State and Local Policy Publications

COWS releases The State of Working Wisconsin every two years, in conjunction with the release of The State of Working America by the Economic Policy Institute.

2006 marks the 10th year of the publication and the expansion of the report to include ‘COWS Issue Spotlights’ highlighting key Wisconsin topics such as health care and pension benefits, the trap of low wage jobs, and Wisconsin’s energy use. In addition, the report features ‘Fast Facts,’ making it easier for readers to quickly access key state statistics.

Documents include both Full Report and Executive Summary.

On June 1, 2006, Wisconsin’s minimum wage rose to $6.50 an hour. This was the second of a two-step increase that began on June 1, 2005, when the state minimum wage was increased from the federal minimum of $5.15 an hour to $5.70 an hour.

Prepared by COWS for the Energy Center of Wisconsin (now Seventhwave) on behalf of Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle’s Consortium on Biobased Industry.

This study (in three volumes) is intended to paint, in broad strokes, the background for the Wisconsin bioeconomy picture. To fill in some of the details, we provide a companion Technical Study dedicated to exploring the specific feedstocks currently grown in Wisconsin, and their potential to anchor various bioindustry processes. Taken together, the Briefing Paper and the Technical Study point toward a key conclusion: in order to create a successful bioeconomy, Wisconsin must not only build on its existing resources and infrastructure, but must also pursue specific policies targeted toward creating an economy that includes a range of rural and urban jobs, entrepreneurship opportunities, ownership opportunities for rural landowners, and economic incentives balanced with environmental protections.

In The Nation, April 17, 2006, Build the High Road Here asserts that the “high road”- a road of increased productivity, improved government efficiency, higher citizen engagement, implemented environmental standards, and smart growth policies that reduce commuting times and lower real housing costs- should all serve as an internationals strategy to balance capital markets and strengthen democracy.

Written for the Apollo Alliance, COWS lays out various methods that states can implement in order to reduce energy use, achieve energy savings, and move towards reliance on renewable energy and fuel technologies. Legislation should set standards for construction of green buildings and in the sun, wind, and bio-based industries, should offer incentives for efficient car use and transit development, and should encourage investments to improve job quality.

COWS report offers strategies for Wisconsin’s cities and villages to use their TIF (tax incremental financing) funds to expand local economies and leverage for high-quality, sustainable development.

Released September 11, 2005, Joel Rogers offers his insight on Hurricane Katrina proposing that the disaster following the storm is a result of a region made vulnerable to the effects of a hurricane because of low-road development, such as unregulated construction and other development, low wages and concentrated poverty, disrespect for nature, starved and unaccountable government agencies without much serious interest in or capacity for planning.

COWS’ State of Working Wisconsin Update, is a bi-annual report providing a thorough review of jobs, wages, poverty, income, and job quality in the state.

The Energy Bill from the George W. Bush era caters to the special interests of oil companies and does not reduce dependence on foreign oil. New energy for America requires investments in renewable energies and job openings in renewable energy sector as well as incentives for states and municipalities who are already taking action on environmental sustainability.