There are 33 murals in Ashland County and many will be on display via a trolley tour during Ashland’s MuralFest.
The post In Ashland and nearby towns, history is written on the walls — about 33 murals’ worth appeared first on WPR.
GOP Wisconsin Congressman Derrick Van Orden was among the first speakers during the Republican National Committee's midterm convention aimed at boosting candidates facing challenging races this year. He touted President Donald Trump's healthcare agenda and said the two of them brought billions in federal funding to Wisconsin hospitals, which Democrats deny.
The post Van Orden focuses on healthcare, Trump at Republican midterm convention in Texas appeared first on WPR.
For the first time, researchers in Wisconsin are placing tiny solar-powered radio tags onto monarchs.
The post Wisconsin using new tracking technology to better understand monarch butterfly migration appeared first on WPR.
Across Wisconsin, thousands of households struggle with usable internet. The state has invested millions on the internet grid, but many are left out of the digital age.
The post After decades of broadband expansion, rural Wisconsinites still face ‘last mile’ problem appeared first on WPR.
Our newsroom’s investigation of “obscene” spending in state Supreme Court elections has won top honors at the 2026 Online Journalism Awards.
The awards, run by the Online News Association, have since 2000 honored excellence in digital journalism around the world. Judges awarded Wisconsin Watch first place for explanatory reporting in the small-newsroom division for its three-part series Supreme Costs.
The series — a mix of explanatory, accountability and solutions journalism — examined why Wisconsin set back-to-back national records for spending on state Supreme Court elections, culminating in a record $144 million in spending in 2025, and what can be done about it.
Edited by State Bureau Chief Matthew DeFour, with reporting by freelancer Larry Sandler and Data Investigative Reporter Hongyu Liu, video by Trisha Young and illustrations by freelancer Elena Delzer, Supreme Costs explained how races meant to select impartial judges transformed into extraordinarily partisan, expensive national political battles.
@wisconsinwatch Why are Wisconsin Supreme Court elections breaking national records? Earlier this month, Wisconsin Watch published Supreme Costs, a three-part series by freelancer Larry Sandler that examined why Wisconsin Supreme Court elections have become so expensive — and what might curb those costs. The project included graphics by data reporter Hongyu Liu, illustrating just how unprecedented the $144.5 million spent on the 2025 race was compared with past elections. In this interview, Sandler sits down with Wisconsin Watch video journalist Trisha Young to break down why Wisconsin is an outlier in Supreme Court spending and what’s next for the state. Read Larry Sandler’s full series at wisconsinwatch.org. #wispolitics #wisconsinsupremecourt #wisconsin #springelections
♬ original sound – Wisconsin Watch
“Judges were big fans of Supreme Costs — thorough, deep reporting paired with smart visualizations and mixed formats that made an otherwise impenetrable topic accessible, even enjoyable,” contest organizers noted. “They especially praised the comparative analysis and the architecture of the series, which anticipates readers’ questions and carries them through a complex story about campaign financing with remarkable clarity.”
Other finalists in the explanatory journalism category among small newsrooms included:
We don’t do this work for awards; we do it because we want our journalism to make a difference in Wisconsin. But it is especially gratifying to receive this kind of recognition from peers we respect so much.
Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.
Wisconsin Watch wins national award for Supreme Costs investigation is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.
Every year, millions of people in crisis dial three numbers — not 911, but 988, the national suicide and crisis lifeline. People like Cadence Van Beek, who used the lifeline as a sophomore at Melrose-Mindoro High School in Melrose.
During a mental health crisis, Van Beek worried she would be placed on a waitlist or hurried through the process. Instead, a counselor patiently helped her de-escalate her feelings. At the end, she informed Van Beek about local resources in Jackson County.
“It didn’t feel rushed … She took her time with me, and she was very kind – just a kind soul,” she said.
Van Beek’s conversation is one of over 345,000 texts or calls to the state lifeline since its launch in July 2022. A recent JAMA study found that in the first two and a half years, suicides among 15- to 34-year-olds were 11% lower than expected, corresponding to nearly 4,400 fewer deaths.
