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Some people in Wisconsin who are waiting on an unemployment check could be waiting til October. The state’s Department of Workforce Development yesterday said it could take that long to clear the backlog of people waiting to have their jobless claim processed. Republican lawmakers said that is unacceptable. DDWD said the current unemployment claims backlog is at 112 thousand cases. State Senator Chris Kapenga says DWD needs to figure out how to erase that backlog as soon as possible. CLICK HERE FOR

Just about every voter in the state of Wisconsin will get the paperwork to vote absentee in their mailbox this fall. The Wisconsin Election Commission yesterday unanimously agreed to mail absentee ballot applications to all voters who have not moved since the last election. That will be just over three million people. The Commission is not mailing actual ballots, people will need a voter ID to request an official ballot through the mail. The move comes after a massive uptick in absentee voting in

Add Wisconsin to the list of states suing to stop the Trump Administration from relaxing emissions standards for cars and trucks. Attorney General Josh Kaul yesterday joined A-G’s from several other Democratic states in suing over the president’s order to move away from the California emissions that were adopted under President Obama. Kaul says by relaxing the emissions rules for states, the president is stopping states from deciding about clean air rules. The president says he doesn’t want to end the California

Scratch another summer tradition off the list of things to do in the Chippewa Valley. Organizers of Rock Fest in Cadott yesterday canceled this year’s show because of the coronavirus. Planners had hoped to simply push the festival back, but ultimately decided it was better to pull the plug entirely.

The Eau Claire Area School District has received four applications for its current Board of Education vacancy. The applications are to fill the seat vacated by Board Member Eric Torres after his resignation takes effect on May 29. The full board will review the applications and vote to approve an appointment. The individual selected will serve until the next election in April 2021. The individuals submitting applications to fill the vacancy are Melissa Allen, Justin Hendrickson, Omar Parks, Erica Zerr.

The one-day number for COVID-19 deaths is the highest confirmed since the outbreak began.  Health officials today say 22 people died from the coronavirus in the last 24 hours.  That brings the total number of deaths in the state to 539.  New hospitalizations have also jumped with 79 admissions since yesterday.

A new grant program aims to help local leaders deal with needs created by the coronavirus crisis.  Governor Tony Evers announced the Routes to Recovery Local Government Aid Grants program today.  The program makes 200-million-dollars available for reimbursements for expenditures that were not budgeted and happened because of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Wisconsin’s tribal nations will receive ten-million-dollars while the rest will be disbursed to every county.

An arrest late last week will send a Barron woman to prison. 40 year old Bobbi Jo Rasmussen was sentenced in Barron County Circuit Court for several cases involving Meth. This stemmed from several arrests made by Barron County Sheriff’s Department Drug Unit over the past several years including cases in Burnette and Chippewa Counties where she was selling Meth in the area. She will serve 10 years in prison and 5 more years of extended supervision.

As of today, the Wisconsin National Guard teams had collected 72,296 specimens statewide. In addition, approximately 30 troops are working at a call center that informs people of their COVID-19 test results. As response to the pandemic continues, teams of approximately 15 troops are serving as medical and administrative staff at two separate state-run voluntary self-isolation facilities in Milwaukee and Madison, while a third team is serving at a Milwaukee County-run self-isolation facility. TO SEE A LIST OF TESTING NUMBERS

A woman is sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison for supplying drugs that caused a woman to overdose. Chippewa County Judge Steve Cray sentenced 23-year-old Breana Heuer for first-degree reckless endangerment and making and selling amphetamine. She was originally charged with first-degree reckless homicide for the death of Carissa Kasmeirski.