Announcements
IRG: DPI Should Stop Playing Games with Childhood Literacy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 12, 2024 IRG: DPI Should Stop Playing Games with Childhood Literacy DPI Continues to Disregard What Works DELAFIELD, WI: The Joint Committee on Finance was forced to dispute the actions of the Department of Public...
Rural America Has Spoken, But Are We Listening?
December 10, 2024 Rural America Has Spoken, But Are We Listening? IRG goes deep with Rural Wisconsinites to gain a deeper appreciation and develop a policy roadmap. DELAFIELD, WI: Continuing the Institute for Reforming Government’s (IRG) “What...
Today’s Decision Must not Stand
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 2, 2024 Today’s Decision Must not Stand IRG’s Statement on Judge Frost’s Decision to Restore Collective Bargaining DELAFIELD, WI: Today, Dane County Judge Jacob Frost restored collective bargaining for Wisconsin public...
The Wisconsin DOGE Project: IRG Renews Call for Modernizing and Decentralizing State Government
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 25, 2024 The Wisconsin DOGE Project: IRG Renews Call for Modernizing and Decentralizing State Government DELAFIELD, WI: With elections settled and state lawmakers and Governor Evers starting to work on the 2025 state...
IRG STATEMENT: Parents Deserve Honesty on State Report Cards
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 19, 2024 IRG STATEMENT: Parents Deserve Honesty on State Report Cards DPI Keeps Changing the Formula, Confusing Parents DELAFIELD, WI: State report cards came out today, scoring schools and school districts between 1 and 5...
No Regulation without Representation
November 19, 2024 No Regulation without Representation IRG finds the current process to approve Wisconsin environmental regulations gives unelected bureaucrats complete control with essentially no opportunity for proper oversight DELAFIELD, WI: Today...
IRG: When Will DPI Account for $13M in Federal School Aid?
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 14, 2024 IRG: When Will DPI Account for $13M in Federal School Aid? September 30th was the ESSER III deadline, but $13 million is still not transparent DELAFIELD, WI: As the Department of Public Instruction continues its press tour for...
IRG to testify before US House Judiciary Committee on Immigration Crisis
October 23, 2024 IRG to testify before US House Judiciary Committee on Immigration Crisis Tomorrow’s testimony will focus on impacts to the City of Whitewater following influx of migrants MILWAUKEE, WI - Tomorrow, Institute for Reforming Government General Counsel...
IRG: It’s Time for Supt. Underly to Answer for Test Score Chaos
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 16, 2024 IRG: It’s Time for Supt. Underly to Answer for Test Score Chaos 10 tough questions for journalists, legislators to ask DELAFIELD, WI: Today, the Institute for Reforming Government provided guidance for journalists and...
Breaking: Today’s K-12 Test Scores Confirm IRG CIO Report
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 8, 2024 Breaking: Today’s K-12 Test Scores Confirm IRG CIO Report Scores Inflate, Achievement Gaps Grow, As IRG Predicted DELAFIELD, WI: New test scores for Wisconsin K-12 schools, released this morning, are inflated,...
IRG’s CIO Exposes DPI Records on New, Biased Test Score Standards
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 7, 2024 IRG’s CIO Exposes DPI Records on New, Biased Test Score Standards New State Test Standards and Report Cards Biased Toward High-Income Schools, Superintendent Underly Calls Literacy Work “Nonsense,” Public Records Reveal...
Are America’s Best Days Still to Come or Have they Come and Gone?
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 2, 2024 Are America’s Best Days Still to Come or Have they Come and Gone? 53% of likely Wisconsin voters say best days are still to come if we do the right things to get back on track; 32% believe best days are still to come...
IRG Preliminary Analysis: Governor Evers’ Agencies Request $5.88 Billion in New Funding
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 24, 2024 IRG Preliminary Analysis: Governor Evers’ Agencies Request $5.88 Billion in New Funding Despite families still struggling to pay bills, state agencies want to spend at least 6.5% more MADISON, WI – Today, the...
IRG FILES AMICUS BRIEF IN PARTIAL VETO CASE
September 18, 2024 IRG FILES AMICUS BRIEF IN PARTIAL VETO CASE The brief provides critical historical context for the Wisconsin Supreme Court Delafield, WI - Yesterday, IRG filed an amicus curiae brief with the Wisconsin Supreme Court in LeMieux v. Evers, a case...
