Under this bill, a fermented malt beverages wholesaler that does not maintain
a "community of interest" with a brewer may still be a dealer of the brewer, such that
the wholesaler's product distribution rights may not be terminated by the brewer
without good cause. The bill also requires that, if a fermented malt beverages
wholesaler's authorization to distribute products is terminated in whole or in part
by a brewer (even for good cause), any succeeding fermented malt beverages
wholesaler must compensate the terminated wholesaler for the fair market value of
the distributorship that was terminated by the brewer. An exception exists if the
terminated wholesaler was terminated by the brewer because the terminated
wholesaler: engaged in material fraudulent conduct or made material and
substantial misrepresentations in its dealings with the brewer or others; was
convicted of a felony substantially related to operation of the dealership; or
knowingly distributed products outside the territory authorized by the brewer.
Disputes regarding the amount of compensation owed by a succeeding wholesaler to
a terminated wholesaler must be mutually resolved between the parties or resolved
through binding arbitration through a nationally recognized arbitration association.
Under current law, with certain exceptions, the outright sale, transfer, or
assignment of a license to sell alcohol beverages at retail is illegal and unenforceable.
However, current licensees or permittees at times agree to surrender to the issuing
authority their license or permit for a premises upon promise of payment by another
party if the surrender results in the other party being awarded the liquor license or
permit for the premises. This bill prohibits municipalities and DOR from issuing to
an applicant a retail license or permit to sell alcohol beverages if the premises
described in the application is already covered by a current license or permit of the
same kind unless each fermented malt beverage wholesaler to whom the current
licensee or permittee is indebted is first notified that another person has applied for
a license or permit for the same premises.
Under current law, a person who holds a security interest in alcohol beverages
may, without a license or permit, sell alcohol beverages. This bill requires that a sale
of fermented malt beverages by a secured party be made within 30 days after the
secured party takes possession of the fermented malt beverages unless the secured
party demonstrates good cause why this time period is insufficient to make a sale
that is commercially reasonable or in conformity with the parties' security
agreement.
Under current law, any person who ships fermented malt beverages from
out-of-state to this state must hold an out-of-state shippers' permit, which
authorizes the permittee to ship fermented malt beverages only to licensed
wholesalers within the state. This bill requires DOR to issue a written warning for
an out-of-state shipper's first violation, and increases the penalty for any
subsequent violation.
Current law generally prohibits any brewer or wholesaler of fermented malt
beverages from furnishing anything of value to a retailer of fermented malt
beverages. A number of exceptions to this prohibition exist. One exception allows
brewers and wholesalers to give to any fermented malt beverage retailer, for
placement inside the premises, signs, clocks, or menu boards with an aggregate
value of not more than $150. This bill increases the aggregate limit on the value of
signs, clocks, or menu boards from $150 to $2,500 during any calendar year. The bill
also allows a brewer or wholesaler to provide signs made from plastic, vinyl, or other
materials with a limited useful life without limitation on the aggregate value of these
signs. The bill further increases the allowable business entertainment value limit
from $75 per day to $500 per day and limits the number of days to not more than 12
in a calendar year.
Another exception allows a brewer or wholesaler to purchase advertising from
a national or statewide trade association of retailers. This bill allows a brewer or
wholesaler to purchase advertising from an advertising agency or media company
to promote brewer or wholesaler sponsored sweepstakes, contests, or promotions on
the premises of retailers if the promotional material includes at least five
unaffiliated retailers and if the retailer on whose premises the sweepstakes, contest,
or promotion will occur does not receive compensation for hosting the event. The bill
also allows a brewer or wholesaler to conduct its own sweepstakes, contest, or
promotion on the premises of a retailer if these same conditions are satisfied.
Another exception allows a brewer that produces 350,000 or more barrels of
fermented malt beverages annually to make contributions to national or statewide
trade associations of retailers. This bill allows any brewer or wholesaler to make
contributions to national, statewide, or local trade associations of retailers. This
would include allowing brewers or wholesalers to join local tavern leagues.
