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Unemployment is down in Wisconsin in the latest week. The state department of workforce development says both first time and ongoing claims dropped slightly. Wisconsin is tied among states with the eighth lowest unemployment rate in the U.S. at three-point-nine-percent.

New numbers are on tap. According to the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, Wisconsin is the only state in the U.S. with more than 23-percent excessive drinking reported in every county. Eau Claire County reports 25-percent of people drink more than they should.

Overnight temperatures in Eau Claire are dipping into the mid-30’s meaning it’s time to cover up outdoor plants. Garden specialists say in ground plants can be ruined in frosty, early morning conditions. Down to Earth Gardening Center recommends covering plants with blankets, towels, or a plastic tarp to create a greenhouse effect.

It could be up to three years in prison for a Menomonie woman convicted of nearly starving her dog to death. A jury convicted Anna Iehl of mistreatment of an animal. Rescuers say her dog was 20 to 30 pounds underweight when it was brought to the Dunn County Humane Society last year. The dog, now named Gabriel, has made a full recovery and is living with another family. Iehl will be sentenced in late July.

It’s probation for one of the people involved in a double murder in Rusk County last summer. A judge yesterday sentenced 17-year-old Tristan Shober to 20 years probation for his role in the deaths of Robert and Bonnie Rosolowski in June of last year. Their grandson, Adam, along with another young man are charged with killing the two. Investigators say Shober was the getaway driver. There is an expectation that Shober will testify against Rosolowski and the other young man

A Wasau teacher who snapped upskirt pictures of underage students is likely going to see one of his criminal cases go away. Prosecutors in Wausau yesterday said they’re likely going to drop the state charges against former D.C. Everest teacher Travis Greil. He pleaded guilty last week to federal child pornography charges. He’s looking at at least six years in prison on those charges. The D.A. says he is waiting until Greil’s sentencing to make the final decision on state

Eau Claire’s next city council member has already had their interview. We just don’t know who it will be yet. Eleven people sat for interviews yesterday. They are all hoping to fill the seat left empty by former council member Mai Xiong. After yesterday’s interviews, the candidates will get five minutes to speak to the full city council at their meeting in two weeks. The council will make its decision the next day.

Tuition is likely going up at the University of Wisconsin. Lawmakers yesterday voted to end the school’s eight-year-old tuition freeze. UW leaders have asked for years to end the tuition freeze, saying it hurts the school’s ability to grow and attract top talent. State Senator Dale Kooyenga said the end of the tuition freeze is not a blank check for the university to jack-up tuition. He says if the school does that, lawmakers will react.

The Republicans who are writing the state’s next budget say schools across Wisconsin will see more money than ever this year. State Rep. Mark Born and state Senator Howard Marklein yesterday said the state is going to kick-in 500-million-dollars more for public schools in the next state budget. But, they said the real boost comes from the two-and-a-half-billion-dollars that the federal government has sent to Wisconsin just for schools. Republican lawmakers say that’s more money than schools in the state have ever seen at

The top Republican in the Wisconsin Assembly says he’s expanding the investigation into last year’s election, and just what non-profit groups in the state did during that election, to establish the facts. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos yesterday explained that he’s hired three former police officers to lead the investigation into what groups like the Mark Zuckerberg-funded Center for Tech and Civic Life did with their grant money to cities like Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, Racine, and Kenosha. Vos says once the facts