MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The state Department of Natural Resources would continue to get funding to pay for removal of deer struck by motorists on Wisconsin roadways under a vote by the Legislature’s budget committee. The Republican-controlled Joint Finance Committee voted against Gov. Scott Walker’s recommendation to shift the cost to local governments. The DNR spends about $700,000 a year contracting with local governments to remove the dead deer. In each of the past two years, about 23,000 dead deer from the side of Wisconsin highways. The state Department of Transportation reports that there were nearly 18,000 car-deer collisions in Wisconsin last year. Those accidents resulted in 407 people being injured and nine deaths. The committee also voted to authorize a study on the effectiveness of the deer-removal program.
