__________________
Speaker's Communications
January 3, 2008
Mr. Patrick Fuller
Chief Clerk, Wisconsin State Assembly
Room 401, Risser Justice Center
17 West Main Street
Madison, Wisconsin 53708
Dear Patrick:
Pursuant to Assembly Rule
3, I have made the following changes to the membership of the Assembly committees established by Assembly Rule
9 listed below.
Judiciary and Ethics: Representative Suder will replace Representative Gundrum as chair of the committee for the remainder of the 2007-09 legislative session or until Representative Gundrum returns from active duty in the United States military.
Elections and Constitutional Law: Representative Vos will replace Representative Gundrum as vice-chair of the committee for the remainder of the 2007-09 legislative session or until Representative Gundrum returns from active duty in the United States military.
Rules: Representative Petrowski will replace Representative Gundrum as a member of the committee for the remainder of the 2007-09 legislative session or until Representative Gundrum returns from active duty in the United States military.
Organization: Representative Rhoades will replace Representative Gundrum as a member of the committee for the remainder of the 2007-09 legislative session or until Representative Gundrum returns from active duty in the United States military.
Pursuant to Assembly Rule
3, I have also made the following change to the membership of the Joint Committee on Legislative Organization.
Representative Rhoades will replace Representative Gundrum as a member of the committee for the remainder of the 2007-09 legislative session or until Representative Gundrum returns from active duty in the United States military.
All of the above appointments are effective immediately.
Should you have any questions, please contact my office.
Sincerely,
Michael Huebsch
Assembly Speaker
__________________
Referral of Agency Reports
State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
Madison
December 19, 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 Third 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 L. Morgan
Secretary
Referred to committee on State Affairs.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Department of Health and Family Services
Madison
December 19, 2007
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
The Department of Health and Family Services is pleased to provide you this annual report of the Wisconsin Food Security Consortium's plans to address food insecurity, as required under s.
46.76(4) and
(5).
The Wisconsin Food Security Consortium continues to make progress in devising strategies to end hunger and food insecurity in Wisconsin. Highlights include:
A419
• The Consortium continued to expand its membership to include several more local food security representatives. A website was established during 2007 to establish a primary communication link with members and other partners. (See
http://www.wisconsinfoodsecurityconsortium.org) A series of Topic Papers were developed for the Hunger Summit related to the four areas of food insecurity: Emergency Food Programs, Nutrition Assistance Programs, Access to Affordable and Nutritious Food, and Family Economic Security.
• The full Consortium met quarterly throughout 2007, while the Steering Committee met monthly. The by-laws were finalized and the Committee elected Jane Voichick as Consortium Chair.
• The Consortium planned and hosted a statewide Hunger Summit on October 4, 2007, in Stevens Point. The Summit was very well attended. Nearly 200 food providers, activists, state and local public and private hunger prevention agencies, public health nutritionists, FoodShare eligibility workers, business leaders, food pantry staff and volunteers, members of the faith community and other interested parties were present. Speakers included Senator Julie Lassa, Representative Louis Molepske, Patti Whitney-Wise (Executive Director of the Oregon Hunger Relief Task Force), Lynn Parker (Director of Child Nutrition Programs and Nutrition Policy, Food Research and Action Center, Washington D.C.), and Consortium members. The purpose of the Summit was to bring partners from around Wisconsin together to learn about food insecurity and hunger in the state, to network and collaborate, and to be inspired with ideas and actions. Input was collected to draft a statewide action plan that will serve as a blueprint as we move forward.
• The Wisconsin WIC Program conducted its WIC Food Insecurity Survey in 2007, a repeat of the survey conducted in 2002. Low food security increased from 44% in 2002 to 51% in 2007. However, very low food security (formerly described as food insecurity with hunger) decreased from 19% in 2002 to 15% in 2007.
• The major activities of the Consortium for 2008 will include finalizing the Statewide Action Plan and facilitating regional hunger forums throughout Wisconsin. The goal of the regional forums is to further engage local partners in strategies to reduce hunger. These strategies will be included in the final Action Plan which the Consortium will distribute statewide and begin implementing in 2008.
The Department is also a partner with the University of Wisconsin-Extension in the Wisconsin Food Security Project, which provides up-to-date county and state-level information about food security, economic well-being, and the availability and use of public and private programs to increase access to affordable and nutritious foods. An interactive map is available on the Wisconsin Food Security Project's website, showing each county's food security profile as measured by different indicators, including federal nutrition assistance program, food production and marketing, community infrastructure, and economic well-being, at
http://www.wisstat.wisc.edu/uwex/foodmaps.aspx.
The Department, along with the Food Security Consortium, continues its commitment to fighting hunger in Wisconsin.
With warm regards,
Kevin R. Hayden
Secretary
Referred to committee on Children and Family Law.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
Madison
December 31, 2007
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
This report is transmitted as required by s.
20.002(11)(f), Wisconsin Statutes, (for distribution to the appropriate standing committees under s.
13.172(3), Wisconsin Statutes) and confirms that the Department of Administration has found it necessary to exercise the "temporary reallocation of balances" authority provided by this section in order to meet payment responsibilities and cover resulting negative cash balances during the month of November 2007.
On November 1, 2007, the Wisconsin Health Education Loan Repayment Fund cash balance closed at a negative $2 thousand. This negative balance continued through November 30, 2007, when the fund's cash balance closed at a negative $2 thousand. The negative balance was due to the difference in the timing of revenues and expenditures.
On November 1, 2007, the Worker's Compensation Fund cash balance closed at a negative $1.8 million. This negative balance continued through November 30, 2007, when the fund's cash balance closed at a negative $2.9 million (its intra-month low). The negative balance was due to the difference in the timing of revenues and expenditures.
On November 1, 2007, the Injured Patients and Families Compensation Fund cash balance closed at a negative $46.2 million. This negative balance continued through November 30, 2007, when the fund's cash balance closed at a negative $44.5 million. The Injured Patients and Families Compensation Fund cash balance reached its intra-month low of a negative $46.3 million on November 13, 2007. The negative balance was due to the transfer of $71.5 million to the General Fund per
2007 Wisconsin Act 20, and the pending liquidation of fund securities necessary to offset this shortfall.
The Wisconsin Health Education Loan Repayment Fund, Worker's Compensation Fund, and the Injured Patients and Families Compensation Fund shortfalls were not in excess of the statutory interfund borrowing limitations and did not exceed the balances of the funds available for interfund borrowing.
The distribution of interest earnings to investment pool participants is based on the average daily balance in the pool and each fund's share. Therefore, the monthly calculation by the State Controller's Office will automatically reflect the use of these temporary reallocations of balance authority, and as a result, the funds requiring the use of the authority will effectively bear the interest cost.
Sincerely,
Michael L. Morgan
Secretary
Referred to committee on Ways and Means.
