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MILWAUKEE SHERIFF COMPLAINT

Man says Milwaukee sheriff Clarke detained him after run-in

MILWAUKEE (AP) — A Wisconsin man says Milwaukee’s tough-talking sheriff had deputies question him after a flight because he shook his head at the lawman, who has gained national prominence for supporting Donald Trump.

Milwaukee resident Dan Black says in a complaint submitted to the sheriff’s website he shook his head because David Clarke was wearing Dallas Cowboys clothes on Sunday when they played the Green Bay Packers.

Black says the encounter happened during boarding for a flight from Dallas to Milwaukee hours before kickoff.

Clarke responded to the 24-year-old’s complaint in a Facebook post Wednesday, saying “he reserves the reasonable right to pre-empt a possible assault.”

Black says deputies questioned him for about 15 minutes after the plane landed before letting him go.

The status of Black’s complaint was not immediately known.

WISCONSIN BUDGET-THE LATEST

The Latest: Lawmakers react to new, positive budget numbers

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Republican co-chairs of the Legislature’s budget committee say a new tax revenue forecast shows “Wisconsin is on solid ground.”

Sen. Alberta Darling and Rep. John Nygren released a joint statement Wednesday in reaction to the report from the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau. The report shows the state will collect nearly $455 million more than projected in November.

Nygren and Darling say the new numbers are encouraging.

And Democratic Senate Minority Leader Jen Shilling says budget priorities are out of whack. She says “rather than handing out taxpayer subsidies to companies that outsource jobs, we need to focus on expanding economic opportunities and growing our middle class.”

PHARMACEUTICAL LAYOFFS

Pharmaceutical center in LaCrosse announces layoffs

(Information from: La Crosse Tribune, http://www.lacrossetribune.com)

LACROSSE, Wis. (AP) — McKesson Pharmaceuticals has announced plans for layoffs at its LaCrosse distribution center amid paying a record $150 million civil penalty for alleged violations of the Controlled Substances Act.

The LaCrosse Tribune reports a total of 67 employees will be losing their jobs starting March 31 as the San Francisco-based company merges its operations at a new distribution facility in Clear Lake, Iowa.

The layoffs come as the center agreed to pay a settlement, which spokeswoman Kristin Hunter says is unrelated.

Federal prosecutors say the company did not implement a system to detect and report suspicious orders to its customers.

The Wisconsin Department of Workforce reported the closure Tuesday, but it was originally announced in February 2015.

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WISCONSIN RETIREES

Wisconsin retirees to see annuity payment increases

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Retirees in the Wisconsin Retirement System will receive annuity increases of between 1.3 percent and 1.9 percent starting in May.

The Department of Employee Trust Funds released the estimate Wednesday. It comes after the State of Wisconsin Investment Board reported that investments in the “Core Fund” rose by 8.5 percent last year and “Variable Fund” investments rose by 10.6 percent.

Payments to the roughly 200,000 retirees and beneficiaries investing in the “Core Fund” are leveled out over a five-year period to avoid large jumps in annuity payments or contribution rates.

The nearly 40,000 retirees who invest in the more volatile “Variable Fund” will see increases of between 4 percent and 8 percent.

The exact rates will be set in March after returns are finalized and an actuarial analysis is done.

WISCONSIN ASSEMBLY

Wisconsin Assembly speaker says fall budget action possible

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republican Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says lawmakers may revisit the state budget this fall or spring to reshape it based on what president-elect Donald Trump and Congress enact.

Vos said Wednesday that he was optimistic the new Republican-controlled Congress will give states more freedom by making block grant funding available for such massive programs as transportation, Medicaid and education. But Vos says those details likely won’t come until the fall, after the state Legislature has passed its budget for the next two years.

Vos says if that happens the state Legislature could reshape its budget this fall or spring.

Vos also says that newly revised fiscal estimates expected within the next two weeks will show the state “is in a pretty good place.”

TAX RECIPROCITY

Minnesota officials seek tax break for Wisconsin workers

(Information from: Post-Bulletin, http://www.postbulletin.com)

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — House Taxes Committee Chairman Greg Davids has proposed a bill to help Minnesota residents, who may pay higher taxes due to working in Wisconsin.

The Post Bulletin reports the proposed bill would offset the higher taxes in Wisconsin and give Minnesota residents a tax credit.

The estimated cost of the bill in the first year would be $8.6 million and would drop to $6 million a year later.

The bill is under consideration to be included in a larger tax bill.

For more than 40 years Minnesota had a tax reciprocity agreement with Wisconsin, before it came to an end in 2009.

Around 24,000 Minnesota residents work in Wisconsin.

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TOMAH VA-HOULIHAN

‘Candy Man’ agrees to surrender medical license

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A former Tomah Veterans Administration Medical Center doctor accused of overprescribing opioids has agreed to surrender his medical license.

David Houlihan reached an agreement with the state Medical Examining Board on Wednesday that calls for him to give up his license. State regulators agreed to drop an investigation into his actions at Tomah and not pursue costs.

The question of whether to strip Houlihan of his license was one of the lingering threads from a 2014 investigation into the Tomah VA that found doctors there were over-prescribing opioids. Vets had nicknamed Houlihan “Candy Man” because he prescribed so many painkillers.

The board had previously found probable cause that Houlihan engaged in unprofessional conduct in his treatment of Jason Simcakoski, who died at Tomah in 2014.

RIGHT TO WORK-MISSOURI

Missouri House gives initial approval to right-to-work

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s Republican-led House has pushed forward a proposal to make Missouri the 28th right-to-work state despite Democratic efforts to send the measure to a public vote.

The House voted 101-58 Wednesday to give initial approval to the bill, which would ban mandatory union fees. The bill needs another House vote before it can move to the Senate.

The legislation is likely to pass following renewed momentum from the recent inauguration of Republican Gov. Eric Greitens, who has vowed to sign the bill that his Democratic predecessor vetoed.

The House on Wednesday defeated a Democratic amendment that would have referred the measure to the ballot.

Seven of Missouri’s eight of surrounding states already have right-to-work laws, including Kentucky where it passed this month. New Hampshire lawmakers are considering a similar proposal.

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This version of the story corrects the day of the week throughout.