73.06(8)
(8) For purposes of this section "local assessor" includes the county assessors under
s. 70.99.
73.06 Cross-reference
Cross-reference: See s.
17.14 on removal of assessors from office.
73.07
73.07
District offices, supplies, expenses. 73.07(1)
(1) Office furniture and equipment furnished to income assessment district and branch offices by counties prior to July 1, 1986, shall remain in those offices until the department of revenue determines that the furniture and equipment are no longer needed.
73.07(2)
(2) Office furniture and equipment furnished to supervisors of equalization prior to January 1, 1974, shall continue to be furnished until no longer required by them.
73.07(3)
(3) The county board of any county shall provide rooms for the use of the tax appeals commission upon the request of the chairperson of the commission. Hearings of the commission may also be held in the department's district income tax office when the chairperson of the commission deems it advisable.
73.08
73.08
Educational program. From the amounts provided under
s. 20.566 (2) (a), beginning in 1994, the department of revenue shall implement an educational program for local assessment staff members in taxation districts that do not meet the requirements of
s. 70.05 (5) (f).
73.09
73.09
Assessor certification. 73.09(1)
(1)
Local assessment personnel. The department of revenue shall establish by rule the level of certification under
sub. (3), the continuing education requirements under
sub. (4), examinations under
sub. (5), and the requirements for and responsibilities associated with temporary certification under
sub. (6) for all assessors and assessment personnel of each local unit of government and for county assessor systems under
s. 70.99.
73.09(2)
(2) Department of revenue assessment personnel. The requirements established for local assessment personnel under
sub. (1) shall also apply to department of revenue assessment personnel commencing on January 1, 1981. The department of employment relations with the assistance of the department of revenue shall determine the position classifications for which certification shall apply within the department of revenue. The first level of certification shall be obtained within 100 days of the employee's appointment. The department of revenue in consultation with the department of employment relations shall establish requirements for obtaining higher levels of assessor certification.
73.09(3)
(3) Levels of certification. The levels of certification for assessors and assessment personnel shall be commensurate with the degree of complexity of the various classes of property within each taxation district.
73.09(4)(a)(a) All certifications issued prior to January 1, 1981, are valid for 10 years from the date of issuance. All certifications issued on or after January 1, 1981, but before August 15, 1991, expire on the 6th June 1 following the date of issuance. All certifications issued on or after August 15, 1991, expire 5 years after the date on which they are issued.
73.09(4)(b)
(b) Persons may be recertified by passing an examination as provided in
sub. (5) or by attendance for 4 of the previous 5 years at annual meetings called by the department of revenue under
s. 73.06 (1) and by meeting continuing education requirements determined by the department of revenue.
73.09(4)(c)
(c) Recertification is contingent upon submission of a notarized application for renewal, at least 60 days before the expiration date of the current certificate, attesting to the completion of the requirements specified in
par. (b). Persons applying for renewal on the basis of attendance at the meetings called by the department under
s. 73.06 (1) and by meeting continuing education requirements shall submit a $20 recertification fee with their applications.
73.09(5)
(5) Examinations. As provided in
subs. (1) and
(2), the department of revenue, assisted by the division of merit recruitment and selection in the department of employment relations, shall prepare and administer examinations for each level of certification. Persons applying for an examination under this subsection shall submit a $20 examination fee with their application. Certification shall be granted to each person who passes the examination for that level.
73.09(6)
(6) Temporary certification. As provided in
subs. (1) and
(2), the department of revenue shall promulgate rules for the temporary certification of the first level of certification and designate the functions that may be performed by such persons. An individual may be granted one temporary certification, valid until the results of the next certification examination are issued, but not for more than 100 days.
73.09(6m)
(6m) Social security numbers. Each applicant for certification or recertification under this section shall provide the applicant's social security number on the application. The department of revenue may not disclose a social security number that it obtains under this subsection. The department of revenue may not certify or recertify any person who fails to provide his or her social security number on his or her application.
73.09(7)
(7) Revocation of certification. 73.09(7)(a)(a) The secretary of revenue or a designee may revoke the certification of any assessor, assessment personnel or expert appraiser for the practice of any fraud or deceit in obtaining certification, or any negligence, incompetence or misconduct, including making a fraudulent change in the assessment roll after it is opened for examination under
s. 70.47 (3).