Yet despite the line’s proven success and increased demand, long-term funding remains uncertain. Unlike other states, Wisconsin has not passed legislation to permanently fund the service. And Wisconsin trails most states in the share of calls answered in-state.
In May, Van Beek visited the state Capitol and presented lawmakers with a solution: Fund 988 like 911.
Since 2009, Wisconsinites have paid a telecommunications fee on their phone bills for 911, currently 75 cents per month. Twelve states, including Illinois and Minnesota, have enacted a 988 fee to fund the service.
Illinois and Minnesota had in-state response rates of 90% in July — compared with Wisconsin’s 81%. The rest of the calls are routed to a national backup center, which can mean less knowledge of local resources and longer wait times.
When Van Beek visited Madison with the Wisconsin Office of Children’s Mental Health, she set up a posterboard with her research and told legislators her peers rely on 988.
“988 has always kind of been a given,” she told Wisconsin Watch. “We always kind of assume that it’ll be there … The possibility that there might not be enough counselors on the line because of funding for 988 and funding for those counselors just makes me a little worried.”
Family Services of Northeast Wisconsin operates Wisconsin’s 988 line. Senior Vice President Tana Koss said the crisis team planned for a moderate to high level of calls when the three-digit number was launched in 2022.
“Still, Wisconsin has blown all numbers out of the water and continues to … The demand from Wisconsinites for this service has surpassed every model of projection that was available to us,” Koss said.
Family Services is still recruiting counselors to keep up with the need. Koss attributes the increase to lingering mental health effects from the COVID-19 pandemic and the lifeline’s accessibility. She celebrates more people using the service, which she views as a reflection of reduced stigma.
Wisconsin received over 11,200 calls in July alone – and responded to just over 9,000 of them in-state. Only eight states had the same or worse in-state response than Wisconsin.
“The longer a person waits on the line, the more likely they are to disengage … When you’re in queue, our primary center gets an opportunity to answer. If we’re not able to, then our backup center gets an opportunity to answer. And then, if they’re not able to, it goes to national backup,” Koss said. “So the sooner in that process you can have the staff available, the more likely you are to engage that caller.”
Still, the state has improved its answer rate over the past few months — growing from 74% in January to 81% in July as demand increased.
“Purely from the administration of the service … we want (the answer rate) to get to 90%, and had the growth not gone up even a little bit more than anticipated, we would have been there.” Koss said.
So, should Wisconsin officials enact a 988 fee, a recurring appropriation or even consider legislation that Ohio and Illinois lawmakers have introduced to fine AI companies for failing to address suicidal ideation? Koss doesn’t care, as long as it means Wisconsin won’t have to depend on federal funding or the state’s biennial budget cycle.
“I’m not personally attached to any route,” she said. “I think the request that I would have and advocate for is sustainability over the long haul because what we’re projecting is this growth hasn’t stopped.”
Every two years, the National Alliance on Mental Illness’s Wisconsin chapter pushes for 988 funding in the state budget, said Julia Polk, the group’s advocacy coordinator. Last year, Gov. Tony Evers’ budget recommended $12.2 million for the lifeline, but lawmakers approved $7 million.
“What we would love to see is that we can educate our legislators on why 988 is so important and why it’s important to fund it long term, and get them in the next state budget to say, ‘we’re going to permanently fund this,” Polk said.
Polk also said delays from the Trump administration in making grants available are part of why advocates want to secure reliable state funding for the lifeline.
“It’s a lot of us and other advocates, and the 988 Lifeline and the state government having to just trust and hope that those grants will become available,” she said.
Waiting for confirmation on an anticipated federal grant last year left officials fearing the funds had disappeared. In response, state Rep. Ben Franklin, R-De Pere, and state Sen. Jesse James, R-Thorp, authored a bill that would have required the state to provide grants to agencies that administer the 988 Lifeline.
“988 has proven to be highly effective and used frequently amongst Wisconsinites and is a vital service we should be funding,” Franklin said during a committee hearing on the bill in June 2025.
