The Observatory (https://observatory.journalism.wisc.edu/author/tteofilov/)
About one-fifth of the signaled intersections in Madison also have audible signals to help visually impaired pedestrians cross the streets. The head of the Wisconsin Council on the Blind and Visually Impaired believes there should be more.
Democratic candidate for governor Sen. Kathleen Vinehout claimed in a March 2018 campaign video that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s signature Act 10, which strips most collective bargaining rights from public employees, has led to a teacher shortage. We check her claim.
Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner said in a town hall meeting in Watertown on Feb. 25 that, “There has been a law on the books for over 20 years that makes it illegal to carry a firearm within 1,000 feet of any school in the country.” The Observatory found this claim Mostly True.
Republican state senator and U.S. Senate candidate Leah Vukmir posted on Facebook on March 6 that the residency rule in Milwaukee “prevented highly qualified teachers, police officers and firefighters from opting to work in the city” and that “removing these barriers helps Milwaukee retain and attract many valuable workers who were once discouraged by the residency rule.” The Observatory found this claim Unobservable.
Sen. Kathleen Vinehout’s criticism of Wisconsin’s startup activity was Verified by The Observatory as the state has ranked last in the past three years in the Kauffman Foundation’s annual report on state startup activity.
State Sen. Kathleen Vinehout, D-Alma, says wages in Wisconsin are low, child-care costs are high and we are the worst in the country for creating new businesses. We examine her claims, and find them true or mostly true.
Based on the Wisconsin Budget Project’s analysis, Walker’s tax cuts benefited the highest income taxpayers more than lower income taxpayers. The tax cuts further benefited the wealthiest taxpayers, who already pay a smaller portion of their income in state and local taxes than poorer taxpayers, according to the Wisconsin Budget Project.
Republican Leah Vukmir tweeted on Jan. 24 that since Republicans took control of the legislative and executive branches of government in 2011, they have saved Wisconsin taxpayers more than $8 billion. The Observatory addressed the claim to see if the Republican-controlled government has already saved taxpayers more than $8 billion since the party took control in 2011.