73.09(7)(b)
(b) Charges of fraud, deceit, negligence, incompetence or misconduct may be made against any assessor, assessment personnel or expert appraiser by the department of revenue. Such charges shall be in writing, stating the specific acts, and submitted to the secretary of revenue. All charges shall be heard by the secretary within 3 months after their filing.
73.09(7)(c)
(c) The time and place for such hearing shall be fixed by the secretary of revenue and a copy of the charges, together with a notice of the time and place of hearing, shall be given by personal service or by registered letter with return receipt requested, mailed to the last-known address of such expert appraiser, at least 30 days before the hearing. The expert appraiser so charged shall have the right to appear personally and by counsel, to cross-examine witnesses appearing against him or her, and to produce evidence and witnesses in his or her own defense.
73.09(7)(d)
(d) If, after such hearing, the secretary of revenue determines that there is just cause for revocation, the secretary shall revoke the certificate of registration of the expert appraiser and notify the expert appraiser to that effect. The expert appraiser shall return his or her certificate to the secretary of revenue immediately on receipt of the notice. The action of the secretary of revenue may be reviewed under
ch. 227.
73.09(7)(e)
(e) The secretary of revenue, for reasons sufficient, may reinstate a certificate of registration that has been revoked under this subsection, after one year upon formal application for reinstatement.
73.09(7m)
(7m) Liability for delinquent taxes. 73.09(7m)(a)(a) If the department of revenue determines that an applicant for certification or recertification under this section or a person who holds a certificate issued under this section is liable for delinquent taxes, as defined in
s. 73.0301 (1) (c), the department of revenue may deny the application or revoke the certificate. Except as provided in
par. (c), a denial or revocation under this paragraph is not subject to judicial review.
73.09(7m)(b)
(b) If the department of revenue denies an application or revokes a certificate under
par. (a), the department shall mail a notice of denial or revocation to the applicant or certificate holder. The notice shall include a statement of the facts that warrant the denial or revocation and a statement that the applicant or certificate holder may, within 30 days after the date on which the notice of denial or revocation is mailed, file a written request with the department to have the determination that he or she is liable for delinquent taxes reviewed at a hearing under
s. 73.0301 (5) (a).
73.09(7m)(c)
(c) If, after a hearing under
s. 73.0301 (5) (a), the department of revenue affirms a determination under
par. (a) that an applicant or certificate holder is liable for delinquent taxes, the department shall affirm its denial or revocation. An applicant or certificate holder may seek judicial review under
ch. 227 in the circuit court for Dane County of an affirmation by the department of a denial or revocation under this paragraph.
73.09(7m)(d)
(d) If, after a hearing under
s. 73.0301 (5) (a), the department of revenue determines that a person whose certificate is revoked under
par. (a) is not liable for delinquent taxes, as defined in
s. 73.0301 (1) (c), the department shall reinstate the certificate. The department may not charge a fee for reinstatement of a certificate under this paragraph.
73.10
73.10
Municipal finance. 73.10(1)(1) In this section "department" means the department of revenue.
73.10(2)(a)(a) The department shall collect annually from all town, city, village, county and other public officers, information as to the collection of taxes, receipts from licenses and other sources, the expenditure of public funds for all purposes, and such other information as is needed by the department, in such form and upon such blanks as the department prescribes, including but not limited to the requirements under
par. (b). All public officers so called upon shall fill out properly and return promptly to the department all blanks so transmitted. The department shall examine all town, village, city, county and other public records for such purposes as the department deems necessary. The department shall publish annually the information collected, with such compilations, analyses or recommendations as are deemed necessary. The department shall disseminate information concerning local government accounting, auditing and fiscal matters.
73.10(2)(b)
(b) The department may require by rule that the information it needs under
par. (a) be submitted as annual financial statements, notes to the financial statements and supporting schedules, that the statements, notes and schedules conform to generally accepted accounting principles promulgated by the governmental accounting standards board or its successor bodies and that the statements, notes and schedules be audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards. Notwithstanding
s. 227.01 (13) (j), a rule under this paragraph is subject to the requirements of
ch. 227.
73.10(3)
(3) The department may inspect and examine or cause an inspection and examination of the records of any town, city, village, county or other public officer whenever such officer fails or neglects to return properly the information required by
sub. (2) within the time specified under
s. 86.303 (5) (c),
(d) or
(g).
