Inger Williams, OCI Services Section
Phone:   (608) 264-8110
Email:   Inger.Williams@OCI.State.WI.US
Address:   125 South Webster St – 2nd Floor
  Madison WI 53702

Mail:   PO Box 7873, Madison WI 53707-7873

13. Place where comments are to be submitted and deadline for submission:

The deadline for submitting comments is 4:00 p.m. on the 7th day after the date for the hearing stated in the Notice of Hearing.

Mailing address:

Fred Nepple
Legal Unit - OCI Rule Comment for Rule 2.81
Office of the Commissioner of Insurance
PO Box 7873
Madison WI 53707-7873

Street address:

Fred Nepple
Legal Unit - OCI Rule Comment for Rule 2.81
Office of the Commissioner of Insurance
125 South Webster St – 2nd Floor
Madison WI 53702

WEB Site: https://adminrules.wisconsin.gov

There will be no state or local government fiscal effect.

This rule does not impose any additional requirements on small businesses.

A copy of the full text of the proposed rule changes, analysis and fiscal estimate may be obtained from the OCI internet WEB site at http://oci.wi.gov/ocirules.htm or by contacting Inger Williams, Services Section, OCI, at: Inger.Williams@OCI.State.WI.US, (608) 264-8110, 125 South Webster Street – 2nd Floor, Madison WI or PO Box 7873, Madison WI 53707-7873.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to ss. 29.014 (1), 29.041, 29.519 (1) (b), 227.11 (2) (a) and 227.24, Stats., interpreting ss. 29.041, 29.014 (1) and 29.519 (1) (b), Stats., the Department of Natural Resources will hold a public hearing on Natural Resources Board Emergency Order No. FH-49-04(E) pertaining to commercial fishing with trap nets in Lake Michigan. This emergency order took effect on June 28, 2004. This rule moves an area designed for commercial trap nets during summer from its present location in waters 75 to 150 feet in depth west and south of Two Rivers to an area of similar depths north of Two Rivers.

NOTICE IS HEREBY FURTHER GIVEN that the hearing will be held on:

Monday, August 2, 2004 at 5:30 p.m.

WI Training Room, Lake Shore Tech. College

1290 North Avenue

Cleveland

No significant fiscal impact on state and local government is anticipated.

Written comments on the emergency rule may be submitted to Mr. William Horns, Bureau of Fisheries Management and Habitat Protection, P.O. Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707 no later than August 12, 2004. Written comments will have the same weight and effect as oral statements presented at the hearing. A copy of the emergency rule may be obtained from Mr. Horns.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN That pursuant to ss. 119.23 (2) (b) and (11) and 227.11 (2) (a), Stats., and interpreting s. 119.23 (2) (b), Stats., the Department of Public Instruction will hold a public hearing as follows to consider the amending of Chapter PI 35, relating to the prorate method to be used under the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. The hearing will be held as follows:

The hearing site is fully accessible to people with disabilities. If you require reasonable accommodation to access any meeting, please contact Tricia Collins, Consultant, Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, tricia.collins@dpi.state.wi.us, (608) 266-2853, or leave a message with the Teletypewriter (TTY), (608) 267-2427 at least 10 days prior to the hearing date. Reasonable accommodation includes materials prepared in an alternative format, as provided under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The administrative rule and fiscal note are available on the internet at:
http://www.dpi.state.wi.us/dpi/dfm/pb/mpcprate.html and http://www.dpi.state.wi.us/dpi/dfm/pb/mpcpratefn.html, respectively. A copy of the proposed rule and the fiscal estimate also may be obtained by sending an email request to lori.slauson@dpi.state.wi.us or by writing to:

Lori Slauson, Administrative Rules and Federal Grants
  Coordinator

Department of Public Instruction

125 South Webster Street

P.O. Box 7841

Madison, WI 53707

Written comments on the proposed rules received by Ms. Slauson at the above mailing or email address no later than August 3, 2004, will be given the same consideration as testimony presented at the hearing.

Statute interpreted: s. 119.23 (2) (b), Stats.

Statutory authority: ss. 119.23 (2) (b) and (11) and 227.11 (2) (a), Stats.

Section. 119.23 (2) (b), Stats., requires the department to establish a prorate method for the department to utilize when the number of eligible students applying for the program exceeds the statutory limit. Because the department is interpreting the provisions of this statute and administers/enforces the program governed by it, s. 227.11 (2) (a), Stats., gives the department general rule-making authority.

