Brian Dake

Inflation ticked higher in March, according to new Labor Department data released Wednesday. The consumer price index (CPI), a popular measure of inflation, rose 0.4 percent last month and 3.5 percent annually.

The latest numbers come after two months of hotter than expected inflation data. Consumers prices were up 3.2 percent year-over-year in February and 3.1 percent in January.

More than half of the March increase in inflation came from gasoline and shelter prices, two areas with heavy influence on consumer sentiment.

Food prices, however, appear to be flatlining after years of steady increases. Food prices overall rose 0.1 percent in March after staying flat in February. While food bought away from home was 0.3 percent more expensive, groceries prices have been flat for two months and are up just 1.2 percent in the past year.

“This marks the third consecutive strong reading and means that the stalled disinflationary narrative can no longer be called a blip,” said Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, in an analysis.

Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has rejected a bill that would have allowed 14- and 15-year-olds to work in Wisconsin without a permit.

Currently, workers younger than 16 need a permit from Wisconsin’s Department of Workforce Development to hold most types of jobs, with the exception of agriculture and domestic work. The application can be filled out online with the sign-off of a parent or guardian.

Republican backers say the bill would have sped up hiring by cutting red tape and making it easier for kids to work.

They noted the bill would not have repealed any workforce safety standards for children. Other regulations such as a limit on how many hours kids under 16 can work, a ban on minors working during school hours and a prohibition on children doing “hazardous” work would remain in place.

“This is a simple bill that takes away a bureaucratic step in our youth working,” Sponsor Rep. Amy Binsfeld, R-Sheboygan, said earlier this year, just before Wisconsin’s Republican-controlled Assembly voted to approve the proposal.

But, Democrats and union leaders have argued the change would take away oversight. Evers cited concerns about safety when he vetoed the bill Monday morning during a conference in Madison for Machinists Union District 10.

The proposal had the backing of the National Federation of Independent Business and  Wisconsin Independent Businesses, Inc. The Wisconsin State AFL-CIO opposed it.

In 2017, then- Republican Gov. Scott Walker signed a bill into law that repealed work permit requirements for 16- and 17-year-olds.

A child work permit is $10, and the cost must be covered by an employer. Over the past five years, permit fees have brought in approximately in $288,000 in annual revenue, according to a nonpartisan fiscal analysis. Part of that revenue has paid for one full-time equal rights officer, tasked with investigating labor law violations.

Two influential lawmakers from opposing parties have crafted a deal on legislation designed to strengthen privacy protections for Americans’ personal data.

The sweeping proposal announced Sunday evening would define privacy as a consumer right and create new rules for companies that collect and use personal information. It comes from the offices of Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell and Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, both of Washington state. Cantwell chairs the Senate Commerce Committee while McMorris Rodgers leads the House Energy and Commerce Committee. While the proposal has not been formally introduced and remains in draft form, the bipartisan support suggests the bill could get serious consideration.

According to a one-page outline released Sunday, the bill worked out by McMorris Rodgers and Cantwell would strengthen rules requiring consumer consent before a company can collect or transfer certain kinds of information. Companies would have to notify consumers about the details of data collection and retention policies and seek consumer permission for significant changes.

In addition, companies would have to ensure that any algorithms used to analyze personal data aren’t biased, and companies that buy and sell personal data would have to register with the Federal Trade Commission.

Consumers would also have greater control over how their data is used under the measure. One provision of the proposal would allow consumers to opt out of targeted ads — i.e., advertisements sent to them based on their personal data.

A new bureau focused on data privacy would be created within the FTC, which would have the authority to enact new rules as technology changes. Enforcement of the law would fall to the FTC as well as state attorneys general.

If passed, the new standard would preempt most state privacy laws — though it wouldn’t impact certain states’ laws already on the books that protect financial, health or employee data.

Last Friday, Governor Tony Evers Friday signed Assembly Bill 1073, now 2023 Wisconsin Act 213. The act makes several improvements to Wisconsin’s worker’s compensation system as recommended by the Worker’s Compensation Advisory Council (WCAC).

