Assembly Bill 642160March 30, 2004
Assembly Bill 354161March 30, 2004
Assembly Bill 418162March 30, 2004
Assembly Bill 409163March 30, 2004
Sincerely,
Douglas La Follette
Secretary of State
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March 22, 2004
Patrick Fuller
Assembly Chief Clerk
17 West Main Street, Room 208
Madison, WI 53708
Dear Chief Clerk Fuller:
Please note in the Assembly Journal my support for the following bills taken up in the Assembly on March 16, 2004: Senate Joint Resolution 68, Senate Joint Resolution 69, Assembly Bill 50, Assembly Bill 155, Assembly Bill 274, Assembly Bill 326, Assembly Bill 817, Senate Bill 3 and Senate Bill 474. In addition, please note my opposition to Assembly Bill 628.
Thank you for your assistance.
Sincerely,
Jim Kreuser
State Representative
64th Assembly District
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Reference Bureau Corrections
Assembly Bill 755
In enrolling, the following corrections were made:
Senate amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 755:
1. Page 1, line 4: delete "(2g)" and substitute "(2p)".
Senate amendment 2 to Assembly Bill 755:
1. Page 1, line 11: on lines 11 and 12, delete "and (2m)" and substitute ", (2m),".
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A907
Assembly amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 821
In enrolling, the following correction was made:
1. Page 1, line 3: delete "8m" and substitute "8x".
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Referral of Agency Reports
State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
Madison
February 27, 2004
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
This report is transmitted as required by s.
20.002(11)(f), Wisconsin Statutes, (for distribution to the appropriate standing committees under s.
13.172(3), Wisconsin Statutes), and confirms that the Department of Administration has found it necessary to exercise the "temporary reallocation of balances" authority provided by this section in order to meet payment responsibilities and cover resulting negative cash balances during the month of January 2004.
On January 20, 2004, the Medical Assistance Trust Fund cash balance closed at a negative $42.2 million. The negative balance continued through January 31, 2004, when the fund's cash balance closed at its monthly low of a negative $57.3 million. The negative balance was due to the difference in the timing of revenues and expenditures, and a delay in processing interfund transfers. On February 9, 2004, the fund's cash balance closed at a positive $157.8 million.
On January 23, 2004, the Historic Preservation Partnership Fund cash balance closed at a negative $35.0 thousand. The negative balance continued through January 31, 2004, when the fund's cash balance closed at its monthly low of a negative $42.0 thousand. The negative balance was due to the startup of the fund and a difference in the timing of revenues and expenditures.
The Medical Assistance Trust Fund and the Historic Preservation Partnership Fund shortfalls were not in excess of the statutory interfund borrowing limitations and did not exceed the balances of the funds available for interfund borrowing.
The distribution of interest earnings to investment pool participants is based on the average daily balance in the pool and each fund's share. Therefore, the monthly calculation by the State Controller's Office will automatically reflect the use of these temporary reallocations of balance authority, and as a result, the funds requiring the use of the authority will effectively bear the interest cost.
Sincerely,
Marc J. Marotta
Secretary
Referred to committee on Ways and Means.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Public Instruction
Madison
March 1, 2004
To the Honorable, the Assembly:
Wisconsin school laws include the following provision in §
115.45 (6)(b) and
(c), Wis. Stats.:
SECTION 115.45 Grants for preschool to grade 5 programs.
(6) The state superintendent shall:
(b) By March 1, 1986, and annually thereafter, submit to the joint committee on finance and the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the appropriate standing committees under s.
13.172 (3), a budget report detailing the grants he or she intends to award under this section in the next fiscal year. The report shall provide summary data on the results of the annual testing required under sub. (4) (b) and include a description of the guidelines used to determine the individual schools and private service providers that will receive funds under this section and the types of expenditures eligible for such funds.
(c) Annually submit to the legislature under s.
13.172 (2) a report on the academic progress made by pupils enrolled in preschool to grade 5 programs under this section.
