October 18, 2026 · Wade Kessler

LADYSMITH — Rusk County's draft FY 2027 budget is scheduled to be presented to the County Board on Tuesday, October 27, under the county's published budget calendar.

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October 18, 2026 · June Hartley

LADYSMITH — Rusk County is among the counties where electronics collection events will be supported by new state recycling grants, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

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October 18, 2026 · June Hartley

LADYSMITH — The new Wisconsin Home Energy Assistance Program season opened October 1 for Rusk County residents who need help with heating and electric bills, according to Rusk County.

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BRIEF · October 18, 2026 · Wade Kessler

LADYSMITH — Rusk County's draft FY 2027 budget is scheduled to be presented to the County Board on Tuesday, October 27, under the county's published budget calendar.

The calendar shows the Finance Committee was to recommend the final FY 2027 budget on October 15, after the County Coordinator and Finance Director presented preliminary budget documents to the committee on September 17 and to the County Board on September 29, with final revisions prepared in early October.

At the October 27 meeting, the board is scheduled to endorse the draft budget, and notice of the budget public hearing is to be published the same day, giving 15 days' notice. The calendar lists the public hearing and adoption of a balanced FY 2027 budget for the board's November 11 meeting, while noting that date may need to change because it falls on Veterans Day.

Sources: Rusk County, read October 18, 2026.

BRIEF · October 18, 2026 · June Hartley

LADYSMITH — Rusk County is among the counties where electronics collection events will be supported by new state recycling grants, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

The DNR awarded just over $250,000 in E-Cycle Wisconsin Electronics Collection Grants for 39 projects in 35 counties, funding collection sites and one-day events between October 2026 and December 2027. Dynamic Lifecycle Innovations is listed as a recipient for collection events in 18 counties, including Rusk, Polk and Sawyer.

The grants are funded by fees electronics manufacturers pay under E-Cycle Wisconsin, the state program created after Wisconsin's 2010 electronics recycling law banned many electronics from the trash. Devices accepted for recycling include computers, monitors, TVs, printers, cellphones and many accessories. The DNR maintains an interactive list of E-Cycle collection sites and mail-back programs that residents can search by county.

Sources: Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, DrydenWire, read October 18, 2026.

BRIEF · October 18, 2026 · June Hartley

LADYSMITH — The new Wisconsin Home Energy Assistance Program season opened October 1 for Rusk County residents who need help with heating and electric bills, according to Rusk County.

The program provides a one-time annual payment during the heating season, which runs October 1 through May 15. The payment covers a portion of energy costs, with the amount based on household size, income and energy costs, and in most cases it is paid directly to the household's energy supplier. Households with a utility burden and income under 60 percent of the state median may be eligible.

Residents can apply by phone or in person by appointment by calling 715-532-2299, by mail, or online. Qualifying for energy assistance can also open access to furnace repair or replacement, crisis benefits and weatherization. For a no-heat emergency outside business hours, the county directs residents to Rusk County Dispatch at 715-532-2200.

Sources: Rusk County, read October 18, 2026.

BRIEF · October 18, 2026 · Elias Brandt

LADYSMITH — Sunday is sunny in Rusk County with a high near 65 and a south wind of 5 to 15 mph, gusting as high as 30 mph, according to the National Weather Service in the Twin Cities.

Tonight turns mostly clear with a low around 36. No watches, warnings or advisories are in effect for Rusk County.

Monday stays mostly sunny with a high near 63, followed by a mostly clear night near 37. The dry stretch continues Tuesday, sunny near 65, and Wednesday, sunny near 68.

Sources: National Weather Service, read October 18, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · June Hartley

LADYSMITH — The Rusk County Board Chairman has been given authority to assume the duties of the Zoning Administrator, following action by the county's Executive Committee in September.

The committee voted to hand the zoning duties to the chairman after discussing the resignation, transition and duties in the Zoning and Land and Water Department, according to the minutes of the committee's September 14 meeting, included in the packet for its October 1 meeting. The committee also approved a Health and Human Services request to reclassify a Finance Accountant II position to Financial Manager and sent it for grading, and heard a health insurance renewal update.

The October 1 agenda, held at 3:00 p.m. in the Law Enforcement Center Board Room, took the staffing work further, with a health insurance renewal presentation, a resolution to authorize the chairman to hire interim human-resources services, and a closed session to interview candidates for County Administrative Coordinator.

Sources: Rusk County, read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · Wade Kessler

LADYSMITH — City of Ladysmith residents can start voting in person for the November 3 general election on Tuesday, October 20, when in-person absentee voting opens at the clerk's office.

The city lists the in-person absentee window as running through Thursday, October 29, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, with no appointment necessary. Statewide, the Wisconsin Elections Commission lists the in-person absentee period as October 20, possibly through November 1, and reminds voters that hours vary by municipality, so voters outside the city should check with their own municipal clerk.

Other deadlines are close behind. Requests for an absentee ballot by mail are due October 29 at 5:00 p.m., registration in a municipal clerk's office runs until October 30 at 5:00 p.m., and on Election Day, Tuesday, November 3, polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Absentee ballots must be received by 8:00 p.m. that night to count, and the Rusk County Clerk's office handles election administration for county voters.

