News of the Day

Wisconsin’s maximum Worker’s Compensation rate will increase to $1,375 per week for temporary total disability, permanent total disability and death benefits for injuries occurring on or after January 1, 2026. The new average weekly wage used to compute the maximum rate is $2,026.50. Using this new wage raises the maximum death benefit for fatal injuries occurring on or after January 1, 2026, to $412,500. The maximum burial expense remains $10,000 and the death benefit to unestranged parents remains $6,500.

The maximum weekly indemnity rate for permanent partial disability remains $446 for injuries occurring on or after January 1, 2026.

The 2026 maximum limit for private vocational rehabilitation services increased by 2.7009% to $2,183. When the Department of Workforce Development’s Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) is unable to provide services to eligible injured workers, insurers are required to pay the reasonable and necessary vocational rehabilitation costs including the costs of services provided by the vocational rehabilitation specialists in the private sector. This change is based on the average annual percentage change in the U.S. Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers. The new limit applies regardless of the date of injury.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday to fast-track the reclassification of cannabis, which would pave the way for the Food and Drug Administration to study its medicinal uses.

“It is the policy of my Administration to increase medical marijuana and CBD research to better inform patients and doctors. It is critical to close the gap between current medical marijuana and CBD use and medical knowledge of risks and benefits,” the order says.

The order does not make cannabis legal nationwide, he said.

“It doesn’t legalize marijuana in any way, shape or form or and in no way sanctions its use as a recreational drug,” he said, adding that the order is aimed at helping people struggling with chronic pain.

Trump also indicated he would not be open to legalizing cannabis for recreational use. “It’s never safe to use powerful controlled substances in a recreational manner,” he said. “So unless a drug is recommended by a doctor for medical reasons, just don’t do it,” he said.

Changing the classification to Schedule III would ease regulatory hurdles and allow the FDA to study medical applications for cannabis, potentially opening it up for wider medical use by seniors, veterans and others as a pharmaceutical, irrespective of state laws.

The goal of the order, a senior administration official said ahead of the signing, is to “remove barriers to research” and to “start working to improve the medical marijuana and CBD research to better inform patients and doctors. That’s the primary goal.”

The order also specifically addresses CBD — cannabidiol — which is derived from hemp plants and does not cause a high by itself. It directs the White House deputy chief of staff for legislative, political and public affairs to work with Congress to allow people in the U.S. to benefit from access to CBD products while still restricting sale and access to products that pose serious health risks, the administration official said.

Statewide home sales declined 9.2% over the year in November, signaling a “cooling market” as the year comes to a close.

That’s according to the Wisconsin Realtors Association, which is rolling out their latest monthly housing report today. A total of 5,093 homes were sold in the state last month, compared to 5,612 in November 2024, the report shows.

The group notes that’s the first monthly decline the state has seen since May.

Meanwhile, total listings continue on an upward trend with a 3.7% year-over-year increase in November. That’s the 26th month in a row where listings have risen on an annualized basis, WRA says.

“Although new listings have been somewhat variable this year, the trend of growth in total listings is now moving into its third year, which is a good sign that the total supply of homes has been steadily improving,” said Chris DeVincentis, chair of the WRA board of directors.

Still, prices continue to rise, with the state’s median home price increasing 4.8% to reach $325,000 in November, the report shows.

WRA President and CEO Tom Larson says affordability remains an issue in Wisconsin though he points to “some promising trends” over the year.

“Mortgage rates continue to trend downward, and the annual rate of home price appreciation averaged just 5.5% through the first 11 months of the year,” he said. “We hope these trends continue and lead to sustained improvements in affordability in 2026.”

The K-12 education portion of Wisconsin property tax bills rose 7.8% this year, the largest rise in more than three decades, according to a new report.

That rise is due to a record number of school referenda approved along with actions in the past two state budgets, including Gov. Tony Evers’ partial veto of an education funding item in the state budget. That led to a $325 per student per year funding increase for the next 400 years instead of just the next budget, according to the Wisconsin Policy Forum report.

The K-12 tax bills are expected to rise a combined $476.1 million to $6.58 billion on December tax bills, according to the report and Department of Revenue estimates.

It’s the largest percentage increase in K-12 property tax bills since 1992 and a jump from the 5.7% increase a year ago. The K-12 costs on property tax bills are more than 50% of the property taxes collected statewide.

State lawmakers also put $500 million in increased aid in the state budget for special education reimbursements. Wisconsin public schools have added 3,300 staff members while enrollment dropped by 55,000 since 2016-2017, according to Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty Policy Director Kyle Koenen.

In a new lawsuit, the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa alleges the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated federal environmental laws when it granted a permit to Enbridge for its proposed Line 5 reroute.

Canadian energy firm Enbridge secured a federal permit for the $450 million project from the Army Corps in late October. The company said that permit is not yet final.