Administrative dissolution of limited liability company
This bill authorizes DFI to administratively dissolve a limited liability
company if any of the following occur: the limited liability company does not pay,
within one year, any fees or penalties due DFI; the limited liability company is
without a registered agent or registered office in this state for at least one year; and
the limited liability company does not notify DFI within one year that its registered
agent or registered office has been changed, that its registered agent has resigned,
or that its registered office has been discontinued.
Unclaimed property
Under Wisconsin's version of the Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (UUPA),
certain types of property are presumed to be abandoned if the owner of the property
fails to take steps to evidence ownership within a specified time period (dormancy
period). With certain limited exceptions, the holder of property that is presumed to
be abandoned must report and deliver the property to the state treasurer every other
year. With certain limited exceptions, the treasurer must sell the property within
three years after the date on which the treasurer receives the property. If the
property is a security other than a stock (for example, a stock option or an interest
in a limited partnership), the treasurer must hold the security for at least one year
before selling it, unless it is in the best interest of the state to do otherwise. Except
for amounts sufficient to cover possible claims and the treasurer's administrative
expenses, the treasurer currently deposits the clear proceeds of the sale of delivered
property in the school fund.
Persons claiming an interest in any abandoned or unclaimed property
delivered to the treasurer may file a claim with the treasurer to obtain the property.
If a claim is allowed, the treasurer generally must deliver the property to the
claimant or pay the claimant the amount the treasurer actually received or the net
proceeds of the sale of the property, plus certain amounts for dividends or interest
accruing to the property. However, if the claim is for any property other than a stock
and if the treasurer sold the property within three years after the date on which the
treasurer received the property, the treasurer must pay the claimant the value of the
property at the time the claim was filed or the net proceeds of the sale, whichever is
greater. This alternate method of valuation also applies if the claim is for a stock that
the treasurer sold within three years after the date of receipt, as long as the claim
is filed within that three-year period.
With certain limited exceptions, this bill requires annual reporting and
delivery of unclaimed property to the state treasurer. The bill also shortens from
seven years to five the dormancy period that applies to a stock or other intangible
ownership interest in a business association. The bill establishes a single procedure
that applies to the sale of all abandoned securities delivered to the treasurer, which
requires the treasurer to hold the securities for at least one year before selling them,
unless it is in the best interest of the state to do otherwise. In addition, the bill deletes
the alternate method of valuation that applies to property, including stocks, sold
within three years after the date on which the treasurer received the property. Thus,
under this bill, the treasurer's liability for any claim is generally limited to delivery
of the applicable abandoned or unclaimed property or payment of the amount the
treasurer actually received or the net proceeds of the sale of the property, plus certain
amounts for dividends or interest accruing to the property.
Telemarketing
This bill creates three prohibitions regarding telephone solicitations, which are
unsolicited telephone calls encouraging a person in this state to purchase property,
goods, or services. First, the bill prohibits an employee of a professional telemarketer
from using a blocking service that withholds from the recipient of the call the name
or telephone number associated with the telephone line used to make the call. A
professional telemarketer is any business with employees whose primary duty is to
make telephone solicitations.
Second, the bill prohibits an employee of a professional telemarketer from
making a telephone solicitation to a person who has provided notice to the
professional telemarketer that the person does not want to receive telephone
solicitations.
Third, the bill prohibits an employee of a professional telemarketer from
making a telephone solicitation unless, when initiating the telephone conversation,
the employee discloses each the following: 1) the employee's name; 2) the identity
of the person selling the property, goods, or services for whom the telephone
solicitation is being made; and 3) the purpose of the call.
In addition, the bill makes changes to a prohibition under current law against
any person using a prerecorded message in a telephone solicitation without the
consent of the person called. Under this bill, the prohibition applies to any employee
of a professional telemarketer, instead of any person.
Securities agents
With certain exceptions, current law prohibits a person from engaging in the
business of banking without being organized and chartered as a national bank, state
bank, or trust company bank. Certain agents who receive and hold money, pending
investment in real estate or securities on behalf of the person who deposited the
money, are not engaged in the business of banking and are therefore exempt from
regulation. However, this exemption applies only if the agent keeps the money in a
separate trust fund, does not mingle the money with the agent's own property, and
does not agree to pay interest on the money other than to account for the actual
income that is derived from the money while held pending investment.
