LRB-1142/P1
MDK:cjs:md
2011 - 2012 LEGISLATURE
DOA:......Frederick, BB0244 - Low income assistance for weatherization and other energy conservation services
For 2011-13 Budget -- Not Ready For Introduction
An Act ...; relating to: the budget.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
State Government
Other state government
Under current law, DOA administers a program for making grants from the utility public benefits fund (UPBF) to provide assistance to low-income households for the following: 1) weatherization and other energy conservation services (weatherization and conservation assistance); and 2) payment of energy bills and early identification or prevention of energy crises (bill and crisis assistance). In each fiscal year, DOA must ensure that the amount spent under the program on grants for weatherization and conservation assistance is equal to 47 percent of the sum of the following: 1) the amounts received under certain federally funded weatherization and energy-assistance programs; 2) the amount spent by certain electric and natural gas utilities on assistance to low-income households; 3) the amount spent on all programs funded by the UPBF; and 4) the amount of monthly low-income assistance fees that certain municipal electric utilities and electric retail cooperatives are required to collect from their customers and members. As a result, 53 percent of the above sum is available to be spent on grants under the program for bill and crisis assistance.
However, in fiscal years 2009-10 and 2010-11, current law allowed DOA to subtract no more than $10,000,000 from the amount that must be spent on weatherization and conservation assistance under the program. As a result, any amount subtracted by DOA was available to be spent on bill and crisis assistance. This bill allows DOA to make the same $10,000,000 subtraction in fiscal years 2011-12 and 2012-13.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
Section
1. 16.957 (2) (d) 2m. of the statutes is created to read:
16.957 (2) (d) 2m. In fiscal years 2011-12 and 2012-13, at the department's discretion, subtract no more than $10,000,000 from the amount required to be spent on weatherization and other energy conservation services under par. (a).
(End)
