🚨 Should police charge to see bodycam footage?

💸 GOP Leader Floats Moving State Government Out of Madison

• In response to concerns that the state government isn’t fully paying for municipal services, GOP Speaker Robin Vos suggested that the state could move its government offices elsewhere.
• The state pays cities and towns throughout Wisconsin for services such as police and fire but has consistently left many municipalities underpaid. Last year, Madison received $13 million less than it was owed. Speaking at a UW-Madison event last week, Vos suggested that other cities in Wisconsin would like to host those state facilities.
• Vos also said that the state Legislature would not make up the $65 million in lost research funding at UW-Madison if a federal cut is upheld. [Isthmus, Daily Cardinal]

🚨 Alderman Tries to Block Collection of Open Records Fees

• Madison Ald. MGR Govindarajan is trying to stop the Madison Police Department from collecting fees from citizens who request video and audio materials, such as bodycam footage, in open records requests.
• A new state law says police departments can charge residents for staff time spent redacting the footage. But Govindarajan argues that the fees undermine press freedom and accountability.
• 🎧 Dig deeper: City Cast Madison executive producer Hayley Sperling talked with Tone Madison editor Scott Gordon about the fees and their implications on the podcast. [ 🔒 WSJ, 🎧 City Cast Madison]

🏥 Sterilization At Madison Hospital Doubled After Dobbs

• After the U.S. Supreme Court eliminated federal abortion protections in 2022, the number of women seeking to be sterilized at Unity Point Health-Merital Hospital doubled.
• UW-Madison researchers reviewed OB/GYN records at the Madison hospital and saw the rate of sterilizations jump 106% after the Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision. The number of people seeking permanent birth control also rose. [Cap Times]

Meet Peaches! Peaches is a 6-year-old lion head rabbit who is shy but very sweet, allowing her foster family to pet her, pick her up, and even clean her tear ducts. She’s looking for a patient family who will give her space to get comfortable. No dogs or cats (or at least kept completely away from her, because they scare her). Another bunny, however, might be just what she needs.

A flurry of executive orders from President Donald Trump have targeted transgender Americans, and references to transgender people are being scrubbed from federal websites. Listen to Wisconsin Watch reporter Phoebe Petrovic on the City Cast Madison podcast talk with host Bianca Martin about what’s happening in Wisconsin, particularly the decision by Children’s Hospital of Milwaukee to not accept new patients for gender-affirming care.

There are a multitude of organizations in Madison that support LGBTQ+ rights. Here are some of them for those who want to join or donate to support their work.

OutReach LGBTQ+ Community Center

While OutReach sponsors the annual Magic Pride Festival in Warner Park every summer, the nonprofit provides resources and support for the LGBTQ+ community throughout the year, including building community, providing health and human services, and advocating for economic, social, and racial justice advocacy. Get involved.

Briarpatch

Briarpatch Youth Services is a non-profit organization that offers a variety of services to youth who are experiencing homelessness, have run away from home, or are otherwise facing challenges. They offer shelter, counseling and job assistance, and Briarpatch’s Teens Like Us program specifically supports LGBTQ+ youth ages 13-18. Donate here.

PFLAG Madison

The local chapter of the long-standing national organization (Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbian and Gays) is an alliance of LGBTQ+ people, families, friends, and allies providing support for those who have LGBTQ+ people in their lives, and working together for a more just and inclusive world.