Earthjustice filed the lawsuit Tuesday on the tribe’s behalf in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The tribe is accusing the Corps of violating the Clean Water Act and National Environmental Policy Act. Bad River  is asking a federal judge to overturn the permit and final environmental assessment for Enbridge’s Line 5 reroute.

The complaint states that the Corps failed to adequately assess environmental effects of construction and ensure the project would avoid or minimize harm. The tribe’s attorneys also argued the federal agency violated the Clean Water Act by issuing the permit as a legal challenge to state approvals for the project remains ongoing.

Enbridge spokesperson Juli Kellner said the company’s permit applications have undergone extensive environmental review. Kellner said the Corps issued the company an initial proffered permit, which has not yet been signed or finalized by the agency or Enbridge.

“Until the permit is signed, USACE has not engaged in a judicially reviewable final agency action. Enbridge will move to intervene in the lawsuit and defend the USACE’s forthcoming permit decision,” Kellner said in a statement.

A DNR attorney testified the project is the most studied in the agency’s history, undergoing nearly four years of review. The agency received more than 32,000 public comments on the proposed reroute, and the DNR  maintains it properly applied the state’s stringent permitting standards in line with the law.

Supporters have touted the project’s roughly $135 million economic impact and creation of 700 union jobs during construction. Farm and business groups have voiced concerns about the potential for fuel price hikes and a propane shortage if the reroute doesn’t move forward.

“Today’s baseless law suit is another disappointing development in the now nearly six-year effort to relocate Line 5 so it can continue to supply needed energy to our state and region,” the Wisconsin Jobs and Energy Coalition said in a statement.

In our latest Short-Term Energy Outlook, we forecast U.S. crude oil production will average 13.5 million barrels per day (b/d) in 2026, about 100,000 b/d less than in 2025.

This forecast decline in production follows four years of rising crude oil output.

Production increased by 0.3 million b/d in 2024 and by 0.4 million b/d in 2025, mostly because of increased output in the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico.

In 2026, we forecast modest production increases in Alaska, the Federal Gulf of America, and the Permian will be offset by declines in other parts of the United States.

We forecast that the West Texas Intermediate crude oil price will average $65 per barrel (b) in 2025 and $51/b in 2026, both lower than the 2024 average of $77/b.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday issuing a single regulation framework for artificial intelligence, undermining the power of individual states.

“To win, United States AI companies must be free to innovate without cumbersome regulation,” the Order says. “But excessive State regulation thwarts this imperative.”

The President’s executive order also calls for the attorney general to establish an AI Litigation Task Force, “whose sole responsibility shall be to challenge State AI laws.”

States that don’t adhere to the rules could face funding restrictions. The order says that within 90 days of its signing, the secretary of commerce must specify the conditions under which states may be eligible to receive remaining funding under the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment, or BEAD, program, a $42.5 billion effort to expand high-speed access in rural areas.

The Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate a quarter of a percentage point on Wednesday, opting for its third interest rate cut this year in an effort to revive a sluggish labor market.

The reduction of interest rates could deliver some relief for mortgage and credit card borrowers.

The Fed’s benchmark rate stands between 3.5% and 3.75%. That figure marks a significant drop from a recent peak attained in 2023, but borrowing costs remain well above a 0% rate established at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking at a press conference in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell touted the rate cut as an effort to improve the labor market, but he suggested the central bank may be cautious about further rate reductions.

“We’re well positioned to wait and see how the economy evolves,” Powell said.

Yesterday, the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service today issued Notice 2026-05 PDF providing guidance on new tax benefits for Health Savings Account participants under the OBBBA. These changes expand HSA eligibility, which allows more people to save and to pay for healthcare costs through tax-free HSAs.

Expansion of HSA Eligibility Under the OBBBA

The OBBBA expands access to HSAs by making the following changes:

• Telehealth and Remote Care Services: The OBBBA made permanent the ability to receive telehealth and other remote care services before meeting the high-deductible health plan (HDHP) deductible while remaining eligible to contribute to an HSA, effective for plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2025.
• Bronze and Catastrophic Plans Treated as HDHPs: As of January 1, 2026, bronze and catastrophic plans available through an Exchange are considered HSA-compatible, regardless of whether the plans satisfy the general definition of an HDHP. This expands the ability of people enrolled in these plans to contribute to HSAs, which they generally have not been able to do in the past. Notice 2026-05 clarifies that bronze and catastrophic plans do not have to be purchased through an Exchange to qualify for the new relief.
• Direct Primary Care Service Arrangements: Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, an otherwise eligible individual enrolled in certain direct primary care (DPC) service arrangements may contribute to an HSA. In addition, they may use their HSA funds tax-free to pay periodic DPC fees.