134.38
134.38
Companies to post copies of s. 134.37. All telegraph or messenger companies whose employes are affected by
s. 134.37 are hereby required to post, in their offices in this state, a copy of
s. 134.37, under a penalty of $10 and costs for each and every offense.
134.38 History
History: 1979 c. 89.
134.39
134.39
Fraudulent knowledge of dispatch; injury to wires; interference. Any person who shall, by any device or means whatever, procure or attempt to procure from any officer or other person connected with or in the business or management of any telegraph company transacting business within this state, any knowledge of the contents or substance of any telegraph message or dispatch not addressed to himself or herself or to which he or she is not entitled, or who shall, without lawful authority, tamper or interfere with, use or in any manner intentionally, carelessly or negligently disturb or interrupt any telegraph wires or lines of any such telegraph company, or who shall intentionally, carelessly or negligently fell any tree or timber so as to break, destroy or injure any such telegraph wires, without first giving 24 hours' notice of his or her intention to do so to some agent of the company at its nearest office or to some agent of a railroad company at its nearest office, in case such wires are constructed along any railroad, or who shall, without the consent of such company, send or attempt to send any message or dispatch over said wire or lines, in any manner whatever, or shall intercept, interrupt or disturb any dispatch passing upon any such wires or lines, or who shall wilfully or maliciously interfere with, obstruct, prevent or delay, by any means or contrivance whatsoever, the sending, transmission or receiving of any wireless telegraph message, communication or report by any wireless telegraph company doing business in this state, or who shall aid, agree with, employ or conspire with any person or persons to unlawfully interfere with, obstruct, prevent or delay the sending, transmission or receiving of any such wireless telegraph message, shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail not more than one year or by fine not exceeding $1,000.
134.39 History
History: 1993 a. 482.
134.40
134.40
Injury to wires by removal of building, etc. 134.40(1)(1) Except as provided under
sub. (2), any person having the right so to do who shall wilfully remove or change any building or other structure or any timber, standing or fallen, to which any telegraph, telecommunications, electric light or electric power lines or wires are in any manner attached, or cause the same to be done, which shall destroy, disturb or injure the wires, poles or other property of any telegraph, telecommunications, electric light or electric power company transacting business in this state, without first giving to such company, at its office nearest to such place of injury, at least 24 hours' previous notice thereof, shall be imprisoned not more than 30 days or fined not more than $50. And any person who shall unlawfully break down, interrupt or remove any telegraph, telecommunications, electric light or electric power line or wire or destroy, disturb, interfere with or injure the wires, poles or other property of any telegraph, telecommunications, electric light or electric power company in this state shall be imprisoned not more than 3 months or fined not more than $100.
134.40(2)
(2) This section does not apply to any person who is lawfully using a land survey marker for land surveying purposes no more than 30 inches below ground level.
134.40 History
History: 1985 a. 187,
297,
332.
134.41
134.41
Poles and wires on private property without owner's consent. 134.41(1)(1) No person nor any officer, agent, servant or employe of any firm or corporation shall erect any pole or poles outside of the limits of any highway, street or alley or attach any wire or cables to any tree, building or structure, or string or suspend any wire, wires or cables over any private property without first obtaining the consent of the owner or agent of the owner, to erect such pole or poles or to string such wire or wires, or the consent of the owner or agent of the owner of any building or structure to which such wire, wires or cables are attached; and any person who shall fail to remove such pole, poles, wire or wires or to detach such wire, wires or cables within 10 days after such person, firm or corporation has been served with a notice to remove, as hereinafter provided, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not exceeding $25.
134.41(2)
(2) Such notice to remove shall be in writing and shall be given by the owner or agent of the owner of the land or of the building or structure, and shall contain a description of the land upon which such pole or poles have been erected, or over which such wires have been strung or attached. Such notice to remove shall be served in the manner prescribed for the service of a summons upon such person, firm or corporation in courts of record.
134.42
134.42
Cable television subscriber rights. 134.42(2)(a)(a) A cable operator shall repair cable service within 72 hours after a subscriber reports a service interruption or requests the repair if the service interruption is not the result of a natural disaster.
