By Attorney Jordan Lamb, DeWitt LLP
The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) is one step closer to having a full-time staff position for the Veterinary Examining Board (VEB).
On June 2, the Joint Finance Committee approved omnibus Motion #68 as a part of their action to amend Governor Tony Evers’ proposed 2021-23 biennial budget. Included in that motion was one full-time position to staff the VEB.
The WVMA has supported and advocated for this staff position since the VEB was moved from the Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS) to DATCP in July 2015. As a result of this move, DATCP has had to serve the VEB with existing DATCP staff.
The VEB is responsible for the credentialing, regulation and disposition of complaints related to veterinarians and veterinary technicians in Wisconsin. This full-time staff position will be used to support enforcement actions by the Board through monitoring of licensing compliance, development of investigation procedures and conducting investigations of license violations. The Board meets quarterly and consists of five licensed veterinarians, one veterinary technician and two public members.
At the time of this writing, the legislature was on track to have a final budget bill back on the Governor’s desk for his consideration by the end of June or early July. WVMA’s advocacy team will continue to work to support this new VEB staff position and to preserve it when the final budget package is approved.