Lawmakers ask for sex offender rent audit

We have a follow up to our On Special Assignment story last week on the high rents being paid by the state to house sex offenders on supervised release.
 
Two state legislators from Northeast Wisconsin are asking for an audit of the costs to house these sex offenders in rental properties around the state.
    
An On Special Assignment investigation by FOX 11's Mark Leland showed the state renting 28 homes for $550,000 a year.

• On Special Assignment: Sex offender rent
• State pays high rent for sex offenders
• On Special Assignment: Additional costs

In some cases the state is paying rent at four, even five, times the going rate.
    
An official with the Department of Health Services acknowledged the state pays a premium to rent some of the homes because it is hard to find landlords willing to house sex offenders. 

Tuesday, State Senators Michael Ellis of Neenah and Joseph Leibham of Sheboygan were set to meet with auditors from the Legislative Audit Bureau to review the cost concerns. 

State Senator Robert Cowles of Allouez heads up the legislative committee that would make the formal request to review the costs of the supervised release program.