134.42(2)(b)
(b) Upon notification by a subscriber of a service interruption, a cable operator shall give the subscriber a credit for one day of cable service if cable service is interrupted for more than 4 hours in one day and the interruption is caused by the cable operator.
134.42(2)(bm)
(bm) Upon notification by a subscriber of a service interruption, a cable operator shall give the subscriber a credit for each hour that cable service is interrupted if cable service is interrupted for more than 4 hours in one day and the interruption is not caused by the cable operator.
134.42(2)(c)
(c) A cable operator shall give a subscriber at least 30 days' advance written notice before deleting a program service from its cable service. A cable operator is not required to give the notice under this paragraph if the cable operator makes a channel change because of circumstances beyond the control of the cable operator.
134.42(2)(d)
(d) A cable operator shall give a subscriber at least 30 days' advance written notice before instituting a rate increase.
134.42(2)(e)1.1. A cable operator may not disconnect a subscriber's cable service, or a portion of that service, for failure to pay a bill until the unpaid bill is at least 45 days past due.
134.42(2)(e)2.
2. If a cable operator intends to disconnect a subscriber's cable service, or a portion of that service, the cable operator shall give the subscriber at least 10 days' advance written notice of the disconnection. A cable operator is not required to give the notice under this subdivision if the disconnection is requested by the subscriber, is necessary to prevent theft of cable service or is necessary to reduce or prevent signal leakage, as described in
47 CFR 76.611.
134.42(3)
(3) Rules and local ordinances allowed. This section does not prohibit the department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection from promulgating a rule or from issuing an order consistent with its authority under
ch. 100 that gives a subscriber greater rights than the rights under
sub. (2) or prohibit a city, village or town from enacting an ordinance that gives a subscriber greater rights than the rights under
sub. (2).
134.42(4)(a)(a) A person who violates
sub. (2) may be required to forfeit not more than $1,000 for each offense and not more than $10,000 for each occurrence. Failure to give a notice required under
sub. (2) (c) or
(d) to more than one subscriber shall be considered to be one offense.
134.42(4)(b)
(b) The department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection and the district attorneys of this state have concurrent authority to institute civil proceedings under this section.
134.42 History
History: 1991 a. 296;
1995 a. 27.
134.43
134.43
Privacy and cable television. 134.43(1)(a)(a) Upon the request of the subscriber, each cable television connection capable of transmitting a message from the cable equipment shall be fitted with a device under the control of the subscriber that enables the subscriber to prevent reception and transmission of messages identified in
par. (b) by the subscriber's cable equipment.
134.43(1)(b)
(b) The device in
par. (a) shall control all messages received and transmitted by the subscriber's cable equipment except messages recurring at constant intervals, including those related to security, fire and utility service.
134.43(1)(c)
(c) Each cable television subscriber shall be notified in writing by the person providing the cable television service of the opportunity to request the device under
par. (a).
134.43(1)(d)
(d) No cable television subscriber may be required to pay any extra fee for the installation and operation of a device requested under
par. (a).
134.43(2)
(2) No person may intrude on the privacy of another by doing any of the following without the written consent of the subscriber given within the preceding 2 years:
134.43(2)(a)
(a) Monitor the subscriber's cable equipment or the use of it, except to verify the system's integrity or to collect information for billing of pay services.
134.43(2)(b)
(b) Provide anyone with the name or address or other information that discloses or reasonably leads to the disclosure of any aspect of the behavior, including but not limited to individual habits, preferences or finances, of the subscriber or of a member of the subscriber's household.
134.43(2)(c)
(c) Conduct research that requires the response of the subscriber or of any member of the subscriber's household, except by mail or personal interview, unless the subscriber or household member has been notified in writing before the research begins and at least once each month while the research is being conducted.
134.43(2m)(a)(a) A person may supply the name, address or other information identifying a cable television subscriber or member of the subscriber's household to another person if the person receiving the information uses it only for billing of pay services or to send listings of cable television programs to the subscriber and if the subscriber is notified in writing of that supplying of information, given the opportunity to object to that supplying and does not object to that supplying.
