By SCOTT BAUER, Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A divided Wisconsin Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to take a case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of an immigrant rights group arguing that it is illegal for local jails to hold immigrant detainees at the request of federal authorities.

The Wisconsin lawsuit comes as federal agents have launched high-profile immigration crackdowns in cities including Chicago and Charlotte, North Carolina. Another operation is expected in the coming days in Minnesota, targeting Somali immigrants. The enforcement tactics have been met with protests and lawsuits.

A majority of justices on the Wisconsin Supreme Court voted to take the ACLU case directly as an original action, rather than have it first work its way through lower courts. The court is controlled 4-3 by liberal justices.

Four justices, who were not named, voted to accept the case, while conservative Justices Annette Ziegler and Rebecca Bradley dissented. Justice Brian Hagedorn, who most often sides with conservative justices, wrote separately to discuss the process, but he did not reveal how he voted.

None of the justices discussed the merits of the case in the order agreeing to take it.

The court’s decision means there could be a final ruling in the case by the middle of 2026, far faster than if it first had to wind its way through lower courts. All briefs in the case are due within two months, and the court will set a date for oral argument sometime after that early next year.

The ACLU brought the lawsuit against five county sheriffs in September on behalf of Voces de la Frontera, an immigrant rights group based in Milwaukee.

“This is a historic step toward ensuring that Wisconsin’s law protects all residents, not just those with power and privilege,” said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director of Voces de la Frontera. “Honoring ICE detainers has subjected hardworking immigrants to unlawful arrests for far too long.”

The lawsuit contends that it is illegal for local jails to hold immigrants on detainers sent by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to local sheriff’s offices. The lawsuit was filed against sheriffs in Walworth, Brown, Marathon, Kenosha and Sauk counties, all of which honor those requests.

Sam Hall, one of the attorneys for the sheriffs, said they were reviewing the court’s order and evaluating next steps.

“We are confident, however, that Wisconsin sheriffs who honor ICE detainers do so fully within the bounds of Wisconsin law and the federal legal framework governing immigration enforcement,” he said in an email.

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The sheriffs had argued that because the lawsuit involves a complicated area of the law — federal immigration law and the relationship between federal and state and local law enforcement — the case was best “resolved and refined” by first going through the lower courts, rather than skipping directly to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Honoring an ICE detainer means the sheriff agrees to hold the person for 48 hours after they otherwise should have been released under state law. The goal of detainers is to give ICE agents more time to pick someone up if they are suspected of being in the country illegally.

The ACLU wants the Wisconsin Supreme Court to prohibit sheriffs from holding people on ICE detainers, which are based on administrative warrants. Holding someone for extra time must be authorized by a judicial warrant, in which a court determines there is probable cause to keep them longer, the ACLU argues in the lawsuit.

The ACLU argues that keeping the person in custody for that extra time constitutes an illegal new arrest. It is illegal because Wisconsin law does not allow officers to make civil arrests except in certain circumstances, none of which apply to immigration enforcement, the lawsuit argues.

In the first seven months of this year, ICE sent more than 700 requests to local jails across Wisconsin, asking them to hold someone 48 hours beyond when they were set to be released, the lawsuit contends.

Republicans in the GOP-controlled Wisconsin Legislature support a bill that would withhold money from counties that don’t comply with ICE detainers. The measure passed the Assembly, and if the Senate approves the bill it would head to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who is likely to veto it.

Washington County officials will pay River Valley Christian Church $7.35 million to purchase its nearly 12-acre property in Lake Elmo and relocate the church.

The church property is needed to replace the last remaining stoplight on Minnesota 36 between Stillwater and Century Avenue with a $50 million grade-separated interchange with buttonhook-style ramps, county officials say.

Church officials signed the purchase agreement on Tuesday night; the county board is expected to approve it during its Dec. 16 meeting.

County and church officials have been negotiating for months over the purchase of the property at the southwest intersection of Minnesota 36 and Lake Elmo Avenue, an 11.88-acre parcel that is within the footprint of the new interchange.

The county’s initial offer of $2.3 million was rejected, but county officials were able to increase that number after considering a number of factors, including the value of the property, the expenses the church would incur to relocate, the public cost to redesign the interchange and the inflationary impact of the delay on project costs, said County Engineer Wayne Sandberg.

Redesigning the intersection around the church property, at 5900 Lake Elmo Ave. N., would have set the project back by at least two years, and alternative designs were estimated to increase the project costs as much as $5.2 million due to added right-of-way, engineering, inflation and new property impacts, Sandberg said.

“This agreement avoids millions of dollars in redesign and years of delay, and it’s very possible we would have had another tragic crash here,” Sandberg said. “This allows us to move forward.”

More than 200 crashes have occurred at the intersection of Minnesota 36 and Lake Elmo Avenue over the past 10 years, including three crashes – in 2018, 2024 and in May – that resulted in fatalities. An average of 57,000 vehicles pass through the intersection each day – 52,000 on Minnesota 36 and another 5,000 on Lake Elmo Avenue.

The new grade-separated interchange will improve safety, reduce congestion and improve bicycling and walkability in the area, Sandberg said.

