Storms knock out power to thousands of homes; Public employee race to retirement slows; more briefs

Talk about it

Over 6,700 electric customers in north central Wisconsin were still without power this morning after heavy thunderstorms in the region last night.

The Wisconsin Public Service utility said almost 2,800 customers were without power in Rhinelander at 6:45 a.m. after 5,500 were affected late last night. In the Wausau area, around 2,000 customers were still in the dark this morning.

Neillsville had 1.5 inches of rain last evening, and trees and power lines fell in parts of Clark and Marathon counties.

Earlier yesterday, there was flash flooding in Sawyer, Washburn and Barron counties in northwest Wisconsin. The National Weather Service said up to five inches of rain fell in parts of Barron County.

More thunderstorms are in the forecast on and off today and into the weekend. It’s supposed to get hot again as well with highs today in the 80’s in northern Wisconsin and the low-90’s in the far south.

---------

Public employee race to retirement slows

Many public employees are apparently no longer worried that Gov. Scott Walker will pull their retirement nest eggs out from under them.

Wisconsin did not have the big wave of public sector retirements this spring that it had a year ago – although the numbers are still up slightly from 2010. The Department of Employee Trust Funds said about 4,500 state and local public employees asked for retirement applications from January through April. That’s down from almost 7,900 applications a year ago, but it was still almost 500 more than in 2010.

Older teachers and other public workers expressed fears a year ago that Walker and Republican lawmakers would reduce the pensions they accumulated if they stayed around. State law prohibits it and Walker denied it, but fears still existed after he proposed cutting off virtually all collective bargaining for most public employee unions.

The numbers of public workers asking about their estimated benefits has dropped by about half, but it’s still up 7% from two years ago.

Matt Stohr, who heads the Employee Trust Funds agency, said more Baby Boomers are starting to call it a career. That trend is expected to continue for the next 10 to 15 years.

---------

Walker plans to use fame to attract business

Gov. Scott Walker says he’ll use whatever national stature he gained during his recall battle to promote Wisconsin and reach out to businesses to try to attract jobs.

The governor has spent the last two days in Washington attending meetings of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, meeting with students at Marquette’s Les Aspin Center for Government and talking to national reporters at a Christian Science Monitor breakfast.

The Washington Post called Walker’s trip “a victory lap through Washington” following his election win over Tom Barrett 10 days ago.

But the governor – who was derided by Democrats during the campaign as a traveling right-wing “rock star” – said he wants to use his newfound celebrity status to promote Wisconsin and not himself.

“There probably aren’t too many business leaders across America who won’t take our call now,” said Walker.

During his meeting with national reporters, the governor said Republican Mitt Romney could carry Wisconsin in November, but he would have to be clear about his economic goals and appeal to more than just Republicans.

Walker made another pitch for Romney to choose Janesville House member Paul Ryan as his running mate. The governor predicted Wisconsin would flip back and forth in the polls between Romney and President Obama all the way until November.

---------

Man dies after being crushed by press

A 37-year-old man was killed in Madison Thursday after an 800-pound piece of equipment crushed him while he was working.

According to police, the man was working near a hydraulic press that was being removed from a truck. He was hit on the head by the press and was taken to University of Wisconsin Hospital where he died. The man was not breathing when rescuers arrived.

The incident occurred on Madison’s west side. Police say the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been notified and will investigate.

---------

State park camping popular

More people are camping in Wisconsin state parks. The Department of Natural Resources reports campsite reservations are up by 9.3% from this time a year ago. Online reservations are up by 11.5%.

The DNR also says the number of people driving in without reservations is up by almost 80%.

Campsites with electricity have the highest demand. The DNR has been adding electricity to a number of campsites, while improving existing service in others.

---------

Deaths lead to talk of motorcycle helmet law

After a slight uptick in motorcycle deaths this year, there’s some talk of Wisconsin bringing back its old requirement that motorcyclists wear helmets.

Thirty-four bikers have been killed in Wisconsin crashes, up from 32 a year ago.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says the state has about 1.5 times more motorcycles than it did 10 years ago, but the number of biker deaths has not risen proportionately.

The numbers vary greatly from year to year, but Wisconsin has averaged 91 motorcycle deaths annually over the last decade.

The state repealed its mandatory helmet law in the 1970’s in one of the most intense political battles of the last 40 years. There’s never been a serious effort by lawmakers to bring it back.

The Centers for Disease Control says there’s clear evidence that helmets save lives and billions of dollars in health costs. It says bikers are safer in the 19 states that have mandatory helmet laws.

In Wisconsin, 92% of those killed on motorcycles last year were not wearing helmets.

But Ric Mellon of the motorcycle group ABATE says rider education and awareness by other drivers is much more important than “wrapping your head in plastic and foam.”

Minnesota lawmakers are considering whether to require bikers without helmets to carry more insurance. Michigan did that when it repealed its mandatory helmet law.

Wisconsin only requires helmets for those under 18 and those with instructional permits. Eyewear or windshields are also required.

----------

For now, Petri is wealthiest Wisconsin congressman

For now, Republican Tom Petri of Fond du Lac is listed as the richest member of Wisconsin’s eight-member U.S. House delegation.

According to newly filed financial disclosure forms, Petri is worth between $9.5 million and $40.5 million.

For years, Menomonee Falls Republican Jim Sensenbrenner was been the state’s richest House member. But he and Wausau area Republican Sean Duffy were given more time to prepare their reports, and they were not filed as of yesterday afternoon.

Petri’s most valuable asset is stock in the Walgreens drug store chain. It’s said to be worth between $5 million and $25 million. Petri also has three other assets worth over $1 million each.

Of the others who filed, no one had total assets of more than $9.3 million.

Milwaukee Democrat Gwen Moore is the least wealthy House member. Her only assets are $12,500 after cashing out five investment funds, plus investment sales of up to $75,000. She also reported a liability of up to $100,000 dollars on her home mortgage.

Members of Congress must file annual reports of their holdings, but they’re allowed to state broad ranges which make comparisons difficult.

Tags: state news, wisconsin, weather