134.43(2m)(b)
(b) Any person receiving information under
par. (a) may use it only for the purposes specified in
par. (a) and is otherwise subject to
sub. (2).
134.43(3)
(3) Any person who is the victim of an intrusion of privacy under this section is entitled to relief under
s. 895.50 (1) and
(4) unless the act is permissible under
ss. 968.27 to
968.37.
134.43(4)
(4) Any person who violates this section is subject to a forfeiture of not to exceed $50,000 for a first offense and not to exceed $100,000 for a 2nd or subsequent offense.
134.43(5)
(5) Damages under
sub. (3) are not limited to damages for pecuniary loss but shall not be presumed in the absence of proof.
134.43 History
History: 1981 c. 271;
1987 a. 399.
134.45
134.45
Contracts restricting days for exhibiting motion picture films; penalty. 134.45(1)
(1) As used in this section the following words and terms shall be construed as follows:
134.45(1)(a)
(a) "Person" shall include any natural person, partnership, firm, unincorporated association, limited liability company or corporation doing business within this state.
134.45(1)(b)
(b) "Public exhibition" shall mean any exhibition, performance or display which the public may see, view or attend for an admission price, fee or other valuable consideration.
134.45(2)
(2) It shall be unlawful for any person to enter into a contract, directly or indirectly, to sell, rent, lease, license, lend, distribute or barter a motion picture film for public exhibition within this state upon the condition imposed by the seller, vendor, renter, lessor, licensor or distributor that such public exhibition thereof shall begin, occur or take place on a certain or specified day or days of the week.
134.45(3)(a)(a) Any person who violates any provision of this section shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not less than $25 nor more than $300 for the first offense, and shall be fined not less than $300 nor more than $500 for each separate subsequent offense.
134.45(3)(b)
(b) A domestic or foreign corporation, association or limited liability company exercising any of the powers, franchises or functions of a business entity in this state that violates any provision of this section, shall not have the right of, and shall be prohibited from, doing business in this state, and the department of financial institutions shall revoke its certificate to do business in this state.
134.45(4)
(4) When, upon complaint or otherwise, the attorney general or district attorney has good reason to believe that any provision of this section has been violated, he or she shall commence and prosecute the necessary actions in the supreme court, or in the circuit court of the county in which the defendant resides, for enforcement of this section. Such actions may include quo warranto, injunction or any other proceedings.
134.45 History
History: 1993 a. 112,
482,
490;
1995 a. 27.
134.46
134.46
Exhibition of explicit sexual material at outdoor theater. 134.46(1)(a)
(a) "Explicit sexual material" means any pictorial or other visual representation depicting sexual conduct or sadomasochistic abuse.
134.46(1)(b)
(b) "Harmful to minors" means that quality of any description or representation of sexual conduct or sadomasochistic abuse, when it:
134.46(1)(b)1.
1. Predominantly appeals to the prurient, shameful or morbid interest of minors;
134.46(1)(b)2.
2. Is patently offensive to an average person applying contemporary community standards in the adult community as a whole with respect to what is suitable material for minors; and
134.46(1)(b)3.
3. Taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors.
134.46(1)(c)
(c) "Outdoor theater" means a place where any picture or other visual representation or image is displayed on a screen or other background not completely enclosed by walls and a roof and which screen or background can be seen by individuals not within the confines of the theater.
134.46(1)(e)
(e) "Sexual conduct" means acts of masturbation, homosexuality, sexual intercourse or physical contact with a person's unclothed genitals or pubic area.
134.46(2)
(2) Exhibition of explicit sexual material prohibited. No person may exhibit explicit sexual material harmful to minors at an outdoor theater with knowledge of the nature of the material, if the material is visible from a public street, sidewalk, thoroughfare or other public place or from private property where it may be observed by minors.
