Wisconsin court officials fear the court's data management system, including a popular site that allows anyone to easily look up the criminal records of friends and neighbors, could be on shaky ground if the governor's proposed budget breaks up its funding mechanism.

Gov. Scott Walker's proposed budget would end a dedicated funding stream for Consolidated Court Automation Programs, the data management system for the state courts system. State law now gives the system $6 out of every $21.50 charged as part of the Justice Information System Surcharge included in most court filing fees. Under the new proposal, all fee revenue would go to the Department of Administration, which would give the money to the system and a range of other programs. It would also cut the system's funding by 10 percent.

Jean Bousquet, CCAP spokeswoman, said the switch would allow DOA to move money to other programs in the future. If that happens, Consolidated Court Automated Programs would have to consolidate or cut back on non-essential services, and the Wisconsin Circuit Court Access database would likely be on the shortlist of cuts.

The WCCA site provides detailed and updated information on all past and pending court cases in the Wisconsin circuit courts system and is accessible to anyone with an Internet connection. Bousquet said while they hope cuts are not necessary, the system would likely deal with budget cuts through gradual moves.

Another crackdown Tuesday on violators of Mississippi's No Call Law. State regulators say they've fined Full Speed Funding, LLC of Phoenix and Gateway Destinations Incorporated of Pompano Beach, Florida $15,000 each.

Public Service Commission member Brandon Presley says Full Speed Funding LLC of Phoenix and Gateway Destinations Inc. of Pompano Beach, Fla., failed to register and purchase the state's "No-Call" list and contacted consumers who had registered on the "No-Call" list.

Presley says company representatives failed to respond to the PSC complaint.

Former Iowa Supreme Court Justice Michael Streit has joined a Des Moines law firm.

Ahlers & Cooney, P.C., announced Monday that Streit will join the firm's litigation, dispute resolution and investigations practice area.

Streit was one of three Iowa Supreme Court justices ousted last fall over the court's 2009 decision legalizing same sex marriage in Iowa.

He was appointed to the Iowa Court of Appeals in 1996 and to the Iowa Supreme Court in 2001.

A Sheldon native, Streit received his bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa in 1972. He graduated from the University of San Diego School of Law in 1975.

He worked in private practice in Chariton and served as an assistant Lucas County attorney and county attorney until he was appointed district court judge in 1983.

Restricting use of eagle parts and feathers to members of federally recognized American Indian tribes for religious purposes does not violate the religious freedoms of non-Indians seeking the same right, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

The Denver-based U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals found that such a prohibition, under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, does not violate the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

Tuesday's ruling comes after several cases in which non-Indians, and one man from a tribe that is no longer recognized by the federal government, sought the right to use feathers in their religious practices.

Eagle feathers are believed to be sacred among many Native Americans.

Federal law requires that eagle carcasses be sent to the National Eagle Repository in Denver, Colo., and that any tribe member wishing to use eagle feathers or parts in ceremonies apply for a permit to do so. The court noted that the repository "receives significantly more requests than it has available eagle carcasses" so there is already a long waiting period to fulfill permits.

All the cases noted in Tuesday's ruling weighed freedom of religion against the government's ability to protect the eagles and help maintain the centuries-old religious practices of Native Americans.

Federally recognized tribe members agree the law should restrict access to eagle parts to those whose ancestors have been practicing such ceremonies for centuries.

A western Colorado family has filed a lawsuit saying that negligence by oil and gas drilling companies contaminated their drinking water and air and forced them from their home.

Beth and Bill Strudley and their sons, ages 11 and 13, moved in 2005 outside Silt but said they started living in Glenwood Springs this year to escape the effects of work by Antero Resources Corp. and subcontractors Frontier Drilling and Calfrac Well Services. The Strudleys still own the home outside Silt. Their lawsuit in Denver District Court accuses all three firms of negligence.

Denver-based Antero said it doesn't comment on pending litigation. Calfrac had no immediate comment, and a phone message for Frontier Drilling wasn't returned.

The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, which regulates oil and gas development, has said it has found no scientific data that the water quality in the family's well was contaminated by drilling, but the Strudleys said they have conducted their own tests. They and their lawyers declined to disclose the results Thursday, saying only that they were "abnormal."

The family said they started getting sick after drilling started within a mile of their home in August. They wouldn't discuss details at a news conference Thursday, but Beth Strudley, 46, told The Post Independent of Glenwood Springs in January that they have suffered rashes and nosebleeds.