September 1, 2011
The Honorable, The Legislature:
Section
227.485(9) of the Wis. Stats. requires the Department to submit a report concerning decisions and resulting payments of attorney fees and related legal costs. Attorney fees and other legal costs are to be paid whenever the opposing party to an agency's Chapter
227 hearing prevails and it is determined the agency's position was not substantially justified. The attached report reflects payments made during SFY 2011.
In addition, under 814.245(10) of the Wis. Stats., the Department is required to report any awards granted to the Department regarding frivolous motions brought against this Department. In SFY 2011, no motions of opposing parties were found to be frivolous. Consequently, the Department has no awards to report.
Sincerely,
dennis g. smith
Secretary
Referred to joint committee on Finance.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Government Accountability Board
September 13, 2011
The Honorable, The Senate:
The following lobbyists have been authorized to act on behalf of the organizations set opposite their names.
For more detailed information about these lobbyists and organizations and a complete list of organizations and people authorized to lobby the 2011-2012 session of the legislature, visit the Government Accountability Board's web site at
http://gab.wi.gov/.
Beebe, Thomas Institute for Wisconsin's Future
Conway, Steven Hennessy Industries, Inc.
Krause, Mark Funeral Service & Cremation
Alliance of Wisconsin
Kussow, Matthew National Home Service Contract Association
Lucht, Kenneth Wisconsin & Southern Railroad
Company
Moreland, Edward Harley-Davidson Motor
Company
Phillips, Matt Humana
Phillips, Matt Property Casualty Insurers
Association of America
Phillips, Matt Takeda Pharmaceuticals America
Phillips, Matt Tavern League of Wisconsin
Phillips, Matt Verizon Wireless
Phillips, Matt Wisconsin Athletic Trainers
Association Inc
Phillips, Matt Wisconsin Commercial Fisheries Association
Riske, Laura Harley-Davidson Motor
Company
S467
Scholz, Brandon National Home Service Contract Association
Taffora, Raymond Harley-Davidson Motor
Company
Welsh, Michael NextEra Energy Resources
Also available from the Wisconsin Government Accountability 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,
kevin kennedy
Director & General Counsel
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources
September 14, 2011
The Honorable, The Legislature:
We at the Department of Natural Resources are pleased to provide you with a copy of our annual Wisconsin Environmental Policy Act (WEPA) report. In fulfillment of Section
1.11 (2)(j) of the state statutes, this document provides information on the numbers of environmental assessments (EAs) and environmental impact statements (ElSs) completed by the Department in the past fiscal year.
Questions about the report can be directed to me at 6-0426.
Sincerely,
James D. Pardee
Wisconsin Environmental Policy Act Coordinator
__________________
University of Wisconsin System
September 15, 2011
The Honorable, The Legislature:
The attached document reflects the significant Wisconsin Environmental Policy Act (WEPA) activities of the University of Wisconsin System for the period of July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011. This annual report fulfills Section
1.11 (2)(j) of the Wisconsin Statutes, in that it provides information on the number of Type I Environmental Impact Statements and Type II Environmental Impact Assessments completed during the past fiscal year.
Should you have any questions regarding this report, please direct them to Terri Reda, UW System Environmental Affairs Officer, at (608) 263-4410.
Sincerely,
Kevin P. Reilly
President
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Government Accountability Board
September 20, 2011
The Honorable, The Senate:
The following lobbyists have been authorized to act on behalf of the organizations set opposite their names.
For more detailed information about these lobbyists and organizations and a complete list of organizations and people authorized to lobby the 2011-2012 session of the legislature, visit the Government Accountability Board's web site at
http://gab.wi.gov/.
Conway, Steven Sanofi Pasteur
Langenohl, Tony Scientific Games International
Inc
McCoshen, William J Scientific Games International
Inc
Petersen, Eric J Scientific Games International
Inc
Phillips, Matt Alliance of Wisconsin Retailers, LLC
Phillips, Matt MillerCoors LLC
Phillips, Matt Wisconsin Organization for
Responsible Consumerism
Also available from the Wisconsin Government Accountability 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,
kevin kennedy
Director & General Counsel
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
September 21, 2011
The Honorable, The Legislature:
Department and to fulfill our audit requirements under s.
13.94(1)(dd), Wis. Stats. The Department's financial statements report on the financial position and activity of various benefit programs available to state and local public employees, including the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) and health and life insurance programs for active and retired employees of the state and participating local governments. The statements and our unqualified opinion on them are included in the Department's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR), which can be found on its Web site.
The largest program administered by the Department is the WRS, which reported net assets of $75.9 billion at the end of 2010 and provided benefits totaling $3.9 billion during 2010. The WRS reported positive investment returns and a net increase in retirement assets of $5.9 billion during 2010. At the end of 2010, the WRS was 93.8 percent funded based on the fair value of its assets and 99.8 percent funded based on standard actuarial measures, which smooth investment returns over a five-year period. As required by s.
13.94(1)(dc), Wis. Stats, the Audit Bureau contracted with an independent actuary to perform an audit of the WRS's consulting actuary. The results of that audit were released on August 25, 2011.
Accompanying this letter is a management letter we provided to the Department, which includes an auditor's report on internal control and compliance, as required by Government Auditing Standards. We are pleased to note that the Department has taken steps to address a long-standing concern related to cash reconciliations by performing a reconciliation at an appropriation level between the State's official accounting system and the Department's internal accounting system.
Sincerely,
joe chrisman
Interim State Auditor
Relating to administration of stewardship grants.
Submitted by Department of Natural Resources.