ALERT! Dane County Judge Protects $50M in Literacy Funding
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 27, 2024 ALERT! Dane County Judge Protects $50M in Literacy Funding Wisconsin has a chance to get reading right for kids DELAFIELD, WI: Following a Dane County judge's ruling related to $50 million in literacy funding, IRG’s CEO CJ Szafir...
NEW POLL: Wisconsin voters seek less government and more opportunities to succeed
NEW POLL: Wisconsin voters seek less government and more opportunities to succeed Harris not being penalized for Biden's failure. August 8, 2024 New polling commissioned by the Institute for Reforming Government reconfirms this election is about families' abilities to...
NEW POLL: In Election Year, Wisconsinites Focused on Kitchen Table Issues
July 11, 2024 NEW POLL: In Election Year, Wisconsinites Focused on Kitchen Table Issues Policy Solutions Top of Mind for Wisconsin Voters ahead of RNC Convention THE NEWS: In polling commissioned by the Institute for Reforming Government ahead of next week’s...
Breaking: Secretary of State Agrees to Change Public Records Policy After Legal Action
July 10, 2024 The News: Today, the Institute for Reforming Government (IRG), represented by attorneys at the Wisconsin Institute for Law& Liberty (WILL), announced it has reached a settlement in a public records lawsuit against Wisconsin Secretary of State, Sarah...
IRG’s CIO Investigates Immigration Crisis in the City of Whitewater
June 24, 2024 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Courtney Gustafson [email protected] IRG’s CIO Investigates Immigration Crisis in the City of Whitewater Over 400 obtained records suggest significant strain on local resources for the City of Whitewater after...
IRG Announces Nelson Ritthaler as Director of Donor and Stakeholder Relations
IRG Announces Nelson Ritthaler as Director of Donor and Stakeholder Relations IRG expands to eight full-time employees Delafield, WI—Today the Institute for Reforming Government (IRG) announced the hiring of Nelson Ritthaler as Director of Donor & Stakeholder...
BREAKING: IRG on Milwaukee Public Schools Scandal and Resignation
WHAT HAPPENED? Last night, an auditorium and overflow crowd vented 4 decades of frustration with Milwaukee Public Schools. From low academic performance and financial scandal to unprofessional staff and lack of safety, a fed-up city felt able to say what they really...
Removing Barriers to Innovation
May 22, 2024 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Courtney Gustafson [email protected] Removing Barriers to Innovation IRG report shows how to make Wisconsin a national leader in innovation and technology Delafield, WI - The Institute for Reforming Government (IRG)...
Grassroots Support Grows for Eliminating the Wisconsin Income Tax
May 13, 2024 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Courtney Gustafson [email protected] Grassroots Support Grows for Eliminating the Wisconsin Income Tax Republican Party of Wisconsin delegates will vote on resolution calling for the elimination of the income tax at...
NEWS: IRG Grows Digital Community to over 11,500 People
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 30, 2024 NEWS: IRG Grows Digital Community to over 11,500 People List increasing by 117% gives IRG a massive capability to better understand Wisconsinites and drive policy discussions Delafield, WI – The Institute for Reforming...
IRG’s CIO UNCOVERED INAPPROPRIATE USE OF FEDERAL COVID FUNDS BY CITY OF MADISON; SENATOR STROEBEL SEEKS ANSWERS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 4, 2024 IRG’s CIO UNCOVERED INAPPROPRIATE USE OF FEDERAL COVID FUNDS BY CITY OF MADISON; SENATOR STROEBEL SEEKS ANSWERS The City of Madison is sending COVID dollars to serve illegal immigrants Delafield, WI - The Institute for Reforming...
IRG Names Courtney Mullen to Director of External Affairs Role
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, March 7, 2024 For questions, contact Courtney Mullen at: [email protected] IRG Names Courtney Mullen to Director of External Affairs Role Delafield, WI – The Institute for Reforming Government (IRG) continues to expand...
IRG New Hire: Jake Curtis as General Counsel and Director of CIO
Tuesday, February 27, 2024 IRG New Hire: Jake Curtis as General Counsel and Director of CIO IRG is thrilled to announce that Attorney Jake Curtis has been named General Counsel and Director of the award-winning Center for Investigative Oversight (CIO). Jake is a...
