ASSEMBLY SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 1,
TO 1999 ASSEMBLY BILL 504
January 27, 2000 - Offered by Committee on Rural Affairs and Forestry.
AB504-ASA1,1,7 1An Act to repeal 26.03 (1) (title), 26.03 (1) (a) and 814.04 (5); to renumber and
2amend
26.03 (1) (b) and 26.03 (2); to amend 26.03 (title), 26.05 (1), 26.05 (3)
3(b), 26.05 (3) (c) and 26.06 (2); to repeal and recreate 26.09; and to create
426.03 (1b), 26.03 (1g), 26.03 (1m), 26.03 (1r) (title) and (b) and 26.03 (2) (a) of
5the statutes; relating to: cutting, removal and transportation of raw forest
6products, seizures of forest products, granting rule-making authority and
7providing penalties.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
AB504-ASA1, s. 1 8Section 1. 26.03 (title) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB504-ASA1,1,9 926.03 (title) Cutting Harvest of raw forest products.
AB504-ASA1, s. 2 10Section 2. 26.03 (1) (title) of the statutes is repealed.
AB504-ASA1, s. 3 11Section 3. 26.03 (1) (a) of the statutes is repealed.
AB504-ASA1, s. 4
1Section 4. 26.03 (1) (b) of the statutes is renumbered 26.03 (1r) (a) and
2amended to read:
AB504-ASA1,2,93 26.03 (1r) (a) No purchaser of Indian reservation land or land to be placed upon
4the tax roll for the first time shall cut or cause to be cut any logs, piling, posts, poles,
5pulpwood, Christmas trees or other forest products, except fuel wood for personal
6home consumption,
may harvest any raw forest products, or direct the harvesting of
7any raw forest products,
from such the land without first recording the instrument
8by which title to such the land was acquired in the office of the register of deeds for
9the county in which such the land is located.
AB504-ASA1, s. 5 10Section 5. 26.03 (1b) of the statutes is created to read:
AB504-ASA1,2,1111 26.03 (1b) Definitions. In this section:
AB504-ASA1,2,1212 (a) "Harvest" means to cut, remove or transport.
AB504-ASA1,2,1313 (b) "Harvesting" means cutting, removing or transporting.
AB504-ASA1,2,1414 (c) "Raw forest products" has the meaning given in s. 26.05 (1).
AB504-ASA1, s. 6 15Section 6. 26.03 (1g) of the statutes is created to read:
AB504-ASA1,2,1816 26.03 (1g) Prohibition; delinquent taxes. No person may harvest any raw
17forest products, or direct the harvest of any raw forest products, from any land for
18which taxes are delinquent.
AB504-ASA1, s. 7 19Section 7. 26.03 (1m) of the statutes is created to read:
AB504-ASA1,3,620 26.03 (1m) Harvesting upon notification. (a) 1. Unless otherwise authorized
21to do so by the county, no person may harvest any raw forest products, or direct the
22harvesting of any raw forest products, from any land until 14 days after the clerk of
23the county in which the land is located is notified of the person's proposal to harvest.
24The person shall notify the county clerk each year and may do so in any manner
25acceptable to the county. Each time the person notifies the county, the person shall

1describe the land upon which the harvesting will occur by quarter-quarter section,
2government lot or fractional lot, unless the county requires a different method for
3describing the land. Notification under this subdivision expires on the December 31
4immediately following the notification, and no person may harvest, or direct the
5harvesting of, any additional raw forest products from the land until further
6notification that complies with this subdivision is provided to the county.
AB504-ASA1,3,157 2. Upon receipt of notifications under subd. 1., the county clerk shall provide
8notice to the town chairperson of each town in which the land from which raw forest
9products will be harvested is located and to the county treasurer. The county
10treasurer shall determine whether the county holds a tax certificate or tax deeds to
11any of the land involved. If the county holds a tax certificate, the county treasurer
12shall take action to collect the unpaid taxes represented by county-owned tax
13certificates or to prevent the harvesting of raw forest products from the land. If the
14county holds a tax deed, the county treasurer shall take action to prevent the
15harvesting of raw forest products from the land.
AB504-ASA1,3,2016 (b) Paragraph (a) 1. does not apply to a person harvesting raw forest products
17on public lands, as defined in s. 70.13 (7), to a person harvesting raw forest products
18for fuel wood for his or her home consumption, to a person harvesting for the purpose
19of clearing the land for agricultural use or to a person harvesting from the person's
20own land, any of the following:
AB504-ASA1,3,2121 1. Boughs for his or her own use.
AB504-ASA1,3,2222 2. Up to 5 Christmas trees for his or her own use.
AB504-ASA1, s. 8 23Section 8. 26.03 (1r) (title) and (b) of the statutes are created to read:
AB504-ASA1,3,2424 26.03 (1r) (title) Harvesting upon recording.
