Audit Committee Update

As many of you know, I serve as co-chair of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee which is responsible for directing the Legislative Audit Bureau to investigate the efficiency of state agencies and programs that are funded through state dollars. The Audit Bureau recently released an audit of our state's Medical Assistance program, also called Medicaid. The audit found that the program's costs totaled $7.5 billion in fiscal year 2010-11, making it the state's costliest program. The Committee held a public hearing on the results of the audit last week, where members expressed concerns about rising costs, lack of subprogram expenditure data, and use of contractors. The Department of Health Services (DHS) is taking steps to address these concerns and have been charged to report back to the committee later this year about the status of the Medical Assistance program.

Also, last week the Audit Bureau released a report on FoodShare Benefits Spent Outside Wisconsin. FoodShare is Wisconsin's program commonly referred to as food stamps. This report is a part of the large ongoing audit of the entire FoodShare program, which began last year at my request. The initial findings suggest potential fraud in the program. For example, the Audit Bureau found 334 instances during fiscal year 2010-11 in which a FoodShare card was used in Wisconsin on the same day that the account number was manually entered to make a purchase in a state that does not border ours. The full results of the FoodShare audit will be available later this year, but in the meantime,  DHS is taking steps to investigate these suspicious cases.

Recent Visitors

Last week, I received visits from some constituents here in my Madison office. Don't hesitate to stop in if you find yourself in Madison!

Rep. Kerkman with Deb and Rob DeDecker from Burlington on ABATE lobby day at the Capitol	Rep. Kerkman with Kathy and John Merten of Burlington at the Capitol

Caylee's Law

I have been working hard this session on Caylee's Law, a bill I introduced in the Assembly in response to the Casey Anthony trial that received nationwide media attention last year. Many of you wrote to me encouraging me to sponsor this legislation. The bill specifies penalties for failing to report a child missing. I'm pleased that the bill is scheduled to be heard in the Assembly Criminal Justice and Corrections Committee this week. This means the bill is on its way through the legislative process and, if it passes out of committee, the next step will be consideration on the floor of the Assembly.

KAC Legislative Breakfast

I recently attended the Kenosha Achievement Center's Legislative Breakfast and spoke on a panel with some of my legislative colleagues. We discussed adult services issues, the birth to three program, and transportation issues. The breakfast provided a great forum for an important discussion about current state issues.

Rep. Kerkman with (from left) Representative Peter Barca, Senator Van Wanggaard, Kenosha County Executive Jim Kreuser, and Senator Bob Wirch

If you are interested in tracking the progress of legislation introduced this session, please visit http://legis.wisconsin.gov/ and click on the Notification Service link found on the homepage.