LRB-0195/3
RNK&RPN:jld&cmh:rs
2005 - 2006 LEGISLATURE
March 18, 2005 - Introduced by Representatives Friske, Gard, Ainsworth, Meyer,
Mursau, M. Williams, Gronemus, Kaufert, Gunderson, Wieckert, Bies,
Freese, Gundrum, Hahn, Kestell, Krawczyk, McCormick, Montgomery,
Musser, Ott, Owens, Petrowski, Suder, Townsend, Underheim, Van Roy and
Schneider, cosponsored by Senators Kanavas, Breske and Zien. Referred to
Committee on Forestry.
AB254,1,7
1An Act to renumber and amend 60.61 (2) (a);
to amend 28.04 (2) (a), 28.04 (2)
2(b), 28.04 (2) (c), 28.04 (3) (a), 28.04 (3) (b), 59.69 (4) (a) and 62.23 (7) (b); and
3to create 23.114, 23.135, 28.025, 28.04 (1) (br), 28.05 (3), 94.025 and 823.075
4of the statutes;
relating to: managing state forest lands, harvesting of timber
5from state forest lands, emergences on state forest lands, actions against
6forestry operations, providing an exemption from emergency rule procedures,
7and requiring the exercise of rule-making authority.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill makes various changes to the laws relating to the management of state
forest lands. Under current law, the administrator of the Division of Forestry in the
Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is designated as the chief state forester.
This bill provides that the chief state forester has the authority and responsibility
to manage emergencies, as specified by DNR, that threaten state forest lands, other
than emergencies declared by the governor as a state of emergency. The bill also
specifies that the chief state forester must report directly to the secretary of DNR.
Under current law, state forest lands are generally managed by DNR. This bill
specifies requires that the Division of Forestry within DNR manage state forest
lands.
This bill also requires DNR to establish allowable timber harvests for every
parcel of 10 or more contiguous acres of forested land owned or managed by DNR or
managed by a person under the direction of DNR. Under the bill, if the timber
harvest for any of these lands falls below 90 percent or exceeds 110 percent of the
established allowable timber harvest, the Council on Forestry must prepare a report
containing recommendations on methods of ensuring that the timber harvest for that
state forest land is consistent with the annual allowable timber harvest established
by DNR.
The bill also requires DNR to maintain an inventory of every parcel of 10 or
more contiguous acres of forested land that DNR owns or manages. The bill specifies
that, if DNR prohibits the use of active management techniques on any of these
lands, DNR must prepare a report every 15 years containing projections of the
long-term forest health effects and the economic effects that result from that
prohibition.
Under current law, if a business, property, or action of a person creates a public
nuisance, the party damaged by that nuisance can bring an action for the damages
caused by the nuisance or to abate the nuisance. A county or municipality may bring
an action to abate a public nuisance. A "nuisance" is generally defined as an activity
that annoys or disturbs a person in possession of his or her property and makes the
use or occupation of that property physically uncomfortable. Currently, nuisances
are defined to include dilapidated buildings, drug houses, and criminal gang houses.
This bill provides that a forestry operation may not be declared a nuisance if the
forestry operation conforms to generally accepted forestry management practices.
Under the bill, forestry operations include removal of vegetation or dead trees, noise
from forestry equipment, and use of chemicals that are normally used in forestry
operations. In addition, the bill provides that a forestry operation that conforms to
generally accepted forestry management practices is not a nuisance regardless of
any of the following:
1. Change in ownership or size of a forest.
2. Interruption of forestry operations.
3. Enrollment of part or all of the forest in governmental forestry programs.
4. Adoption of new forestry technology.
The bill also allows a person who is alleged to have committed the nuisance to
receive his or her costs, including attorney fees, if he or she prevails in the action
alleging a nuisance.
Under current law, cities, villages, towns that are authorized to exercise village
powers, certain other towns, and counties (political subdivisions) are authorized to
enact zoning ordinances that regulate and restrict the height, number of stories, and
size of buildings and other structures, the percentage of lot that may be occupied, the
size of yards and other open spaces, the density of population, the location and use
of buildings, structures, and land for various purposes, and the areas within which
activities such as agriculture, forestry, and mining may be conducted.