However, the bill included no funding attached. It failed to pass in the Senate and did not come up for a vote in the Assembly.
The federal government announced a grant funding opportunity in January and provided Family Services about $4.5 million per year for the next three years, according to Koss. But that still leaves a gap, since the state needs $12.2 million per year to fund the service.
Officials included $7 million for the lifeline in the 2025-27 biennial budget, but Koss said Family Services needs the next budget to match that. She knows a $6.195 million deficit is coming in 2028.
“We didn’t slow down with recruitment, but administratively, it’s stressful when you have these delays on giant parts of the funding,” Koss said.
Franklin’s Democratic opponent in the November election, Brandy Tollefson, is a De Pere School Board member. The issue is personal to her, and not just because she hears about the youth mental health crisis from school social workers, counselors and teachers.
“I myself went through the experience of having my stepbrother die by suicide years ago, so I know what happens to a family when this happens and the impact it has on families,” Tollefson said. “I fully support working with any Democrat or Republican who wants to get this permanently funded.”
Tollefson echoed other Democrats’ criticisms that Assembly Bill 303 lacked the critical funding needed to ensure 988 would get financial support. Franklin did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication.
“There was a lot missing from it to make it a bipartisan bill that people could get behind, because the details just weren’t there,” Tollefson said.
Megan Zimmerman, NAMI Fox Valley’s outreach program director, educates local schools about mental health and promotes 988. She said many people hesitate to call 988 because they fear emergency services will get involved, but in reality, law enforcement or emergency services respond to only 0.4% of callers in Wisconsin. Counselors resolved the other 99.6% of calls by providing support, coping strategies and resources.
“Even outside of 988, I think when someone expresses that they have suicidal ideation – like they’re having thoughts about it – I think that scares people,” Zimmerman said. “They almost immediately triage to like, ‘OK, this person needs to be hospitalized.’”
Zimmerman noted the person who calls 988 doesn’t have to be the one who is in crisis, as she often calls 988 with her clients.
“If I can get an individual to agree to have that conversation on the phone with someone, and I’m there to support them in whatever way they need, that is just as good of an outcome as telling them to go home and call it themselves, which they may or may not follow through on,” she said.
Van Beek, who always considered herself the “therapist friend,” often recommends 988 to peers who confide in her. Once, when a friend shared distressing details about her home life, Van Beek quickly realized she wasn’t equipped to handle the conversation.
“I just realized I’m a high school kid, and I can’t take this on,” Van Beek said. “I don’t have the knowledge to help you get to where you need to be with the situation. So that’s an instance where I recommended calling or texting 988 and just going through with that. And she did.”
The 24/7 chat feature, introduced in 2024, particularly appeals to her generation and was helpful when she had to use it.
“Gen Z in general, we’ve always been behind a screen,” Van Beek said. “988 gives youth the option to text it, and I always have liked that, because talking or maybe even going in person can be overwhelming for youth, and I can personally relate to that.”
Amid increasing reports of generative AI enabling suicides, proposed legislation in Illinois would fine AI companies for not addressing suicidal ideation and deposit the money into a 988 trust fund. Companies under the legislation would face a penalty of up to $15,000 per day if they don’t refer users to crisis services like 988 when they express thoughts of self-harm.
Zimmerman said the chat feature of 988 has led her to encourage students to message the lifeline instead of an AI companion.
“Every suicide prevention presentation I give, especially in a school, I just always stress (that) I know it’s easy to bring up ChatGPT or your Claude or your Gemini or whatever it is, and start essentially texting or chatting that feature,” Zimmerman said. “But I always really encourage people to instead think about 988 … because then you’re getting a real live human being.”
Having graduated as president of her high school’s Raise Your Voice mental health advocacy club, Van Beek recently began studying psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where she wants to continue raising awareness about mental health.
“The events that I participate in, whether it’s through NAMI or NAMIWalks — the mental health walk that we do — it has never felt like a chore to me,” Van Beek said. “I’ve always felt like that’s my purpose.”
This story was produced as part of the NEW (Northeast Wisconsin) News Lab, a consortium of five news outlets.
