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Wisconsin Family Action defends suit

September 24, 2009 By

A group which advocated for Wisconsin’s constitutional amendment banning same sex unions denies that its legal challenge to the state’s new domestic registry is mean spirited.

“We’re not mean-spirited,” says Julaine Appling of Wisconsin Family Action. “We are doing what is necessary to defend the will of 1.26 million Wisconsin voters who said this is what they wanted marriage to be through the vote the vote on the constitutional amendment in November of 2007. They wanted it to be between a man and woman. How that gets interpreted as mean spirited is beyond me.”

Appling says the attempt to intervene in the lawsuit by Fair Wisconsin and the ACLU, shows that those who favor same-sex marriage will constantly push the courts to overturn the will of state voters. “This intervenor motion highlights for us what we know to be true, that people who want to redefine marriage will constantly push for the courts to do that for them,” says Aplling. “We are committed to expeditiously and aggressively defending this constitutional amendment that the people passed, as well as the institution of marriage.” 

WIBA’s John Colbert submitted this report

Filed Under: Politics & Government

Bicha says Wisconsin Shares loopholes being closed

September 24, 2009 By

The Secretary of the state Department of Children and Families says his department was created to take care of problems like those plaguing the Wisconsin Shares child care provider program. Reggie Bicha said his department has been working aggressively to change the program, by making critical reforms over the past year.

There was an “assumption that child care providers were going to be good business owners and do the right things,” when Wisconsin Shares was created in 1996, accordign to Bicha. “The neccessary controls that should have been in this program were never developed from the beginning,” he says.”We’ve done more in the last fourteen months to change this program, and cut out these loopholes, and to hold providers accountable, then has been done in the program since it was first created, and we’re going to keep going until the fraud ends.”

AUDIO: Secretary Reggie Bicha (1:00 MP3)

Among the reforms underway, says Bicha, is an automated attendance system, that will replace the current paper. Bicha says that will enable regulators and inspectors to determine if children enrolled in a child care center are actually in attendence.

More bad news for Bicha’s agency came Wednesday, as report by the Legislative Audit Bureau showed several addresses provided by register sex offenders matched those of child care providers in southeastern Wisconsin. That report is part of an ongoing audit of Wisconsin Shares.

WRJN’s Janet Hoff contributed this report

Filed Under: Children & Families, Politics & Government

Audit matches sex offender addresses with day cares

September 23, 2009 By

Are sex offenders hanging out with kids in our state?

A new audit shows addresses of four registered sex offenders match the addresses of four licensed and certified child care providers in southeast Wisconsin. State Senator Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma) calls it every parent’s worst nightmare.

“Every parent shivers to think that this might be happening. And we must make sure that this program is absolutely tight, 100% assurance that this problem will never happen again.”

During an audit of Wisconsin Shares, the child care subsidy program, the Legislative Audit Bureau investigated cases of fraud, waste and abuse. The audit identified about $20-million in fraudulent claims had been made in 2008. It was that investigation that lead to the latest discovery. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Children & Families, Crime & Courts, Politics & Government

‘Puppy mill’ bill draws a crowd

September 23, 2009 By
Proposed legislation would regulate dog breeders in Wisconsin

Proposed legislation would regulate dog breeders in Wisconsin

Dozens of people turned out to testify at the Capitol Wednesday, in support of legislation to regulate dog breeders in Wisconsin. State Representative Jeff Smith is an Eau Claire Democrat and the author of the Assembly version of the bill. Smith says criminal charges have been largely ineffective in combating irresponsible breeders.

AUDIO: State Representative Jeff Smith (6:00 MP3)

“State statute provides penalties for violations of animal cruelty,” Smith said. “But the threshold is so high that even the worst offenders often come away with little more than a slap on the hand, and they keep their dogs and continue breeding.” [Read more...]

Filed Under: Human Interest, Politics & Government

Succession bill needs more work

September 23, 2009 By

Legislation allowing Wisconsin legislators to name their own successors is not quite ready for a vote. The legislation allows lawmakers to secretly select persons to succeed them during emergencies. State Senator Bob Jauch said he understands why some legislators are opposed to keeping those names secret. The Poplar Democrat said he felt it would be unfair to those persons, to make their names public.

Jauch noted that the successors would only serve on an interim basis, to make sure the state legislature continues to function. Jauch said legislators need to think about the succession issue. The bill, which would provide for successors to serve as legislators in the event lawmakers die as the result of enemy attack, disease outbreak or other catastrophe was sent back to committee for further consideration.

AUDIO: Bob Hague reports (:60 MP3)

Filed Under: Legislature, Politics & Government
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