Wisconsin prison report recommends solitary confinement changes, Brad Schimel made US Attorney

A Madison-based biotech company that employs thousands will have a new owner. It's a deal worth $23 billion. And, archaeologists say fragments of a canoe found in Lake Mendota are the oldest ever found in the Great Lakes region.

Emotions ran hot at a hearing about a bill that would institute a sandhill crane hunt in Wisconsin. Farmers say the birds deliver millions in crop damage every year. A proposal to expand sports betting in Wisconsin won't move forward. And, we hear from a man whose memoir tells the story of his time in prison and how he changed his life.

The U.S. stopped minting pennies last week. But Wisconsin banks and retailers aren't all on the same page about what comes next. The Menominee Nation buried the remains of dozens of ancestors taken from a burial site. And, Wisconsin Republicans took aim at a partial veto by the governor that funded schools for 400 years.

A report on Wisconsin's prison system is recommending changes in the use of solitary confinement. It also says prisons are overcrowded and plagued by high staff turnover among guards. A former conservative Supreme Court nominee has a new role as a U.S. Attorney in the Trump administration's Department of Justice. And, a coal terminal on Lake Superior is closing after 50 years due to plummeting demand. 

The debate over how to use federal food assistance moves to the Wisconsin Assembly this week with a GOP bill that would ban SNAP for soda and candy.a program to disperse funding for electric vehicles resumes after a legal battle with President Donald Trump's administration. And, WPR's WhySconsin answers an audience question about the COVID vaccine.

Wisconsin's groundwater can have upwards of 20 different pesticide compounds in it. State regulators say they don't fully understand the risks. Then, WPR's politics team looks at the lingering effects of the shutdown. And, a story about two Appleton sisters and their love of reading.

The deal signed into law Wednesday night to end the government shutdown could have devastating effects on Wisconsin's hemp and THC industries. Meta announces plans for a massive data center campus in Wisconsin. And, how some farmers are finding advantages in growing food under solar panels.

New state report cards show the vast majority of Wisconsin schools meet or exceed expectations. But critics say the grades leave parents guessing. A Republican bill to clean up PFAS could cost the state billions. And, a story about a new children's book about the SS Edmund Fitzgerald.

President Donald Trump pardoned more than 75 people involved in the effort to overturn his 2020 election loss. That includes some attorneys and false electors from Wisconsin. Republican Senator Ron Johnson says another government shutdown could be only months away. And, we hear from a former state archaeologist about Wisconsin's ancient effigy mounds.

Elections last week showed strong showings for Democrats in races around the country. What does that mean for Wisconsin? Gov. Tony Evers says Wisconsin will not claw back food assistance benefits despite a demand from the Trump administration over the weekend. And, a proposal from a Democratic state legislator aims to protect consumers from rising utility bills as data center development booms in the state.