As of April 6, any online registrations for Catholics at the Capitol will be charged the same-day registration fee of $47 for non-students. Student registration will remain at $12. To register online, go to www.wisconsincatholic.org.

The event will be held on Wednesday, April 10, 2013, at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center in Madison. The keynote speaker will be the Most Reverend Peter F. Christensen.

REVISED - Joint Finance Schedules Public Hearings on State Budget

The Joint Finance Committee, charged with revising Governor Walker's state budget, has three upcoming public hearings. Readers are encouraged to attend and to make their concerns heard.

April 8 (10am0in)

Lambeau Field Atrium

Legends Club Room - 4^th Level

1265 Lombardi Avenue

Green Bay, WI 54304

April 10 (10am0in) - REVISED LOCATION

Kalahari Resort

Suites 2 and 7 (Main Level)

1305 Kalahari Drive

Wisconsin Dells, WI  54304

April 18 (10am0in)

Baldwin-Woodville High School Auditorium

1000 13^th Avenue

Baldwin, WI 54002

WCC Joins Others in Opposing Rent-To-Own Exemption

In a March 27 letter to legislators and the Governor, the WCC and 11 other advocacy groups expressed opposition to the rent-to-own (RTO) exemption in the state budget.

The budget proposal would create a new set of statutes solely for RTO companies, thereby removing them from the jurisdiction of the Wisconsin Consumer Act and freeing them from having to post annual percentage rates. If this provision becomes law, Wisconsin consumers will be exposed to predatory lending practices with damaging consequences.

The WCC is urging Catholics who attend the upcoming Joint Finance Committee hearings on the state budget to testify or register their opposition to this proposal. Those Catholics who cannot attend are encouraged to write or contact their legislators with the same message. The RTO issue will be discussed at the WCC's Catholics at the Capitol event in Madison on April 10.

Additional resources on RTOs are available by emailing [email protected] or calling 608-257-0004.

Still Time to Comment on the Proposed HHS Mandate Rule

If you haven't done so yet, please email a short comment to the Obama Administration opposing the latest version of the proposed rule mandating coverage for contraception, abortifacients, and sterilizations.   Comments are due by the end of Monday, April 8.

Please take a moment to explain to the Administration why its latest proposed rule still violates religious freedom and rights of conscience.  To learn more about the Administration's latest proposal, please check out the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) one-page fact sheet.  Additional information is provided in the USCCB's news release and its full set of comments.

New Bills of Interest

SB-99. Income Tax (Gudex) Adopts federal law as it relates to an income tax deduction for certain educators and creates an individual income tax deduction for educators who use their own funds to purchase classroom educational supplies. To Workforce Development, Forestry, Mining, and Revenue.

SB-104. Newborn Screening (Petrowski) Requires congenital heart defect screening in newborns. To Health and Human Services.

SB-111. Coverdell Education Savings (Grothman) Creating an individual income tax deduction for certain contributions to a Coverdell Education Savings Account. To Workforce Development, Forestry, Mining, and Revenue.

SB-125. Recidivism (Joint Legislative Council) Disabled offender recidivism reduction pilot programs. To Health and Human Services.

SB-126. Minors Inpatient (Joint Legislative Council) Admission of minors for inpatient treatment. To Health and Human Services.

SB-127. Emergency Detention (Joint Legislative Council) Emergency detention, involuntary commitment, and privileged communications and information. To Health and Human Services.

AB-82. Food Stamps (Kerkman) Trafficking food stamp program benefits. To State Affairs.

AB-95. Tax Deduction (Jacque) Adopts federal law as it relates to an income tax deduction for certain educators and creates an individual income tax deduction for educators who use their own funds to purchase classroom educational supplies. To Ways and Means.

AB-110.FoodShare (Kaufert) Pilot program to limit foods under FoodShare. To State Affairs.

AB-111. Newborns (Kleefisch) Requiring congenital heart defect screening in newborns. To Health.

AB-121. Income Tax Deduction (Thiesfeldt) Creates an individual income tax deduction for certain contributions to a Coverdell Education Savings Account. To Ways and Means.

AB-125. Pardon Council (Kessler) Creation of an independent pardon council. To Government Operations and State Licensing.