This bill expands this exemption to include an agent who receives and holds
money, pending investment in real estate or securities on behalf of the person who
deposits the money regardless of whether the money is separately kept and
regardless of whether the agent agrees to pay interest on the money. Thus, under
this bill, an agent may pay interest on money that the agent receives and holds,
pending investment in real estate or securities on behalf of the person who deposited
the money.
Wisconsin Consumer Act
Under current law, a transaction in which a consumer is granted credit in an
amount of $25,000 or less and which is entered into for personal, family, or household
purposes (consumer credit transaction) is generally subject to the Wisconsin
Consumer Act. The Wisconsin Consumer Act provides obligations, remedies, and
penalties that current law generally does not require for other transactions. With
certain limited exceptions, any person who makes or solicits consumer credit
transactions in this state must register with DFI. A person who is subject to this
registration requirement must pay a registration fee, unless the average
outstanding monthly balance of all consumer credit transactions that the person
entered into in this state is $250,000 or less. Currently, the minimum fee is $25 and
the maximum fee is $1,500 or 0.005% of the average monthly outstanding balance,
whichever is less.
Under this bill, a person is exempt from the annual registration requirement,
and the annual registration fee, if the person's year-end balance is $250,000 or less,
although the person still must make an initial registration and pay an initial
registration fee. This bill also deletes the statutory minimum and maximum
registration fees and requires DFI to set registration fees by rule, based upon the
existing, specified criteria.
Buildings and safety
Fire dues program
Under current law, an eligible city, village, or town (municipality) may receive
a grant from the department of commerce to purchase fire protection equipment, to
provide fire inspection services and public education, to train fire fighters and fire
inspectors, and to fund certain accounts established for the benefit of fire fighters
(fire dues program). The fire dues program is funded from a percentage of certain
insurance premiums.
This bill makes numerous changes and clarifications to the fire dues program.
With certain exceptions, in order for a municipality to be eligible to receive a grant
from the fire dues program, the chief of the municipal fire department currently must
provide a fire inspection for every public building and place of employment in the fire
department's territory. Under the bill, a municipality may be eligible to receive a
grant if the municipality ensures that at least 95% of the required fire inspections
are provided for in the municipality and if the municipality certifies to the
department of commerce that these inspections were provided. It is unclear under
current law whether certain fire dues program eligibility requirements and fire
safety laws apply to a municipality or to a fire department that provides services to
a municipality. In general, the bill specifies that the fire dues program eligibility
requirements apply to a municipality rather than to a fire department. In addition,
the bill requires a municipality to ensure that certain fire safety laws, such as those
requiring fire inspections, that apply to a fire department, a fire chief, or other
designated individuals, are followed in the municipality.
Fire safety laws
Current law generally requires the chief of each municipal fire department to
comply with certain fire safety laws relating to fire inspections and fire safety
education. This bill authorizes the department of commerce to create the Fire Safety
and Injury Prevention Education Program. In addition, the bill makes numerous
changes and clarifications to the fire safety laws. Among other things, the bill
expands the department of commerce's authority with regard to fire safety to include
jurisdiction over and supervision of all buildings, structures, premises, and public
thoroughfares in this state for the purpose of administering all laws relating to fire
inspections, fire prevention, fire detection, and fire suppression. In addition, the bill
authorizes the department of commerce to enter a private dwelling, with the consent
of the owner or renter, in order to verify the proper installation and maintenance of
smoke detectors and fire suppression devices, such as fire sprinklers.
Manufactured building code enforcement
Under current law, the department of commerce administers the manufactured
building code to ensure that minimum standards are met for the manufacture and
installation of manufactured buildings as dwellings. Currently, a city, village, town,
or county (municipality) may, with the approval of the department of commerce,
enact an ordinance to enforce the manufactured building code with regard to the
installation of manufactured buildings as dwellings in the municipality. A county
ordinance applies in any city, village, or town within the county that has not adopted
ordinances to enforce the manufactured building code, unless the city, village, or
town is exempt from administration of the manufactured building code. Currently,
any small municipality (city, village, or town with a population of 2,500 or less) is
exempt from administration of the manufactured building code. Generally,
inspections must be performed to enforce the manufactured building code in a
municipality.