All Preschool-to-Grade-5 (P-5) evaluation reports for 2002-2003 are contained herein as well as a report on the academic progress for all schools funded by the P-5 program. If you have any questions, please contact my office or Sandra Dercole in the DPI Office of Urban Education (414-227-4942).
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Burmaster
State Superintendent
Referred to committee on Education.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Health and Family Services
Madison
March 4, 2004
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
The biennial budget bill,
1983 Wisconsin Act 27, created s.
46.275, Community Integration Program (CIP) for Residents of State Centers. The intent of this program "is to relocate persons from the state centers for the developmentally disabled into appropriate community settings with the assistance of home and community-based services and with continuity of care. The intent of the program is also to minimize its impact on state employees through redeployment of employees into vacant positions." S.
46.275 (5m) requires the Department to submit a report to the Joint Committee on Finance and to the Chief Clerk of each house of the Legislature describing the program's impact during the preceding calendar year on state employees, including the Department's efforts to redeploy employees into vacant positions and the number of employees laid off.
A908
For the period of January 1, 2003 to December 31 , 2003, 23 center residents were placed into the community. In state fiscal year 2003, the center budgets were reduced by $821,250 and 16.89 FTE as a result of CIP placements. For the period July 1, 2003 through December 31, 2003, sufficient reductions in the fiscal year 2004 operating budget will be made to reflect reductions for CIP placements. During this time period, the Department has begun the significant downsizing of Northern Wisconsin Center (NWC). A total of four layoffs have occurred as of December 31, 2003 at NWC due to the downsizing effort. There have been only 10 layoffs at the centers because of the CIP program since the program began in 1983. All other reductions were absorbed through attrition of employees.
Sincerely,
Helene Nelson
Secretary
Referred to committee on Aging and Long-Term Care.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Health and Family Services
Madison
March 4, 2004
To the Honorable, the Assembly:
1999 Wis. Act 113 established requirements intended to strengthen protections for children from harmful lead exposures in their homes. The provisions require, among other things, that the Department develop and maintain a statewide registry of lead-free and lead-safe housing, the standards that properties must meet to be certified lead-free or lead-safe, and implement the voluntary and mandatory provisions of the registry.
Attached is the annual status report to the legislature, as required by
1999 Wisconsin Act 113, Section
32, (9c)(a), that provides the required facts about activities related to reducing lead-based paint hazards in residential property. The report includes facts about the Lead-Free/Lead-Safe Registry of properties, the Lead Training, Accreditation and Certification Program, and the Wisconsin Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program.
As also required by
1999 Wisconsin Act 113, the Department will submit a report evaluating the success or failures of Act 113 and rules promulgated under Act 113, in reducing the incidence of lead poisoning in children by March 1, 2005.
Thank you for distributing this report to members of the Assembly.
Questions about this report may be referred to Gail Boushon at 608-267-2289.
Sincerely,
Helene Nelson
Secretary
Referred to committee on Housing.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Transportation
Madison
March 9, 2004
To the Honorable, the Assembly:
I am pleased to present to you, for distribution to the Wisconsin Assembly, the annual evaluation report on the Pretrial Intoxicated Driver Intervention Grant Program. It is also available on our website
www.dot.wisconsin.gov/library/publications/topic/safety.htm. The program, created by section 85.53 Wis. Stats., was established by the legislature in 1997 with the requirement that the Department study its impact and report on its findings.
The Pretrial Intoxicated Driver Intervention Grant Program is intended for offenders who are arrested for their second or subsequent OWI (Operating While Intoxicated) offense. Offenders participation may be voluntary or court order. It is an intervention model designed to get offenders into counseling, treatment and supervision as soon as possible after the arrest. The program is individual to each community.
As you will see in the report, no community that has begun a program has dropped it. Offenders who successfully completed the program were less likely than non-participants to be re-arrested for subsequent OWI violations. Those who were re-arrested went significantly longer between arrests than non-participants. Currently there are seven counties on a waiting list for funding to begin programs.
I commend those people who have dedicated themselves to making this innovative program a success. There are no "silver bullets" in eradicating impaired driving, but I feel this effort is a vital piece in the total transportation safety effort.
Sincerely,
