MON AM News: Chairs of AI task forces discuss potential for job market impacts; Talking Trade with Randy Romanski, DATCP

September 30, 2024

— DWD Secretary Amy Pechacek and state Rep. Nate Gustafson, R-Fox Crossing, said AI has the potential to improve the jobs market for Wisconsinites.

Pechacek said at a recent WisPolitics luncheon in Madison that she thought that AI, like previous important technologies, could reduce “the dull, the dirty, and the dangerous” jobs and “augment” human workers. She was chair of Gov. Tony Evers’ Task Force on Workforce and Artificial Intelligence.

“We know then what [new technology] does often create is higher paying, better, more fulfilling jobs for the actual humans to do,” Pechacek said.

Gustafson, who led Assembly Speaker Robin Vos’ Task Force on Artificial Intelligence, said AI could help ease the negative effects of Wisconsin’s aging population, retiring Baby Boomers, and declining birth rate.

“My generation’s not having enough children. We need to find a way to supplement that as fast as we basically can,” the 29-year-old said.

Pechacek and Gustafson spoke alongside Kaushal Chari, dean at UW-Milwaukee‘s Lubar College of Business, and Nick Myers, CEO and co-founder of RedFox AI.

In February of this year, Wisconsin lawmakers passed bills to require the disclosure of AI use in creating political ads, outlaw the use of AI to create child porn, and begin an evaluation on AI use by state agencies to improve those agencies’ efficiency and functioning.

Gustafson said he was calling on Vos, R-Rochester, to create a standing committee on emerging technologies during the coming legislative session to address ongoing and new issues that arise around AI.

“[AI governance] is going to be a continuing conversation. So having a platform where we can continue that conversation and have members, especially in the Legislature, involved, is going to be the key here,” Gustafson said.

Evers’ task force, in an Advisory Action Plan released in July, has proposed similar entities called the Office of Data and Privacy and the Interagency Technology Governance Work Group, meant to lead ongoing and state government-wide efforts on AI and data.

Myers said he was “insanely pro-regulation” on AI and that regulators should take lessons from how social media had been handled by the government.

“We saw what happens when nefarious actors enter social media and cause problems, right? We cannot let that happen with this technology. This technology is so beyond life changing,” Myers said.

Chari, also calling for regulation, highlighting issues including fraud and misinformation, algorithmic bias, children’s exposure to the technology, and data privacy. He also noted the tendency for some AI systems to “hallucinate” or produce inaccurate outputs.

“The AI systems are still hallucinating… and therefore we should not be deploying them in critical applications, you know, healthcare, transportation, etc,” Chari said. “I think there’s a role of the government there to do something about regulating where AI can be used and where it cannot be used.”

Gustafson said he thought regulations around AI should not stifle innovation, and could be balanced with public-private partnerships and tech companies self-governing to an extent.

“I think before we put the heavy hand of government regulation over them, we’re going to continue to let them innovate, as we see them act in good faith to put their own guardrails on,” Gustafson said.

See the WisconsinEye video.

— In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” DATCP Secretary Randy Romanski puts a spotlight on this year’s World Dairy Expo, which kicks off tomorrow in Madison.

“It’s a big deal, and we are so happy and proud to host it here in America’s dairyland,” Romanski said, adding “it’s estimated to be about 56,000 people in attendance, including about 3,000 international visitors from about 100 different countries.”

The event, which runs through Friday, includes a trade show featuring speakers on genetics, equipment and animal health, and also highlights an emerging focus of sustainability. Romanski also notes about 600 different businesses are taking part in this week’s expo.

“How do we sustainably grow the dairy industry in the international market space?” he said. “Our agency plays a strong role in that. We expect to host about 100 different international visitors here at our agency.”

DATCP will be sharing information to help connect exporters and importers, as well as genetics and nutrition approaches for boosting milk production while ensuring the health of dairy producers’ animals.

Romanski also weighs in on the role of dairy products in feeding the growing global population, efforts to boost Wisconsin ag product exports, international trade policy and promotion and more. He shares takeaways from a recent trade mission to Chile and efforts to promote open trade opportunities.

Talking Trade is hosted by E.M Wasylik Associates Managing Director Ken Wasylik and M.E. Dey & Co. President and Managing Director Sandi Siegel.

Watch the show here.

“Talking Trade” is now available in audio form on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and other platforms. Subscribe and find more episodes here.

— The Derby, on the southwest side of Madison, is one of the first affordable housing developments that got funding from a $525 million bipartisan housing bill passed and signed into law last year.