“This legislation reflects good-faith negotiations between representatives of employers and employees in which both sides made substantial compromises,” said Rachel Ver Velde, WCAC caucus co-chair and associate vice president of government relations at Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce. “The final product makes well-conceived and incremental changes to the system which has been the hallmark of Wisconsin’s approach to policymaking in the worker’s compensation system.”

2023 Wisconsin Act 213 includes language to:

• Increase the permanent partial disability weekly rate by $8 for injuries occurring in 2024, on and after the effective date from $430 to $438, and by an additional $8 to $446 for injuries occurring on and after Jan. 1, 2025.
• Allow lump sum payments for permanent partial disability for unaccrued compensation to be paid voluntarily in advance in undisputed claims with no 5% interest credit.
• Incorporate gender neutral language relating to marriage in Wis. Stats. 102.51(1)(a).
• Clarify duties between DWD’s Worker’s Compensation (WC) Division and the Department of Administration’s (DOA) Division of Hearings and Appeals (DHA) with respect to closing cases.
• Provide that the statute limitations begins to run on the date an order is issued by DHA that approves a compromise agreement, and that subsequent claims will not be time-barred except by the applicable statute of limitations.
• Correct citations to mirror federal rehabilitation law.
• Increase the amount of large Uninsured Employer Fund (UEF) claims that require reimbursement from worker’s compensation insurance carriers from $1 million to $2 million.

The Biden administration has abruptly canceled a plan announced last month to purchase up to three million barrels of oil as part of its effort to refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR).

The SPR — which Congress established for emergency situations — currently contains 363.6 million barrels of oil, a 43% decline from January 2021 when President Biden took office, federal data shows. Biden began depleting the reserve in late 2021 to combat high fuel prices.

The Department of Energy said that while it remains committed to refilling the SPR, it would pull back its most recent solicitation for oil amid increasing prices. On March 14, DOE’s Office of Petroleum Reserves announced the solicitation for three million barrels of oil to be delivered in August and September to its Bayou Choctaw site in Louisiana, one of four major SPR storage facilities.

When DOE first announced the Bayou Choctaw refill plan last month, it said it would aim to purchase oil priced at $79 per barrel or below. Since then, oil prices have increased, with the U.S. benchmark hitting $85.71 earlier on Wednesday.

Overall, the president ordered DOE to release a total of about 260 million barrels of oil from the SPR in 2021 and 2022. Although the administration has recently initiated the process of refilling the reserve, Republican lawmakers and energy experts have warned its actions make the U.S. vulnerable to short-term supply shocks.

The rules for running elections in Wisconsin have changed after voters approved two constitutional amendments Tuesday that will restrict the use of private money, and consultants, to support election administration.

Both amendments are responses to the use of private funds in the 2020 presidential election.

The prohibition on outside funding means that Wisconsin election workers will only be able to access public funds, and cannot apply for or receive private grant money to support their work.

The amendment that affects election officials states that only legally designated election officials can perform tasks “in the conduct of” election. The nature of those tasks, and the excluded workers — which may include people who work in municipal clerk offices but are not sworn officials — is likely to require court clarification, legal experts say. Lower courts have previously found that election officials may turn to outside experts for that work.

The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) today announced its release of an expanded Unemployment Insurance (UI) statistics dashboard. The expanded dashboard now includes an interactive map with information on UI claims filed by county.

“Today’s expanded UI dashboard release is yet another important step in our ongoing modernization efforts and demonstrates DWD’s continued commitment to transparency, accountability, and customer service,” DWD Secretary Amy Pechacek said.

Initially released in May 2022, the UI statistics dashboard provides information on UI claims filed, benefits paid, adjudication, appeals, and help center call metrics. Metrics are updated each Thursday, making up-to-date current and historical UI data available to the public.

By adding the county claims feature to the existing UI statistics dashboard, DWD aims to empower decisionmakers with the data they need to better analyze trends and develop policies tailored to the unique needs of communities across Wisconsin.

Key features of the expanded dashboard include the following measures for both initial claims and weekly claims, summarized by county:

• Total claims;
• Claims per 10,000 in the civilian labor force;
• Claims per the unemployed labor force (as a percentage); and
• Weekly percentage change in claims.

To access the new claims by county statistics, visit the UI Statistics page.

