate, construction, health care and farming spent the most money lobbying Wisconsin lawmakers in the first six months of the year.
The top five for spending were: Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, $348,511; Wisconsin Realtors Association, $324,436; Wisconsin Infrastructure Investment Now Inc., $312,264; the Wisconsin Hospital Association, $304,405; and the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, $304,403.
The rest of the top 10 included: Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin, $242,817; Wisconsin Property Taxpayers Inc., $213,180; Americans for Prosperity, $201,165; the Wisconsin Counties Association, $186,460; and Wisconsin Automobile and Truck Dealers Association Inc., $142,184.
The expenditure reports lobbyists file can include a variety of expenses such as communications, overhead, staff time, research time, office space, utilities, supplies, parking and more.
Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce was the top spender over the six-month period, with $348,511 in expenses to lobby the Capitol. That’s roughly in line with the $742,499 WMC spent during the first 12 months of the session.
WMC spokesman Nick Novak told WisPolitics.com the group generally focuses on issues related to the economy and lately has been focusing on issues related to the state’s workforce shortage and others affecting businesses. He said he could not provide more specific details because WMC’s chief lobbyist was on vacation last week and he would know those details.
Wisconsin Infrastructure Investment Now Inc., a group that advocates for investing in transportation, energy, mining and other infrastructure projects, did not log any hours spent lobbying but put all the money spent into communications.
Overall, lobbying totaled $16.5 million during the first six months of the year, up from the $15.5 million during the same period two years earlier as the COVID-19 pandemic ground activity in the Capitol to a halt by mid-March.
But it’s less than the $17.5 million spent for the same period of the 2017-18 session.
Over the first 18 months of the two-year session, groups have put $52.2 million into their lobbying efforts, compared to $50.1 million for the same period of the 2019-20 session.
See more details in the WisPolitics.com Friday Report: https://www.wispolitics.com/2022/220805report/#story-2
— Business groups, Republicans and Dem Mayor Cavalier Johnson are applauding the RNC’s decision to host the 2024 GOP national convention in Milwaukee — four years after Dems moved major parts of their gathering to Joe Biden’s Delaware because of the pandemic.
RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel on Friday announced the RNC site selection committee unanimously approved the state’s largest city — a Dem stronghold — for the 2024 national convention.
This will mark the state’s first time hosting the Republican National Convention.
Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce President Tim Sheehy in a statement praised the move, adding RNC’s work with Milwaukee leaders to bring the event to Wisconsin’s largest city shows future possibilities are “endless.”
“And there are few events larger in scale, visibility and impact than a national political convention,” he said. “Our approach to this event is exactly the same as it was for pursuing the 2020 Democratic National Convention: Instead of red or blue, we represent green – the color of additional millions of dollars that will now flow into Milwaukee.”
Many in the business community in 2020 criticized the Democratic National Convention for failing to provide the promised economic boost. Many prominent politicians, including Biden, did not visit the city as a result of pandemic concerns and much of the convention took place virtually.
McDaniel in a Chicago speech said the RNC will work with local leaders, vendors and community members to make a positive impact on the city. Friday’s announcement came after city officials in Nashville, the other top choice for the convention, voted last week to reject a draft agreement to host the event. Earlier this summer, a GOP site selection panel had unofficially chosen Milwaukee as host.
Johnson said he’s excited to see visitors enjoy all the city has to offer and for the opportunity to host more conventions and world-class events.
“We want you to eat at our fine restaurants. We want you to tip generously, very generously,” he said. “As a matter of fact, I want you to take all your money to Milwaukee, spend it in that week and leave it there in our economy. And make sure again to treat our hotel staff, our workers and the convention, tourism, hospitality staff very well.”
Meanwhile, Republican Party of Wisconsin Chair Paul Farrow in a statement touted Wisconsin’s reputation and what it has to offer.
“The Republican Party was born in Ripon, Wisconsin, and we are thrilled to welcome the Grand Old Party home as we come together to select the next President of the United States,” Farrow said. “Rightfully deemed part of America’s Heartland, the hardworking farmers, manufacturers, and families of Wisconsin are the heart of what makes our nation special, and this convention will allow us to showcase all that the Badger State has to offer to the country and the world.”
See more perspectives in a release from Visit Milwaukee: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2022/visit-milwaukee-republican-party-officially-selects-milwaukee-for-2024-convention/
— Gov. Tony Evers says allowing event wagering at facilities operated by the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians will boost tourism and employment in northern Wisconsin.
