Emergency Rules Now in Effect
Under s. 227.24, Stats., state agencies may promulgate rules without complying with the usual rule-making procedures. Using this special procedure to issue emergency rules, an agency must find that either the preservation of the public peace, health, safety or welfare necessitates its action in bypassing normal rule-making procedures.
Emergency rules are published in the official state newspaper, which is currently the Wisconsin State Journal. Emergency rules are in effect for 150 days and can be extended up to an additional 120 days with no single extension to exceed 60 days.
Occasionally the Legislature grants emergency rule authority to an agency with a longer effective period than 150 days or allows an agency to adopt an emergency rule without requiring a finding of emergency.
Extension of the effective period of an emergency rule is granted at the discretion of the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules under s. 227.24 (2), Stats.
Notice of all emergency rules which are in effect must be printed in the Wisconsin Administrative Register. This notice will contain a brief description of the emergency rule, the agency finding of emergency or a statement of exemption from a finding of emergency, date of publication, the effective and expiration dates, any extension of the effective period of the emergency rule and information regarding public hearings on the emergency rule.
Copies of emergency rule orders can be obtained from the promulgating agency. The text of current emergency rules can be viewed at www.legis.state.wi.us/rsb/code.
Beginning with rules filed with the Legislative Reference Bureau in 2008, the Legislative Reference Bureau will assign a number to each emergency rule filed, for the purpose of internal tracking and reference. The number will be in the following form: EmR0801. The first 2 digits indicate the year of filing and the last 2 digits indicate the chronological order of filing during the year.
Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection
emergency_rules EmR1012 EmR1012 — Rule adopted to create section ATCP 70.03 (7) (e) and (f), relating to food processing plant license exemptions for certain home-canners and maple sap processors.
Finding of Emergency
(1) The Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) administers state food processing plant license requirements under s. 97.29, Stats.
(2) Recent legislation (2009 Act 101, enacted on February 4, 2010) created a limited exemption from food processing plant license requirements under s. 97.29, Stats., for persons who home-can limited quantities of acidic, acidified or fermented vegetable and fruit products for retail sale at community and social events or at farmers' markets.
(3) Home-canned food products, if not properly canned, may pose a risk of serious food safety hazards such as botulism.
(4) DATCP has received many requests for clarification of the new license exemption under Act 101. In order to facilitate compliance and protect consumers from potentially serious food safety hazards, DATCP must adopt administrative rules to clarify the scope, application and terms of the new license exemption.
(5) Implementing rules are urgently needed because of the seriousness of the potential food safety hazards, and the seasonal nature of the farmers' markets and other events at which home-canned products may be sold. The normal rulemaking process takes over a year to complete, and cannot be completed in time for this summer's farmers' markets (which begin as early as mid-April or May). Persons who wish to sell home-canned food products must clearly understand the scope of the license exemption, and the food safety standards that must be met in order to qualify.
(6) This temporary emergency rule clarifies the scope, application and terms of the new license exemption under Act 101, pending the completion of “permanent" rules by the normal rulemaking process. This emergency rule is needed to protect the public health, safety and welfare, and to facilitate fair and orderly implementation of the new license exemption.
(7) This emergency rule also exempts, from food processing plant license requirements under s. 97.29, Stats., a person who collects and processes relatively small quantities of maple sap to produce maple syrup or concentrated maple sap for sale to other processors for further processing. These small-scale processing activities pose minimal food safety risks, and the current license requirement imposes an unnecessary cost and compliance burden. An emergency rule is needed to relieve these cost and compliance burdens for the maple sap collection and processing season that typically begins in March. This emergency rule creates a temporary license exemption, pending the completion of “permanent" rules by the normal rulemaking process. This emergency rule clearly defines the scope, application and terms of the exemption, in order to protect public health, safety and welfare.
Publication Date:   April 22, 2010
Effective Dates:   April 22, 2010 through
  September 18, 2010
Hearing Date:   May 25, 2010
Children and Families
Safety and Permanence, Chs. DCF 37-59
emergency_rules EmR0937 EmR0937 — Rule adopted revising Chapters DCF 56 and 58, relating to foster care and kinship care.
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Children and Families finds that an emergency exists and that an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare. A statement of facts constituting the emergency is:
2009 Wisconsin Act 28 assumes that court-ordered kinship care relatives will be applying for a license to operate a foster home beginning after January 1, 2010, and continuing throughout 2010. This rule creates the first two levels of the new levels of care system for foster care. The newly-licensed kinship care relatives will be incorporated into the foster care program. Licensing these relatives will allow the state to claim an additional $6.5 million in Title IV-E funds for 2010. Act 28 appropriates this $6.5 million to be expended in 2011.
Publication Date:   December 30, 2009
Effective Dates:   January 1, 2010 through
  May 30, 2010
Extension Through:   July 29, 2010
Hearing Dates:   March 17, March 31,
  April 8, 2010
Children and Families
Family and Economic Security, Chs. DCF 101-153
emergency_rules EmR1024 EmR1024 — Rule adopted creating Chapter DCF 110, relating to transitional jobs for low-income adults.
