Most school districts will get less state aid this year; State puts part of surplus in ‘rainy day fund’; more briefs

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Dozens of Wisconsin school districts will either get the same or more state aid than a year ago, but most will get less, according to a district-by-district breakdown released Monday by the state Department of Public Instruction.

Two hundred seventy-two school systems will get less money from Madison than a year ago. That’s 64% of the 424 public school districts in the state. The other 36%, or 152 districts, will get the same or more funding from Madison.

Last year, only 13 districts got more than the previous year.

The state is spending $4.3 billion on public schools this year, about $32 million more than a year ago. But that includes aid that’s given to private school voucher programs in Milwaukee and Racine, and that means the others are seeing a net decline.

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State puts part of surplus in ‘rainy day fund’

For the second year in a row, Gov. Scott Walker’s administration put money into the Wisconsin government’s long-ignored “rainy day fund.”

Officials said Monday that the state ended its fiscal year with a surplus of $342 million in its general account, and it put almost a third of that, or $109 million, into the state’s fund for emergencies. The amount was less than 1% of the $13 billion spent from the state’s general fund in the fiscal year ending June 30.

But after years of deficits built up by both parties, Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch said the rainy day fund deposit was the largest since the fund was created. He said Walker and other officials are “good stewards” of the taxpayers’ money.

Walker said his administration remains “committed to making the tough decisions necessary to avoid tax increases while maintaining services.”

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Baldwin leads Thompson in fundraising

Democrat Tammy Baldwin leads the money race for Wisconsin’s open U.S. Senate seat.

The Madison congresswoman said she raised almost $4.6 million from July through September, while her Republican opponent Tommy Thompson raised $3.6 million.

Thompson, a former governor, said his war chest went dry soon after he won a hard-fought, four-way GOP primary in August. Since then, he has raised $2.2 million, but Baldwin raised more with almost $3.6 million.

The Thompson campaign said almost two-thirds of his donors gave $100 or less.

Baldwin said she had about $3.5 million on hand as of Oct. 1 while Thompson had around $2 million.

The so-called “money race” among the candidates is not as important as it used to be because outside groups are now outspending the hopefuls several times over. A recent federal report said outside groups have spent $21 million on the Wisconsin Senate race – the second-highest among Senate contests in the country.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie will campaign for Thompson on Wednesday in Green Bay.

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Thompson’s son apologizes for Obama-Kenya remark

The son of U.S. Senate candidate Tommy Thompson has apologized to colleagues at his law firm for telling Republican voters that they can send President Obama back to Kenya.

Yesterday, the firm of Michael Best and Friedrich said it had nothing to do with its employee’s remarks, and the remarks do not reflect the “views, beliefs or values” of the law firm.

Jason Thompson spoke at a Kenosha County Republican brunch on Sunday while campaigning on behalf of his father, Tommy, who’s running against Democrat Tammy Baldwin for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat.

Jason was caught on video saying, “We have the opportunity to send President Obama back to Chicago – or Kenya.”

Tommy Thompson’s campaign announced an apology on Sunday night about an hour after a report asked the candidate about it. The campaign has not said whether Jason Thompson will continue campaigning on behalf of his father.

The elections are three weeks from today.

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Suring man accused of setting six fires

A $500,000 bond was set Monday for a northeast Wisconsin man accused of starting at least six fires in Oconto County.

And state Department of Justice officials are investigating to see if Drew Christensen, 28, of Suring was responsible for up to 40 unsolved fires in the area.

Christensen appeared in court Monday on a pair of felony arson charges – a garage fire in January and a mobile home fire last August, both in the town of Bagley.

The criminal complaint said Christensen also admitted to starting four other blazes, including a fire at the 100-year-old Klondike Community Church which was heavily damaged in March. That blaze caused an estimated $600,000 of damage. Two taverns were also damaged.

A motive for the fires has not been disclosed. Christensen is due back in court Oct. 30 when a judge will decide if there’s enough evidence to order him to stand trial.

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Mediation fails, but Archdiocese still hopes for sex-abuse settlement

The Milwaukee Catholic Archdiocese still hopes that a settlement can be reached with hundreds of sex abuse victims after a court-ordered mediator failed to strike a deal.

Both sides said Monday that their mediation, which Bankruptcy Judge Susan Kelley ordered in late July, had broken down.

About 575 people have filed financial claims against the Archdiocese, saying they deserve compensation after being sexually abused by priests a number of years ago.

