William E. Stieglitz
Rodney Feltz
James Cape and Sons, Company
Life Underwriters PAC/WI Association of Life Underwriters
Robert L. Beavers
Mya L. Haessig
Rosemary M. Flanum
Timothy L. Kelso
Daniel J. Price
2. Payment of the following amounts to the following claimants is justified under s. 16.007, Stats:
George Bolwerk $409.79
Dated at Madison, Wisconsin this 27th day of May 1998.
Alan Lee, Chair
Representative of the Attorney General
Edward D. Main, Secretary
Representative of the Secretary of Administration
Timothy Weeden
Senate Finance Committee
Sheryl Albers
Assembly Finance Committee
Stewart Simonson
Representative of the Governor
State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
May 27, 1998
The Honorable, The Legislature:
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Chapter 34, Laws of 1979, requires that when the Department of Administration maintains an office in Washington, DC, for the purpose of promoting federal/state cooperation, it should submit a report detailing the activities of the office and reporting the status of federal legislation of concern to the Legislature and other state agencies (Wis. Stats. 16.548(2)).
The report for the period January 1, 1998, through March 31, 1998, is attached.
Sincerely,
Mark D. bugher
Secretary
State of Wisconsin
Department of Health and Family Services
May 20, 1998
The Honorable, The Senate:
Wisconsin Statutes (s.
49.45(2)(a)20) require the Department to submit an annual report to the Joint Committee on Finance on the participation rates of children in the Early and Periodic Screening Diagnosis and Treatment Program. In Wisconsin, we have named this program "HealthCheck".
The report's purpose is to identify significant activities of Wisconsin Medicaid's HealthCheck program and, particularly, to report on the percent of children who received comprehensive health care screens through HealthCheck.
Wisconsin's actual screening ratio increased from 48% in 1996 to 54% in 1997. We believe the principal reason for the increasing screening ratio is the Medicaid managed care initiative. The Medicaid HMO contract requires an increasing HealthCheck screening ratio as one performance requirement. The screening ratio standard requirement increased from 40% in 1991 to 80% in 1996 and 1997.
Since children in HMOs are more likely to receive a HealthCheck screening than children in the fee-for-service system, we are expecting next year's HealthCheck screening ratio to continue to improve due to the recent HMO expansion. The numbers for the federal fiscal year (FFY) 1997 HMO screening exams are based on the number of screening exams reported by the HMOs for the first three quarters of FFY 1997; an estimate of screening exams is used for the fourth quarter. The fourth quarter is an estimate because HMOs are now submitting HealthCheck data semi-annually instead of quarterly. Fee-for-service numbers are counts of actual billed services.
I an pleased to send you the completed report for 1997.
Sincerely,
Joe Leean
Secretary
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
May 28, 1998
The Honorable, The Legislature:
We have completed our annual financial audit of the Division of Gaming within the Department of Administration, as required by s.
13.94(1)(eg), Wis. Stats. We have issued an unqualified opinion on the Division's financial statement for the Racing, Indian Gaming, and Charitable Gaming programs for the years ended June 30, 1997 and 1996.
The Racing program's pari-mutuel tax revenue has decreased significantly in recent years. Between fiscal year (FY) 1994-95 and FY 1996-97, pari-mutuel tax revenue declined by approximately 45 percent, from $4.7 million to $2.6 million, and the Division projects pari-mutuel tax revenue will decline to $2.3 million in FY 1997-98. Charitable Gaming program revenue has remained relatively stable at $976,129 in FY 1994-95, $952,781 in FY 1995-96, and $975,627 in FY 1996-97. During our audit period, the Division's primary revenue from the Indian Gaming program was the $350,000 received annually from the 11 tribes as reimbursement for the State's regulatory costs.
Despite the reduction in pari-mutuel tax revenue, we found that Racing program revenues paid for some administrative expenditures that should have been charged to the Indian Gaming and Charitable Gaming programs in FY 1996-97. Specifically, the salary and fringe benefit expenditures for the Division's administrative staff were charged entirely to the Racing program, even though the duties and responsibilities of the staff encompass all three programs. Had these employe-related costs been allocated according to work effort, we estimate that an additional $164,500 in racing proceeds would have been available for transfer to other programs. By statute, transferred funds are first to be used for programs to aid local fairs and for educational programs related to livestock, both of which are administered by the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. Any excess funds are then to be transferred to the General Fund.