The guv on Friday announced he and tribe Chairman Louis Taylor have signed a compact amendment allowing casinos and affiliate locations owned by the tribe to offer wagering on sports and other events. The amendment will undergo a 45-day review by the U.S. Department of Interior, according to a release.
“The amendment will allow us to continue offering a first-rate gaming experience at our casino and increase employment opportunities for both Tribal members and the Sawyer County area,” Taylor said in the release.
Evers has previously signed similar agreements with the Oneida Nation, the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin, and the Forest County Potawatomi, the release shows.
See more on the agreement: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/WIGOV/bulletins/324020b
— State health officials have ordered another 1,800 doses of a vaccine for monkeypox, with at least 13 sites around the state approved to administer the JYNNEOS vaccine.
The Department of Health Services last week announced it had received 1,486 doses of the vaccine in phases one and two of vaccine distribution. That’s enough for 743 people to get the two-dose series.
In an email, DHS spokeswoman Elizabeth Goodsitt said 4,500 more doses have been allocated to the state for phase three, but Wisconsin doesn’t yet have them on hand. She explained the state is able to order these phase three doses in three waves. On Monday, DHS ordered 40 percent of the vaccine allotment, which is the maximum allowed.
The state can order more of the monkeypox vaccine on Aug. 15, she said, making up another 30 percent of the phase three allocation.
“DHS is working with local and tribal health departments and community health organizations who routinely serve those most at risk to maximize the public health impact of a limited vaccine supply,” Goodsitt said in a statement.
As of Wednesday, the latest day for which DHS provided figures, 23 cases of monkeypox had been identified in the state. That includes six cases in Dane County, seven in Milwaukee County, four in Outagamie County and one each in Kenosha, Langlade, Racine, Walworth, Waukesha and Winnebago counties.
See more from DHS on monkeypox: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/monkeypox/index.htm
— The seven-day average for COVID-19 cases has dipped slightly to 1,672 cases per day, the DHS dashboard shows.
Wisconsin’s seven-day average has remained relatively stable for the past several months, fluctuating between about 1,200 and 2,100 cases per day.
Meanwhile, 21 counties in the state are seeing high levels of COVID-19 activity under a CDC rating that incorporates new cases, hospitalizations and beds occupied by COVID-19 patients.
Over the two-week period ending Aug. 2, the Fox Valley area saw COVID-19 patient hospitalizations increase by 119 percent. No significant change in hospitalizations was seen in the rest of the state.
The percent positivity rate for COVID-19 testing was steadily rising over much of July and early August, reaching 15.1 percent at latest count, the DHS site shows.
See more DHS data on COVID-19 here: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/covid-19/data.htm
<i>For more of the most relevant news on COVID-19, reports on groundbreaking health research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics.com and WisBusiness.com.</i>
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#TOP STORIES#
# RNC officially picks Milwaukee for 2024 convention
# DNR investigates oil contamination in northern Wisconsin
# Milwaukee hospitality leaders prepared for 2024 RNC
#TOPICS#
# AGRIBUSINESS
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# EDUCATION
– Spencer FFA alumni to establish Mark Zimmerman Scholarship
– UW System’s unrestricted reserves top $1B for first time since 2013
# ENVIRONMENT
– Urban wood movement looks to capture value, carbon from city trees
# HEALTH CARE
– Electrical transformer malfunction the cause of UW-Hospital patient diversion
# INVESTING
– SoFresh raises another $3.3 million to help growth into new food markets
# LABOR
– Local 494 business manager elected president of IBEW Wisconsin State Conference
# MEDIA
– Wisconsin author writes definitive history of Wisconsin county fairs
# POLITICS
– Republicans pick Milwaukee to host 2024 national convention
– Milwaukee officially picked as host site for 2024 Republican National Convention
– Milwaukee confirmed as host of Republican National Convention in 2024
– Dems rally around abortion. Are they reaching Black voters?
# REAL ESTATE
– Office buildings on Milwaukee’s far northwest side sold for $26.2 million
# RETAIL
– Dollar Tree struggles with staffing, some Madison area stores reduce hours
# TECHNOLOGY
– Following investigation, Frontier agrees to $15 million in internet upgrades in Wisconsin
# TRANSPORTATION
– Frontier cuts thousands of flights and several routes, including at MKE
# COLUMNS
– Tom Still: Passage of ‘CHIPS and Science Act’ will help U.S., Wisconsin over time
# PRESS RELEASES
<i>See these and other press releases:
http://wisbusiness.com/index.iml?Content=82 </i>
Visit Milwaukee: Republican Party officially selects Milwaukee for 2024 convention
Metropolitan Builders Association: New home buyers facing acute available lot shortage