The church filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January of 2011, saying it needed to compensate the abuse victims while having enough money left over to keep operating the 10-county archdiocese.

The matter now goes back to Kelley’s courtroom, where several issues must be decided. The victims say the archdiocese has been trying to hide settlement funds in various accounts. They want the judge to pry out $57 million in a cemetery trust and $35 in a seven-year-old fund.

Meanwhile, the church has asked that the majority of financial claims be thrown out, including those which involve religious orders and are past the statute of limitations. The church also wants to drop cases in which settlements were already reached.

Victims’ attorney Jeffrey Anderson has also asked that sealed documents be released that provide details of the sex abuse.

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Mental exam ordered for teen accused of killing great-grandmother

A 13-year-old boy will get a mental exam to see if he’s competent to help with his own defense for the brutal killing of his 78-year-old great-grandmother in Sheboygan Falls.

Circuit Judge Timothy Van Akkeren ordered the exam Monday for Antonio Barbeau despite objections from prosecutors.

Barbeau and Nathan Paape, 13, are both charged as adults with first-degree intentional homicide in the slaying of Barbara Olson in mid-September. Paape’s lawyer has not asked for an exam.

A competency hearing for Barbeau is set for Nov. 2 after his exam is complete. His lawyer, George Limbeck, said his client cannot understand the legal process for his defense or an effort that will come later to try him in juvenile court.

Prosecutors said the teens killed Olson while ransacking her house for money, and they got away with $165 which they used to buy pizza and marijuana. Authorities said the boys also stole Olson’s car and jewelry.

Limbeck said a brain injury that Barbeau suffered in a previous accident might affect competency. But Sheboygan County District Attorney Joe DeCecco said the injury was not serious enough to affect his competency and there was not enough evidence that the mental exam was needed.

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$1 mil bond set for St. Paul man accused of killing girlfriend

WAUSAU -- A $1 million bond has been set for a Minnesota man accused of killing a Wausau area woman after he allegedly stole two weapons from a gun dealer and a pickup truck.

Richi Vue, 21, of St. Paul made his first court appearance in Marathon County Monday on charges of homicide, theft, vehicle theft, fleeing an officer and possessing guns as a convicted felon.

Authorities said Vue shot his girlfriend, Lee Xiong, 20, to death last Saturday night at her apartment in Weston after they argued about a drug deal which went sour.

Officials said Vue, Xiong, and a 14-year-old unrelated witness smoked methamphetamines for several hours before the shooting.

Sheriff’s officers from Marathon and Clark counties tracked down the suspect after he allegedly tried to elude them in a wooded area near Abbotsford, about 40 miles west of the murder scene.

Vue was arrested early Sunday after a brief chase. Prosecutors said he was driving a truck stolen Sept. 11 from a Wausau area dealership, and officers recovered a .357 Magnum and a 40-caliber handgun that were stolen recently from a gun shop in Lincoln County.

Vue is due back in court Oct. 25 when a judge will decide if there’s enough evidence to order a trial.

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Animal rights groups ask Wisconsin to stop wolf hunt

Wisconsin’s wolf hunt will keep going despite a legal notice that seeks to put Upper Midwest grey wolves back under federal protections.

The Humane Society of the United States and the Fund for Animals filed a notice Monday that gives the federal government 60 days to put Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan wolves back on the endangered species list – or else they’ll ask the courts to put them back.

The animal rights groups also asked Wisconsin and Minnesota to call off their wolf hunts until the case is resolved. But Wisconsin’s Department of Natural Resources said it would do no such thing. The season began Monday, and the DNR’s Kurt Thiede said it will continue as required by state law.

In a statement after the notice was filed, Gov. Scott Walker called the start of the wolf hunt a “landmark day.” He made no mention of the possible lawsuit.

But Walker defended the hunt, saying Wisconsin’s wolf population had reached a point in which “this public harvest is necessary to maintain a safe balance.”

The governor’s office said over 600 hunting permits had been issued by Monday morning. Over 1,100 hunters won a lottery to take 116 wolves between now and next February.

Two previous lawsuits prevented Upper Midwest wolves from being taken off the federal endangered species list.

The delisting occurred in January, and Wisconsin lawmakers almost immediately worked to create the hunting season.

U.S. Humane Society President Wayne Pacelle called Wisconsin’s hunt “reckless.” He said Minnesota broke a promise to wait five years before its hunt. Minnesota’s DNR said it thoroughly studied the issue and decided a hunt would not be detrimental to its wolf population.

Tags: state news, elections, wisconsin, politics