SB539: Bill Text

LRB-5388/1

ALL:ALL:ks

1995 - 1996 LEGISLATURE

1995 Senate BILL 539

February 9, 1996 - Introduced by Senator Adelman. Referred to Committee on State Government Operations and Corrections.

SB539,2,8 An Act to repeal 13.93 (2) (g), 15.05 (3), 15.05 (5), 15.06 (4m), 15.06 (9), 16.548, 20.255 (2) (cu), 20.923 (4) (c) 1., 20.923 (6) (ah), 20.923 (9), 25.156 (6) and (7), 25.16 (3), 38.04 (2m), 118.43, 230.08 (2) (m) and 230.08 (2) (y); to amend 13.14 (3), 13.20 (1), 16.003 (2), 19.42 (10) (L), 19.42 (13) (k), 20.455 (2) (g), 20.765 (3) (fa), 20.866 (2) (z) (intro.), 20.923 (6) (h), 20.923 (14), 21.20, 25.156 (2), 25.16 (7), 40.02 (17) (e), 40.02 (30), 40.63 (1) (c), 93.02, 93.42 (1) (e), 119.04 (1), 230.08 (2) (f), 230.08 (2) (fs), 230.35 (1m) (a) 2., 230.35 (2), 560.03 (18) and 562.065 (3r); to repeal and recreate 20.197 (1) (g) (intro.), 562.065 (3) (e), 562.075 (title) and 562.075 (1); to create 13.20 (2m), 20.197 (3) (hm) and 562.075 (2) (cm) of the statutes; and to affect 1995 Wisconsin Act 27, section 9145 (13q) and 1995 Wisconsin Act 60, section 2 (1m) and (2); relating to: elimination of the federal-state relations office; terminating foreign trade offices and limiting technology development grants; eliminating bonus compensation for certain employes of the investment board; eliminating the student achievement guarantee in education program; restoration of breakage revenue from racetrack wagering; eliminating funding and construction of the Northern Great Lakes Regional Visitor Center; eliminating the position of executive assistant in state agencies; a limitation on expenditures by state agencies for travel; expenditures from the appropriation for general program operations of the office of the governor, the senate and the assembly; decreasing the authorized full-time equivalent positions for the office of the lieutenant governor; a limitation upon the maximum annual salary payable to certain legislative employes; elimination of legislative partisan caucus staffs; membership of the Wisconsin legislature in the Council of State Governments; granting rule-making authority; and making and decreasing appropriations.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill does all of the following:

1. Under current law, the department of administration (DOA) is authorized to maintain a federal-state relations office in Washington, D.C., for the purpose of promoting federal-state cooperation. This bill eliminates DOA's authority to maintain a federal-state relations office in Washington, D.C.

2. Under current law, the department of development (DOD) may establish and maintain foreign trade offices as part of a plan to promote and increase exports and foreign investment in the state. This bill removes DOD's authority to establish and maintain foreign trade offices and requires DOD to terminate all foreign trade offices currently in existence.

3. Under current law, the general fund appropriation to DOD known as the Wisconsin development fund provides funding for the technology development grant and loan program, the research grant and loan program, the customized labor training grant and loan program, the major economic development projects program, the employe ownership assistance loan program and the Wisconsin trade project program. There is no requirement that any specified amount or percentage of the funds be used for any particular program. This bill reduces the Wisconsin development fund appropriation by $4,300,000 to decrease funding for grants under the technology development grant and loan program. Under that program, grants may be provided to private businesses and consortia consisting of private businesses and instructions of higher education.

4. Under current law, the investment board is authorized to provide bonus compensation to the executive director of the board and other unclassified employes of the board for meritorious performance. The bonuses awarded for any fiscal year may not exceed a total of 10% of the total annualized salaries of all unclassified employes of the board and no bonus awarded to any individual employe for any fiscal year may exceed a total of 25% of the annual salary of the employe at the beginning of the fiscal year. In awarding bonus compensation for a given period, the board must consider the performance of funds similar to those for which it has managing authority and market indices for the same period. In addition, the board is generally required to provide for a portion of the bonus compensation awarded to be distributed to an employe over a 3-year period. This bill eliminates the investment board's bonus compensation program.