In future sessions, the Legislature will determine how to appropriate additional funds the State will receive as a result of Indian gaming compact negotiations. However, the Legislature will first need assurances that all gaming regulatory costs are fully recovered and charged to the correct programs. Therefore, we have included a recommendation for the Department of Administration to develop an equitable process to allocate administrative costs to all its gaming programs.
We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by the Department of Administration's Division of Gaming. The Division's response is the appendix.
Sincerely,
Janice Mueller
State Auditor
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
June 2, 1998
The Honorable, The Legislature:
As directed by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, we have completed a review of differing approaches to reading instruction, a survey of the approaches used by Wisconsin classroom teachers and school district curriculum professionals, and an evaluation of the process used to develop the curriculum guides published by the Department of Public Instruction for districts to use when creating their reading curricula.
Reading instruction is a contentious topic, as school districts debate the merits of phonics instruction—a skills approach that emphasizes letter and sound combinations within words—versus whole language instruction—an approach that teaches words within the context of literature. Because there is research supporting both skills and context approaches to reading instruction, education professionals nationwide are beginning to support the use of a mixture of approaches that combines the strengths of phonics and whole language instruction.
We surveyed kindergarten through third-grade classroom teachers in Wisconsin and found that over 90 percent use a mixture of approaches to reading instruction, although approximately 40.6 percent of surveyed teachers reported a skills (phonics-related) emphasis, 33.1 percent reported a context (whole language-related) emphasis, and 20.8 percent reported no specific emphasis. Despite reporting different emphases within their approaches to reading instruction, teachers and districts reported little difference in the types of instructional resources and techniques they use in the classroom.
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We also reviewed the task force process that the Department used to develop its
Guides to Curriculum Planning. The process used to determine content for the 1985
Guide to Curriculum Planning in Reading allowed for information about phonics and whole language instruction to be included, although this issue was not as contentious when the guide was being developed. The reading guide is now outdated, and we include a recommendation for how the Department can expand participation in the task force process to ensure reading instruction issues are comprehensively addressed in a future revision.
We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by the Department of Public Instruction. The Department's response is Appendix III.
Sincerely,
Janice Mueller
State Auditor
__________________
executive order #336
Relating to a Proclamation that the Flag of the United States and the Flag of the State of Wisconsin be Flown at Half-Staff as a Mark of Respect for the Memory of the Late Barry M. Goldwater, Former United States Senator from the State of Arizona
WHEREAS, Barry M. Goldwater died at his home in Paradise Valley, Arizona at the age of 89 on Friday, May 29, 1998; and
WHEREAS, Barry M. Goldwater faithfully and patriotically served the people of the United States as a United States Senator and as a member of the Armed Forces; and
WHEREAS, President Clinton has ordered that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff on Wednesday, June 3, 1998 as a mark of respect for the memory of the late Barry M. Goldwater;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, TOMMY G. THOMPSON, Governor of the State of Wisconsin, by the authority vested in me by Federal and State law, do hereby order that the flag of the United States and the flag of the State of Wisconsin shall be flown at half-staff at all buildings, grounds and military installations of the State of Wisconsin equipped with such flags beginning at sunrise on Wednesday, June 3, 1998 and ending at sunset on that date as a mark of respect for the memory of the late Barry M. Goldwater.
IN TESTIMONY WHERE OF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of Wisconsin to be affixed. Done at the Capitol in the city of Madison this second day of June in the year one thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight.
TOMMY G. THOMPSON
Governor
By the governor:
DOUGLAS LA FOLLETTE
Secretary of State
State of Wisconsin
Office of the Governor
May 28, 1998
The Honorable, The Senate:
As required by Article V, Section 6 of the Wisconsin Constitution, I am submitting the annual Executive Clemency report to the Legislature, covering those clemency cases upon which final dispositions were rendered for applicants during the calendar year 1997. The following applicants received full pardons in 1997:
John R. Bernhoft, convicted of Attempted Theft from Person as a Party to a Crime and sentenced on 4/12/79 to 2 years probation plus restitution and costs, recommended by the Pardon Advisory Board by a vote of 5-0 to be granted a pardon, was granted a pardon on 11/7/97, because he is a productive member of society and otherwise deserving of extraordinary relief.
