Here & Now; 806

August 7, 2009

Here and Now, Cash for clunkers, Cash for Clunkers. Lawmakers have just added another $2 billion to extend the rebate through Labor Day. It offers up to $4,500 to car buyers who are trading in for a new and more fuel-efficient model. When the program started two weeks ago, car buyers snatched up the incentives and quickly burned through the first $1 billion allocated trading in nearly 185,000 clunkers. This time last week, new car dealers had a bonanza on their hands. Freyberg's tape , Cash for clunkers, CASH FOR CLUNKERS We will talk with Debra Mitchell who is a consumer psychologist with the UW Business School. Most people know what the pros are regarding the Cash for Clunkers program but there is a downside. She will discuss the pros and cons when it comes to the environment, the economy and safety. , home foreclosures,Filings in Wisconsin set a one-month record in July. Foreclosures are up 52% from this same period one year ago. We will talk with Russell Kashian a UW Whitewater Economics Professor who is an expert in this area. He says we need a 'cash for clunkers program' for the housing industry. , dairy prices,The USDA this week announced an increase in dairy price. The price support comes as Wisconsin's Farmers Union says it is facing the worst economic situation in farming history. Our guest will be WI Farmers Union President Sue Beitlich Carlson. school bonds, Dept. of Public Instruction announced this week that 53 school districts will get to use $125.5 million in no-interest bonds to pay for construction and renovation projects, part of an initiative aimed at stimulating the economy. Sun Prairie will get the largest chunk of that money at more than $22 million. We will take a look at what this money means for districts statewide and how Sun Prairie was able to capture the most money going toward a new $84 million high school project already under construction , oxford water, It's been nearly ten years since Perrier tried to open a bottled water plant in Central Wisconsin. In the wake of that controversy Wisconsin enacted new rules for tapping into our state's groundwater. Now, there's another bottled water project in the works. It would be in the Town of Oxford in Marquette County. Here and Now Reporter Art Hackett shows you what's on the line. , H1N1 preview, Federal government this week has issued new guidelines for schools when it comes to managing an expected H1N1 influenza outbreak. Schools are being told to isolate sick children and then send them home, but otherwise stay open. A new vaccine is expected to be available in mid-October. With the possible re-surgence of H1N1 -- Wisconsin Public Television and Wisconsin Public Radio -- will host an hour-long, live call-in show to address the threat. Join us Friday, September 25 from 7 to 8 PM here on Wisconsin Public TV and Wisconsin Public Radio. Leading experts and government officials will join us to take your questions.