5. Under the student achievement guarantee in education program, which was created in the 1995-97 biennial budget act, in the 1996-97 school year an eligible school district (one with at least one school with an enrollment of 50% or more low-income pupils) may enter into a 5-year achievement guarantee contract with the department of education on behalf of one school in the school district if the school has an enrollment that is at least 30% low-income pupils and the school district is not receiving a grant under the preschool to grade 5 program. The contract must require the school board to reduce class size in the school to 15, keep the school open until late in the day, collaborate with community organizations, provide a rigorous academic curriculum and develop a staff development program. In the 1996-97 to 2000-01 school years, a school district that has entered into an achievement guarantee contract receives additional state aid. The payment in any school year may not exceed $2,000 per low-income pupil enrolled in grades eligible for funding in the participating school. This bill eliminates the student achievement guarantee in education program.

6. Prior to the enactment of the 1995-97 biennial budget act, a racetrack licensee was required to round down pari-mutuel payouts to the nearest 10 cents. This rounding down may have resulted in surplus funds in the wagering pool and was called the "breakage". Before the enactment of the 1995-97 biennial budget act, a racetrack licensee was required to pay 50% of the breakage to the state. The 1995-97 biennial budget act provided that the racetrack licensee may retain 100% of the breakage. This bill, beginning on July 1, 1996, restores the breakage provision in effect before the enactment of the 1995-97 biennial budget act, with the result that a racetrack licensee is required to pay 50% of the breakage to the state.

7. 1995 Wisconsin Act 60 amends the 1995-97 state building program to authorize the Northern Great Lakes Regional Visitor Center project, to be funded with $3,500,000 in general fund supported borrowing and $3,500,000 in federal funds. The act authorizes the building commission to make up to $3,500,000 in payments to the federal government for the construction of the project, except that the amount paid by the state may not exceed the amount provided for the project by the federal government. The act also directs the building commission to include in its proposed 1997-99 state building program an additional $600,000 in general fund supported borrowing and $600,000 in federal funds to be used for the project. This bill deletes the project from the 1995-97 state building program; decreases the amount of bonding authority by $3,500,000; repeals the authority of the building commission to make payments to the federal government for the project; and repeals the requirement that the building commission include additional moneys for the project in its proposed 1997-99 state building program.

8. Under current law, each secretary of a state department, the attorney general, the adjutant general, the director of the technical college system, the state superintendent of public instruction and certain commission chairpersons are authorized to appoint an executive assistant who serves at the pleasure of, and performs duties prescribed by, the applicable appointing authority. This bill eliminates the position of executive assistant.

9.Currently, there is no statutory limitation upon travel expenditures by state agencies. The secretary of administration may require state agencies to submit expenditure estimates for his or her approval before making such expenditures and the secretary is directed or permitted to withhold approval of the estimates under certain conditions. The form in which state agencies submit proposed budgets is determined by the secretary. The secretary then compiles the information and submits it to the governor and legislature.

This bill prohibits any state agency from making total expenditures from any revenue source except federal revenue in the 1996-97 fiscal year for travel expenses incurred by its officers or employes exceeding 90% of the total amount expended by the agency from that revenue source for that purpose in the 1994-95 fiscal year.

The bill also requires the secretary of administration to lapse to the general fund from each sum certain appropriation made to each state agency from each revenue source except program revenue, segregated revenue derived from program receipts and federal revenue for the 1996-97 fiscal year an amount equivalent to 10% of the amount expended by the agency from that appropriation for travel expenses incurred by its officers and employes in the 1994-95 fiscal year. The bill decreases each sum certain appropriation made to each state agency from program revenue or segregated revenue derived from program receipts for the 1996-97 fiscal year by the same amounts. Similarly, the bill requires the secretary to reestimate the expenditure estimate for each sum sufficient appropriation made to each state agency from each revenue source except federal revenue for the 1996-97 fiscal year to subtract the same amount.

In addition, the bill directs the secretary to exclude from budgets submitted by state agencies and from the budget compilation submitted to the governor and the legislature for the 1997-99 fiscal biennium, for each sum certain appropriation made to a state agency from general purpose revenue, an amount equivalent to any amount lapsed from that appropriation account under the bill.

The bill does not apply to any appropriation made to the department of revenue.

10. This bill directs DOA, in submitting the appropriations schedule to the joint committee on Finance (JCF) following the final adjournment of the 1995-96 legislature, to change the estimated expenditures that will be made by the office of the governor for general program operations in fiscal year 1996-97 to reflect an estimated decrease of $216,800; to change the estimated expenditures that will be made by the senate for general program operations in fiscal year 1996-97 to reflect an estimated decrease of $1,695,200; and to change the estimated expenditures that will be made by the assembly for general program operations in fiscal year 1996-97 to reflect an estimated decrease of $2,014,500.

11. This bill reduces the authorized full-time equivalent positions for the office of the lieutenant governor by 4.0 full-time equivalent positions and eliminates funding of those positions, effective on July 1, 1996.