Last Friday, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) published a final rule clarifying the rights of employees to authorize a representative to accompany an Occupational Safety and Health Administration compliance officer during an inspection of their workplace.

The Occupational Safety and Health Act gives the employer and employees the right to authorize a representative to accompany OSHA officials during a workplace inspection. The final rule clarifies that, consistent with the law, workers may authorize another employee to serve as their representative or select a non-employee. For a non-employee representative to accompany the compliance officer in a workplace, they must be reasonably necessary to conduct an effective and thorough inspection.

Consistent with OSHA historic practices, the rule clarifies that a non-employee representative may be reasonably necessary based upon skills, knowledge or experience. This experience may include knowledge or experience with hazards or conditions in the workplace or similar workplaces, or language or communication skills to ensure an effective and thorough inspection.

The rule is in part a response to a 2017 court decision ruling that the agency’s existing regulation, 29 CFR 1903.8(c), only permitted employees of the employer to be authorized as representatives. However, the court acknowledged that the OSH Act does not limit who can serve as an employee representative and that OSHA’s historic practice was a “persuasive and valid construction” of the OSH Act. Today’s final rule is the culmination of notice and comment rulemaking that clarifies OSHA’s inspection regulation and aligns with OSHA’s longstanding construction of the act.

The rule is effective on May 31, 2024.

Wisconsin’s in-state undergraduate students will see a tuition hike of 3.75 percent in the fall, Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman announced Thursday. The proposal will be considered by the Board of Regents on April 4.

Rothman said the 2024-25  increase is necessary to keep up with inflation. The tuition hike increases UW System revenue about $39 million, but with inflation the money is intangible, Rothman said.

Seven universities are proposing a fee increase on top of the 3.75 percent to fund specific needs such as academic advising, financial aid, and faculty hiring in high demand programs. Rothman said segregated fees will also increase by an average of $74 per year.

The proposed resident undergraduate tuition and segregated fees for each university in 2024–25 are as follows:

• UW-Eau Claire: $9,643
• UW-Green Bay: $8,700
• UW-La Crosse: $9,896
• UW-Madison: $11,604
• UW-Milwaukee: $10,398
• UW-Oshkosh: $8,532
• UW-Parkside: $8,271
• UW-Platteville: $8,425
• UW-River Falls: $8,824
• UW-Stevens Point: $9,049
• UW-Stout: $9,386
• UW-Superior: $8,813
• UW-Whitewater: $8,406

Wisconsin school districts could soon have more flexibility in choosing their fall start date.  Under current law, Wisconsin public schools are prohibited from starting fall classes until September 1.

The state Department of Public Instruction (DPI) can grant school board requests for an exemption to start school early for “extraordinary reasons.”

Now, an administrative rule is working its way through the Legislature that would expand the types of reasons for DPI to grant an exception for school districts.  If approved, exceptions would include factors that pertain to student graduation rates, reading and mathematics proficiency, school attendance, mental health of students and staff, and recruitment and retention strategies for educators.

The Tourism Federation of Wisconsin has long been against the change, saying repealing the September 1 start date for public schools would lead to a loss in revenue for Wisconsin’s businesses.

Several members of the tourism industry testified against the change this week.

Bill Elliott, president and CEO of the Wisconsin Hotel and Lodging Association, which represents approximately 600 members, said changing the start date for schools won’t fix the problems facing education.

“At the same time, the changes would have a negative impact on the lodging industry and all the other businesses that make up Wisconsin’s tourism economy,” Elliot said. “Starting school before Sept. 1 shortens the Wisconsin summer for vacations and travel by families with school aged children, which negatively impacts the already short tourism season.”

Minnesota and Michigan have state laws that prohibit schools from starting until after Labor Day.  School boards have autonomy in Illinois.

State Representative Joel Kitchens, R-Sturgeon Bay, said DPI should not get to change the rules, the Legislature should.

“Tourism is a big part of our economy here in Wisconsin and many, many families depend on that,” Kitchens said. “But it’s not just good for business. It’s good for families. I mean, my kids will tell you that the vacations that we took together as a family were some of their best memories, and I think it also played a big part of enhancing their education.”