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Executive Communications
State of Wisconsin
Office of the Governor
Madison
May 3, 2007
To the Honorable Members of the Assembly:
The following bills, originating in the Assembly, have been approved, signed and deposited in the office of the Secretary of State:
Bill Number Act Number
Date Approved
Assembly Bill 123 7 May 3, 2007
Assembly Bill 206 8 May 3, 2007
Assembly Bill 122 9 May 3, 2007
Respectfully submitted,
JIM Doyle
Governor
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Referral of Agency Reports
State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
Department of Corrections
Madison
April 11, 2007
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
Attached is the FY06 report on Prison Industries for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2006, as required by §
303.018 of the Wisconsin Statutes. This report includes the cash balance of each industry. Private sector joint venture balances are reported separately from the remainder of Prison Industries.
The Department of Corrections would be happy to respond to any questions you may have on this matter.
Sincerely,
Michael L. Morgan, Secretary
Department of Administration
Matthew J. Frank, Secretary
Department of Corrections
Referred to committee on Corrections and the Courts.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
Madison
April 30, 2007
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
In compliance with Wisconsin statute 16.548, please find the Wisconsin Office of Federal/State Relations quarterly report to be submitted to the Legislature for the First Quarter of 2007. This report provides information on the activities of the office and the status of federal legislation of concern to the State of Wisconsin.
Please contact me if you have any questions about this material.
Sincerely,
Michael Morgan
Secretary
Referred to committee on State Affairs.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources
Madison
May 1, 2007
To the Honorable, the Assembly:
A167
In fulfillment of the requirements under s.
299.85(9m), Wisconsin State Statutes, I am submitting to you a copy of Wisconsin's Environmental Compliance Audit Program 2007 Annual Report. It covers the period April 1, 2006 to March 31, 2007. Please distribute as appropriate. I am also providing a copy of the report to the Governor and to the Chief Clerk of the Senate.
For more information on Wisconsin's Environmental Compliance Audit Program or additional copies of this report, please contact Mark McDermid at (608) 267‐3125. DNR staff will send you an electronic copy of this letter and Annual Report to facilitate distribution.
Sincerely,
Scott Hassett
Secretary
Referred to committee on Natural Resources.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources
Madison
May 1, 2007
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
In fulfillment of the requirements under s.
299.83(8)(h), Wisconsin State Statutes, I am transmitting the 2007 Green Tier Biennial Progress Report. Please distribute as appropriate. I am also providing a copy of the Report to the Governor and to the Chief Clerk of the Senate.
The Green Tier law is scheduled to sunset July 1, 2009. This report outlines the progress already made toward the goal of helping businesses achieve superior environmental performance. I believe, however, that the law is capable of long‐term benefits that will not have time to develop before the sunset and the presence of the sunset may be impeding our implementation of the provisions within the law. The reauthorization of Green Tier will allow us to explore more of what Green Tier can accomplish. I look forward to working with the legislature to secure program reauthorization, furthering our commitment to our participants, the environment, and the state of Wisconsin.
For more information on the Green Tier program or additional copies of this report, please contact Mark McDermid at (608) 267‐3125, or visit our web site at
http://greentier.wi.gov.
Sincerely,
Scott Hassett
Secretary
Referred to committee on Natural Resources.
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Agency Reports
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
Madison
May 3, 2007
To the Honorable, the Assembly:
During the course of a September 2005 financial review of internal controls at the Green Bay Correctional Institution, we became aware of a credit union on its grounds and employing state workers. In 2006, we conducted additional fieldwork to learn more about the operations of this credit union and identified another credit union operating at Waupun Correctional Institution. We assessed whether state resources, including state employee staff time, were being used to conduct credit union business. We did not review the financial condition of each credit union; however, we note that as required by s.
186.235(16), Wis. Stats., each credit union has been subject to regular inspections by the Office of Credit Unions within the Department of Financial Institutions.
The credit unions were incorporated and chartered in 1932, and they continue to serve several hundred members. However, both their location and prison officials' limited knowledge about their operations raise some concern that state resources have been used inappropriately. For example, until we raised the issue, and contrary to Department of Corrections policy, conflict‐of‐interest forms were not on file for any of the five state employees who are also paid employees of the credit unions. Further, the Waupun credit union is located in the business office, and staff have reported that information on credit union services is sometimes provided during state office hours.
We believe steps should be taken to ensure compliance with the Department's policies concerning outside employment and to establish a clear separation between credit union and state business. It may also be appropriate to consider whether the credit unions should continue to operate under the existing arrangements.
We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by staff at the Department of Corrections and at the Office of Credit Unions within the Department of Financial Institutions as we conducted this review.
Sincerely,
Janice Mueller
State Auditor