Under this bill, no political subdivision may enact a zoning ordinance that
prohibits forestry operations that are in accordance with generally accepted forestry
management practices.
This bill also requires DNR to establish a program that allows private
cooperating foresters to assist the state in the harvesting and sale of timber from
state forest lands. The bill requires DNR to appoint cooperating foresters as agents
of DNR for the purpose of harvesting and selling timber from state forest lands and
to allow those foresters to receive a portion of the proceeds from each timber sale.
For further information see the state and 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:
AB254, s. 1
1Section
1. 23.114 of the statutes is created to read:
AB254,3,4
223.114 Duties of the chief state forester. (1) (a) In this section, "state forest
3land" means all forested lands owned or managed by the department or managed by
4a person under the direction of the department.
AB254,3,105
(b) Except as provided in par. (c), the chief state forester shall manage
6emergencies that threaten state forest lands. The department shall promulgate
7rules specifying those emergencies over which the chief state forester shall have
8management responsibility. The emergencies specified in the rules shall include
9invasive species or pest infestation, disease, and damage to timber from fire, snow,
10hail, ice, or wind.
AB254,3,1211
(c) Paragraph (b) does not apply to a state of emergency declared by the
12governor under s. 166.03.
AB254,3,14
13(2) The chief state forester shall report directly to the secretary of the
14department.
AB254, s. 2
15Section
2. 23.135 of the statutes is created to read:
AB254,3,19
1623.135 Forest land inventory and report. (1) In this section, "state forest
17land" means any parcel of 10 or more contiguous acres of forested land owned or
18managed by the department or managed by a person under the direction of the
19department.
AB254,4,2
1(2) The department shall undertake and maintain a current inventory of state
2forest lands.
AB254,4,6
3(3) If the department prohibits the use of active management techniques on
4any state forest land, the department shall prepare a report that contains a
5projection of the long-term forest health effects and a projection of the economic
6effects that result from that prohibition.
AB254,4,8
7(4) The department shall prepare each report required under sub. (3) once
8every 15 years.
AB254,4,11
9(5) The department shall submit the report required under sub. (3) to the
10council on forestry and to the appropriate standing committee in each house of the
11legislature under s. 13.172 (3).
AB254, s. 3
12Section
3. 28.025 of the statutes is created to read:
AB254,4,24
1328.025 Annual allowable timber harvests. The department shall establish
14annual allowable timber harvests for every parcel of 10 or more contiguous acres of
15forested land owned or managed by the department or managed by a person under
16the direction of the department. Annually, by January 1, the department shall
17submit a report to the council on forestry specifying the total timber harvest on each
18of those parcels for the previous year. If the timber harvest for any of these parcels
19in any year is less than 90 percent, or more than 110 percent, of the allowable timber
20harvest established parcel, the council on forestry shall prepare a report containing
21recommendations on methods of ensuring that the timber harvest for that parcel is
22consistent with the annual allowable timber harvest established by the department.
23The council on forestry shall submit the report to the governor and to the appropriate
24standing committees of the legislature under s. 13.172 (3).
AB254, s. 4
25Section
4. 28.04 (1) (br) of the statutes is created to read:
AB254,5,1
128.04
(1) (br) "Division" means the division of forestry in the department.
AB254, s. 5
2Section
5. 28.04 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB254,5,163
28.04
(2) (a) The
department division shall manage the state
forests forest to
4benefit the present and future generations of residents of this state, recognizing that
5the state
forests forest lands contribute to local and statewide economies and to a
6healthy natural environment. The
department division shall assure the practice of
7sustainable forestry and use it to assure that state
forests forest lands can provide
8a full range of benefits for present and future generations. The
department division 9shall also assure that the management of state forests is consistent with the
10ecological capability of the state forest land and with the long-term maintenance of
11sustainable forest communities and ecosystems. These benefits include soil
12protection, public hunting, protection of water quality, production of recurring forest
13products, outdoor recreation, native biological diversity, aquatic and terrestrial
14wildlife, and aesthetics. The range of benefits provided by the
department division 15in each state forest shall reflect its unique character and position in the regional
16landscape.