This bill removes the requirement that a municipality obtain department of
commerce approval before enacting an ordinance to enforce the manufactured
building code with regard to the installation of manufactured buildings as dwellings
in the municipality. In addition, this bill creates new requirements relating to the
administration of the manufactured building code in small municipalities. Under
this bill, a small municipality may do any of the following:
1. Enact an ordinance to enforce the manufactured building code, either
independently or jointly with another municipality, with regard to the installation
of manufactured buildings as dwellings in the small municipality.
2. Adopt a resolution requesting the appropriate county to enforce the
manufactured building code with regard to the installation of manufactured
buildings as dwellings in the municipality.
3. Adopt a resolution not to exercise either of the above options, in which case
the small municipality is exempt from administration of the manufactured building
code.
4. Take no action, in which case the department of commerce must enforce the
manufactured building code throughout the municipality.
Correctional system
Adult correctional system
Under current law, any person who is serving a sentence, other than a life
sentence, for a felony that was committed before December 31, 1999, may be paroled
after serving 25% of his or her sentence. The parole commission makes the decision
as to when the person actually is paroled. Currently, any person who is serving a
sentence, other than a life sentence, for a felony that was committed on or after
December 31, 1999, is sentenced to prison and to extended supervision for a specific
time determined by the court.
This bill allows the secretary of corrections to release a prisoner eligible for
parole or extended supervision before the end of his or her mandatory time of
imprisonment if the prisoner is seriously or terminally ill. Under the bill, the
prisoner may be released if the secretary determines that the inmate's release would
not pose a risk of harm to any person and that the inmate's health care costs are likely
to be paid by the federal medicare program, a veteran's program, medical assistance,
or another federal or state medical program, or by the inmate. The bill requires DOC
to promulgate rules regarding eligibility for, and revocation from, this program.
Under current law, if a person violates a requirement of parole or extended
supervision, DOC may return the person to prison. Current law also permits DOC
to take a person into custody if DOC alleges that the person has violated a condition
or rule relating to parole. This bill specifies that DOC may also take a person under
extended supervision into custody if DOC alleges that the person has violated a
condition or rule relating to extended supervision. In addition, the bill specifies how
to calculate the amount of time remaining on a bifurcated sentence for purposes of
determining the maximum amount of time for which a person may be returned to
prison after a violation of extended supervision and the length of the term of
extended supervision that the person must serve thereafter.
Under current law, the person in charge of a state correctional institution is
required to notify an inmate's relative of the inmate's death. Currently, DOC is also
required to provide the relative with written notification that, upon request, DOC
will provide the relative with a copy of any autopsy or any report or information
regarding the inmate's death.
Under current law, if the district attorney has notice that the death of a person
may be the result of homicide or suicide, or may have occurred under unexplained
or suspicious circumstances, the district attorney may order an inquest to determine
the cause of the person's death. The coroner or medical examiner is required to notify
the district attorney of a suspicious death and may request that the district attorney
order an inquest regarding that death. The district attorney may then order an
inquest or may request that the coroner or medical examiner conduct a preliminary
examination for the district attorney. If the district attorney does not order an
inquest, under current law the coroner or medical examiner may petition the circuit
court to order an inquest.
Under this bill, the coroner or medical examiner is required to conduct an
autopsy of every individual who dies while he or she is in the legal custody of DOC
and is an inmate in a correctional facility located in this state. If the coroner or
medical examiner determines that the person's death was the result of any of the
circumstances that could result in the district attorney ordering an inquest, the bill
requires the coroner or medical examiner to notify the district attorney and request
an inquest.
If an individual dies while he or she is in the legal custody of DOC and confined
to a correctional facility in another state under a contract with DOC, the bill requires
DOC to have an autopsy performed on the individual. Under the bill, the autopsy
must be performed by either a coroner or medical examiner of the county from which
the individual was sentenced or by an appropriate authority in the other state. If a
coroner or medical examiner of the county from which the individual was sentenced
determines that the individual's death may have been the result of any of the
circumstances that would permit the district attorney to order an inquest, a copy of
the results of the autopsy must be sent to the appropriate authority in the other state.
The bill requires DOC to pay the costs of an autopsy.
