THU AM News: Dem bill would require certain retailers to include tariff costs on receipts; Appeals court unanimously upholds DNR authority over permit requirements for large farms

August 28, 2025

— Dem lawmakers are circulating legislation that would require certain retailers to include tariff-related costs in sales receipts or invoices.

Sen. Brad Pfaff of Onalaska, along with Reps. Andrew Hysell of Sun Prairie, Mike Bare of Verona, Priscilla Prado of Milwaukee, Maureen McCarville of DeForest and Christian Phelps of Eau Claire, yesterday sent a cosponsorship memo to other lawmakers on LRB-4351/1, the Tariff Tax Transparency Act.

They argue “it seems like common sense” that taxpayers should know what taxes they’re paying, noting taxes on income, purchases and property are all communicated clearly.

“Yet, a torrent of tariffs emanating from Washington, D.C. are being hidden from Wisconsin consumers,” they wrote in the memo.

The lawmakers note Americans face an effective tariff rate of 18.6%, the highest it’s been since 1933. And they reference a Goldman Sachs analysis that 70% of tariffs will be borne by U.S. households, for a projected average cost of $2,400 this year.

“These hidden taxes, dubbed ‘sneakflation,’ are being further exacerbated by some domestic producers seizing the opportunity to raise their prices to match the new higher prices charged for foreign imports,” bill authors wrote.

Under the legislation, retailers that sold at least $3 million in consumer goods in the preceding calendar year would be required to provide a sales invoice or sales receipt to the customer that “clearly states the total cost of any tariff imposed” on the sale.

“Let us do the right thing for Wisconsin consumers,” bill authors wrote. “People deserve to know what taxes they are paying.”

The cosponsorship deadline is Sept. 12 at 5 p.m.

See the bill text.

— The 2nd District Court of Appeals has unanimously upheld a lower court ruling finding the Department of Natural Resources has “explicit” authority to subject large farms to wastewater permit requirements intended to protect water quality.

The three judges who issued yesterday’s decision agreed with Calumet County Judge Carey Reed’s 2024 ruling, rejecting Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce’s arguments. The group sought to challenge the regulations through a lawsuit against DNR filed on behalf of the Wisconsin Dairy Alliance and Venture Dairy Cooperative.

WMC had argued DNR can’t require large concentrated animal feeding operations, known as CAFOs, to obtain wastewater permits before they discharge a pollutant to navigable waters. Environmental groups have asserted the permit requirements help promote water quality and protect public health, and invalidating them would prevent the DNR from limiting pollution.

In yesterday’s decision, Judges Lisa Neubauer, Mark Gundrum and Shelley Grogan found the regulations “do not conflict with state statutes and do not exceed the DNR’s statutory authority.”

Wisconsin Dairy Alliance and Venture Dairy Cooperative in a joint statement called the decision “disappointing” and vowed to “continue to fight for Wisconsin farmers regardless of the size of their farm.”

“We believe that there is no place for bad actors and that polluters should face penalties, but this case had nothing to do with weakening environmental laws,” the groups said. “Our sole mission in challenging the DNR’s authority was to ensure that Wisconsin farmers are held to standards consistent with federal law. We continue to believe that a ‘presumption of guilt’ runs contrary to the very fundamentals of the American justice system.”

Meanwhile, environmental groups hailed the ruling. Midwest Environmental Advocates staff attorney Adam Voskuil said the court “affirmed the state’s authority to do its job—protecting our rivers, our lakes and our drinking water from agricultural pollution.”

MEA intervened in the case on behalf of Wisconsin Farmers Union. WFU President Darin Von Ruden said the decision is “a win for every rural community that depends on clean water.”

Clean Wisconsin also intervened in the lawsuit, which attorney Evan Feinauer called “misguided.”

“This ruling is critical because it preserves the DNR’s ability to address water pollution that can be caused by these facilities, at a time when many surface and groundwaters around the state are contaminated with animal waste,” Feinauer said.

— All areas of lending at Wisconsin banks increased year-over-year, according to second-quarter federal figures highlighted by the Wisconsin Bankers Association.

The group says these figures from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation illlustrate a “consistent performance” by Wisconsin banks at this year’s midpoint.

While farm lending increased 16.42% quarter over quarter and 5.26% over the year, commercial lending rose 3.39% over the quarter and 7.89% over the year. WBA notes these increases come as “commercial customers navigate impacts of changing global economics.”

Meanwhile, residential real estate loan volume rose 1.64% over the year but 15.34% over the quarter, WBA’s release shows.

Rose Oswald Poels, WBA’s president and CEO, says increases in farm and commercial lending “continued strong” through the second quarter of the year.

“The data also reflects that Wisconsin’s banks continued to meet consumers’ residential real estate needs,” she said in a statement. “Banks continue to work with struggling borrowers as Wisconsin banks remain in strong position to help meet the needs of their customers and communities.”

See the release.

— The state Department of Workforce Development is taking applications through mid-October for worker training grants ranging up to $400,000, or even higher for applicants that apply as a group.

The agency yesterday announced the application window for grants under the Wisconsin Fast Forward program, noting the Industry Sectors Worker Training Grants help cover the cost of specialized occupational training for unemployed, underemployed and current workers.

The grants can cover training to qualify workers for full-time roles, higher-level positions or more pay, according to DWD.

“Any Wisconsin business interested in increasing their pool of skilled workers should consider applying for this grant,” DWD Secretary Amy Pechacek said in a statement.

Applicants can include public agencies, private organizations, a consortium led by a public or private organization, and certain tribal groups. The deadline is Oct. 16 at 3 p.m.

See the release.

— Research co-authored by a UW-Madison professor finds life expectancy improvement in high-income countries has “slowed significantly.”

The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, involved Héctor Pifarré i Arolas, an assistant professor in the La Follette School of Public Affairs.

After assessing life expectancy for 23 high-income countries with low mortality rates and applying various forecasting models, the researchers found the “unprecedented increase” in life expectancy seen early in the 20th century is unlikely to occur in the foreseeable future.

“In the absence of any major breakthroughs that significantly extend human life, life expectancy would still not match the rapid increases seen in the early 20th century even if adult survival improved twice as fast as we predict,” Pifarré i Arolas said in the university’s release.

Life expectancy among the study countries rose by about five and half months with each generation between 1900 and 1938, bringing the average life expectancy for someone born in those countries from 62 years to 80 years over that period.

But for those born between 1939 and 2000, that fell to between two and a half months and three and a half months per generation, based on the mortality forecasting models.

The earlier increases in life expectancy were linked to medical and quality of life improvements at the start of the 20th century, the university notes. Study co-author José Andrade of the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research says “remarkable improvements in survival at very young ages” in particular drove those improvements.

But now that infant and child mortality are much lower, forecasted longevity improvements among older people won’t be enough to keep up the pace of life expectancy improvements.

“We forecast that those born in 1980 will not live to be 100 on average, and none of the cohorts in our study will reach this milestone,” Andrade said.

See the release.

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