Despite bipartisan support, 988 Crisis Lifeline faces funding shortage is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.
Law enforcement and city officials around the state are breaking ties with Flock Safety, citing an erosion of trust in how their traffic data is being used.
The post More than a dozen Wisconsin cities disable Flock cameras, cancel contracts appeared first on WPR.
Nurses at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison say the health system violated federal labor law in its opposition to their unionization effort.
The post SSM St. Mary’s nurses in Madison file federal labor complaint against health system appeared first on WPR.
The service has a track record of success and growing demand, but state lawmakers have failed to provide permanent funding.
The post Despite bipartisan support, 988 Crisis Lifeline faces funding shortage appeared first on WPR.
In the race for Wisconsin’s governor, Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany and his Democratic opponent Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley share rare common ground on delisting wolves in Wisconsin.
The post Tiffany, Crowley aligned on removing federal protections for wolves in Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.
The proposal got support from a majority of Madison alders, but failed to secure the needed supermajority.
The post Madison alders vote down relief funds to businesses hurt by encampment appeared first on WPR.
On Friday, Trump issued a pair of executive orders filled with policies long called for by American ranchers.
The post Wisconsin meat processors, farmers want more details on Trump proposals to help US beef industry appeared first on WPR.
Median wages have hit a record high in Wisconsin, but job growth has stalled and the state’s Black unemployment rate is rising.
Those are the main findings from “The State of Working Wisconsin 2026,” a new report on the state’s job market. The annual report is released by the High Road Strategy Center, a left-leaning “think-and-do tank” at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The report found that after hitting a record high number of jobs — 3,051,000 — in November 2024, the state had just 3,042,900 jobs in July 2026.
“Job growth has ground to a halt, and though wages hit a new high in 2025, high inflation is undermining workers’ wages in 2026,” said Laura Dresser, author of the report and the associate director of the High Road Strategy Center.
“The (report) still shows some very bright spots, but the clouds are gathering on the economic horizon.”
Dresser told WPR the report’s findings showed a “mixed picture.”
“There’s some really great news still in this economy,” she said. “We’ve had a strong recovery from the pandemic lockdowns, it’s been sustained and we show again that we got a new high in median wages in 2025.”
Last year’s report found that the economy was softening, and Dresser said some of those trends have continued.
The state’s unemployment rate is at 3.3%. That is low but “drifting upward” compared to the 2.6% unemployment rate in 2023, the report found.
“With the state losing jobs, it is likely that the rate will continue to rise,” the report said.
And the state has been losing jobs since 2025.
“Wisconsin’s economy has grown slowly relative to the national economy for years, and now job growth has ground to a halt,” the report said.
It also found that Wisconsin’s economy “is riddled with inequalities by geography, race, education and gender.”
The report said the unemployment rate for Black Wisconsinites is, “growing much more rapidly than unemployment for other groups.”
Wisconsin’s Black unemployment rate was 7.2% during the first quarter of 2026, matching the national rate, according to the report. But the state’s unemployment rate for white residents was 2.3%.
“In 2023, when the unemployment rate was at its low and the labor market was strong, the gap between Black and white unemployment shrank,” the report said. “But as the overall rate has drifted up, the Black rate has grown much more swiftly.”
Wisconsin’s median wage hit a record $26.17 per hour last year. Data for this year are not yet available, “but the signs there are troubling,” the report said.
“Inflation has risen and wage gains have been weaker,” the report said. “As it did in 2022, inflation could wipe out the wage gains of 2026.”
The state’s unionization rate is also fell from 14% in 2011 to 7.5% in 2025.
“State trends in unionization reflect both state policy and industrial structure,” the report said.
Pam Fendt, president of the Milwaukee Area Labor Council, pointed to the impacts of Act 10 on union membership in Wisconsin. She also said growing interest in unions makes her “hopeful for the future.”
“We do see a lot of interest in organizing,” Fendt said.
A new Gallup Poll found 71% of Americans approve of labor unions.
Meanwhile, Wisconsin’s minimum wage remains $7.25 per hour, despite efforts by some to raise it.