This bill gives DOC authority to establish medium security correctional
institutions at Redgranite and New Lisbon. Funding for the building of these
institutions was included in the state building program in the 1997 budget act.
The bill also specifies that any correctional institution that has been
constructed by a private person and leased or purchased by the state for use by DOC
is a state prison and names the medium security penitentiary located near Black
River Falls the "Jackson Correctional Institution."
This bill increases the number of members of the parole commission from six
to eight until June 30, 2003. After that date, the parole commission reverts back to
six members. The parole commission determines if a person may be released on
parole from an adult correctional facility. The chairperson of the parole commission
appoints the other members of the parole commission.
Under current law, DOC may require a prisoner in a correctional institution to
pay a deductible, a copayment, coinsurance, or a similar charge if the prisoner
receives medical or dental care and the prisoner earns wages while he or she resides
in the correctional institution. Currently, DOC may exempt or waive the payment
of those charges under criteria that DOC establishes by rule. This bill deletes the
requirement that the prisoner must earn wages while he or she resides in the
correctional institution before he or she may be required to pay a deductible, a
copayment, coinsurance, or a similar charge.
Under current law, as interpreted in State ex rel. Speener v. Gudmanson, 234
Wis. 2d 461 (2000), the definition of "correctional institution" for purposes of the laws
relating to prisoner litigation does not include an out-of-state jail. As a result of that
decision, persons who are in the custody of DOC and placed in a jail or prison that
is located outside of this state are not subject to the requirements of the laws relating
to prisoner litigation. This bill overrides that decision by defining a "prisoner" for
purposes of prisoner litigation to include any person who is incarcerated,
imprisoned, or otherwise detained and who is in the custody of DOC or of the sheriff,
superintendent, or other keeper of a jail or house of corrections. All persons who are
placed in a jail or prison outside this state by DOC are in the custody of DOC.
Under current law, until July 1, 2001, DOC may operate the juvenile
correctional facility at Prairie du Chien as a state prison for nonviolent offenders who
are not more than 21 years of age. This bill extends that authority to July 1, 2003.
Juvenile correctional system
Under current law relating to community youth and family aids, generally
referred to as "youth aids," DOC is required to allocate various state and federal
moneys to counties to pay for state-provided juvenile correctional services and local
delinquency-related and juvenile justice services. DOC charges counties for the
costs of services provided by DOC according to per person daily cost assessments
specified in the statutes. Currently, those assessments include assessments of
$154.08 for care in a juvenile correctional facility or a treatment facility, $76.71 for
corrective sanctions services, and $18.62 for aftercare services. This bill increases
those assessments for fiscal year 2001-02 to $171.16 for care in a juvenile
correctional facility or a treatment facility, $82.89 for corrective sanctions services,
and $23.25 for aftercare services and for fiscal year 2002-03 to $176.06 for care in
a juvenile correctional facility or a treatment facility, $84.87 for corrective sanctions
services, and $23.80 for aftercare services. The bill also eliminates statutorily set
assessments for care in a child caring institution, group home, foster home, or
treatment foster home.
Under current law, a court assigned to exercise jurisdiction under the juvenile
justice code (juvenile court) may place a juvenile ten years of age or over who has
committed a Class A felony, which is a crime punishable by life imprisonment if
committed by an adult, or may place a juvenile 14 years of age or over who has
committed a Class B felony, which is a crime punishable by imprisonment for 60
years if committed by an adult, in the Serious Juvenile Offender Program (SJOP) if
the juvenile court finds that the only other disposition that would be appropriate for
the juvenile would be placement in a juvenile secured correctional facility. The SJOP
contains various component phases for its participants, including placement in a
juvenile secured correctional facility or, if the participant is 17 years of age or over,
an adult prison. The SJOP also includes a component phase of intensive or other field
supervision, including juvenile corrective sanctions supervision, juvenile aftercare
supervision or, if the participant is 17 years of age or over, adult intensive sanctions
supervision. Also, under current law, DOC may transfer a juvenile who is placed in
a juvenile secured correctional facility to the Racine Youthful Offender Correctional
Facility, which is a medium security adult correctional institution for offenders 15
to 21 years of age, if the juvenile is 15 years of age or over and the conduct of the
juvenile in the juvenile secured correctional facility presents a serious problem to the
juvenile or others.
