Investigative Reporter
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Wisconsin economy sends conflicting signals
Low unemployment, record farm exports contrast with worsening housing
Wisconsin’s latest economic numbers offer a mixed picture heading into the fall elections, with unemployment remaining low and agricultural exports reaching a record high, but the housing market isn’t sharing those positive vibes as mortgage rates have risen since February and housing inventory remains constricted.
City council puts off sidewalk construction decision
The Rhinelander Common Council on Monday postponed a decision about whether sidewalks should be added as part of a major street reconstruction project, instead directing its engineer to return at the next council meeting with conceptual plans for two alternatives proposed by mayor Kris Hanus.
$1.25M settlement with tribal member ends lawsuit over 2024 arrest
Hartman says sheriff’s department wanted its day in court
The Oneida County Sheriff’s Office will pay Lac du Flambeau tribal member Thomas Maulson $1.25 million to settle a federal civil-rights lawsuit stemming from a March 2024 encounter in a Rhinelander Walmart parking lot that left Maulson bloodied and requiring 13 stitches.
Oneida County pulls plug on Flock cameras
Sheriff cites public opposition, potential for abuse as statewide backlash grows
Oneida County sheriff Grady Hartman has ended his department’s use of Flock automated license-plate readers and ordered the cameras’ removal, making the county the latest Wisconsin local government to abandon the surveillance technology.
Oneida zoning department tops $1M in annual revenue
Fees covered a record 88% of department expenses in 2025
Oneida County’s Planning and Zoning Department raked in more than $1 million in revenue in 2025, the first time the department has crossed that threshold, zoning director Karl Jennrich told the county board Tuesday.
Tiffany suffers minor injuries in emergency plane landing
GOP gubernatorial candidate, pilot swim to safety from sinking plane in Lake Wausau
Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany said Sunday he was grateful to be alive after the small plane carrying him home from a campaign event in La Crosse lost power and made an emergency landing in Lake Wausau Saturday night.
How the DNR plans to turn 77 acres into 16,000
Willow Flowage purchase reveals much larger DNR acquisition plan
When the Oneida County Board of Supervisors voted 15-2 earlier this year to support the state Department of Natural Resources’ purchase of 77 acres along the Upper Tomahawk River, supervisors repeatedly characterized their decision as approval of a small, unusually strategic acquisition.
Trump orders review of wolf protections
Executive order directs Interior Department to consider delisting
President Donald Trump has directed the U.S. Department of the Interior to determine whether gray and Mexican wolves have recovered sufficiently to remove them from federal Endangered Species Act protections, a move that drew enthusiastic support from Wisconsin Republican gubernatorial nominee Tom Tiffany and a promise of litigation from major environmental organizations.
Flock surveillance takes stage in governor’s race
Tiffany vows funding pause; Crowley orders policy review
Wisconsin’s raucous and growing debate over Flock Safety cameras and alleged surveillance moved into the governor’s race front and center this past week, as Republican candidate Tom Tiffany promised to pause state funding for the automated license-plate readers and Democratic candidate and Milwaukee County executive David Crowley limited their use while the county evaluated and developed safeguards.
Projected state surplus heads toward $3 billion
New numbers reignite debate over taxes and spending
Wisconsin finished the 2025-26 fiscal year with preliminary general fund tax collections of $23.1 billion, about $450.8 million, or 2 percent, above the Legislative Fiscal Bureau’s previous estimate of nearly $22.7 billion, according to numbers released last week by the state Department of Revenue.