DATCP/DSPS
Survey
Wisconsin Act 20, the 2013-2015 state
budget, calls for a study on merging two state agencies, the Department
of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) and the Department
of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS).
DSPS manages the licensing and regulation of professions in health,
business and construction trades. They also oversee state building
safety codes and provide services related to plan review, permit
issuance, building and component inspection, and safety codes. DATCP is
responsible for the promotion and regulation of Wisconsin’s agriculture
industry and the oversight of food safety and consumer protection.
The Department
of Administration (DOA) is heading up this study, and must submit a
report on the merger’s feasibility to the Legislature. In order to do
so, the DOA would like to know how this might affect you. Your answers
and contact information will be kept confidential and will not be used
outside of the scope of this survey. If this is a matter of interest to
you,
please take the survey here.
Free Health
Day for Dunn County Area Residents
Nine area churches along with Mayo Health Systems Red Cedar will be
sponsoring the third annual
Free Health Day this Saturday, October 12 at Menomonie Middle
School. Individuals can receive a number of free services: doctor exams,
blood pressure checks, cholesterol check and glucose screening, flu
shots, dental assessments, eye exams, hearing assessments, chiropractic
assessments, mental health screenings, financial coaching, oil change,
family photo and haircuts. In addition, a free lunch will be served
between 10:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. The event begins at 9:00 a.m., with
registration opening at 8:15 a.m. This event is
open to area residents (you do not have to reside within Dunn County), in particular those with no or low income and
those without health insurance.
Assembly Passes
Larson Bill
The Assembly met on Tuesday, October 8,
to kick off its fall floor period. One of the bills the Assembly passed
on Tuesday was
Assembly Bill (AB) 17, which I introduced earlier this year. AB 17
will allow adults who had been adopted as children to obtain a birth
certificate that restores most of the information from their original
birth certificate, including the names of their birth parents. (Most
adoptees are issued a new birth certificate at the time of the adoption,
and the adopting parents’ names typically replace the birth parents’.)
This issue was brought to my attention by my
colleague Rep. Nick Milroy (D-South Range) based on a situation involving
some of his constituents, whose birth father had died and who were
subsequently adopted by their stepfather after their mother remarried.
Years later, as adults, they want to restore their birth father’s name to
their birth certificates but are currently prohibited from doing so. AB 17
enjoyed bipartisan support in both the Assembly family law committee, which
I chair, and on the Assembly floor. AB 17 will now go to the Senate for
further consideration.
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