134.46(3)
(3) Penalty. Any person violating this section after receiving proper written notice shall be subject to a forfeiture not to exceed $1,000. Each exhibition constitutes a separate violation of this section.
134.50
134.50
Poultry dealing regulations. 134.50(1)
(1) It is unlawful for any poultry dealer to purchase any live or dead poultry without registering annually with the county clerk.
134.50(2)
(2) Every poultry dealer shall keep a record of all purchases of poultry made by the poultry dealer showing in detail the place and date of purchase and the name and address of the person from whom the purchase was made, together with a general description of the kind of poultry purchased. Such record shall be kept in permanent form and be open to inspection at all reasonable times to any district attorney, assistant district attorney, sheriff, deputy sheriff or any police officer.
134.50(3)
(3) Any poultry dealer or his or her servant or agent violating any of the provisions of this section shall, upon the first conviction, be punished by a fine of from $10 to $100. Upon a 2nd or subsequent conviction, a poultry dealer or his or her servant or agent shall be punished by a fine of from $25 to $500 or be imprisoned in the county jail for not more than 90 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
134.50(4)
(4) Any person selling poultry to a poultry dealer who gives falsely his name or address to such dealer, his agent or servant, shall be imprisoned in the county jail for not less than 30 days nor more than one year.
134.50 History
History: 1993 a. 482.
134.52
134.52
Shipment of chickens. 134.52(1)
(1) It shall be unlawful for any person, or the person's agent or servant, to ship, or for any common carrier or the agent or servant of such common carrier to allow, aid, or abet in the shipment of chickens confined in coops unless such coops are at least 13 inches in height on the inside and are covered at the top by wires or slats not more than one inch apart or by wire screening with meshes of not more than one inch.
134.52(2)
(2) It shall be unlawful for any person or the person's agent or servant or for any common carrier or the agent or servant of such common carrier to so crowd or congest or to allow, aid or abet in the crowding or congesting of chickens within any coop in any shipment as to impair or endanger the well-being of such chickens during the course of transportation thereof; and any such crowding or congesting shall be deemed cruelty.
134.52(3)
(3) Whenever any humane officer or any peace officer in this state ascertains or observes any shipment of chickens in a crowded or congested condition, such officer may take or cause to be taken such steps as to give immediate relief.
134.52(4)
(4) Any person who shall violate the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not less than $10 nor more than $50, or by imprisonment in the county jail not less than 10 days nor more than 30 days.
134.52 History
History: 1993 a. 482.
134.53
134.53
Transportation and sale of cattle. 134.53(1)
(1) No person shall transport cattle on any highway unless accompanied by shipping documents setting forth the number of cattle being moved, a description of the cattle, including brand, registry or other identification numbers if any, name and address of the owner, and point of origin and destination. The shipping document may consist of a statement signed by the owner setting forth the above information.
134.53(2)
(2) Cattle being transported on highways and all shipping documents and other records pertaining to such animals shall be subject to inspection by any police officer. Such officers may stop or intercept any vehicle used or suspected of being used for the transportation of cattle and may seize or detain any shipment of cattle not accompanied by shipping documents containing information as required under
sub. (1), or accompanied by shipping documents which may be false, until such time as satisfactory evidence of ownership of the cattle is obtained.
134.53(3)
(3) No person shall purchase or receive for sale or shipment any cattle not accompanied by shipping documents required under
sub. (1). Copies of such documents shall be retained for a period of 6 months following date of purchase or receipt of the cattle and shall be available for inspection at all reasonable times by any police officer.
134.53(4)
(4) Any person who transports cattle without shipping documents containing information required under
sub. (1), or executes, furnishes or issues any false document pertaining to the ownership or shipment of cattle, or who violates this section in any other manner shall be fined not more than $500, or be imprisoned not more than 3 months, or both.
134.53(5)
(5) Subsection (1) does not apply to cattle being transported between farms owned, rented or leased by the owner of the cattle when ownership of cattle does not change.
134.53(6)
(6) Subsection (1) does not apply to cattle being transported to market by the owner of the cattle.
134.53 History
History: 1973 c. 239.