NEW: IRG’s K-12 COVID Relief Audit Update Shows Hundreds of Millions Unallocated with Nine Months Remaining
NEW: IRG’s K-12 COVID Relief Audit Update Shows Hundreds of Millions Unallocated with Nine Months Remaining Incoming Fiscal Cliff Threatens Districts WHAT HAPPENED Since its January 2023 release, the Institute for Reforming Government’s (IRG) K-12 COVID Relief ESSER...
Increasing Access to Mental Health Care in Wisconsin: IRG’s Latest Report
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 11, 2024 Increasing Access to Mental Health Care in Wisconsin: IRG’s Latest Report “Knocking Down Barriers for Mental Health Access” shows how Wisconsin can immediately end the shortage of mental health providers DELAFIELD, WI -...
NEW: Deep Dive into WOW College-Educated Women
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 5, 2023 NEW: Deep Dive into WOW College-Educated Women IRG and SPN conduct focus groups and surveys to better understand policy concerns and priorities of women DELAFIELD, WI - No group of voters has changed more in Wisconsin than...
Opportunities for Tax Reform: IRG Announces New Plan to Reduce Tax Burden on Workers and Families
Eliminating income tax on overtime wages will let hardworking Wisconsinites keep more of their hard earned money. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 1, 2023 Delafield, WI - Today, the Institute for Reforming Government (IRG) released a new tax reform opportunity as...
Pandemic Recovery Slow for Low-Performing Students
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 10, 2023 Pandemic Recovery Slow for Low-Performing Students Green Bay, Janesville Not Recovering, Choice Working in Milwaukee Delafield, WI – Today, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) released test score data from...
IRG Promises Oversight on $50 Million in Literacy Efforts as DPI Announces Literacy Council
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 28, 2023 IRG Promises Oversight on $50 Million in Literacy Efforts as DPI Announces Literacy Council Nine members of Literacy Council announced - will choose new curricula by December 1st DELAFIELD, WI - Today, the Department of...
As MPS Closes Due to Heat, IRG Offers Expertise on ESSER School COVID Relief Funding, HVAC
August 23, 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Quinton Klabon, [email protected] As MPS Closes Due to Heat, IRG Offers Expertise on ESSER School COVID Relief Funding, HVAC Delafield, Wis. — As Milwaukee Public Schools closed today from dangerously high...
IRG and WILL Sue to Obtain Public Records
Nobody is above the law, not even Wisconsin’s Secretary of State The News: Today, the Institute for Reforming Government (IRG), represented by lawyers at the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL), filed a lawsuit in Waukesha County Circuit Court. WILL and...
How the Public Can Conduct Oversight: IRG CIO’S Open Meetings Primer Released to the Public
Delafield, WI - Coming on the heels of several groundbreaking reports from IRG’s Center for Investigative Oversight - including discovering United Nations Foundation funding of Governor Evers’ climate change agenda and unconstitutional hiring practices by UW-Madison -...
IRG Releases State of Wisconsin Public Debt Overview
2023-25 State Budget reduces borrowing and results in significant cash reserves Delafield, WI – Today the Institute for Reforming Government (IRG) released Wisconsin's Finances: Debt and Borrowing. In the 2023-2025 budget, the Legislature chose to pay down existing...
IRG’s CIO Exposes UW-Madison’s Unconstitutional Faculty Hiring Program
IRG’s CIO Exposes UW-Madison's Unconstitutional Faculty Hiring Program Report Highlighted in Wall Street Journal Exposes TOP Program and demands answers and full transparency from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. WHAT IS IT: IRG’s Center of Investigative...
First Analysis: Historic Middle-Class Tax Relief Vetoed
WHAT HAPPENED:Governor Evers signed the 2023-2025 state budget, but not before issuing 51 partial vetoes, including vetoes that remove 95% of the income tax relief that was included in the legislature’s budget. Because of his veto, taxpayers will only see a $175...
IRG’s K-12 COVID Relief Audit Update: Hundreds of Millions Unallocated with One Year Remaining
WHAT HAPPENED Since its January release, the Institute for Reforming Government’s (IRG) K-12 COVID Relief ESSER III Audit has driven statewide momentum for financial transparency and made swifter action for students front-page news. IRG was the first Wisconsin entity...