DSORe POLL s412
At present, the DNR Secretary is appointed by the governor.
Should the DNR Secretary be appointed by the Natural Resources Board?
Cast your vote to the RIGHT. And Please explain your position in the Comments below.
The Wisconsin legislature is considering a bill that would restore the authority to appoint the secretary of the Department of Natural Resources to the Natural Resources Board. AB-138 was introduced on Mar. 9 by state legislators on both sides of the aisle.
The new bill was a response to Gov. Jim Doyle’s Mar. 5 announcement that he wants the governor to keep the authority to appoint the DNR secretary. That is a reversal of the position he has maintained for 14 years as governor and previously as attorney general – that the DNR secretary should be appointed by the NRB. The NRB sets policy for and oversees the operation of the DNR. The NRB appointed the DNR secretary prior to 1995,when then-Gov. Tommy Thompson changed the appointment process while writing the state budget.
In a recent statement, Doyle explained his reversal: “I have had the opportunity to see the agency function under both systems,” Doyle said. “I have come to believe that a secretary appointed by the governor, with the full weight and authority of the governor behind it, can, in fact, be much more effective.”
Doyle further said he did not believe that recent environmental advances would have happened with a Republican-controlled legislature if the DNR secretary had not been a part of the governor’s cabinet.
Former DNR secretary George Meyer, who served under Gov. Thompson both as an NRB and gubernatorial appointee, disagrees. Meyer is now the executive director of the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation.
“When you talk to DNR employees or recent retirees, the amount of politcal influence in decision-making is paramount these days,” Meyer said. “Often DNR staff members say they have to run minor decisions past the governor’s office. There has also been interference in regulatory and enforcement proceedings.”
Numerous conservation groups support the legislation. There is a news story and a commentary by Meyer in the Mar. 20 issue of Wisconsin Outdoor News.
Is the Natural Resources Board not an appointed body? Should the DNR make these appointments it would take away from the agenda of the Governor as they relate to the Green and Game goals for the public and state in general.
The DNR Secretary should be appointed by the Natural Resources Board. The fewer politicians involved, the better. We don’t need our natural resources compromised.
Not only should the Secretary be appointed by the Board, the division administrators should be covered by the civil service system to insure that qualified career employees will be making policy recommendations to the Natural Resources Board. Also, the system of appointing Board members should be monitored closely by the Senate so that no “playing around” with appointments of Board members takes place.