Conservatively Speaking
State Senator Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin) represents parts of four counties: Milwaukee, Waukesha, Racine, and Walworth. Her Senate District 28 includes New Berlin, Franklin, Greendale, Hales Corners, Muskego, Waterford, Big Bend and parts of Greenfield, East Troy, and Mukwonago. Senator Lazich has been in the Legislature for more than a decade. She considers herself a tireless crusader for lower taxes, reduced spending and smaller government.
The Governor's state budget vetoes
By Mary Lazich
Friday, Oct 26 2007, 11:27 AM
The Wheeler Report has compiled a list of Governor Doyle’s budget vetoes:
BUDGET VETOES LISTED
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
Higher Educational Aids Board and Dept of Administration
The Wisconsin Covenant Scholars Program
- Partial veto to remove references to eligibility criteria related to financial need.
- Partial veto to allow DOA to pay costs of operating the Office of the Wisconsin Covenant.
University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics Authority
- Partial veto removes non-fiscal policy items related to modifying board membership, eliminating limit on bonding and other changes.
University of Wisconsin System
- Veto removes independent purchase of telecommunications services.
- Veto removes requirement for information on instructors at registration.
Wisconsin Technical College System
- Veto removes levy limits on technical college districts.
- Veto removes limits on workforce advancement training grants to small businesses and statutory grant ceiling.
ENVIRONMENTAL AND COMMERCIAL RESOURCES
Commerce
- Partial vetoes affecting loans for pulp and paper mill.
- Veto eliminates phaseout of PECFA program.
Natural Resources
- Partial veto affecting CWD and Wildlife Damage Funding and language inhibiting the department’s pursuit of alternative solutions to the deficit facing the wildlife damage fund.
- Partial veto relating to JFC stewardship review because the review of land acquisitions should become effective with the reauthorized program on July 1, 2010.
- Veto affects the musky fishing season and catch and release bass fishing.
State Fair Park Board
- Veto removes quarterly reports requirement.
GENERAL GOVERNMENT AND JUSTICE
Administration and UW System
- Veto affects several sections related to information technology requirements.
Circuit Courts
- Technical veto related to Kenosha County Circuit Court Branch 8.
Corrections
- Vetoes affect juvenile correctional services deficit and limits on department flexibility to effectively manage juvenile corrections programs over time.
HEALTH AND FAMILY SERVICES AND INSURANCE
Health and Family Services
- Veto removes requirement DHFS request a federal waiver in order to offer health opportunity accounts to BadgerCare recipients and to provide the JFC an implementation plan.
- Veto affects requirement DHFS develop and implement disease management programs for conditions identified by health risk assessments for recipients and requires the programs be similar to programs developed and use by the Marshfield Clinic under the Physician Group Practice Demonstration.
- Veto affects requirement DHFS provide supplemental reimbursement to pharmacies participating in the Medicaid, BadgerCare and SeniorCare programs to compensate for any reduction in drug product costs reimbursements under the federal deficit reduction ac.
- Veto deletes report on FoodShare employment and training program participation.
- Veto deletes sunset of program for reducing fetal and infant mortality and morbidity.
- Veto deletes decrease in expenditure authority related to the Council on Developmental Disabilities because the provisions duplicate changes accomplished elsewhere in the budget.
STATE GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS
Employment Relations Commission
- Veto restores original intent of allowing both firefighters and law enforcement officers the opportunity to use collectively bargained alternative disciplinary appeal procedures instead of circuit court.
TAX, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND TRANSPORTATION
Revenue
- Veto removes three-tier liquor distribution system because “I object to inclusion of policy of this nature in a budget bill.”
- Partial veto affects inventory tax for moist snuff to make inventory tax consistent for cigarettes and moist snuff.
Shared Revenue and Property Tax Relief
- Partial veto of levy limit language affects “restrictiveness” of the limit for 2007, “which would negatively effect the provision of police and fire services.” The veto will allow local governments to increase their levies for 2007 by either the percentage increase due to net new construction or 3.86 percent.
Transportation
- Vetoes affect reports and approvals.
- Vetoes and write-downs affect state bicycle and pedestrian facilities program appropriations.
- Veto removes value engineering for highway improvement projects.
- Veto removes requirements for DMV service center operations.
- Veto removes authority of municipalities to issue permits for activities along state trunk highways within municipal limits when DOT has denied the project.
- Veto removes vehicle immobilization and impoundment for repeated parking violations language.
- Partial veto of construction schedule for STH 23 major highway development project because the proposed schedule is “unattainable and may negatively affect other highway projects.”
- Veto removes requirements for JFC supplemental funding for the Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee Commuter Rail extension project “because it infringes on the department’s ability to continue preliminary work on the project to determine its scope and final feasibility.
