Governor
Read and referred to committee on Environment and Natural Resources.
State of Wisconsin
Office of the Governor
January 30, 2008
The Honorable, The Senate:
I am pleased to nominate and with the advice and consent of the Senate, do appoint Stark, Will,
of De Pere, as a member of the Fox River Navigational System Authority, to serve for the term ending July 1, 2010.
Respectfully submitted,
JIM DOYLE
Governor
Read and referred to committee on Environment and Natural Resources.
State of Wisconsin
Office of the Governor
January 30, 2008
The Honorable, The Senate:
I am pleased to nominate and with the advice and consent of the Senate, do appoint Vidaillet, Humberto,
of Marshfield, as a member of the UW Hospitals and Clinics Authority and Board, to serve for the term ending July 1, 2010.
Respectfully submitted,
JIM DOYLE
Governor
Read and referred to committee on Health, Human Services, Insurance, and Job Creation.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Office of the Secretary of State
January 30
, 2008
The Honorable, the Legislature:
Joint Enrolled
Resolution Number
Publication Date
SJR 69
25
Not Published
SJR 5
26
Not Published
(Constitutional Amendment - second consideration)
Sincerely,
DOUGLAS LA FOLLETTE
Secretary of State
State of Wisconsin
Legislative Audit Bureau
January 29, 2008
The Honorable, Legislature:
We have completed a review of food and dairy safety program funding, which is administered by the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). The program's expenditures totaled $8.4 million in fiscal year (FY) 2006-07 and supported 97.6 full-time equivalent positions. In FY 2006-07, 54.9 percent of the program was funded with fees charged to regulated entities, 41.6 percent with general purpose revenue, and 3.5 percent with federal revenue.
During our review period, fee revenue increased 20.8 percent, but fee-funded expenditures increased by 43.2 percent. As a result, the program's appropriation account balance has decreased each year since FY 2002-03, and in FY 2006-07 ended with a negative balance of $51,800. To address the program's current funding shortfall, DATCP has proposed increasing food and dairy fees by approximately 30 percent beginning July 1, 2008. This proposal is currently under review by the Legislature.
We compared Wisconsin's fee structure with those of six other states and found substantial variation in funding levels, staffing levels, and inspector workloads. While Wisconsin is near the average of the states we reviewed in terms of funding and staffing, it has the highest inspector workload.
In FY 2006-07, DATCP had contracts with 34 local health departments to conduct food safety inspections at retail food establishments such as grocery stores and delicatessens within their boundaries. We compared DATCP's retail food licensing fees with fees charged by 26 local programs and found that local fees were frequently higher than those charged by DATCP.
Our comprehensive evaluation of the effectiveness of DATCP's food and dairy regulatory activities will be released later in the year. We appreciate the courtesy and cooperation extended to us by DATCP in conducting this review.
Sincerely,
Janice Mueller
State Auditor
__________________
Pursuant to Senate Rule 17 (5), Representative Hilgenberg added as a coauthor of
Assembly Bill
263
.
Pursuant to Senate Rule 17 (5), Senator Taylor added as a coauthor of
Senate Bill
402
.