“An increase in the state minimum wage to $20 by 2030 would raise wages for more than 730,000 Wisconsin workers,” the report said.
“All the neighboring states except for Iowa are on a dramatically different path for minimum wages, and this state has (for) too long just not attended to the minimum wage and raising it for the state’s lower paid workers,” Dresser said.
Fendt said Milwaukee Area Labor Council also supports raising the minimum wage.
“Getting it to $20 an hour by 2030 is something that we support because, honestly, the minimum wage has been stagnant for way too long,” Fendt said.
A version of this story was originally published by WPR.
Report: Wisconsin wages reach record high, but job growth stalls is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.
Nearly a decade after wrapping up production in Australia, Ford has announced big plans for the land down under. As part of an event, the company announced plans to “double coverage of the Australian vehicle market to over 60% within three years.” The automaker is also aiming for “over 90% of its volume sold to be all-new or significantly refreshed by the end of 2030.”
The centerpiece of this plan is to bring the Bronco Basecamp to Australia and New Zealand in the second half of 2027. The model launched in China last year and targets a “new breed of outdoor enthusiasts.”
More: Ford’s Electrified Bronco Arrives In China With A Pop Up Roof Surprise
Ford didn’t say much about the local variant, but confirmed it will have a “super hybrid extended-range electrified powertrain.” It consists of two electric motors, a 49 kWh battery pack, and a turbocharged 1.5-liter engine that acts exclusively as a generator.
The company said this will deliver the smooth and responsive driving dynamics of an electric vehicle, but with a range of 497 – 559 miles (800 – 900 km). It also goes without saying, you can simply fill up with gas and be back on your way.
Ford didn’t talk numbers, but the Bronco Basecamp starts at ¥229,800 ($34,245 USD / $47,565 AUD) in China and features a combined output of 416 hp (310 kW / 421 PS) and 442 lb-ft (600 Nm) of torque. The model also has a CLTC electric-only range of 137 miles (220 km).
While Ford didn’t say much about the vehicle, they noted it’s built for adventure and would make the perfect camping companion. When it’s time to go to sleep, all the seats fold down and an inflatable mattress can be placed on top of them to create a bed.
When morning comes, the rear swing gate has a “Wild Kitchen” with a fold-down table. The model even has Pro Power Onboard, which enables owners to access up to 6.6 kW of juice to power equipment such as coffee makers, cooktops, and lights.
The upscale Bronco Basecamp Outer Banks goes even further as it has an electric pop top that rises at the touch of a button to increase headroom, such as when camping. The Outer Banks also has a 7.5-liter center console compartment that can be warmed or chilled.
Besides the Bronco Basecamp, Ford announced the electric Transit City will arrive in November for $50,000 AUD ($36,100 USD). Around the same time, the Mustang Dark Horse T8-Spec will land at dealers. The automaker also announced the local launch of Ford Pro, which will be supported by a new seven-year, unlimited kilometer warranty for commercial customers who exclusively rely on Ford dealerships for servicing.
Mercedes’ EQE was a flop, lasting just four model years in the US. Its battery tech was outdated, and the melted soap-bar styling certainly didn’t help. Now, as the EQE bows out, Mercedes is preparing its replacement, and these new revealing spy shots suggest the E-Class Electric has learned a valuable lesson. Turns out a battery-powered sedan can actually look like a regular sedan, and be all the better for it.
The latest prototype has ditched much of the heavy camouflage we saw when we last caught an E-Class Electric testing in January. We’ve got our first proper look at the production headlights, which reveals a pair of Mercedes’ star-shaped daytime running lights in each lamp cluster, ensuring nobody mistakes this thing for a BMW after dark.
Also: Blob Be Gone! The EQE Gives Way To A Proper Sedan
And though we still can’t see it, we’re expecting Mercedes’ gigantic illuminated grille treatment, already rolled out on its latest electric GLC and C-Class, to feature out front when the EV goes on sale next year. Whether you think it looks reassuringly expensive or as tacky as Times Square squeezed between two headlights, it will certainly give the E-Class Electric some real presence, something the bland EQE always lacked even after its last-ditch facelift.
