Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill authorizes the citation of owners of vehicles for certain highway work
zone speed and failure to yield violations. The bill also requires driver education
instruction related to highway work zone safety.
Current law imposes, with exceptions, liability on the owner of a vehicle that
is observed violating certain traffic laws, including illegally passing a school bus or
fire truck, illegally crossing a railroad crossing or controlled school crossing, and
failing to yield the right-of-way to an emergency vehicle or a funeral procession.
This bill imposes liability on the owner of a vehicle involved in a violation
related to the failure to yield the right-of-way to certain persons engaged in
maintenance or construction work in a highway work zone. Under this bill, a
flagman who observes a vehicle involved in this sort of a failure to yield violation may
report the violation to a traffic officer so that a citation may be issued.
An owner is subject to the same forfeiture that would be applicable to the
vehicle operator for the violation, but the owner's operating privilege may not be
suspended or revoked, and no demerit points may be recorded against the owner's
driving record. Among the defenses available to an owner, the owner is not liable if
the owner identifies the operator of the vehicle at the time of the violation and the

operator admits to being the operator or if the owner has reported the vehicle as
stolen. If an owner successfully asserts certain defenses, the person operating the
vehicle at the time of the violation may be charged with the violation.
Under current law, the Department of Public Instruction must approve certain
driver education courses offered by school districts and establish minimum
standards for driver education courses offered by private driver schools, the
Technical College System Board must approve courses of study for each program
offered in technical college district schools, including driver education courses, and
the Department of Transportation licenses private driver schools and DOT may not
license a driver school unless its course of instruction includes the content required
for TCSB approval of a driver education course.
Under this bill, all approved driver education courses must acquaint each
student with the hazards posed by highway work zones and provide at least 30
minutes of instruction in safely dealing with these hazards.
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:
AB262,1 1Section 1. 38.04 (4) (e) 8. of the statutes is created to read:
AB262,2,42 38.04 (4) (e) 8. Acquaints each student with the hazards posed by highway work
3zones and provides at least 30 minutes of instruction in safely dealing with these
4hazards.
AB262,2 5Section 2. 115.28 (11) (h) of the statutes is created to read:
AB262,2,86 115.28 (11) (h) Acquaint each student with the hazards posed by highway work
7zones and provide at least 30 minutes of instruction in safely dealing with these
8hazards.
AB262,3 9Section 3. 343.71 (5) (h) of the statutes is created to read:
AB262,2,1210 343.71 (5) (h) Acquaints each student with the hazards posed by highway work
11zones and provides at least 30 minutes of instruction in safely dealing with these
12hazards.
AB262,4 13Section 4. 346.01 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB262,3,5
1346.01 (2) In this chapter, notwithstanding s. 340.01 (42), “owner" means, with
2respect to a vehicle that is registered, or is required to be registered, by a lessee of
3the vehicle under ch. 341, the lessee of the vehicle for purposes of vehicle owner
4liability under ss. 346.175, 346.195, 346.205, 346.275, 346.452, 346.457, 346.465,
5346.485, 346.505 (3), 346.675, and 346.945.
AB262,5 6Section 5 . 346.275 of the statutes is created to read:
AB262,3,9 7346.275 Owner's liability for vehicle failing to yield right-of-way to
8persons in a work zone.
(1) Subject to sub. (5) (b), the owner of a vehicle involved
9in a violation of s. 346.27 is liable for the violation as provided in this section.
AB262,3,12 10(2) A flagman who observes a violation of s. 346.27 may prepare a written
11report indicating that a violation has occurred. If possible, the report shall contain
12the following information:
AB262,3,1313 (a) The time and the approximate location at which the violation occurred.
AB262,3,1414 (b) The license number and color of the vehicle involved in the violation.
AB262,3,1615 (c) Identification of the vehicle as an automobile, motor truck, motor bus,
16motorcycle, or other type of vehicle.
AB262,3,21 17(3) If within 24 hours after observing the violation, the flagman delivers a
18report under sub. (2) to a traffic officer of the county or municipality in which the
19violation occurred, the officer may issue a citation under sub. (4). A report that does
20not contain all the information in sub. (2) shall be maintained by the county or
21municipality for statistical purposes.
AB262,4,2 22(4) (a) Within 48 hours after receiving a report under sub. (3) containing all the
23information in sub. (2), the traffic officer may issue a citation for a violation of this
24section to the owner of the vehicle involved in the violation. A citation for a violation

1of this section shall be prepared on a uniform traffic citation form under s. 345.11 and
2personally served on the owner of the vehicle.
AB262,4,63 (b) If with reasonable diligence the owner cannot be served under par. (a),
4service may be made by leaving a copy of the citation at the owner's usual place of
5abode within this state in the presence of a competent member of the family at least
614 years of age, who shall be informed of the contents thereof.
AB262,4,97 (c) If with reasonable diligence the owner cannot be served under par. (a) or (b)
8or if the owner lives outside of the jurisdiction of the issuing authority, service may
9be made by certified mail addressed to the owner's last-known address.
AB262,4,11 10(5) (a) Except as provided in par. (b), it is not a defense to a violation of this
11section that the owner was not operating the vehicle at the time of the violation.
AB262,4,1212 (b) The following are defenses to a violation of this section:
AB262,4,1513 1. That a report that the vehicle was stolen was made by the owner to a law
14enforcement agency before the violation occurred or within a reasonable time after
15the violation occurred.
AB262,4,1916 2. That the owner of the vehicle provided a traffic officer with the name and
17address of the person operating the vehicle at the time of the violation and the person
18so named admits operating the vehicle at the time of the violation. In that case, the
19person operating the vehicle may be charged under s. 346.27.
AB262,4,2320 3. That the vehicle is owned by a lessor of vehicles and is registered in the name
21of the lessor, that at the time of the violation the vehicle was in the possession of a
22lessee, and that the lessor provided a traffic officer with the information required
23under s. 343.46 (3). In that case, the lessee may be charged under s. 346.27.
AB262,5,424 4. That the vehicle is owned by a dealer, as defined in s. 340.01 (11) (intro.), but
25including the persons specified in s. 340.01 (11) (a) to (d), that at the time of the

1violation the vehicle was being operated by a person on a trial run, and that the
2dealer provided a traffic officer with the name, address, and operator's license
3number of the person operating the vehicle. In that case, the person operating the
4vehicle may be charged under s. 346.27.
AB262,6 5Section 6. 346.30 (6) of the statutes is created to read:
AB262,5,106 346.30 (6) A vehicle owner found liable under s. 346.275 may be required to
7forfeit not less than $60 nor more than $600. Imposition of liability under s. 346.275
8shall not result in suspension or revocation of a person's operating privilege under
9s. 343.30, nor shall it result in demerit points being recorded on a person's driving
10record under s. 343.32 (2) (a).
AB262,7 11Section 7. Initial applicability.
AB262,5,1312 (1) The treatment of ss. 38.04 (4) (e) 8., 115.28 (11) (h), and 343.71 (5) (h) first
13applies to driver education courses that begin on the effective date of this subsection.
AB262,5,1414 (End)
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