Here's the full text of an industry newsletter suggesting that while there will be rollbacks, the road-builders will be take care of by the new Republican Congress.
Expect the same when the GOP takes over in Madison, too:
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Remember this the next time you read about Southeastern Wisconsin's often unhealthy air (I've lost track of the number of 2010 alerts), or when sitting in the parking lot also known as the freeway system during rush hour, of after a routine fender-bender or jack-knifed semi.
Ah yes, you say: We're not LA.
So the alternative is the status quo?
How one-dimensionally stubborn.
First the mortgage interest deduction?
And now employer-provided health care plans?
And where is the income for middle-class consumers to buy the goods made in this country to stimulate manufacturing and hiring?
"For those following the regional planning commission's water supply study - - five years in the making and concluding that the best option for the region is to send Lake Michigan water to Waukesha (surprise!) - - note that the full commission holds its quarterly meeting Wednesdayday, December 1st, in downtown Milwaukee, with the plan adoption on its agenda.
I will reproduce the agenda in part below with the details.
Last year, the commission adjourned its meeting held at the The War Memorial on the lakefront and reconvened - - with selected senior staff and former staffers (now with consultant work) a few blocks away at The University Club for a taxpayer-paid dinner costing $1,000.
Recession?
Not a problem - - if you have an operating budget provided by the commission's seven counties as a matter of debate-free regularity from their taxpayer's property tax collections.
The menu included cordon bleu, beef tenderloin and truffle cake.
The dinner was not on last year's December meeting agenda, but members openly counted heads for attendance at the meal as the meeting was ending - - a meeting I attended - - so as far as I could tell, it was just business as usual: another year in the books: off to the soiree.
I have asked SEWRPC Executive Director Ken Yunker if that is the plan this year, too, but far have not heard back.
Here is the meeting information from SEWRP's home page:
"NOTICE OF MEETING SOUTHEASTERN WISCONSIN REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION QUARTERLY MEETING
December 1, 2010 3:00 p.m.
Milwaukee County War Memorial Center North Memorial Hall, 3rd Floor 750 N. Lincoln Memorial Dr. Milwaukee, WI 53202
TENTATIVE AGENDA:
5. Consideration of adoption of the SEWRPC Planning Report No. 52, A Regional Water Supply Plan for Southeastern Wisconsin (copy of Planning Report and Resolution No. 2010-18 enclosed)."
And the dinner? If I get an answer to last week's email inquiries, I'll post it.
A great weather blog by Jeff Masters, always worth a read.
One tidbit - - put up more for the climate change deniers than for others:
"How will Arctic sea ice loss affect the winter?
"NOAA issued their annual Arctic Report Card last month, and discussed the fact that recent record sea ice loss in the summer in the Arctic is having major impacts on winter weather over the continents of the Northern Hemisphere.
"The Report Card states, "There continues to be significant excess heat storage in the Arctic Ocean at the end of summer due to continued near-record sea ice loss. There is evidence that the effect of higher air temperatures in the lower Arctic atmosphere in fall is contributing to changes in the atmospheric circulation in both the Arctic and northern mid-latitudes. Winter 2009-2010 showed a new connectivity between mid-latitude extreme cold and snowy weather events and changes in the wind patterns of the Arctic; the so-called Warm Arctic-Cold Continents pattern...With future loss of sea ice, such conditions as winter 2009-2010 could happen more often. Thus we have a potential climate change paradox. Rather than a general warming everywhere, the loss of sea ice and a warmer Arctic can increase the impact of the Arctic on lower latitudes, bringing colder weather to southern locations."
"As a specific example of what the Report Card is talking about, Francis et al. (2009) found that during 1979 - 2006, years that had unusually low summertime Arctic sea ice had a 10 - 20% reduction in the temperature difference between the Equator and North Pole. This resulted in a weaker jet stream with slower winds that lasted a full six months, through fall and winter.
"The weaker jet caused a weaker Aleutian Low and Icelandic Low during the winter, resulting in a more negative North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), allowing cold air to spill out of the Arctic and into Europe and the Eastern U.S.
"Thus, Arctic sea ice loss may have been partially responsible for the record negative NAO observed during the winter of 2009 - 2010, and the emergence of the "Warm Arctic-Cold Continents pattern."
"This pattern is kind of like leaving the refrigerator door ajar--the refrigerator warm up, but all the cold air spills out into the house. If the Arctic Report Card is right, we'll be seeing more of this pattern during coming winters--possibly even during the winter of 2010 - 2011."
Some Waukesha officials simply cannot do the right thing when it comes to transparency and water planning - - a disturbing reflex first seen in 2006 when the city's two secret written requests for access to Lake Michigan water were prepared, sent to (and ignored b ) Gov. Jim Doyle, and revealed through an Open Records request.
The game-playing over Lake Michigan water access continues - - but first, before a fresh set of records, some background.
