Madison

By $11M. So even with the Board of Estimate changes, that's an increase of 4.93%, not 4.99% so the council has more room to raise taxes if they are going to stay within the 5% limit the Mayor unilaterally set for them. It should help the county and school board a bit too. Here's the details:

On Tuesday, the Council had a long discussion on hiring a consultant to review the AMS model for the Overture. They had previous rejected the same proposal. During the meeting there were doubts about the consultant. Here, we finally hear from the consultant.

In response to stories of  Governor-Elect Scott Walker's transition team's office being swamped with pro-train calls, conservative e-mail lists have just been blasted with...

17 capital budget amendments, 17 operating amendments and one attachment. Here they are and a quick run down of what they mean.

I moderate some of the comments on Forward Lookout, and there are some that do not get through, let's review why . . .

The EDC report was the subject of plan commission discussion previously and they did a report back to the Economic Development Committee, but Julia Kerr's new comments from Monday night are specifically are worth noting.

The all republican capitol is sure to set the state back centuries . . . so I'm starting a new Capitol Watch feature to point out my outrage of the day. There will be many, I had to choose one for today. Should Wisconsin be the new Arizona when it comes to immigration policy?

In response to questions about how and when the latest committee to look at the houses in James Madison Park was formed and appointed, we get this from the city attorney's office - unlike the past 12 - 15 years that I have been paying attention - now, the Mayor just is making appointments without Council approval. Even when the staff who ordered it doesn't know what I'm talking about.

The City has declared one for today, here's why and what it means: WHAT HAPPENS City Agencies – Please implement your actions plans for tomorrow. PLEASE NOTE:...

Committee, Commission and Board members always had to disclose conflicts of interest and recuse themselves when they had a conflict, but now, there will be a reminder on every agenda. The ethics board recommended this based on my open letter and the council approved it unanimously. Here's the city attorney's instructions.

Scott Walker’s recent letter to Ray LaHood begging to divert high speed rail funding into highway expansions reveals a significant gap in his understanding of transportation policy and technology. Will Wisconsin pay the price for his nostalgic views on transportation?

A few random thoughts on Maniaci's recent open records request to "determine who ratted her out to the press", in regards to her health-care...