AB254, s. 6
17Section
6. 28.04 (2) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB254,5,2018
28.04
(2) (b) In managing the state forests, the
department division shall
19recognize that not all benefits under par. (a) can or should be provided in every area
20of a state forest.
AB254, s. 7
21Section
7. 28.04 (2) (c) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB254,5,2322
28.04
(2) (c) In managing the state forests, the
department division shall
23recognize that management may consist of both active and passive techniques.
AB254, s. 8
24Section
8. 28.04 (3) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB254,6,5
128.04
(3) (a) The
department
division shall prepare a plan for each state forest
2that describes how the state forest will be managed. The
department division shall
3work with the public to identify property goals and objectives that are consistent with
4the purposes under sub. (2). The
department division shall identify in each plan the
5objectives of management for distinct areas of the state forest.
AB254, s. 9
6Section
9. 28.04 (3) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB254,6,167
28.04
(3) (b) The
department division shall establish procedures for the
8preparation and modification of these plans, including procedures for public
9participation. In preparing and modifying plans under this subsection, the
10department division shall use the best available information regarding the purposes
11and benefits of the state forests that the
department
division acquires through
12inventories, evaluations, monitoring and research. In evaluating such information,
13the
department division shall consider both regional and local scales, including the
14impact on local economies. As new information becomes available, the
department 15division shall adapt its management of the state forest and, if necessary, the plan for
16the state forest.
AB254, s. 10
17Section
10. 28.05 (3) of the statutes is created to read:
AB254,7,618
28.05
(3) Cooperating foresters. (a) The department shall, by rule, establish
19a program that allows private cooperating foresters to assist the state in the
20harvesting and sale of timber from state forest lands to meet the annual timber
21harvest goals established under s. 28.025. The rule shall include provisions
22authorizing the department to appoint cooperating foresters as agents of the
23department for the purpose of harvesting and selling timber from state forest lands
24and authorizing cooperating foresters to receive a portion of the proceeds from each
25timber sale. The department shall establish in the rule a method for determining
1what portion of the proceeds received from each timber sale shall be paid to the
2private cooperating foresters for their services in assisting the division in the
3harvesting and sale of timber from state forest lands. The division shall ask the
4council on forestry to recommend a method for determining what portion of the
5proceeds received from each timber sale shall be paid to private cooperating foresters
6under the rule.
AB254,7,107
(b) Each private cooperating forester appointed as an agent under par. (a) to
8harvest and sell timber from state forest lands shall be entitled to receive a portion
9of the proceeds from the sale of such timber in the amount determined by the
10department under par. (a).
AB254, s. 11
11Section
11. 59.69 (4) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB254,7,1612
59.69
(4) (a) The areas within which agriculture, forestry, industry, mining,
13trades, business and recreation may be conducted
, except that no ordinance enacted
14under this subsection may prohibit forestry operations that are in accordance with
15generally accepted forestry management practices, as defined under s. 823.075 (1)
16(c).
AB254, s. 12
17Section
12. 60.61 (2) (a) of the statutes is renumbered 60.61 (2) (a) (intro.) and
18amended to read:
AB254,7,1919
60.61
(2) (a) (intro.) Regulate, restrict and determine
: the all of the following:
AB254,7,23
201. The areas within which agriculture, forestry, mining and recreation may be
21conducted
; the, except that no ordinance enacted under this subsection may prohibit
22forestry operations that are in accordance with generally accepted forestry
23management practices, as defined under s. 823.075 (1) (c).
AB254,7,24
242. The location of roads, schools, trades and industries
; the.
AB254,8,2
13. The location, height, bulk, number of stories and size of buildings and other
2structures
; the.
AB254,8,3
34. The percentage of a lot which may be occupied
; the.
AB254,8,4
45. The size of yards, courts and other open spaces
; the.
AB254,8,5
56. The density and distribution of population
; the.