You will remember that Waukesha cancelled a November 18th meeting with the Department of Natural Resources about the city's troubled application for a Lake Michigan water diversion because environmental organizations - - a "special interest," as Common Council President Paul Ybarra told the DNR by letter - - were going to sit in and observe.
Observers! Can't have that.
Remember also that earlier this year, the Waukesha Common Council had agreed unanimously that Waukesha water utility manager Dan Duchniak and Mayor Jeff Scrima would be joint points of communication on the water issue with the DNR.
That agreement calmed a political storm after Scrima, a Lake Michigan supp;y skeptic, won an upset victory in April over pro-diversion incumbent Larry Nelson and later wrote to the DNR expressing his concerns.
Some Council members wanted to cut Scrima out of communications with the DNR as the state agency wrestled with whether to begin a formal review of Waukesha's diversion application; the 'who-speaks-for-Waukesha' compromise created a communications and power-sharing arrangement - - but one drawn up by the Council which, along with the water utility, strongly supports the diversion and the diversion application and finds Scrima's opposition vexing.
Power-sharing?
Can't have that.
Documents I obtained under the Wisconsin Open Records statute indicate that Common Council Ybarra wrote the DNR - - his November 16th letter is posted at this DNR website - - to say that the meeting was off.
Duchniak told the Mayor of the cancellation and Ybarra defended the communications end-run to Scrima, the records show.
What does all this mean?
That the power struggle over directing Waukesha's still-stalled Lake Michigan diversion application very much continues, with Mayor Scrima still fighting others in Waukesha government for a role in the process, and thus advocating for a truly transparent process.
I cannot imagine any of this goes down well at the DNR, which must decide whether to process and move the application to the other seven Great Lakes states - - all of which must agree that Waukesha produced a sound application for the application to be implemented..
This application is the first under the eight-state, two-nation (US- Canada) 2008 Great Lakes Compact. That compact was approved by the US Congress and signed by the President of the United States. It's a very big deal.
For Waukesha, under a legally-imposed 2018 deadline to permanently fix decades-old water quality issues, this application puts the city at the threshold of The Super Bowl.
And pro-diversion forces in Waukesha City Hall want to keep playing flag football.
Here are the records obtained through an Open Records request to Mayor Scrima:
Right here.
You can read this blog for free.
You can download, post, comment and link for nothing.
Great Lakes management? High-speed rail? Waukesha water? Scott Walker monkey-wrenching? SEWRPC and sprawl, transit, trains and the urban advantage? Political news, and environmental analyses?
I mean, where else will you get William Faulkner worked into land use problems?
Or scintillating guest posts - - some from pols, and others from readers.
All here and the price is right.
I noted in a Thanksgiving posting - - here - - that SEWRPC was involved in a dispute over the accuracy and completeness of its meetings' minutes because it still has a staff member take hand-written notes.
And that, for about $70, I had purchased a digital audio recorder with a computer upload feature so I could begin to keep a record of those SEWRPC meetings I attend.
If you will look in the comment section of that linked posting you will see an offer to SEWRPC of a higher-end, proven recorder.
The comment says:
Remember that this cutting-edge institute was built with - - horrors - - under Gov. Jim Doyle, with state and federal grants.
Which some might have trashed, and blocked, as earmarks.
So bookmark this as source material for ScottWalkerHypocrisyWatch.com
Some say perhaps.
I began hearing that last week.
As I wrote:
Today I'm giving thanks to the volunteers and non-profit organizations and staffers that aren't getting rich when working for fresh air, clean water, land preservation, economic equality, alternative energy, social justice and world peace
So many to thank - - and you know who you are - - but here are a few:
* The good folks who trying to maintain and preserve the Monarch Trail on the County Grounds, where an unholy alliance of officials from the private sector, UWM, Milwaukee County and the City of Wauwatosa are hell-bent on digging up and paving over a key section of open space in the Milwaukee County.
Hats off to those volunteers.
* Then there are publicly-minded citizens working to keep Lake Michigan water planning and growth plans in Waukesha County out in the open.
Which is not easy, as the City of Waukesha canceled a meeting with another public body - - the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources - - because representatives from a coalition of environmental organizations wanted to sit in and observe a discussion about Waukesha's controversial application for a diversion of Lake Michigan water.
Details here.
Citing his city attorney, the Waukesha Common Council president Paul Ybarra charged that the observers were a "special interest."
The letter with that absurd claim has been posted by the DNR, here.
That's the public's reward for being interested in how its money and environment is to be used, and for trying to maintain a transparent process that began, I will remind you, with Waukesha's two attempts to win a Lake Michigan diversion with a back-door confidential process discovered through the Wisconsin Open Meetings law.
So you want to know what a special interest is? Here's a good example (hat tip, road-builders.)
Or how the special interests work? Learn from the oil and gas lobbyists.
