SB460: Bill Text

LRB-2278/1

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2001 - 2002 LEGISLATURE

2001 Senate BILL 460

February 22, 2002 - Introduced by Senators Hansen and M. Meyer, cosponsored by Representatives Johnsrud, Berceau, Black, Ryba, Miller and J. Lehman. Referred to Committee on Economic Development and Corrections.

SB460,1,8 An Act to amend 66.1103 (4m) (title), 66.1103 (4m) (a), 66.1103 (4m) (b), 66.1103 (10) (b), 234.65 (3) (am), 234.65 (3r), 560.034 (1), 560.034 (2) and 560.034 (3); and to create 13.94 (1) (dp), 66.1103 (4m) (a) 3., 66.1103 (4m) (bm), 560.033, 560.034 (4), 560.145 (1) (cm), 560.147 (1) (bm) and 560.605 (1) (em) of the statutes; relating to: rules of conduct for a business receiving a grant or loan from the Wisconsin development fund or proceeds from the sale of an industrial development revenue bond and the employment impact estimates required to be submitted by such a business.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Under current law, the department of commerce (department) makes grants and loans from a general purpose revenue appropriation known as the Wisconsin development fund to businesses for various purposes including technology development, customized labor training, major economic development, capitalization of economic development revolving loan funds, and the renovation, purchase, or construction of buildings to foster economic development. Currently, cities, villages, and towns (municipalities) may enter into revenue agreements with businesses under which the municipality issues industrial development revenue (IDR) bonds to fund the construction by those businesses of industrial projects.

This bill requires any business that receives $25,000 or more in grants or loans from the Wisconsin development fund or that receives $25,000 or more in proceeds from the sale of IDR bonds (business assistance) to comply with the following rules of conduct:

1. To pay every employee of the business employed in this state an hourly wage that is not less than the amount determined by dividing the federal poverty line for a family of four persons (currently $17,050) by 2,080 (52 weeks in one year multiplied by 40 hours per week) and rounding the quotient to the nearest multiple of five cents, with that amount to be revised annually by the department within 30 days after the federal department of health and human services publishes its annual revision of the poverty line. Accordingly, at the current federal poverty line, a recipient of $25,000 or more in business assistance must pay its employees in this state not less than $8.20 per hour.

2. To provide health insurance for every employee of the business employed in this state and to cover the cost of premiums for that insurance, with the employer to be granted a credit for the cost of health care provided of up to $1 per hour against the wage required to be paid to an employee.

3. Not to eliminate any employment positions in this state when the employer moves any part of its operations to another state and not to cease all operations in this state and move to another state.

Any business receiving $25,000 or more in business assistance that fails to comply with those rules of conduct is subject to the following penalties:

1. Immediate rescission of all business assistance that was provided to the business, with the business to repay immediately any business assistance received, plus a 10% penalty and interest on the business assistance at 18%.

2. Ineligibility for any further business assistance for 10 years.

Under current law, a business that enters into a revenue agreement for the issuance of IDR bonds by a municipality must give notice to the department specifying the number of jobs that the business expects to be eliminated, created, or maintained on the project site and elsewhere in the state as a result of the project (employment impact estimate). The department then must make its own employment impact estimate and issue that estimate to the municipality before the municipality may issue the IDR bonds. The business then must submit to the department, within 12 months after the project is completed or two years after the IDR bonds are issued, whichever is sooner, an employment impact statement of the jobs actually eliminated, created, or maintained as a result of the project.

This bill requires employment impact estimates and statements to be prepared not only in connection with the issuance of IDR bonds, but also when the department provides a grant or loan from the Wisconsin development fund. The bill also requires an employment impact estimate or statement to include not only the number of jobs, but also the types of jobs, with wage rates and benefits, that are estimated to be or have been eliminated, created, or maintained as a result of any business assistance provided by the department or a municipality. Finally, the bill requires a business to submit employment impact statements to the department annually for the duration of a project financed with business assistance and for five years after the completion of the project.

For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

SB460, s. 1 Section 1. 13.94 (1) (dp) of the statutes is created to read:

SB460,3,3 13.94 (1) (dp) Annually, perform a performance audit of the implementation of s. 560.033 by the department of commerce.

SB460, s. 2 Section 2. 66.1103 (4m) (title) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB460,3,6 66.1103 (4m) (title) Job protection Employment impact estimates and rules of conduct compliance.

SB460, s. 3 Section 3. 66.1103 (4m) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB460,3,9 66.1103 (4m) (a) A municipality may not enter into a revenue agreement with any person unless all of the following conditions are met:

SB460,3,13 1. The person, at least 30 days prior to entering into the revenue agreement, has given a notice of intent to enter into the revenue agreement, on a form prescribed under s. 560.034 (1), to the department of commerce and to any collective bargaining agent in this state with whom the person has a collective bargaining agreement; and.

SB460,3,20 2. The municipality has received an estimate issued under s. 560.034 (5) (a), and the department of commerce has estimated whether the number and types of jobs, with the wage rates and benefits for those jobs, that the project which that the municipality would finance under the revenue agreement is expected to eliminate, create, or maintain jobs on the project site and elsewhere in this state and the net number of jobs expected to be eliminated, created or maintained as a result of the project.

