Wisconsin Today: Morning News

In this special holiday edition, a Waupaca County mother recounts teaching her son about the pleasure of swimming in a Wisconsin lake during the summer.

Wisconsin lawmakers were in a race with Washington as they passed the state budget last night. Failing could have cost state hospitals millions. We've got details on the state Supreme Court's decision in a key abortion lawsuit. And, could more nuclear power come to Wisconsin?

The state budget contains hundreds of millions in child care spending and a $1.5 billion tax cut. Some Wisconsin Uber drivers say they're fed up with low pay. And, a new biotech center is adding hundreds of jobs in Madison.

Gov. Tony Evers says the new state budget will include one-point-four billion dollars for special education. The governor's office says he's reached a tentative bipartisan deal with Republican legislators. A majority of the Watertown School Board has resigned in the last six months. And, we hear from a Wisconsin comic book artist whose zombie book "Revival" is now a series on the Syfy channel.

Proposed cuts to Medicaid could mean more uninsured people in Wisconsin and financial pressure on rural hospitals. Some health policy organizations are speaking out. We've got the latest on the political wrangling over the state budget. And, ginseng growers in central Wisconsin have seen exports to China virtually stop this year.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court is refusing to hear challenges to the state’s congressional district boundaries. We Energies will keep two aging coal-fired units running at its Oak Creek Power Plant for one year longer than planned. And, teams of painters and cleaners are working to remove lead hazards at 44 schools in Milwaukee this summer.

A majority of Wisconsin voters think Governor Tony Evers shouldn't run for a third term next year. Home sales in Wisconsin were down for the third straight month in May. And, Microsoft has opened an artificial intelligence lab at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court sided with environmental regulators in a case challenging the state's ability to require PFAS testing and cleanup. Lawmakers have approved legislation to expand the state's nuclear power industry. And, Wisconsin researchers say they are expecting fewer incoming graduate students this fall.

The leader of the state’s flagship university directed all departments to cut their budgets between 5 percent and 7 percent next year. Wisconsin's federal lawmakers split along party lines in their reactions to the U.S. air strike on Iran. And, Johnsonville is being sued by a competitor over alleged effort to poach employees and share trade secrets.

A Trump administration delay in federal funding means work is stopping on a tool to detect wildfires. An Appleton hospital was found not liable in a high-profile medical malpractice trial. And, beef prices are at an all-time high -- and they're not likely to come down any time soon.