Sources: City of Ladysmith, MyVote Wisconsin / Wisconsin Elections Commission, Rusk County Clerk, read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · June Hartley

LADYSMITH — Trick-or-treaters in Ladysmith will make their rounds on Halloween night, Saturday, October 31, during city hours of 4:00 to 7:00 p.m., the city has posted.

Before that, residents have one last chance this year to clear fall yard waste at the curb. The city's curbside brush and yard waste collection runs on the last Monday of each month from May through October, and the final collection on the schedule is Monday, October 26. Leaves and yard waste should be in bags or approved containers, brush stacked neatly at the curb, and everything set out before 7:00 a.m. — once crews have been through a neighborhood, the city says they will not return. The former brush and yard waste collection site is closed.

The city is also looking ahead to an equipment purchase, accepting sealed bids at City Hall, 120 Miner Ave. W., until 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 5, to buy a new refuse packer truck.

Sources: City of Ladysmith, read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · Wade Kessler

LADYSMITH — Four Rusk County school districts are among 30 across rural Wisconsin that will benefit from a $749,400 federal distance-learning grant announced this month.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development grant went to Cooperative Educational Service Agency 10 in Chippewa Falls, and its list of districts includes Bruce, Flambeau, Ladysmith and Lake Holcombe. In all, the investment is expected to support 14,445 rural students and 1,914 educators across 12 counties, including Rusk.

Through CESA 10's distance-learning consortium, the money will upgrade aging distance-learning infrastructure. USDA says modernizing those systems helps districts work around local teacher shortages and offer a wider curriculum, including advanced placement, post-secondary, career and technical education, and college-preparatory courses.

Sources: USDA Rural Development, read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · Rusk County Now News Room

LADYSMITH — The Rusk County Board of Supervisors has announced vacancies in Districts 6, 18 and 3, and the county is accepting letters of interest from residents who want to serve, according to the county's announcement.

The announcement says the board is taking letters of interest to fill the District 6 and District 3 seats. Whoever is appointed serves the unexpired term ending the third Tuesday of April 2028. To serve, a candidate must be at least 18 years old and a resident of the supervisory district.

Letters of interest go to County Clerk Connie Meyer, 311 Miner Ave. E., Suite C150, Ladysmith, WI 54848. The Clerk's Office phone is (715) 532-2100.

Sources: Rusk County Board of Supervisors vacancy announcement (ruskcounty.org), read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · Rusk County Now News Room

LADYSMITH — The Rusk County Board of Supervisors holds its next regular meeting on Tuesday, October 27, at 6 p.m., according to the board's published 2026-2027 meeting schedule. The board meets in the LEC Board Room at the Rusk County Government Center, with video conference access offered.

The board's most recent posted packet, for its September 29 meeting, carried a County Trunk P update and a Highway Shop update, a low-bid item on demolishing the old clinic building, and resolutions on a new county ambulance garage, the use of opioid settlement funds, and appointing a Veteran's Service Officer and a Zoning Administrator.

Agendas and packets are posted on the county website, ruskcounty.org. Residents can also call the County Clerk's Office at (715) 532-2100.

Sources: Rusk County Board of Supervisors meeting schedule and September 29, 2026 meeting packet (ruskcounty.org), read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · Rusk County Now News Room

LADYSMITH — Saturday is sunny in Rusk County with a high near 57 and south-southwest winds around 15 mph, according to the National Weather Service in the Twin Cities.

Tonight turns clear with a low near 36. Sunday is sunny with a high near 62 and gusts to 25 mph.

The sunny stretch holds into next week, with highs in the mid-60s by Tuesday and near 67 on Wednesday.

No watches, warnings or advisories were in effect for Rusk County on Saturday afternoon.

Sources: National Weather Service forecast and alerts, Twin Cities office, read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · Rusk County Now News Room

LADYSMITH — The Ladysmith City Council holds its next regular meeting on Monday, October 26, at 5:15 p.m. in the Council Chambers at 107 W. Second Street South, following the council's regular second-and-fourth-Monday schedule.

The council's most recent meeting was Monday, October 12. Meeting notices and agendas are posted on the city website, cityofladysmithwi.com, and at the Rusk County Courthouse and the Rusk County Community Library.

Sources: City of Ladysmith Common Council meeting notices (cityofladysmithwi.com) and the Northwoods Reporter government-events listing for October 11-17, 2026, read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · Rusk County Now News Room

LADYSMITH — Rusk County voters head to the polls in the general election on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, the last election on the county's 2026 calendar, according to the county's elections page.

Voters can check their registration, find their polling place and see what is on their ballot at MyVote Wisconsin, myvote.wi.gov. The county's elections page also links Wisconsin Elections Commission information on photo ID and voting by mail.

Questions go to the County Clerk's Office at the Rusk County Government Center in Ladysmith, (715) 532-2100.

Sources: Rusk County elections page (ruskcounty.org), read October 17, 2026.

BRIEF · October 17, 2026 · Rusk County Now News Room

LADYSMITH — Ladysmith closed its football regular season Friday night with a 42-0 loss at Grantsburg, according to statewide scoreboards that both list the same final score.

WIAA Level 1 playoff games are scheduled for October 23-24 across the state. No verified Flambeau or Bruce final was listed in the statewide scoreboards read Saturday morning.

Sources: Statewide football scoreboards (SI.com and the Post Crescent) and the WIAA calendar, read October 17, 2026.