The Wisconsin supreme court recently held, however, in State of Wisconsin v.
Hezzie R., 219 Wis. 2d 849 (1998), that subjecting a juvenile who has no right to a trial
by jury under the juvenile justice code to placement in an adult prison violates the
juvenile's constitutional right to a trial by jury because placement in an adult prison
constitutes criminal punishment rather than juvenile rehabilitation. Accordingly,
this bill eliminates the authority of DOC to transfer a juvenile who has been
adjudicated delinquent to an adult prison, including the Intensive Sanctions
Program, which is defined in the statutes as a state prison.
Current law contains conflicting provisions relating to the age under which a
juvenile who has been sentenced to an adult prison (juvenile prisoner) must be placed
in a juvenile secured correctional facility and the age at which a juvenile prisoner
may be transferred to an adult prison. One provision requires DOC to keep juvenile
prisoners under 15 years of age in a juvenile secured correctional facility, another
provision requires DOC to keep juvenile prisoners under 16 years of age in a juvenile
secured correctional facility, and another provision does not permit DOC to transfer
a juvenile prisoner to an adult prison until the juvenile attains 17 years of age. This
bill provides a uniform age of 15 years at which DOC may transfer a juvenile prisoner
to an adult prison.
Under current law, a participant in the SJOP who has committed a Class A
felony may be placed in a juvenile secured correctional facility or an adult prison
until the participant has reached 25 years of age and a participant in the SJOP who
has committed a Class B felony may be placed in such a facility or prison for not more
than three years. This bill permits the juvenile court to extend the period for which
a participant in the SJOP may be placed in a juvenile secured correctional facility
for not more than an additional two years if the juvenile court finds that the
participant is in need of the supervision, care, and rehabilitation that a placement
in a juvenile secured correctional facility provides and that public safety
considerations require that the participant be placed in such a facility. The bill also
permits DOC to extend the period for which a participant in the SJOP may be placed
in a juvenile secured correctional facility for not more than an additional 30 days
without a hearing, unless DOC provides for a hearing by rule. In addition, the bill
specifies that a 30-day extension under the bill does not preclude a two-year
extension under the bill, and vice versa.
Under current law, a juvenile may be taken into custody under circumstances
in which a law enforcement officer believes, on reasonable grounds, that the juvenile
has violated the terms of supervision ordered by the juvenile court or the terms of
aftercare supervision administered by DOC or a county department of human
services or social services (county department). A juvenile who has been taken into
custody on that ground may be held in custody if probable cause exists to believe that
the juvenile will run away so as to be unavailable for proceedings of the juvenile court
or proceedings for revocation of aftercare supervision. This bill permits a juvenile
who has violated a condition of the juvenile's placement in a Type 2 secured
correctional facility or a Type 2 child caring institution (Type 2 CCI) or a condition
of the juvenile's participation in the Intensive Sanctions Program to be taken into
custody by a law enforcement officer and held in custody if the juvenile is at risk of
running away so as to be unavailable for action by DOC or a county department
relating to that violation.
Type 2 secured correctional facilities consist of the Corrective Sanctions
Program, under which DOC places a juvenile in the community and provides the
juvenile with intensive surveillance and community-based treatment services, the
SJOP, and CCIs that DOC has designated as Type 2 secured correctional facilities
for the placement of certain juveniles who have been adjudged delinquent. Similarly,
Type 2 CCIs consist of CCIs that DOC has designated for the placement of certain
juveniles who have been adjudged delinquent and placed under the supervision of
a county department. The Intensive Supervision Program is a program under which
a juvenile is placed in the community and the county department provides the
juvenile with intensive surveillance and community-based treatment services.
Under current law, DOC must provide a juvenile boot camp program for
juveniles who have been adjudged delinquent and placed under the supervision of
DOC. This bill eliminates that program.
Currently, DOC must provide an average of $3,000 per year per slot to purchase
community-based treatment services for each participant in the Corrective
Sanctions Program. This bill requires DOC to provide an average of
not more than
$3,000 per year per slot to purchase those services.
