Friday, August 31, 2012
One-Hundredth Regular Session
The Chief Clerk makes the following entries under the above date:
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Speaker's Communications
DATE: August 6, 2012
TO: Patrick E. Fuller, Assembly Chief Clerk
FROM: Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald
RE: JCRAR temporary appointment
Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald appoints Representative Mike Kuglitsch to temporarily replace Representative Dan Meyer on the Joint Committee on Review of Administrative Rules, effective immediately.
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Referral of Agency Reports
State of Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources
Madison
August 15, 2012
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
The 2011-2013 State Budget required the Department of Natural Resources to prepare an economic impact analysis for the administrative rules on the following matter: the shoreland zoning administrative rule changes in NR 115, which went into effect on February 1, 2010. The budget required the DNR to submit the economic impact analysis to the Department of Administration, the Governor, and to the Chief Clerks of the Assembly and Senate for distribution to the chairpersons of the appropriate standing committees of the Legislature and to the Co-Chairpersons of the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules. I am attaching the economic impact study for your distribution.
Sincerely,
Michael Bruhn
Legislative Liaison
Referred to committee on Natural Resources.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources
Madison
August 15, 2012
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
The 2011-2013 State Budget required the Department of Natural Resources to prepare an economic impact analysis for the administrative rules on the following matter: the phosphorus effluent limitation administrative rule changes in NR 102.06 and NR 217, Subchapter III, which went into effect on December 1, 2010. The budget required the DNR to submit the economic impact analysis to the Department of Administration, the Governor, and to the Chief Clerks of the Assembly and Senate for distribution to the chairpersons of the appropriate standing committees of the Legislature and to the Co-Chairpersons of the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules. I am attaching the economic impact study for your distribution.
Sincerely,
Michael Bruhn
Legislative Liaison
Referred to committee on Natural Resources.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
Madison
August 15, 2012
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
In compliance with Wisconsin Statute 16.548, attached, please find the Wisconsin Office of Federal/State Relations quarterly report, to be submitted to the Legislature for the second quarter of 2012. This report provides information on the activities of the Office and the status of federal legislation of concern to the State of Wisconsin.
Sincerely,
Mike Huebsch
Secretary
Referred to committee on Homeland Security and State Affairs.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Health Services
Madison
To the Honorable, the Legislature:
The Department of Health Services is pleased to submit the 2011 Annual Report to the Governor and the Legislature. The report is required by
2003 Wis. Act 33, SB 44, Section 2462, 255.15 (4).
Please contact Vicki Stauffer at 267-3823 if you have any questions or need additional information.
Sincerely,
Dennis G. Smith
Secretary
Referred to committee on Health.
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State of Wisconsin
Department of Administration
Madison
August 31, 2012
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 July 2012.
On July 1, 2012, the Medical Assistance Trust Fund cash balance closed at a negative $162.2 million. The cash balance was negative through July 31, 2012, when it closed at a negative $15.1 million. The Medical Assistance Trust Fund cash balance reached its intra-month low of a negative $171.0 million on July 10, 2012.
The Medical Assistance Trust Fund shortfall was due to the difference in the timing of revenues and expenditures, was 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,
Mike Huebsch
Secretary
Referred to committee on Ways and Means and joint committee on Finance.
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Agency Reports
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
Madison
August 8, 2012
To the Honorable, the Assembly:
We have completed our review of crime victim and witness assistance surcharge revenue, as requested by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee. Statutes require circuit courts to assess a $92 surcharge for each felony conviction and a $67 surcharge for each misdemeanor conviction. Circuit courts collect most surcharge revenue, which is deposited into two Department of Justice (DOJ) appropriations that fund two crime victim services programs and a sexual assault victim services grant program.
Questions have been raised regarding the reasons surcharge revenue declined from $5.9 million in fiscal year (FY) 2008-09 to $5.7 million in FY 2010-11, despite a $7 increase in the surcharge that began in FY 2009-10. From FY 2008-09 through FY 2010-11, the number of criminal charges filed that could result in assessed surcharges declined by 13.6 percent, and the number of convictions declined by 12.4 percent. Judges have the discretion to reduce the surcharge, but the available data indicate that they seldom did so in recent years. However, individuals have not made any payments on $12.7 million in surcharges that were assessed from FY 2006-07 through FY 2010-11.
We found some surcharge revenue was not appropriately deposited into the two DOJ appropriations. As a result, the sexual assault victim services grant program received an estimated $204,000 less than was statutorily required in recent years, and that amount was instead provided to the two crime victim services programs. Other errors in allocating revenue from surcharges assessed in prior years continue to occur, which will result in the sexual assault victim services grant program receiving an undetermined amount of additional funding in the future. Because these errors are related only to the allocation of surcharge revenue, they do not affect the overall amount of surcharge revenue collected or explain the decline in surcharge revenue.
We appreciate the cooperation extended to us by the state agencies involved with this review, as well as by county clerk of court offices and district attorney offices. DOJ's response follows the appendix.
Respectfully submitted,
Joe Chrisman
State Auditor
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A1040
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
Madison