Section 119.23 (11), Stats., gives the department authority to promulgate rules to implement and administer the entire program.

Court decisions directly relevant: None.

Related statute or rule: None.

Plain language analysis:

Under s. 119.23 (2) (b), Stats., no more than 15% of Milwaukee Public School's (MPS) membership (approximately 15,000 students) may attend private schools under the MPCP. The department is required to prorate the number of spaces available at each participating private school if in any school year there are more spaces available than the maximum number of students allowed to participate in the program. The proposed rules will set forth the process by which the department would prorate student spaces in the MPCP giving preference to pupils in the following order: continuing pupils in the choice program, siblings of continuing pupils, four-year-old kindergarten pupils and their siblings, five-year-old kindergarten pupils and their siblings, and all other pupils. By May 1 the department will notify the parents of eligible pupils whether or not the pupil may apply for the choice program for the upcoming school year.

The rules changed the current admission process by separating it into two parts, one for eligibility determination and one for an application phase. The approximate timeline for the process is as follows:

February – March. The private school must determine a pupil's eligibility to participate in the program.

Within 14 days of the parents request, but no later than April 5, the private school must 1) notify the parent whether or not the pupil is eligible for the program and 2) submit to the department a copy of the pupil's eligibility form approved by the private school.

May. A private school shall accept choice program applications from parents of pupils notified by the department that they may apply for the program.

By June 5, a private school shall notify each applicant and the applicant's parent of his or her acceptance or nonacceptance into the private school.

By June 20, the pupil's parent must notify the private school of the pupil's intent to attend the private school. If such notice is not given, the private school may fill the pupil's seat with another choice pupil.

By June 30, a private school must submit to the department a class list of the choice pupils and the randomly determined choice program waiting list.

Summary of, and comparison with, existing or proposed federal regulations: None.

Comparison with rules in adjacent states: None.

Summary of factual data and analytical methodologies:

The department anticipates the program reaching the 15% cap in the 2005-06 school year. Therefore, the prorate process would begin February 1, 2005. The department would like the rule in place as soon as possible in order to provide adequate notice to participating schools and parents.

To determine the prorate method, the department worked with all the participating private schools and interested parties. In an effort to get as much input as possible early on in the process, the department:

Sent out a survey to all current participating schools in December 2003. Of the 106 private schools surveyed, 25 returned the survey. Of those 25 only 7 provided prorate options. The options provided included 1) giving preference to schools with a history of success or long tenure, 2) grandfathering current students, 3) first come, first serve, and 4) using mathematical formulas (percentages, rations, averages, etc.).

Met with the Assembly Committee on Education Reform in January 2004. Department staff discussed committee concerns with the prorate requirement. Members suggested prorate options including grandfathering provisions and mathematical formulas. Some members appeared interested in considering a method that ensures current choice students could continue to participate in the program.

Met with people in small group settings. The options discussed with the small groups included: 1) straight prorate (plain read of the statutes), 2) prorate based on capacity, 3) prorate based on percentage of choice students from prior years, and 4) student-based method with preference given to current students, siblings and kindergarten students.

In summary, the information provided at the above meetings suggested a strong dislike for a straight prorate method. The preferred prorate option appeared to be a method that would give preference to continuing students and their siblings with new available spaces being given to kindergarten students.

The department believes that the prorate method proposed in this rule, based heavily on the input received, is a fair way to implement the prorate requirement under the statute.

Analysis and supporting documents used to determine effect on small business or in preparation of economic impact report: None.

Anticipated costs incurred by private sector: None.

These rules will not have a fiscal effect on the private schools participating in the program, MPS, or small businesses.

These rules will have a fiscal effect on the department. The department will have to develop a random selection process to determine which students can participate in the program. At a minimum, the department will have to notify 15,000 parents whether or not their child will be able to apply to participate in the program. The department will have an annual cost of $24,600 for postage and printing costs. Because of the application date change, the department will have a one-time cost in FY05 of approximately $16,500 to contract with a private vendor for data entry. In FY05, the first year of implementation of the prorate method, the department will have to enter applications covering two school years. Specifically, the department will have to process 2004-05 applications starting in July 2004 and ending in January 2005 and 2005-06 applications in April 2005. In future years, data entry will only take place in April.

The proposed rules are not anticipated to have a fiscal effect on small businesses as defined under s. 227.114(1)(a), Stats.