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Children and Families finds that an emergency exists and that an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare. A statement of facts constituting the emergency is:
Initial funding for the transitional jobs demonstration project will come from the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) Emergency Contingency Fund under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Spending for subsidized employment is one of the ways that the state can earn additional federal dollars under the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund. The deadline for earning the additional federal dollars is September 30, 2010.
Publication Date:   June 30, 2010
Effective Dates:   July 1, 2010 through
  November 27, 2010
Hearing Date:   August 5, 2010
Children and Families (2)
Early Care and Education, Chs. DCF 201-252
emergency_rules EmR1015 1.   EmR1015 — Rule adopted revising Chapter DCF 201, relating to authorized hours of subsidized child care and affecting small businesses.
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Children and Families finds that an emergency exists and that an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare. A statement of facts constituting the emergency is:
2009 Wisconsin Act 28 assumes that implementation of s. 49.155 (6g), Stats., will save an estimated $9 million over the 2009-2011 biennium.
Publication Date:   May 17, 2010
Effective Dates:   May 17, 2010 through
  October 13, 2010
Hearing Date:   June 17, 2010
emergency_rules EmR1027 2.   EmR1027 — Rule adopted revising Chapter DCF 201, relating to child care subsidy program integrity.
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Children and Families finds that an emergency exists and that an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare. A statement of facts constituting the emergency is:
The Department of Children and Families has determined that significant disparities currently exist between DCF 201 and the intent of 2009 Wisconsin Acts 28 and 77 regarding Wisconsin Shares program integrity efforts. The recent efforts of the legislature and the department to address child care fraud and program integrity are estimated to save $100 million over the course of the biennium. Currently over $7.1 million of child care provider overpayments have yet to be collected due to the lack of authority to use basic collections practices such as tax intercept, wage levy, and property liens. This rule will permit the department to more aggressively collect on these debts, strengthen the department's ability to further tighten requirements for child care providers wishing to do business with the Wisconsin Shares program, and better enforce the rules of the program. These changes will result in continued fiscal savings as well as ensure better quality child care for the children of Wisconsin.
Publication Date:   July 9, 2010
Effective Dates:   July 9, 2010 through
  December 5, 2010
Hearing Date:   August 6, 2010
Commerce
Wis. Commercial Building Code, Chs. Comm 60-66
emergency_rules EmR1022 EmR1022 — Rule adopted creating s. Comm 62.0400 (5), relating to no smoking signs.
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Commerce finds that an emergency exists within the state of Wisconsin and that adoption of an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health, safety and welfare. A statement of the facts constituting the emergency is as follows.
1.   Implementation of 2009 Wisconsin Act 12, s. 101.123, Stats., is to take effect July 5, 2010.
2.   Under the Act, the department is to establish by rule uniform characteristics for no smoking signs.
3.   Under the Act, the responsibilities of person in charge of a public conveyance or at a location where smoking is prohibited include the posting of no smoking signs.
4.   The department believes that the emergency rules are necessary in order to clarify the minimum no smoking sign characteristics so that persons in charge may fulfill the statutory obligations.
Publication Date:   June 28, 2010
Effective Dates:   July 5, 2010 through
  December 1, 2010
Hearing Date:   July 26, 2010
Commerce (4)
Financial Resources for Businesses and Communities, Chs. Comm 104
emergency_rules EmR1006 1.   EmR1006— Rule adopted to create Chapter Comm 137, relating to reallocations for recovery zone facility bonds as established under the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and affecting small businesses.
Exemption From Finding of Emergency
The Legislature, by Section 5 (1) (b) in 2009 Wisconsin Act 112, exempts the Department from providing evidence that this emergency rule is necessary for the preservation of public peace, health, safety or welfare; and exempts the Department from providing a finding of emergency for the adoption of this rule.
Publication Date:   March 5, 2010
Effective Dates:   March 5, 2010 through
  August 1, 2010
(subject to 2009 Wis. Act 112, s. 5)
Hearing Date:   May 13, 2010
Hearing Date:   May 26, 2010
emergency_rules EmR1013 2.   EmR1013 — Rule adopted to create Chapter Comm 121, relating to the small business innovation research assistance program, and affecting small businesses.
Exemption From Finding of Emergency
The Legislature, by Section 9110 (16u) of 2009 Wisconsin Act 28, exempts the Department from providing evidence that this emergency rule is necessary for the preservation of public peace, health, safety or welfare; and exempts the Department from providing a finding of emergency for the adoption of this rule.
Publication Date:   April 21, 2010
Effective Dates:   April 21, 2010 through
  September 17, 2010
Hearing Date:   June 11, 2010
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Links to Admin. Code and Statutes in this Register are to current versions, which may not be the version that was referred to in the original published document.