There’s a surprise at the other end, though. Earlier test cars wore placeholder taillights, and we expected the finished units to continue Mercedes’ current obsession with three-pointed stars. Instead, the production lamps appear to feature straight-line graphics and thankfully no stars at all.
Beneath the skin is Mercedes’ MB.EA architecture already in play with the C-Class Electric and its GLC SUV cousin. Based on what we know of those cars, the E-Class will feature an 800-volt electrical system, and charging speeds reaching 330 kW.
Out-Charges BMW And Audi
That’s not quite a match for the 400 kW inhalation rate of BMW’s Neue Klasse iX3 and i3, but it easily trumps the 205 kW offered by the Benz’s direct rival, the BMW i5, and the 270 kW of Audi’s A6 e-tron. Both of those cars, though, also offer a wagon body style option the sedan-only E-Class won’t.
A dual-motor E400 version using the C400 4Matic’s setup could deliver 482 hp (489 PS / 360 kW) and a zero-to-62 mph (100 km/h) time of just over 4 seconds, although Mercedes hasn’t confirmed specifications yet. The C400 employs a 94 kWh gross battery to deliver 473 miles (762 km) of claimed WLTP range, and Mercedes might not feel the need to go bigger because the i5’s pack is only 84 kWh gross and promises 356 miles (573 miles).
We can’t see inside the E-Class Electric in these pictures, but again, the existing EVs have set a precedent we expect Mercedes to keep following. If it does, the mid-size sedan will get a full-pillar-to-pillar digital dashboard in its most luxurious form, though buyers will almost certainly have to pay extra for the passenger screen one recent study told us hardly gets used.
Audi is eager to see current lessees of its electric models buy out their vehicles at the end of their terms, and it’s offering some pretty generous incentives to encourage them to do so.
A recent Audi BEV Lessee Buyout Option Incentive, sent to dealerships on September 1, reveals that current e-tron GT lessees are being offered a $10,000 discount to purchase their vehicle at the end of the lease term. In addition, a $5,000 purchase incentive is available for the Q4 e-tron, while a $4,000 one has been confirmed for the Q8 e-tron.
Read: Audi’s New A2 Revives A Genius Idea That Was 25 Years Too Early
In addition, dealerships stand to benefit as they will receive $500 for each lessee who uses the incentive to buy out their vehicle. This incentive program was first launched in July, but now the Q4 e-tron’s discount has increased to $5,000 from the original $3,000, CarsDirect reports.
The move may make it a little easier to digest the extraordinary depreciation Audi EVs and other electric models from premium brands continue to experience in the United States and elsewhere.
In the case of original Audi RS e-tron GT models, a car that once started at around $140,000, it’s now easy to find relatively low-mileage examples for under $55,000. Prices of the updated 2025 RS e-tron GT Performance have also cratered, from an MSRP exceeding $170,000 to less than $120,000.
It’s worth noting that Audi discontinued the Q8 e-tron in the United States more than 18 months ago, so those who currently lease one won’t be able to replace it with a like-for-like electric SUV from the German brand. The Q4 e-tron continues, and it was recently updated in Europe.
Absentee ballots are on their way to some Wisconsin voters, even as President Donald Trump’s executive order on mail-in voting is in the courts.
The post Absentee ballots on their way to Wisconsin voters, as Supreme Court considers Trump’s restrictions appeared first on WPR.
A local cranberry farm is working with a company to better manage their water usage.
The post Local cranberry farm uses technology to navigate drought conditions appeared first on WPR.
Wisconsin will be getting another 42 electric vehicle charging stations under a federal program temporarily halted by President Donald Trump's administration.
The post After legal fight, more EV charging stations coming to Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.
A gas leak that occurred last month on Enbridge’s Line 5 oil and gas pipeline is the largest oil and gas spill reported in Wisconsin in more than 50 years, according to a WPR review of federal data.
The post Federal data shows Enbridge leak is the largest reported oil and gas spill in Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.
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