At a bustling open house recently, young couples, families and others lined up for tours of the brand-new affordable units, converted into housing from a former roller-skating rink. Wil Motta, the Derby’s director of property management, said he’d received about 200 applications for the 70 units available, and he expected another 30 applications to be filled out that day. With walk-in closets, balconies, kitchen islands, and complimentary gym access — not to mention rents of less than $708 for some qualifying renters, half of what similar units go for in the city — it’s no surprise why.

But 90 minutes northeast of Madison, another community has not been able to access any funding from the same statewide package of legislation that helped build The Derby.

Ripon in Fond du Lac County, a city of around 7,900 people, found in 2022 that it had a housing shortage of 30 units. It created local housing affordability programs, funded through a municipal financing tool called tax incremental financing districts, or TIF districts.

Now, those local programs mean that developers in those Ripon TIFs can’t apply for money from the state package.

“It became an immediate stumbling block,” said Adam Sonntag, city administrator at Ripon. “There’s a lot of things you can do with TIF districts, but there’s a limit … so being able to leverage that [state] program and TIF funds would be a massive benefit toward attacking the affordability issues in communities.”

See the full story at WisPolitics.

— The western half of the controversial Cardinal-Hickory Creek Transmission Line Project has now come online, project partners announced.

In a release last week, co-owners ITC Midwest, ATC and Dairyland Power Cooperative said the 102-mile transmission project was placed into service on Thursday after more than 10 years of planning and construction. The groups say the line is a “vital pathway” for renewable energy coming from dozens of clean energy projects in the Upper Midwest region.

Critics of the project, including multiple environmental groups such as the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, have raised concerns about how the project would impact various natural resources. Earlier this year, a U.S. appeals court lifted an earlier court order blocking the completion of the transmission line.

The western part of the line runs from ITC Midwest’s Hickory Creek Substation in Iowa to ATC’s new Hill Valley Substation near Montfort, Wis. The eastern part, which runs from the Hill Valley Substation to the Cardinal Substation near Middleton, began operating in December.

“The safe completion of Cardinal-Hickory Creek is a victory for energy consumers and the environment,” Dairyland Power Cooperative President and CEO Brent Ridge said in a statement. “As a backbone interconnection, the line will finally serve as the vital link to a long waiting list of regional renewable energy projects.”

See project details here and see more in Top Stories below.

— Marquette University is getting $4.2 million in new Department of Defense funding for a wide-ranging water research initiative, its third grant from the federal agency for this effort.

The “In Defense of Water” project started in 2021 with a $3.8 million award and was later expanded with another $3.8 million in 2023, according to the university’s release.

The latest award will extend six focus areas within the initiative and launch a new focus, for a total of nine areas of research. The new area of focus aims to develop sensors to detect and monitor PFAS and other contaminants.

Others include PFAS remediation through electrochemical and biological treatments, technologies and factors driving water reuse, climate resilience for both water and energy, data analysis for tracking pollution impacts, disinfecting water storage systems, and the influence of metals such as lead on microbes.

The broad focus of the overall project is to improve water security and efficiency on military installations and limit the impacts of water shortages while deploying new technologies. The work is also linked to PFAS cleanup efforts at current and former military sites, including “many” in Wisconsin, the release shows.

Researchers have been able to remove more than 90% of PFAS from samples and are planning field tests in Wisconsin as part of the project.

Brooke Mayer is a professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering at Marquette University and principal investigator on this phase of the initiative. She says the DOD’s support has “created a tremendous opportunity to expand our water research capabilities” and address critical water-related challenges.

“It’s such a unique opportunity to develop interdisciplinary solutions to enhance water resiliency while providing dual benefits to the public good and military operations,” Mayer said.

See the release.

— Gov. Tony Evers has announced more than $32 million in federal funding for 56 local projects aimed at making it easier for residents to get around without a motorized vehicle.

The guv on Friday rolled out the funding from the state DOT’s Transportation Alternatives Program, authorized through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Funding is divided among communities of varying sizes, including rural and urban areas.

Funded projects include: a new multi-use trail in Rice Lake connecting existing sidewalks near Tainter Elementary School to the surrounding communities, which is getting $1.4 million; a pedestrian access bridge in Waupaca replacing a 50-year-old footbridge that’s been closed down since 2010, with $973,000 in funding; sidewalk replacements near schools in Fort Atkinson, $1.7 million; and more.

See more in the release.

Top headlines from the Health Care Report…

— Premium tax credits provided under the Affordable Care Act would be made permanent under legislation from U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

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