73.10(4)
(4) The officers responsible for the furnishing of information collected pursuant to this section shall be jointly and severally liable for any loss the town, city, village, county or other local public body, board, commission or agency suffers through their delinquency; and no payment shall be made them for salary, or on any other accounts, until the total amount of charges for such inspection and examination as provided in
sub. (6) has been paid into the treasury of the regular county or other local public body, board, commission or agency.
73.10(5)
(5) The department may inquire into the system of accounting of public funds in use by towns, villages, cities, counties and all other local public bodies, boards, commissions, departments or agencies except technical college districts and school districts; devise a system of accounts which is as nearly uniform as practicable; and audit the books of the town, village, city, county or other local public body, board, commission, department or agency, or any municipal electric utility upon its own motion.
73.10(6)
(6) The department may establish a scale of charges for audits, inspections and other services rendered by the department in connection with financial records or procedures of towns, villages, cities, counties and all other local public bodies, boards, commissions, departments or agencies. Upon the completion of such work or, at the department's discretion, during work in progress, the department shall transmit to the clerk of the town, village, city, county or other local public body, board, commission, department or agency a statement of such charges. Duplicates of the statements shall be filed in the offices of the state treasurer. Within 60 days after the receipt of the above statement of charges, it shall be audited as other claims against towns, villages, cities, counties and other local public bodies, boards, commissions, departments or agencies are audited, and it shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the appropriation under
s. 20.566 (2) (gi). Past due accounts of towns, villages, cities, counties and all other local public bodies, boards, commissions, departments or agencies shall be certified on or before the 4th Monday of August of each year and included in the next apportionment of state special charges to local units of government.
73.12
73.12
Set off of payments to vendors. 73.12(1)
(1)
Definitions. In this section:
73.12(1)(a)
(a) "Tax" means an amount that is owed to this state under
ch. 71,
72,
76,
77,
78 or
139 and any addition to tax, interest, penalties or other liability in respect to those amounts and that has been reduced to a tax warrant or in respect to which the time limit for appeal has passed.
73.12(1)(b)
(b) "Vendor" means a person providing goods or services to this state under
subch. IV or
V of ch. 16 or under
ch. 84 if the value of the contract for those goods or services is at least $500.
73.12(2)
(2) Request for setoff. The department of revenue may request the department of administration to proceed under
sub. (3) against any vendor who owes a tax. A request under this subsection consists of identification of the vendor and of the vendor's contracts with this state and notice to the vendor of the request for a setoff.
73.12(3)
(3) Setoff. Upon receipt of a request under
sub. (2), the department of administration shall begin to set off against amounts owed by this state to a vendor taxes owed to this state by that vendor until those taxes are paid in full. If the secretary of administration determines, within 30 days after receipt of a request for setoff, that the vendor against whom setoff is requested is either an essential supplier of critical commodities or the only vendor from whom a necessary good or service can be obtained and notifies the secretary of revenue of that determination, the department of administration shall waive the right of setoff and the department of administration shall pay to the vendor the amounts set off. The department of administration shall, within 30 days after the end of each calendar quarter, transfer to the department of revenue the taxes set off during the previous calendar quarter for deposit in the general fund, or in the transportation fund in respect to taxes owed under
ch. 78, and shall notify the department of revenue of the amounts set off against each vendor.
73.12(4)
(4) Application of proceeds. Upon notice under
sub. (3), the department of revenue shall reduce on its books the liability of the vendor by the amount set off. The department shall reduce the principal amount of tax liability and related amounts beginning with the liability of longest standing and proceeding chronologically to the most recent liability. In respect to each principal amount of liability and related amounts, the department of revenue shall reduce amounts in the order provided in
s. 71.91 (5) (k).
73.12(5)
(5) Liability precluded. Exchange of information required to administer this section does not result in liability under
s. 71.78,
72.06,
77.61 (5),
78.80 (3) or
139.38 (6). The department of administration is not liable to any vendor because of setoffs under this section.
73.12(6)
(6) Preservation of other remedies. The availability of the remedy under this section does not abridge the rights of the department of revenue to proceed under
ss. 71.80 (12),
71.91 (1) (a) and
(c) and
(2) to
(5m) and
71.92.
73.12(7)
(7) Tax identification information. The department of administration may collect from vendors and provide to the department of revenue any tax identification information that the department of revenue requires to administer the program under this section.
