AB214: Bill Text

AB214,1,4 An Act to amend 60.34 (1) (a), 61.26 (2), 61.26 (3), 62.09 (9) (a), 62.09 (9) (e) and 66.0607 (1); and to create 66.0608 of the statutes; relating to: allowing cities, villages, and towns to authorize municipal fire, emergency medical technician, or first responder departments to deposit, disburse, and expend certain funds.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill authorizes a city, village, or town (municipality) to enact an ordinance that authorizes a particular official or employee of the municipality's fire, emergency medical technician, or first responder department to deposit in a public depository funds that are raised by fire, emergency medical technician, or first responder department employees or volunteers, or funds that are donated, on behalf of the municipality's fire, emergency medical technician, or first responder department. The ordinance may also give the particular official or employee of the fire, emergency medical technician, or first responder department exclusive control over the expenditure of the funds. The ordinance may, however, impose limits on the type and amount of funds that may be deposited into the account or on the amount of withdrawals from the account and the purposes for which the withdrawals may be made.

Generally, under current law, all funds of a municipality must be deposited by, and are disbursed by, the municipal treasurer. Under this bill, although the funds in the account are funds of the municipality, the control to deposit and disburse the funds may remain with an official or employee of the fire, emergency medical technician, or first responder department and not with the municipal treasurer.

For further information see the local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB214, s. 1 Section 1. 60.34 (1) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB214,2,4 60.34 (1) (a) Receive Except as provided in s. 66.0608, receive and take charge of all money belonging to the town, or which is required by law to be paid into the town treasury, and disburse the money under s. 66.0607.

AB214, s. 2 Section 2. 61.26 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB214,2,7 61.26 (2) Receive Except as provided in s. 66.0608, receive all moneys belonging or accruing to the village or directed by law to be paid to the treasurer.

AB214, s. 3 Section 3. 61.26 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB214,2,14 61.26 (3) Deposit Except as provided in s. 66.0608, deposit upon receipt the funds of the village in the name of the village in the public depository designated by the board. Failure to comply with this subsection shall be prima facie grounds for removal from office. When the money is deposited, the treasurer and bonders are not liable for the losses defined by s. 34.01 (2), and the interest shall be paid into the village treasury.

AB214, s. 4 Section 4. 62.09 (9) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB214,2,19 62.09 (9) (a) The Except as provided in s. 66.0608, the treasurer shall collect all city, school, county, and state taxes, receive all moneys belonging to the city or which by law are directed to be paid to the treasurer, and pay over the money in the treasurer's hands according to law.

AB214, s. 5 Section 5. 62.09 (9) (e) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB214,3,8 62.09 (9) (e) The Except as provided in s. 66.0608, the treasurer shall deposit immediately upon receipt thereof the funds of the city in the name of the city in the public depository designated by the council. Such deposit may be in either a demand deposit or in a time deposit, maturing in not more than one year. Failure to comply with the provisions hereof shall be prima facie grounds for removal from office. When the money is so deposited, the treasurer and the treasurer's bonders shall not be liable for such losses as are defined by s. 34.01 (2). The interest arising therefrom shall be paid into the city treasury.

AB214, s. 6 Section 6. 66.0607 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB214,3,19 66.0607 (1) Except as otherwise provided in subs. (2) to (5) and in s. 66.0608, in a county, city, village, town, or school district, all disbursements from the treasury shall be made by the treasurer upon the written order of the county, city, village, town, or school clerk after proper vouchers have been filed in the office of the clerk. If the statutes provide for payment by the treasurer without an order of the clerk, the clerk shall draw and deliver to the treasurer an order for the payment before or at the time that the payment is required to be made by the treasurer. This section applies to all special and general provisions of the statutes relative to the disbursement of money from the county, city, village, town, or school district treasury except s. 67.10 (2).

AB214, s. 7 Section 7. 66.0608 of the statutes is created to read:

AB214,3,23 66.0608 Separate accounts for municipal fire, emergency medical technician, and first responder volunteer funds. (1) Definitions. In this section:

AB214,3,24 (a) "Emergency medical technician" has the meaning given in s. 146.50 (1) (e).

AB214,4,5 (b) "Emergency medical technician volunteer funds" means funds of a municipality that are raised by employees of the municipality's emergency medical technician department, by volunteers, or by donation to the emergency medical technician department, for the benefit of the municipality's emergency medical technician department.

AB214,4,8 (c) "Fire volunteer funds" means funds of a municipality that are raised by employees of the municipality's fire department, by volunteers, or by donation to the fire department, for the benefit of the municipality's fire department.

AB214,4,9 (d) "First responder" has the meaning given in s. 146.53 (1) (d).

AB214,4,13 (e) "First responder volunteer funds" means funds of a municipality that are raised by employees of the municipality's first responder department, by volunteers, or by donation to the first responder department, for the benefit of the municipality's first responder department.

AB214,4,14 (f) "Municipality" means any city, village, or town.

AB214,4,15 (g) "Public depository" has the meaning given in s. 34.01 (5).

AB214,4,17 (h) "Volunteer funds" means emergency medical technician volunteer funds, fire volunteer funds, or first responder volunteer funds.

AB214,4,19 (2) General authority. Subject to subs. (3) and (4), the governing body of a municipality may enact an ordinance that does all of the following:

AB214,4,25 (a) Authorizes a particular official or employee of the municipality's fire department, emergency medical technician department, or first responder department to deposit volunteer funds of the department for which the individual serves as an official or employee, in an account in the name of the fire department, emergency medical technician department, or first responder department, in a public depository.

AB214,5,5 (b) Gives the municipality's fire department, emergency medical technician department, or first responder department, through the official or employee described under par. (a), exclusive control over the expenditure of volunteer funds of the department for which the individual serves as an official or employee in an account described under par. (a).

AB214,5,7 (3) Limitations, requirements. An ordinance enacted under sub. (2) may include any of the following limitations or requirements:

AB214,5,9 (a) A limit on the type and amount of funds that may be deposited into the account described under sub. (2) (a).

AB214,5,12 (b) A limit on the amount of withdrawals from the account described under sub. (2) (a) that may be made, and a limit on the purposes for which such withdrawals may be made.

AB214,5,14 (c) Reporting and audit requirements that relate to the account described under sub. (2) (a).

AB214,5,17 (4) Ownership of funds. Notwithstanding an ordinance enacted under sub. (2), volunteer funds shall remain the property of the municipality until the funds are disbursed.

AB214,5,18 (End)