State of Wisconsin
Legislative Reference Bureau
Madison
DATE: September 30, 2008
TO: Patrick E. Fuller
Assembly Chief Clerk
Robert Marchant
Senate Chief Clerk
FROM: Bruce J. Hoesly
Code Editor
SUBJECT: Rules published in the September 30, 2008,
Wisconsin Administrative
Register, No. 633.
The following rules have been published:
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Referral of Agency Reports
State of Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources
Madison
September 26, 2008
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
Attached to this letter is the Environmental Improvement Fund Biennial Finance Plan for the 2009-2011 biennium. Environmental Improvement Fund program legislation (s.
281.59(3), Wis. Stats.) requires the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Administration to submit the first version of the Biennial Finance Plan to the Legislature and to the State Building Commission. The purpose of the plan is to provide information on loan, loan subsidy, and bonding levels for program operations in the 2009-2011 biennium.
If you have any questions regarding the Biennial Finance Plan, please contact Robert Ramharter at 266-3915 or Michael Wolff at 267-2734.
Sincerely,
Debra K. Martinelli
Bureau Director
Referred to committee on Natural Resources.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
Madison
September 30, 2008
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 August 2008.
On August 6, 2008, the General Fund cash balance closed at a negative $74.3 million (its intra-month low). This negative balance continued through August 11, 2008, when the fund's cash balance closed at a positive $34.4 million. The negative balance was due to the difference in the timing of revenues and expenditures.
On August 20, 2008, the Utility Public Benefits Fund cash balance closed at a negative $2.6 million. This negative balance continued through August 31, 2008, when the fund's cash balance closed at a negative $2.7 million (its intra-month low). The negative balance was due to a delayed cash transfer.
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On August 1, 2008, the Injured Patients and Families Compensation Fund cash balance closed at a negative $153.1 million (its intra-month low). This negative balance continued through August 31, 2008, when the fund's cash balance closed at a negative $140.7 million. The negative balance was due to the transfer of $200 million to the Medical Assistance Trust Fund per
2007 Wisconsin Act 20, and the pending liquidation of fund securities necessary to offset this shortfall.
On August 1, 2008, the University Trust Fund - Principal cash balance closed at a negative $4.3 million (its intra-month low). This negative balance continued through August 13, 2008, when the fund's cash balance closed at a positive $6.3 million. The negative balance was due to an accounting error that was corrected in August.
The General Fund, Utility Public Benefits Fund, Injured Patients and Families Compensation Fund, and University Trust Fund - Principal 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,
Michael L. Morgan
Secretary
Referred to committee on Ways and Means.
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State of Wisconsin
Supreme Court of Wisconsin
Madison
October 1, 2008
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
Pursuant to s.
758.19(5)(i), Wis. Stats., the information reported to the Director of State Courts under ss.
758.19(5)(e) and
758.19(6)(d), Wis. Stats., by Wisconsin's counties has been compiled and is herein submitted. Under ss.
758.19(5)(e) and
758.19(6)(d), Wis. Stats., each county is required to submit an annual report to the Director of State Courts which provides information on the actual amount expended in the previous calendar year for court costs relating to the circuit court support and the guardian ad litem payment programs. Statutes prohibit the Director of State Courts from requiring counties to submit audited annual reports to ensure accurate, uniform information. As a result, due to the differing and inconsistent accounting practices among and within counties, the following reported expenditures are not comparable among counties.
Sincerely,
A. John Voelker
Director of State Courts
Referred to committee on Children and Family Law.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Health Services
Madison
October 1, 2008
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
The Department of Health Services operates BadgerCare under section 49.665 of the Wisconsin Statutes. Under this section of the statutes the Wisconsin Legislature requires the Department to submit a report summarizing the BadgerCare program and its progress. This submission fulfills that legislative requirement.
BadgerCare was established under the terms of the federal State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) enacted through the federal budget of 1997. The SCHIP program provided states with the options of creating a new independent program to insure children or to expand the state's existing Medicaid program. The Wisconsin Legislature created BadgerCare as a SCHIP Medicaid expansion program under
1997 WI Act 27.
The Department implemented BadgerCare Plus in February 2008 as authorized under section 49.471. BadgerCare Plus merges Family Medicaid, BadgerCare, and Healthy Start to form a comprehensive health insurance program for low income children and families to help ensure that 98% of Wisconsin's citizens have access to health care. The program provides coverage for more members while simplifying the program and promoting prevention and healthy behaviors.
Enrollment and expenditure data, reported below for SFY08, shows both BadgerCare and BadgerCare Plus programs separately. Enrollment simplification implemented with BadgerCare Plus makes it difficult to identify BadgerCare Plus members made eligible under the enrollment rules of BadgerCare. Thus the department has determined that data on all BadgerCare Plus members, beginning February 2008, is pertinent information for this report.
BadgerCare leverages significant amounts of federal funding for health care coverage of eligible Wisconsin residents.
Wisconsin is leading the nation in streamlining health care eligibility by making BadgerCare Plus more efficient and less costly to administer. We look forward to keeping Wisconsin on the cutting edge of quality and efficient health care coverage for those in need.
Sincerely,
Jason A. Helgerson
Medicaid Director
Referred to committee on Health and Healthcare Reform.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Commerce
Madison
October 2, 2008
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
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The Department of Commerce is pleased to present the first annual report on economic development programs. The report was a result of Act 125 which was signed into law on March 20, 2008.
The objective of the annual report is to provide efficiency, transparency, accountability and accessibility of information for state economic development programs. In addition the report provides standardization and strengthening of all economic program data.
The audit required that by October 1 of each year, each agency submit a comprehensive report assessing the economic development programs it administers to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee and the appropriate standing committees of the Assembly and the Senate. Among the reporting requirements were the establishment of clear and measurable performance goals for each economic development program and the establishment of at least one performance measurement benchmark for each goal. Commerce was given the responsibility of coordinating the information of all entities and for making sure that the information is readily accessible to the public on an Internet-based system.
I hope that the legislators and the citizens of our state find the report helpful.
Sincerely,
Aaron Olver
Deputy Secretary
Referred to committee on Jobs and the Economy.
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State of Wisconsin
Office of State Employment Relations
Madison
October 3, 2008
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
I am pleased to forward the Fiscal Year 2008 report on employment of participants of the Wisconsin Works (W-2) program. Included in this report are the number of W-2 job seekers employed by each state agency and the classification of each position filled from July 1, 2007, through June 30, 2008. Of the 2,427 new hires to state employment, 217, or 8.9 percent were W-2 hires. This exceeds the state's hiring goal of .55 percent.
Attached is a copy of the W-2 Hiring Report. Please contact Jennifer Gebert at (608) 267-2155 or email
Jennifer.Gebert@wisconsin.gov if you have questions or need additional information regarding this report.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Donnelly
Director
Referred to committee on Children and Family Law.
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Agency Reports
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
Madison
October 2, 2008
To the Honorable, the Assembly:
We have completed a review of the Department of Administration's (DOA's) oversight of a contract for print and mail staffing services, which we initiated in response to a complaint reported on the fraud, waste, and mismanagement hotline established by
2007 Wisconsin Act 126.