Drivers no longer will be able to turn directly from one road to the other. Instead, the buttonhook-style ramps will provide access to Minnesota 36 through frontage roads and dedicated acceleration and deceleration lanes along the state highway, he said.

A rendering showing the design of a planned $40 million grade-separated interchange with buttonhook-style ramps that will be built at Minnesota Highway 36 and Lake Elmo Avenue. (Courtesy of Washington County)

“This is a positive outcome for everyone involved,” said County Commissioner Bethany Cox, who represents the area. “By working together, we’ve created a solution that allows our church partners to continue their mission in a new location while addressing a longstanding safety concern along Highway 36.”

Construction will start in the summer of 2026, and the project is expected to be completed by the end of 2027, Sandberg said.

Officials from River Valley, a nondenominational church, did not immediately respond to a query seeking comment.

Since its founding in 1995, River Valley has “grown into a thriving church with nearly 10,000 in attendance across 11 U.S. campuses and two international campuses with plans for further expansion in the future,” according to the church’s website.

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By RONALD BLUM, AP Sports Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — A record 64 nations will be in Friday’s World Cup draw, more than 30% of FIFA’s members, as soccer’s leaders insist a bigger tournament is better.

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FIFA expanded the field from 32 teams to 48, and just 42 spots have been determined going into the convoluted ceremony in which balls representing nations are plucked from bowls and assigned to groups per rules that restrict who goes where. Twenty-two teams in Friday’s draw are headed to playoffs that determine the final six berths on March 31.

There will be 104 games instead of 64 in the World Cup running from June 11 through July 19 at 16 venues throughout North America. Seventy-eight games will be at 11 NFL stadiums, including all from the quarterfinals on, and 13 each in Mexico and Canada. The final is at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where there will be a halftime show for the first time.

In addition to 12 group winners and second-place nations, eight third-place teams advance to a new round of 32. The World Cup winner will play eight games.

“I’ve always thought that what FIFA should do is do it like the Final Four and do 64 teams with no groups, just a knockout,” said Alan Rothenberg, the head organizer of the 1994 World Cup in the U.S., comparing soccer with the NCAA basketball tournament.

Led by captain Lionel Messi, who turns 39 during the tournament, Argentina seeks to become the first nation to win consecutive World Cups since Brazil in 1958 and 1962. Messi and Portugal’s 40-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo are expected to play in a record sixth World Cup.

At least four countries have qualified for the first time

Cape Verde (ranked No. 68), Curaçao (82), Jordan (66) and Uzbekistan (50) have qualified for the first time and four playoff teams could become debutantes: Albania (63), Kosovo (80), New Caledonia (149) and Suriname (123).

Curaçao, an autonomous territory of about 156,000 people within the Netherlands kingdom, is the smallest nation by population to qualify,

Haiti is in for the first time since 1974 and Austria, Norway and Scotland for the first time since 1998.

“I’m a little bit worried,” said former U.S. goalkeeper Kasey Keller, now an ESPN analyst. “We talked about it when they expanded from 24 that it was going to leave some teams that got into the World Cup that weren’t quite at the level, and now expanding it to 48 I think you’re looking at some teams that are going to really struggle.”

World Cup ticket prices are setting records

FIFA has set record initial prices of up to $6,730 for a ticket along with as much as $175 for a parking place and $73,200 for a hospitality package — up from $25 to $475 for the 1994 tournament in the U.S.

Almost 2 million tickets among what is expected to be more than 6 million have been sold, the governing body said.

“I’m not sure that FIFA’s number one goal is to grow the sport in America,” former U.S. goalkeeper Tony Meola said. “I always hate that people miss out on this because they get priced out of it.”

Ticket holders who require visas to enter the U.S. have been promised priority appointment scheduling by the U.S. government.

High temperatures could be an issue at some US venues

A key could be whether teams are drawn to play in open-air stadiums where summer heat could be a factor. Only four of the 11 U.S. World Cup venues have roofs, including one that isn’t temperature controlled.

At this year’s Club World Cup in the U.S., six games were delayed by weather for a total of 8 hours, 29 minutes.

“I will be interested when we find out the teams, as to who is playing in indoor climate-controlled venues more as opposed to outdoor, because I do think that there is a significant difference and obviously a potential competitive advantage,” said former American defender Alexi Lalas, Fox’s lead analyst.

Kickoff times will be announced Saturday. The average noon temperature over the past 30 years in East Rutherford on July 19 is 84 degrees with a RealFeel index of 91, according to AccuWeather.

Political element

The 1994 World Cup draw in Las Vegas featured performances by Stevie Wonder, Barry Manilow, James Brown and Vanessa Williams plus comedian Robin Williams, who called the draw screen “the world’s largest keno board” and yelled “Bingo!” when Greece was pulled out of a bowl.

This draw figures to be more akin to the December 2017 ceremony in Moscow, opened by Russia President Vladimir Putin.

