Wisconsin State Journal from Madison, Wisconsin • 1

INSIDE Counties eye new Sauk jailC3 Daily Record C2 Empty stocking C5 Weather C8 loca: Sunday, December 29, 2002 City Editor Phil Glende, (608) 252-61 17 -Wisconsin State Journal New DNR head is outdoorsman Scott Hassett incoming secretary of the state Department of Natural Resources, has spent his share of time fishing the state's lakes and hunting its fields and forests. Hassett, pictured on the roof deck of his law office near Lake Monona, is a partner with the law firm of Lawton Cates. bow hunting and trolling for giant musky from rowboats to the influential and colorful Wisconsin characters who people his past The first clue to Hassett came at the press conference during which Doyle announced the lawyer as his choice to head one of the state's largest and most far-reaching agencies. Doyle made a point of saying that he has known Hassett and his family for years. Indeed, Hassett comes from a family and a circle of friends that is storied in Wisconsin political circles.

His father is Paul Hassett, retired Please see HASSETT, Page C6 had the same question: Who is this guy? Hassett, 52, was appointed to the post by Jim Doyle. A lawyer for 22 years for the Madison firm of Lawton Cates, Hassett may be well known in legal circles but he is unknown politically which may be at least partly the reason Doyle appointed him. The closest Hassett came to political office was an unsuccessful run as a moderate Republican for the state Senate in 1982 against Democrat Russ Feingold, now a U.S. senator. Despite the lack of a political past, there are plenty of clues to Hassett elsewhere from his passions for Scott Hassett has been hanging out with big fish since he was a kid By Ron Seely Environment reporter Last week, after Madison lawyer Scott Hassett was named secretary of the Department of Natural Resources, environmentalists and lobbyists and anybody else who does business with the agency was buzzing about the choice.

Just about everybody, including many Wisconsin political insiders, tv i I SARAH B. TEWSWSJ Special stories leave lasting memories Tragedy, history, humor highlight tales of 2002 ON WISCONSIN SUSAN LAMPERT SMITH HENRY A. KOSHOUEK photo Wisconsin Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Ed Thompson eats a deer bratwurst at Dick's Market In Mount Horeb. Thompson attracted a throng of newspaper and television reporters who witnessed him eat the meat that came from an area where many deer were found to have chronic wasting disease. Thompson insisted the meat was safe and could not spread the disease to humans.

Ns ry By Susan Lampert Smith Wisconsin State Journal The most memorable stories from this past year are the ones that touched closest to my heart The year 2002 had barely begun when heart-breaking news came from Eau Claire. A UW-Eau Claire student died giving birth in a dormitory bathroom. Her newborn daughter died, too, turning one of life's most joyous moments into a double tragedy. How could this happen to a bright young woman with a loving family and friends? Why didn't anyone notice? How could she hide a full-term pregnancy? I learned the answers from two courageous young women who stepped forward to tell how they hid their pregnancies as college students, and gave birth alone. The difference was that they each made it to the hospital, so their families had a chance to help the scared young mothers.

Jody Mayne, whose son Tyson is now 3, gave birth when she was a UW-Platteville student. She finally finished her degree this year, bought a home in Boscobel, and is working as an accountant and studying for her CPA exam. She celebrated getting her diploma by taking a trip to the Mall of America in Minneapolis with her sister to shop for clothes for her new job. "It's exactly what I wanted," she said, of her job as an accountant for a trucking company. She said she received nothing but good comments for telling her story.

A teacher said she uses the story in her class to help teen-age girls. Her boss at Lands' End pulled her aside and thanked Jody. The woman said she read Jodys story with her 15-year-old daughter, and that it gave her a chance to tell her daughter: Don't ever do this. There is nothing you can't tell me, and nothing so bad that I won't be here to help you. Life is also good for the other young woman in the story.

