Notes from the West Wing
By
State Representative Garey Bies
The Stewardship Program
During the recent and very successful Door County Legislative Days, I spoke to a number of people about the Stewardship Program and what it means for Wisconsin residents. Unfortunately, there seemed to be a fair number of misconceptions about the program and what the debate in the Capitol over the program revolves around. So, for this edition of Notes from the West Wing, I thought I would provide some information about the program.
First, a little bit of background history on the program. The Stewardship Program was originally established in 1989 with the stated purpose of acquiring land to expand recreational opportunities and protect environmentally sensitive areas. While there is certainly some debate as to the appropriateness of some Stewardship purchases over the years, the majority of the purchases have fallen within the program’s purpose. Under the Stewardship Program, the state authorizes the contracting of debt to fund the land purchases. For the first ten years of the program the Legislature authorized $231 million of general obligation bonding. For the second ten years a total of $572 million in bonding was authorized for a total of $803 million in total bonding.
The debt issued for Stewardship purchases is general obligation bonding. These bonds are then repaid with interest for the term of the bond, typically 20 years. Of the debt incurred to this point, total debt service payments will total approximately $1.3 billion. I mention this because I want readers to understand that the Stewardship Program, for the benefit it provides, does have a significant price tag attached to it. For 2007 alone, it is estimated that total debt service payments will be $40,400,000 with the interest-only portion being $21,500,000.
If you have an interest in the Stewardship Program, you are probably aware that the reauthorization of the program is included in the state budget currently before the Joint Finance Committee. The Governor has, in his budget, provided authority for the state to issue an additional $1.05 billion in debt to purchase additional land. Folks, that’s an awful lot of money to buy recreational land.
The budget process is still far from over, but there are some serious questions that need to be addressed, including the total price tag, legislative review of certain expenditures, and how land acquired will be made available for public uses like hunting. Just a quick note about the legislative review: The Joint Finance Committee used to have the ability to review Stewardship purchases in excess of $250,000 but the Governor used the “Frankenstein Veto” in the previous budget cycle to eliminate the Committee’s ability to review such purchases. For discussion about the Frankenstein Veto, please see my February 16, 2007 edition of Notes from the West Wing which is available on my website (link below).
Lastly, I just want to mention a piece of legislation I have authored this session relating to the Stewardship Program. My proposal will establish a trust fund for the Stewardship Program, allowing for private, tax-deductible donations to be made directly to the Program. Any donations made to the Stewardship Program using my proposal would be in addition to whatever level of funding the State Legislature provides. This proposal, Assembly Bill 156 was recently approved by the Assembly Committee on Natural Resources. Hopefully it will soon receive consideration by the full Assembly.
I hope today’s Notes was informative and you now have a better understanding of the Stewardship Program and the issues the Program presents for budgetary purposes. If you would like more information about the Stewardship Program, or if you have questions or comments about any other issue, please feel free to contact me. I can be reached by e-mail at Rep.Bies@legis.wisconsin.gov or by telephone, toll-free at 1-888-482-0001. You can also visit my website at http://www.legis.state.wi.us/assembly/asm01/news/.