AB504-ASA1,4,2
1(b) Paragraph (a) does not apply to a person harvesting raw forest products for
2fuel wood for his or her home consumption.
AB504-ASA1, s. 9 3Section 9. 26.03 (2) of the statutes is renumbered 26.03 (2) (b) and amended
4to read:
AB504-ASA1,4,65 26.03 (2) (b) Whoever violates this section sub. (1m) or (1r), or a rule
6promulgated under sub. (1m) or (1r),
shall forfeit not more than $50 $100.
AB504-ASA1, s. 10 7Section 10. 26.03 (2) (a) of the statutes is created to read:
AB504-ASA1,4,98 26.03 (2) (a) Whoever violates sub. (1g), or a rule promulgated under sub. (1g),
9shall forfeit not less than $500 nor more than $10,000.
AB504-ASA1, s. 11 10Section 11. 26.05 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB504-ASA1,4,1511 26.05 (1) Definition. As used in In this section, "raw forest products" means
12forest products not altered by a manufacturing process off the land from which they
13are taken. This term and includes seedlings, saplings, shrubs, whole-tree chips,
14boughs,
logs, pilings, posts, poles, cordwood products, pulpwood, fuel wood and
15Christmas trees.
AB504-ASA1, s. 12 16Section 12. 26.05 (3) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB504-ASA1,4,1917 26.05 (3) (b) Instead of the forfeiture provided under par. (a), a person who
18intentionally violates this section, or a rule promulgated under this section, may be
19punished under s. 943.20 for theft.
AB504-ASA1, s. 13 20Section 13. 26.05 (3) (c) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB504-ASA1,4,2421 26.05 (3) (c) In addition to any other penalty, a person who violates this section,
22or a rule promulgated under this section, is liable for the reasonable costs incurred
23to establish the volume and value of the raw forest products cut, removed or
24transported.
AB504-ASA1, s. 14 25Section 14. 26.06 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB504-ASA1,5,4
126.06 (2) Any person who, without the consent of a person legally able to give
2consent, removes any seized products or removes or defaces a seizure notice of the
3department or of any sheriff shall forfeit not less than $500 nor more than $50
4$10,000.
AB504-ASA1, s. 15 5Section 15. 26.09 of the statutes is repealed and recreated to read:
AB504-ASA1,5,7 626.09 Civil liability for unauthorized cutting, removal or
7transportation of raw forest products.
(1b) Definitions. In this section:
AB504-ASA1,5,98 (a) "Compass" means a sighting compass with a liquid-filled capsule that has
9been adjusted for the proper declination.
AB504-ASA1,5,1210 (b) "Fair market value" means the amount for which the raw forest products
11or land can be sold in an open market by a person willing and able but not compelled
12to sell and a purchaser willing and able but not obliged to buy.
AB504-ASA1,5,1313 (c) "Harvest" means to cut, remove or transport.
AB504-ASA1,5,1414 (d) "Harvesting" means cutting, removing or transporting.
AB504-ASA1,5,1615 (e) "Harvesting boundary" means the boundary of an area in which the
16harvesting of raw forest products is planned.
AB504-ASA1,5,1917 (f) "Owner" includes the board of commissioners of public lands if the board
18holds a land contract certificate under ch. 24 to the land from which the raw forest
19products were harvested.
AB504-ASA1,5,2020 (g) "Raw forest products" has the meaning given in s. 26.05 (1).
AB504-ASA1,5,2221 (h) "Recorded survey" means a land survey that is recorded with the register
22of deeds in each of the counties in which the harvesting took place.
AB504-ASA1,5,2323 (i) "Slash" has the meaning given in s. 26.12 (6) (a).
AB504-ASA1,6,3
1(j) "Stumpage value" means the applicable stumpage rate established by rule
2under s. 77.91 (1) or the fair market value of raw forest products less the cost of their
3harvesting, whichever is greater.
AB504-ASA1,6,54 (k) "Subdivision" means a township, section, quarter-quarter section,
5government lot or fractional lot.
AB504-ASA1,6,13 6(2) Persons entitled to sue; exception. (a) In addition to any other
7enforcement action that may be taken and subject to par. (b), an owner of raw forest
8products that were harvested without the consent of the owner may bring a civil
9action against the person who harvested the raw forest products to recover the
10damages caused by the harvesting. In addition to any other enforcement action and
11subject to par. (b), a county in which a violation of s. 26.03 (1g) or (1r) or a rule
12promulgated under s. 26.03 (1g) or (1r) occurred may bring a civil action to recover
13damages for the violation.
AB504-ASA1,6,2014 (b) An owner may not recover damages under this subsection if the person
15harvesting the raw forest products or the person giving consent for the harvesting
16reasonably relied on a written agreement among adjacent owners, or their agents,
17that the owner giving consent to harvest has the authority to do so even if after the
18harvesting it is determined that the owner giving the consent did not have such
19authority, but only if the harvesting is from land owned by an owner who is a party
20to the agreement.