After negotiating to hold this month’s event in Las Vegas, FIFA placed it to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, taken over this year by President Donald Trump and his supporters. Trump, who mingled among Chelsea players on the awards stand after the Club World Cup final last summer, is expected to be at the draw along with Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Retired stars Tom Brady of the NFL, Shaquille O’Neal of the NBA and Wayne Gretzky of the NHL along with three-time AL MVP Aaron Judge will be on stage for the draw, to be run by former England captain Rio Ferdinand with broadcaster Samantha Johnson. Brady, O’Neal and Judge are American and Gretzky is Canadian, but there is no Mexican sports representative.

Model Heidi Klum co-hosts Friday along with actors Kevin Hart and Danny Ramirez, and entertainment includes Tony Award and Olivier Award winner Nicole Scherzinger, Andrea Bocelli and Robbie Williams. The Village People will perform Trump favorite “Y.M.C.A.” and FIFA will award its own peace prize, likely to Trump. Former NFL star Eli Manning will be the red carpet host.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

“If universal childcare is free for all, the families who would benefit most over the long-term would likely be those already thriving economically. Meanwhile the financial benefits for those barely getting by, while vital, could become offset by the resulting increases in other costs.”

(Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

We have reached a defining moment in the movement for universal childcare in New York. Our Mayor-elect, Zohran Mamdani, rode the issue and just a small handful of others to City Hall. Gov. Kathy Hochul seems intent upon handing him at least a partial win on the issue, seeing it as a potential asset to her re-election effort next year.

The contours of her proposal, and for legislation, are being shaped now. It is crucial that we get this right. 

Universal child care can be transformative, but only if it is built with an honest understanding of how wealth and economic insecurity shape the realities families face. Without that, even a well-intentioned program could help higher-income households pull further ahead while leaving struggling families treading water. The cost of living crisis demands a well-designed program that closes gaps rather than one that inadvertently widens them.

Like Universal Pre-Kindergarten for all four-year-olds in New York City, which was a campaign promise made good by Mayor Bill de Blasio with state funds allocated by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, universal childcare could provide free, high quality, accessible and inclusive care for all infants and toddlers. With increasing numbers of low- and middle-income New Yorkers struggling to stay in the state because they can’t afford the cost of living, solutions to the problem are coming from all sides. 

Families with young children face the highest rates of economic insecurity, with 63 percent living below the threshold in New York State, according to the national True Cost of Economic Security measure created by the Urban Institute, Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies and the Community Service Society. In other words, they do not make or have enough income, assets or other resources to meet their daily needs, save for a rainy day, and invest in their futures. Many have to prioritize basic daily needs and make difficult choices about what expenses are a must.  

For these families, universal childcare would eliminate a major financial burden and help ensure that all children can receive quality early childhood learning, which is essential for their development and foundation for their success in school and in life.  

Indeed, universal childcare would solve the dilemma of childcare affordability. However, it would not address its underlying root cause—which is economic insecurity—and could potentially exacerbate it.  

To illustrate, in New York City, 72 percent of families with children are economically insecure, and the Urban Institute’s measure helps us understand their economic reality. Based on 2022 data, families with children in New York City need on average $165,300 yearly to be economically secure.

For families with children that fall below the economic security threshold, they have an annual average resource gap of $52,600, or a gap of about $260,000 over a child’s first five years. Free universal childcare could provide families with a financial benefit worth about $93,600 total for those five years, according to some estimates.

While that financial benefit sounds significant, it has the potential to deepen the existing economic security gap. Universal childcare alone would not close the resource gap for all families below the economic security line; meanwhile, families already above could be put way further ahead. 

Taking full advantage of free universal childcare, economically secure families would likely be able to use significant amounts of freed up resources to grow their wealth even more. For example, they could purchase more housing or more highly priced homes or simply pay more in rent when competing for homes, thereby driving housing costs up. Lower-wealth households wouldn’t be able to do this; they would need their newfound savings just to make it day to day. 

If universal childcare is free for all, the families who would benefit most over the long-term would likely be those already thriving economically. Meanwhile the financial benefits for those barely getting by, while vital, could become offset by the resulting increases in other costs.     

I highlight this concern not to suggest our government shouldn’t ensure childcare is affordable for all, but with the hopes of helping mitigate any unintended outcomes that could worsen wealth disparity and economic insecurity. What families of different means are able to do with the financial benefits of universal programs matters and is part of what deepens underlying inequalities.

When we seek to fully understand and address the dynamics underlying growing economic insecurity—structural economic deprivation upheld through policies and laws that favor the wealthy and penalize those with few resources—we can and should control for the outcomes we desire. Well-intentioned programs must also tackle root causes, not deepen inequality.

For example, to avoid worsening wealth inequality, policymakers could make childcare universal for all but have higher wealth families contribute directly to the cost. Dare we dream, we could also pair free universal childcare with a shift in the tax burden from lower-wealth families to higher-wealth ones, balancing out the lopsided wealth effects. And, we could and should pay childcare workers fairly and improve their job quality and labor rights. 

I believe in quality childcare being available and accessible for all families, and in a strongly supported childcare workforce. But to succeed in addressing the affordability and economic insecurity crisis facing more and more New Yorkers, our policy solutions must address both the problem and root causes, all while controlling for new harms. 

Jennifer Jones Austin is the CEO and executive director of Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies.

The post Opinion: Universal Childcare—A Caution appeared first on City Limits.