SB460, s. 4 Section 4. 66.1103 (4m) (a) 3. of the statutes is created to read:

SB460,4,4 66.1103 (4m) (a) 3. If the proceeds from the sale of revenue bonds that the person receives in connection with the revenue agreement equal $25,000 or more, the person agrees to comply with the rules of conduct specified in s. 560.033 (2).

SB460, s. 5 Section 5. 66.1103 (4m) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB460,4,13 66.1103 (4m) (b) Any revenue agreement which an eligible participant enters into with a municipality to finance a project shall require the eligible participant to submit to the department of commerce within 12 months after the project is completed or 2 years after a revenue bond is issued to finance the project, whichever is sooner annually for the duration of the project and for 5 years after the completion of the project, on a form prescribed under s. 560.034 (1), the net number and type of jobs, with the wage rates and benefits for those jobs, eliminated, created, or maintained on the project site and elsewhere in this state as a result of the project.

SB460, s. 6 Section 6. 66.1103 (4m) (bm) of the statutes is created to read:

SB460,4,19 66.1103 (4m) (bm) A municipality that enters into a revenue agreement with an eligible participant shall notify the department of commerce of the amount of proceeds from the sale of revenue bonds that will be provided to the eligible participant and shall provide to that department any other information that is necessary to implement s. 560.033.

SB460, s. 7 Section 7. 66.1103 (10) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB460,5,11 66.1103 (10) (b) Upon the adoption of an initial resolution under this section, public notice of the adoption shall be given to the electors of the municipality before the issuance of the bonds described in the resolution, by publication as a class 1 notice, under ch. 985. The notice need not set forth the full contents of the resolution, but shall state the maximum amount of the bonds; the name of the eligible participant; the purpose of the bonds; the net number and types of jobs, with the wage rates and benefits for those jobs, which the project the municipality would finance with the bond issue is expected to eliminate, create, or maintain on the project site and elsewhere in this state which is required to be shown by the proposed eligible participant on the form submitted under sub. (4m) (a) 1.; and that the resolution was adopted under this section. A form of the public notice shall be attached to the initial resolution. Prior to adoption of the initial resolution, the open meeting notice given to members of the public under s. 19.84 shall indicate that information with respect to the job impact of the project will be available at the time of consideration of the initial resolution. No other public notice of the authorization, issuance or sale of bonds under this section is required.

SB460, s. 8 Section 8. 234.65 (3) (am) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB460,5,18 234.65 (3) (am) The authority has received an estimate issued under s. 560.034 (5) (b), and the department of commerce has estimated whether the number and types of jobs, with the wage rates and benefits for those jobs, that the project that the authority would finance under the loan is expected to eliminate, create , or maintain jobs on the project site and elsewhere in this state and the net number of jobs expected to be eliminated, created or maintained as a result of the project.

SB460, s. 9 Section 9. 234.65 (3r) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB460,6,3 234.65 (3r) Any economic development loan which a business receives from the authority under this section to finance a project shall require the business to submit to the department of commerce within 12 months after the project is completed or 2 years after a loan is issued to finance the project, whichever is sooner, on a form prescribed under s. 560.034 (1), the net number and types of jobs, with the wage rates and benefits for those jobs, eliminated, created, or maintained on the project site and elsewhere in this state as a result of the project. This subsection does not apply to an economic development loan to finance an economic development project described under s. 234.01 (4n) (c).

SB460, s. 10 Section 10. 560.033 of the statutes is created to read:

SB460,6,6 560.033 Business assistance recipient rules of conduct. (1) Definitions. In this section:

SB460,6,8 (a) "Business" means any person engaged in any activity or enterprise for profit employing one or more persons in this state.

SB460,6,11 (b) "Business assistance" means proceeds from the sale of revenue bonds, as defined in s. 66.1103 (2) (m), or a grant or loan from the appropriation account under s. 20.143 (1) (c) or (ie).

SB460,6,14 (c) "Poverty line" means the poverty guidelines for the continental United States, as revised annually by the federal department of health and human services under 42 USC 9902 (2).

SB460,6,17 (2) Rules of conduct. Any business that receives $25,000 or more in business assistance shall agree, as a condition of receiving that business assistance, to comply with the following rules of conduct:

SB460,6,25 (a) To pay every employee of the business employed in this state an hourly wage that is not less than the amount determined by dividing the poverty line for a family of 4 persons by 2,080 and rounding the quotient to the nearest multiple of 5 cents. The department shall revise that hourly wage every year within 30 days after the federal department of health and human services publishes its annual revision of the poverty line. A revised hourly wage determined under this paragraph shall first apply to wages earned on the first day of the first month beginning after the date on which that hourly wage is revised.

SB460,7,4 (b) To provide health insurance for every employee of the business employed in this state and to cover the cost of premiums for that insurance. The department shall grant a credit of up to $1 per hour against the wage required to be paid under par. (a) for the cost of health insurance provided under this paragraph.

SB460,7,6 (c) 1. Not to eliminate any employment positions in this state when the employer moves any part of its operations to a site in another state.

SB460,7,8 2. Not to cease all operations in this state and move those operations to another state.