12. Currently, the salaries of employes of the assembly and senate are set by the appointing authority (the chief clerks of the houses) in accordance with the state compensation plan for employes in the classified civil service, within ranges approved by the joint committee on legislative organization (JCLO), or, at JCLO's option, by the organization committee of either house. This bill limits the base salary that may be paid to any employe of the senate or assembly, other than a member or officer, to $37,056 per year.

13. Currently, JCLO or either house of the legislature may employ such number of research staff assigned to legislative party caucuses as in the judgment of JCLO or the committee on organization of either house are necessary to enable it to perform its functions and duties and to best serve the people of this state. This bill deletes this authority and deauthorizes all positions that are currently assigned to legislative party caucuses beginning on July 1, 1996.

14. Currently, there is appropriated a sum sufficient to JCLO for the purpose of maintaining memberships for this state in national organizations, including specifically the Council of State Governments. This bill deletes authorization for JCLO to use any of the moneys appropriated under this appropriation to maintain a membership for the Wisconsin legislature in the Council of State Governments.

For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

SB539, s. 1 Section 1. 13.14 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB539,5,6 13.14 (3) Travel; legislative personnel. The actual and necessary expenses of legislative policy research personnel, assistants to legislators and research staff assigned to legislative committees and party caucuses incident to attending meetings outside the capital shall be reimbursed from the appropriation under s. 20.765 (1) (a) or (b).

SB539, s. 2 Section 2. 13.20 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB539,6,3 13.20 (1) Number and pay range of legislative employes. The legislature or either house thereof may employ under the unclassified service such policy research personnel, assistants to legislators, research staff assigned to legislative committees and party caucuses and such clerical, professional or other assistants as in the judgment of the joint committee on legislative organization or the committee on organization in each house are necessary to enable it to perform its functions and duties and to best serve the people of this state.

SB539, s. 3 Section 3. 13.20 (2m) of the statutes is created to read:

SB539,6,8 13.20 (2m) Limitation on maximum annual salaries. Notwithstanding sub. (2) and ss. 20.923 (6) (h), 230.10 and 230.12, no legislative employe whose salary is paid from the appropriation under section 20.765 (1) (a) or (b), other than a member or officer, may receive a base salary exceeding $37,056 per year.

SB539, s. 4 Section 4. 13.93 (2) (g) of the statutes is repealed.

SB539, s. 5 Section 5. 15.05 (3) of the statutes is repealed.

SB539, s. 6 Section 6. 15.05 (5) of the statutes is repealed.

SB539, s. 7 Section 7. 15.06 (4m) of the statutes is repealed.

SB539, s. 8 Section 8. 15.06 (9) of the statutes is repealed.

SB539, s. 9 Section 9. 16.003 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB539,6,18 16.003 (2) Staff. Except as provided in ss. 16.548, 16.57, 978.03 (1), (1m) and (2), 978.04 and 978.05 (8) (b), the secretary shall appoint the staff necessary for performing the duties of the department. All staff shall be appointed under the classified service except as otherwise provided by law.

SB539, s. 10 Section 10. 16.548 of the statutes is repealed.

SB539, s. 11 Section 11. 19.42 (10) (L) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB539,6,22 19.42 (10) (L) The executive director, executive assistant to the executive director and investment directors of the investment board.

SB539, s. 12 Section 12. 19.42 (13) (k) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB539,6,25 19.42 (13) (k) The executive director, executive assistant to the executive director and investment directors of the investment board.

SB539, s. 13 Section 13. 20.005 (3) (schedule) of the statutes: at the appropriate place, insert the following amounts for the purposes indicated: - See PDF for table

SB539, s. 14 Section 14. 20.197 (1) (g) (intro.) of the statutes, as affected by 1995 Wisconsin Act 27, section 543m, is repealed and recreated to read:

SB539,7,13 20.197 (1) (g) General program operations; racing. (intro.) The amounts in the schedule for general program operations under ch. 562. All moneys received by the gaming board under ss. 562.02 (2) (f), 562.04 (1) (b) 4. and (2) (d), 562.05 (2), 562.065 (3) (d) and (e) 2. and (4) and 562.09 (2) (e), less the amounts appropriated under s. 20.455 (2) (g), shall be credited to this appropriation account. The unencumbered balance in this appropriation on June 30 of each fiscal year which exceeds 10% of that fiscal year's expenditures under this appropriation, but not more than the total amount received during that fiscal year under s. 562.065 (3) (d) and (e) 2. and (4), shall be transferred as follows: