Scope statements
Administration
Subject
Objective of the Rule. The Department of Administration proposes to repeal ch.
Adm 25 regarding the Information Technology Investment Fund, which was eliminated in
1999 Wis. Act 9.
Policy analysis
Grants for the information technology development projects under ss.
16.971 (5) and
20.870, Stats., were eliminated by
1999 Wis. Act 9. As a result, this rule is no longer needed.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
10 hours.
Administration
Subject
Objective of the Rule. The Department of Administration proposes to repeal ch.
Adm 41 regarding the Energy Development and Demonstration Fund program, which was eliminated in
1999 Wis. Act 9.
Policy analysis
Grants for the energy development and demonstration program under ss. 16.956 and 20.505 (1) (d), Stats., were repealed by
1999 Wis. Act 9. Since the program has been eliminated, the rule is no longer needed.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
10 hours.
Employee Trust Funds
Subject
1999 Wisconsin Act 11 (WA 11) revised the State Statutes to permit Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) participating employees to elect to participate in the Variable Trust Fund. 1999 WA 11 also specifies that the Department shall by rule provide that any participant who elects or has elected variable participation may cancel that participation.
The Department proposes to renumber Wis. Adm. Code ss.
ETF 10.30,
10.32,
10.33, and
10.34 as part of ETF 10.31, and to amend s.
ETF 10.31. The changes are intended to further clarify the process of participating in the Variable Trust Fund and how interest will be credited to late reported contributions deposited in the accounts of participants in the Variable Trust Fund.
Description of Policy Issues
Objectives of the Rule. The proposed rule renumbering is intended to consolidate all rules governing participation in the Variable Trust Fund into one administrative code, s.
ETF 10.31.
The proposed rule amendments are intended to provide clear guidance to WRS participants and to the Department of Employee Trust Funds staff regarding issues that include the effective dates for participants who elect or cancel participation in the Variable Trust Fund, how interest will be credited on late reported variable contributions, and the effect of variable cancellations for individuals with multiple WRS accounts.
Policy analysis
1999 Wisconsin Act 11 amended Wis. Stat. §
40.04 (7) (a) to permit all participating employees on or after January 1, 2001 to elect to have 50% of their future required and additional contributions deposited in the Variable Trust Fund.
1999 Wisconsin Act 11 also permits former Variable Trust Fund participants who completely cancelled their original variable participation to re-enroll in the Variable Trust Fund.
Renumbering Wisconsin Administrative Code ss.
ETF 10.30,
10.32,
10.33, and
10.34 as part of s.
ETF 10.31 will consolidate all administrative rules regarding participation in the Variable Trust Fund in one administrative code. This will streamline the administrative code and provide efficient administration of the Variable Trust Fund program.
Revising s.
ETF 10.31 will further clarify the effective dates of a participant's election to participate in and to cancel participation in the Variable Trust Fund, how interest will be credited on late reported variable contributions to participants' accounts, and the effect of variable cancellations on individuals with multiple WRS accounts.
The rule is intended to consolidate and clarify the Department's administrative policy and procedures regarding participation and cancellation of participation in the Variable Trust Fund. If the rule is not revised, there may be uncertainty and confusion regarding the effective dates of participation or cancellation of participation in the Variable Trust Fund and potentially inaccurate interest crediting. This rule clarification is necessary for the orderly and efficient administration of the WRS.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
80 hours.
Employee Trust Funds
Subject
Section
ETF 20.35 clarifies how Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) accounts and annuities are divided pursuant to qualified domestic relations orders (QDROs) under s.
40.08 (1m), Stats. The proposed rulemaking will amend s.
ETF 20.35 to further clarify the impact on a participant's account when the Department receives more than one QDRO that divides a participant's WRS account when the participant has more than one marriage that is legally terminated. Multiple QDROs are especially problematic when they are received out of chronological order with respect to the dates of divorce. This occurs more frequently since
1997 Wisconsin Act 125 was enacted. This legislation newly permitted the Department to honor QDROs for divorces that occurred between January 1, 1982 and April 27, 1990.
The proposed rulemaking will also include several non-substantive, technical amendments to s.
ETF 20.35 to add clarity to the text of the rule.
Description of Policy Issues
Objectives of the Rule. The proposed amendment would accomplish two objectives: provide clarification of the impact of multiple QDROs on a participant's WRS account, and make non-substantive technical changes to make the rule more clear.
Policy analysis
The Department must honor multiple QDROs for a participant's account when the participant has more than one marriage that is legally terminated, and the court awards a share of the participant's WRS account as part of the division of marital assets. Determining the effects of multiple QDROs on both the participant's and alternate payee's rights and benefits is extremely complex. The proposed rule would specify how the participant's benefits would be divided in the case of multiple QDROs.
The alternative to promulgating this rule would be to continue the confusion and lack of clarity in administration of multiple QDROs ordering the division of the account and/or annuity of a participant who has more than one legally terminated marriage. This would increase the risk of inconsistent account and annuity divisions in these situations, and participants, alternate payees, their attorneys and the courts would not have clear guidance on the results of multiple account divisions based on multiple QDROs.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
20 hours.
Health and Family Services
Subject
To establish a separate prescription drug coinsurance benefit relating to the Health Insurance Risk-Sharing Plan (HIRSP) with limits on HIRSP policyholder out-of-pocket expenses for covered prescription drugs.
Policy analysis
The State of Wisconsin in 1981 established a Health Insurance Risk-Sharing Plan for the purpose of making health insurance coverage available to medically uninsured residents of the state. HIRSP health insurance coverage includes prescription drug coverage. Currently, two major issues affect HIRSP prescription drug coverage. The first issue is that pharmacies have difficulty determining the financial liability of HIRSP policyholders. The second issue is that the current system of HIRSP reimbursement to policyholders for prescription drug costs is financially burdensome to HIRSP policyholders. To resolve these issues, the department proposes to implement effective January 1, 2002, new coinsurance provisions for HIRSP's drug benefit that will clarify the financial liability of HIRSP policyholders for covered prescription drug costs and eliminate the process of reimbursing policyholders for prescription drug expenses by establishing policyholders' minimum and maximum out-of-pocket costs for covered prescription drugs.
The proposed rules will affect approximately 12,000 HIRSP policyholders statewide.
Statutory authority
The Department's statutory authority is derived from s.
149.14 (5) (e), Stats., as amended by
2001 Wisconsin Act 16 and s.
149.146 (2) (am) 5., Stats., as created by
2001 Wisconsin Act 16. Section 9123 (9w) of the Act authorizes the department to use the emergency rulemaking procedures under s.
227.24, Stats., to promulgate rules under s.
149.14 (5) (e), Stats., as amended by the Act and s.
149.146 (2) (am) 5., Stats., as created by the Act. Notwithstanding s.
227.24 (1) (a),
(2) (b), and
(3), Stats., s. 9123 (9w), exempts the department from making a finding of emergency and from providing evidence that promulgating this rules as emergency rule is necessary for the preservation of public peace, health, safety, or welfare. The HIRSP Board of Governors on September 13, 2001, approved the out-of-pocket limits established in these rules, as required by s.
149.14 (5) (e) Stats., as amended and s.
149.146 (2) (am) 5., Stats., as created by
2001 Wisconsin Act 16.
Staff time required