Waukesha County has a decades-old watchdog group, the Waukesha Environmental Action League (WEAL) - - what Ybarra & Co. presumably think is a fearsome "special interest." Consider its position on wetlands, for example:
"...preserving and enhancing the natural heritage of Waukesha County. We encourage developers, private landowners, and governments to preserve and protect wetlands by setting them aside as outlots, conservation easements, or through purchase by public or private agencies."
Talgo will learn that the MMAC is not brave enough to buck Scott Walker.
The business community has already walked away from its recent support of high-speed rail, and the MMAC raised money for Walker.
End of story.
Where would we be without such volunteers.
Talk about regional cooperation. A great story.
A reader sends this analysis of and commentary about the impact on the federal deficit should Scott Walker return Wisconsin's $810 million in high-speed rail funds to the US Treasury.
In a nutshell, it's a per-capita Wisconsin contribution of $3.
I'd say all the jobs the train could have created and assisted were worth far more.
[By the way, here is a national story about deficits and math. Great minds are definitely on the same page (spreadsheet?) today.]
I couldn't reproduce the reader's spreadsheet in its nice formatting, but here's the gist of it.
Estimated 2010 U.S. Federal Budget Deficit:
$1,600,000,000,000
2009 Estimate of US Population;
307,006,550
2009 Estimate of Wisconsin’s Population:
5,654,774
Per Capita Share of Federal Budget Deficit:
($1.6 Trillion / US Population) $5,212
WI Share of Federal Deficit
Population x Per Capita Budget Deficit #:
5,212 x 5,654,774 = $29,472,682,088
WI Resident Per Capita Share of Federal Budget Deficit:
$5,212
Federal Stimulus Money Awarded for national High-Speed Rail (via 2009 Stimulus, ARRA):
$8,000,000,000
WI Per Capita Share of National High-Speed Rail:
$8 Billion /WI Population $1,415
Federal DOT Discretionary Grant Award for Wisconsin- Milwaukee to Madison High-Speed Rail Project:
$810,000,000
WI Per Capita Share of WI High-Speed Rail Project:
($810 Million / Population):
$143.24
Estimated 2010 U.S. Federal Budget deficit if Wisconsin’s rail award is “returned” for “deficit relief:”
$1,599,190,000,000
Per Capita Share of Federal Budget Deficit after “return” of Wisconsin Rail award:
($1.599190 Trillion / 307006550) $5,209
WI Per Capita Federal Budget Deficit Reduction after “return” of Wisconsin Rail Award:
$3.00
New WI Share of Federal Deficit
Population x Per Capita Budget Deficit #:
5,209 x 5,654,774 = 29,455, 717, 766
Estimated 2010 U.S. Federal Budget deficit if Wisconsin’s rail award is sent to IL, CA, NY or another state:
$1,600,000,000,000
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The reader then explains...
The Impact on the Federal Budget Deficit of High-Speed Rail in Wisconsin
The Horrifying (and True!) Cost of High-Speed Rail in Wisconsin
That’s right, Wisconsin. Each of us lead by our brave elected Republican representatives Scott Walker, Congressmen Jim Sensenbrenner, Tom Petri, Paul Ryan, Reid Ribble, and Sean Duffy will save the Federal Budget Deficit three dollars if we give back our $810,000,000 of stimulus funds to the US Treasury.
This is according to a joint press release by the WI GOP Congressional delegation that estimates the Federal Budget Deficit to be $1,600,000,000. ($1.6 Trillion)
Each of us is in the United States is currently on the hook for $5,212 of the budget deficit today.
However, if Wisconsinites pull together, and give back our $810,000,000 grant from the Federal Government we can cut that number down to $5,209 for every American.
Trading $810 Million for three dollars for every American is the kind of sacrifice only a person with true conservative Midwestern values could make.
Thank you Scott Walker, et al, for having the courage to promote this thoughtful and truly remarkable plan to send the money back.
I know I will sleep better with the knowledge that my share of the Federal Budget Deficit and every other American’s share will plummet from $5,212 to $5,209 as a result of giving back $810,000,000.
America, after Wisconsin drops this generosity bomb on you we have just one question. What will you do with your $3.00 of deficit relief?
If as our GOP delegation can’t just give our money back, they have suggested that Wisconsin would like to return our train money even if it is used for rail projects in other states like Illinois.
The $8 billion from the 2009 American Reinvestment and Recovery Act amounts to a contribution of $1,415 dollars from every Wisconsin resident for rail improvement projects across 30 U.S. states.
Wisconsinites should feel especially encouraged that if we give our money back, and it still gets used for rail projects in other states, our contribution will not drop below $1,415.
I offer this device to SEWRPC for a meeting, after which they can easily upload the audio to a computer, to their web site. No charge. Just good will. They may just like it enough to buy one ($150 at Office Depot). November 26, 2010 9:15 AM."