Wednesday, December 20, 2000
Ninety-Fourth Regular Session
The Chief Clerk makes the following entries under the above date.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Ethics Board
December 13, 2000
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 1999 session of the legislature, visit the Ethics Board's web site at
http://ethics.state.wi.us
Decorah, Sarah Petroleum Marketers Assn of WI & WI Assn of Convenience Stores
Larson, Rebecca Northern States Power Company
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 the organizations that employ lobbyists.
Sincerely,
Roth Judd
Director
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
December 13, 2000
The Honorable, The Senate:
As requested by the Public Service Commission (PSC), we have completed a financial audit of the Universal Service Fund, which was established to ensure that all residents receive essential telecommunication services and have access to advanced telecommunications capabilities. Our audit report contains our unqualified opinion on the fund's financial statements and related notes for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2000 and 1999.
The Universal Service Fund is funded through assessments of telecommunications providers, which totaled $14.1 million in fiscal year 1999-2000. The largest program funded by the Universal Service Fund is the Educational Telecommunications Access Program, which is administered by the Technology for Educational Achievement (TEACH) Board. During fiscal year 1999-2000, $8.8 million, which is 67 percent of total fund expenditures, was expended on subsidies and grants for data lines and video links for schools, libraries, and others under this program.
As noted in our prior audits, expenditures for the Universal Service Fund programs operated by the PSC continued to be significantly less than budgeted levels. However, the Legislature and the PSC recently added a number of new programs to be funded from the Universal Service Fund, which are likely to affect its funding needs in the future.
We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by the staff at the PSC; TEACH; and the Funds administrator, Williams Young, LLC, during the audit.
Sincerely,
Janice Mueller
State Auditor
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
December 15, 2000
The Honorable, The Senate:
We have completed a financial audit of the Petroleum Inspection Fee Revenue Obligations Program for the partial year ending June 30, 2000. the Program provides financing for payment of claims under the Wisconsin Petroleum Environmental Cleanup fund Award (PECFA) program. This financial audit was performed at the request of the Department of Commerce, which audits and pays PECFA claims, and the Department of Administration, which issues the Program's revenue bonds and commercial paper.
As necessary parts of the financial audit, we reviewed the Revenue Obligations Program's control procedures, assessed the fair presentation of the Statement of Changes in Program Assets, and reviewed compliance with applicable laws and regulations. We were able to provide an unqualified auditor's report on the Program's financial statement and notes, and we found no instances of weaknesses in the internal control structure or instances of noncompliance.
The State issues $230 million in revenue obligations during our audit period and another $20 million in early December 2000. The debt proceeds, along with petroleum inspection fees in excess of debt service requirements, have allowed the Department of Commerce to reduce a backlog of approved but unpaid PECFA claims from $196 million as of January 1, 2000, to $16 million as of June 30, 2000. However, as of June 30, 2000, Commerce had yet to review for approval approximately $25 million in claimed costs, and Commerce continues to receive new claims every month.
Copies of the report have been distributed to members of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee and those required by law to receive them. If you are interested in receiving a copy of this report, please contact our office and request report number 00-16. The report is also available on line at
www.legis.state.wi.us\lab\windex.htm.
Sincerely,
Janice Mueller
State of Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin System
December 15, 2000
The Honorable, The Legislature:
The 1999-2001 State of Wisconsin Biennial Budget,
1999 Wisconsin Act 9, included a provision to change the University of Wisconsin System's appropriation for tuition and fee revenues (Academic Student Fees, Fund 131) from an annual, sum certain appropriation to a continuing appropriation.
Wisconsin Act 9 required the Board of Regents to report annually, beginning on December 15, 2000, the amount by which actual expenditures in the previous fiscal year, in this case 1999-2000, exceeded the amount in the schedule for that appropriation in the previous fiscal year. That report, including the purposes for which the additional revenues were spent and the amount spent for each purpose, is attached. The Board of Regents approved this report for submission at its December 9, 2000 meeting.
Please contact Freday Harris at (608) 263-5679, if you have any questions related to this report.
Sincerely,
Deborah A. Durcan
Vice President of Finance
State of Wisconsin
Public Service Commission
December 14, 2000
The Honorable, The Legislature:
Enclosed please find the "Report to the Legislature on the Development of Distributed Electric Generation in the State of Wisconsin." It is transmitted as required by Wis. Stats. s.
196.025(4)(b), for distribution to the appropriate standing committees under Wis. Stat. s.
13.172(3).
Pursuant to Wis. Stat. s.
196.025(4)(a), in consultation with the Department of Administration and the Department of Revenue, Commission staff has prepared the enclosed report on high-efficiency, small-scale distributed electric generation. The report concludes with six recommendations that could encourage use of high-efficiency, small-scale distributed generation in the state of Wisconsin.
Sincerely,
Lynda L. Dorr
