Sincerely,
ROBERTA GASSMAN
Secretary
State of Wisconsin
Joint Legislative Council
March 8, 2006
The Honorable, The Senate:
I am pleased to transmit to you the following report to the 2005 Legislature on legislation introduced by the Joint Legislative Council:
RL 2005-15 Special Committee on Election Law Review
I would appreciate your including this letter in the Journal for the information of the membership. Additional copies of this report are available at the Legislative Council Staff offices, One East Main, Suite 401, or from our web page at
http://www.legis.state.wi.us/lc/
Sincerely,
TERRY C. ANDERSON
Director
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
March 2, 2006
The Honorable, The Legislature:
As required by
2001 Wisconsin Act 57, we have completed an evaluation of the Wisconsin Educational Services Program for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, which is a statewide educational resource for students and their parents and teachers. The program is administered by the Department of Public Instruction (DPI). As part of the program, Act 57 directed DPI to continue operating the residential Wisconsin School for the Deaf in Delavan, to offer youth summer programs, and to provide outreach services to school districts statewide. In fiscal year 2004-05, the program spent $11.0 million and was authorized 135.6 full-time equivalent positions. Outreach activities accounted for $1.1 million, or 10.0 percent, of all expenditures in that year.
Enrollment in the residential school decreased from 165 students in the 2000-01 school year to 142 students in the 2004-05 school year. If enrollment continues to decline, staffing changes may need to be considered. We include a recommendation for DPI to report to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee on its efforts to monitor classroom staffing ratios.
Outreach services have grown significantly, corresponding with additional statutory authority. Outreach staff now provide consultation services for local school districts. In addition, training sessions have increased, and distance learning courses in American Sign Language are provided. We include a recommendation for DPI to update the Joint Legislative Audit Committee on the results of its efforts to increase the technological resources needed to provide additional distance learning courses statewide.
We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by DPI. Its response follows the report.
Sincerely,
JANICE MUELLER
State Auditor
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
February 23, 2006
The Honorable, The Legislature:
We have completed a review of the Environmental Cooperation Pilot Program (ECPP). The program is administered by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and was established by
1997 Wisconsin Act 27 to test innovative environmental regulatory methods. Statutes require the Legislative Audit Bureau to monitor ECPP and report annually to the Legislature on our findings.
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DNR manages seven agreements with six companies. We have reviewed the terms of the agreements and DNR's administration of them and make several recommendations to ensure adequate public involvement in ECPP and comprehensive performance measures for quantifying its economic and environmental effects.
Addressing the need for effective performance measures is important given that the initial five-year ECPP agreements will expire in 2006 and 2007. DNR anticipates renewing all seven agreements for a second five-year period, and performance information will help DNR ensure the agreements are structured to promote program success.
We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by DNR and the ECPP companies we contacted during our review.
Sincerely,
JANICE MUELLER
State Auditor
State of Wisconsin
February 28, 2006
The Honorable, The Senate:
I am writing regarding Assembly Bill 69 (AB 69), relating to the authority of the Justice Department.
As those who are familiar with this bill, I have steadfastly maintained my opposition to this legislation. However, my vote on final passage Feb. 23 was somehow recorded as supporting AB 69. As this is in error, I would like to be recorded as voting no on this bill.
Please take whatever steps necessary so that the record reflects my true position on AB 69 in the appropriate publications.
Sincerely,
SPENCER COGGS
State Senator
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
February 28, 2006
The Honorable, The Legislature:
At your request, we have completed a review of the number of University of Wisconsin (UW) System employees convicted of felonies, as part of a comprehensive evaluation of UW System personnel policies and practices approved by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee. That evaluation will be completed later this year.
Using Department of Corrections' felony data and UW System's payroll data, we identified 40 felons employed by UW System in September 2005 and under state supervision in November 2005. UW-Madison employed 27 of the 40 felons we identified, including 4 who are incarcerated.
Section
111.321, Wis. Stats., generally prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of arrest or conviction record, but under s.
111.335(1)(c), Wis. Stats., employment can be terminated when a conviction is substantially related to the circumstances of an individual's job. The decision to terminate is typically determined by an internal investigation. Because UW institutions were unaware of most of the 40 felons and could not provide complete information on how many internal investigations had been conducted, we have recommended that internal investigations be conducted to determine whether the convictions of any of the felons we identified are substantially job-related and any action is appropriate.
Terminating employment is often a lengthy process. In February 2006, the Board of Regents approved changes to expedite the termination of faculty who are convicted of serious criminal misconduct. We have recommended that it also clarify its termination process for academic staff and discuss the process for classified staff.
Finally, we found great variation in how UW institutions conduct background checks of candidates for employment. We have recommended that the Board of Regents promulgate uniform policies to identify the types of jobs for which background checks should be conducted.
We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by UW System during the course of our review.
Sincerely,
JANICE MUELLER
State Auditor
State of Wisconsin
Ethics Board
March 17, 2006
The Honorable, The Senate:
The following lobbyists have been authorized to act on behalf of the organizations set opposite their names.
Christianson, Peter C Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
Hubbard, Gregory American Resort Development Association (ARDA)
Jentz, Robert Wisconsin Dells Visitors and Convention Bureau
King, Nathaniel Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin
Petersen, Eric J American Resort Development Association (ARDA)
Stenger, Scott Wilderness Hotel & Golf Resort
Strohl, Joseph Coalition Against Bigger Trucks
For more detailed information about these lobbyists and organizations and a complete list of organizations and people authorized to lobby the 2005 session of the legislature, visit the Ethics Board's web site at
http://ethics.state.wi.us
Also available from the Wisconsin Ethics Board are reports identifying the amount and value of time state agencies have spent to affect legislative action and reports of expenditures for lobbying activities filed by organizations that employ lobbyists.
Sincerely,
R. Roth Judd
Executive Director
State of Wisconsin
Ethics Board
March 7, 2006
The Honorable, The Senate:
The following lobbyists have been authorized to act on behalf of the organizations set opposite their names.
Blumenfeld, Michael Wisconsin Association of Family & Childrens Agencies
Broehm, John Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District
Kammer, Peter Epilepsy Foundation
Neumann-Ortiz, Christine Voces de la Frontera
Plautz, Jolene Insurance Auto Auctions
Ronnie, Kevin Hunger Task Force
Schimming, Brian National Association of Professional Employer
Speerschneider, Timm Arjo Wiggins Appleton Limited
Strohl, Joseph Bank of America Corporation/Bank of America, N.A.
Tyre, Scott American Petroleum Institute