I called her Katie, because she works with prisoners and the Department of Corrections doesn't like its prison employees identified. Katie gave birth alone when she was a college student in La Crosse. She decided to keep her daughter, now 7, and came home to raise her. This has been a busy year. Please see 2002, Page C4 i mm in SARAH B.

TEWSWSJ Jody Mayne of Boscobel nearly gave up her son, Tyson, for adoption after hiding her pregnancy and his birth JJU' aareUAsmwfof Mon-from her family. roe, won the 2002 Wisconsin State Fair award for largest pig. Asm us has plans to sell T-shirts to help market the pig. SARAH I. TTWVWSJ ii This NarragaRsett torn turkey was one of five that tried to escape two days before Thanksgiving from Blue VaBey Farm near Mount Horeb.

Photo tubmitted by Bny Covriey Kurt Pechmann, left and George Had, right both former prisoners of war who were housed in Wisconsin, meet with author Betty Cowley. Pechmann recalled being sent to a farm owned by a German immigrant farmer who gave them a feast of food and wine. SARAH B. TEWVWSJ Rural Mineral Point beef fanner Paul Springer cares for farm animals wfth unusual birth defects. At right stands Big Boy, a 4-year-old Kof-stem steer with a pair of extra legs attached at his spine OFF BEAT Tax changes fueled deficit, legislator says Duluth Trading Co.

has added a few more inches to the bottom of their T-shirts, making them longer in response to the quandary. Just be sure to tuck those babies in as far as they go to get maximum product performance, News of the invention, which the magazine pulled from an article originally published in the Wisconsin State Journal is titled 'Best Men's Fashion News." Gof tip? Ca'd 252-6130. e-mail at tkiJU9madismxom or uritr. CfiBeat, The State Journal P.O. Box.

Maditen, MS3708 Plumbers to stage less of a show Parade magazine, which you can find inside today's Wisconsin State Journal cites a Belleville company that's increased the size of its T-shirts in order to solve a major, social dilemma: "plumber's butt" Now, no more worrying about slacking pants that might add a LrJe more bang for your buck when the plumber bends down to check out the sink's underside. And for those of you who need to pu2 those pants up you fust let them hang. and he blamed Democrats including Travis for pushing for higher spending on such things as universities, health care and "virtually every other item in the budget" Even though the tax law changes reduced how much the state could have collected over the last eight years, sales and property taxes have continued to grow faster than the rate of inflation. Grothrnan said. "If we hadn't made these chan ges, inst ead of being the third highest tax state in the country, we'd be the highest by a mile, Grothrnan said.

reduced state revenue by a net SI. 7 billion. W'e were on an orgy of tax cutting and tax spending at the same time," Travis said. "If we had left tax laws where they wen eight years ago, we'd probabiy be ail right" The current ttate budget about $185 million in the red. The deficit is projected to grow to S1.6 bilbon by mid-2004 and to S2.6 billion by mid 2005.

The Legislative Fiscal Bureau analysis shows that Wisconsin would have coCected 13.7 billion in additional taxes had it not been for dozens of tax law changes since 1995, including a S658 million sales tax rebate. Travis, one of the few lawmakers to vote against the rebate in 1999. said he's not advocating tax increases. But the Legislatures and Republican governors since 1995 irresponsibly put Wisconsin in its current bind by lowering taxes while boosting spending, the Democrat contends. The Republican governors had the power to veto the spending but for the most part didn't Travis said.

"People just thought the money would keep rolling in." he said. Rep. Glenn Grothrnan. R-West Bend, said the tax cuts since 1995 were a good thing. Rep.

Dave Travis cites figures showing tax revisions since 1995 cut revenue by $3.7 billion. ty Scott Mirfred State jovtnwnfnt ifpotlf A Madison-area Lawmaker blames "an orgy of tax cutting" for contributing to state government's giant budget hole. Rep. Dave Travis. D-Town of Westport.

released a Legislative Fiscal Bureau anaiyus ihwing that tax law changes including income tax cuts and a taies tax rebate over the List eight years.