AB504-ASA1,6,23 21(3) Damages. (a) A person against whom an action is brought as provided in
22sub. (2) is liable for the applicable damages under par. (b) or (c), subject to sub. (6),
23and other reasonable and necessary costs under par. (d).
AB504-ASA1,7,424 (b) 1. A court shall award damages that equal the stumpage value of the raw
25forest products harvested if the person harvesting the raw forest products or the

1person giving consent for the harvesting reasonably relied upon a recorded survey
2that was done by a person who is registered as a land surveyor or who is issued a
3permit to practice land surveying under s. 443.06 even if the recorded survey is
4determined, after the harvesting, to be in error.
AB504-ASA1,7,85 2. A court shall award damages that are equal to 2 times the stumpage value
6of the raw forest products harvested if a recorded survey was not relied upon as
7specified in subd. 1. but the person harvesting the raw forest products took
8reasonable precautions in identifying harvesting boundaries.
AB504-ASA1,7,139 3. A court shall award damages that are equal to 4 times the stumpage value
10or 2 times the fair market value of the raw forest products harvested, whichever is
11greater, if a recorded survey was not relied upon as specified in subd. 1. and the
12person harvesting the raw forest products did not take reasonable precautions in
13identifying the harvesting boundaries.
AB504-ASA1,7,1614 (c) In addition to the award under par. (b), a court shall award the owner of raw
15forest products that were harvested without the consent of the owner, any economic
16damages resulting from that harvest.
AB504-ASA1,7,1817 (d) A court shall award other reasonable and necessary costs, which may
18include costs for any of the following:
AB504-ASA1,7,2019 1. Repair of damage to, or cleanup on, the land from which the raw forest
20products were harvested.
AB504-ASA1,7,2321 2. Removal of slash from agricultural land, waterways, highways, private
22roads, trails or other sites where the slash would interfere with reforesting or
23replanting.
AB504-ASA1,7,2524 3. Determining the fair market value, the stumpage value or the volume of the
25raw forest products that were harvested.
AB504-ASA1,8,2
14. Determining the location of property boundaries necessary for determining
2whether a violation occurred.
AB504-ASA1,8,33 5. Preparing forest management or reforestation plans.
AB504-ASA1,8,44 6. Reforesting.
AB504-ASA1,8,55 7. Replanting by direct seeding or by use of seedlings.
AB504-ASA1,8,11 6(4) Legal costs. Notwithstanding the limitations under s. 814.04, and in
7addition to the remedies available under s. 807.01, the court shall award the
8successful party in a civil action brought under sub. (2) court costs and reasonable
9attorney fees if the unsuccessful party, before the commencement of the action,
10unreasonably refused to pay a demand for damages or to accept an offer of payment
11for damages.
AB504-ASA1,8,13 12(5) Reasonable precautions. (a) For purposes of sub. (3) (b), a person takes
13reasonable precautions if the person does all of the following:
AB504-ASA1,8,1414 1. Identifies the harvesting boundaries as required under par. (b).
AB504-ASA1,8,1915 2. Reviews land ownership records and any other resources or documentation
16regarding the land. These records, resources and documentation include
17instruments of conveyance, certified survey maps, survey field notes and
18information on the land's boundaries provided by the owners, or their agents, of any
19land that abuts a proposed harvesting boundary.
AB504-ASA1,8,2120 (b) For purposes of par. (a), the harvesting boundaries may be identified by any
21of the following methods:
AB504-ASA1,8,2522 1. By use of a compass and measuring device or by use of a global position
23system if the identification is conducted by a person trained in the method used and
24if the identification is based on an established survey corner as specified in par. (c).
25If a global positioning system is used, it shall be accurate to plus or minus 2 meters.
AB504-ASA1,9,1
12. By use of a method established by rule by the department.
AB504-ASA1,9,72 (c) A survey corner is an established survey corner for purposes of par. (b) if it
3is part of a U.S. government survey plat and it is used to determine one or more
4boundaries of a subdivision. The survey corner may be evidenced by a monument or
5other marking that was placed at the time that the survey was conducted or, if the
6monument or marker is no longer visible or in existence, the position of the survey
7corner may be reconstructed by doing one of the following:
AB504-ASA1,9,98 1. Using a reference to a description contained in applicable surveying field
9notes or other supplemental surveying record.
AB504-ASA1,9,1010 2. Locating the survey corner by use of physical evidence or witness testimony.
AB504-ASA1,9,14 11(6) Damages; other. An owner may not receive both payment under s. 26.06
12(3) and damages specified under sub. (3) (b) or (c) from the same person. An owner
13may not receive both payment under s. 26.05 (3) (c) and the damages specified in sub.
14(3) (d) 3.
AB504-ASA1, s. 16 15Section 16. 814.04 (5) of the statutes is repealed.
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