AB75: Bill Text

This bill requires financial institutions to provide DOR with information about account holders so that DOR can determine if any of those persons owe the state delinquent debts. Current law permits DOR to levy on financial institutions to collect delinquent debts from the accounts of debtors.

Under this bill, DOR may enter into agreements with the IRS to collect a person's federal nontax debt by subtracting the amount from any state payment to that person, other than a tax refund. DOR may also charge a collection fee up to $25 per transaction. In addition, DOR may enter into agreements with the IRS to collect a person's state tax or nontax debt by subtracting the amount from any federal payment to that person, as authorized by federal law.

Under this bill, for sales and use tax purposes, a retailer engaged in business in this state includes any person who has an affiliate in this state, if the person is related to the affiliate for federal tax purposes and if the affiliate uses facilities or employees in this state to establish a market for sales of items by the related person to purchasers in this state or for providing services to the related person's purchasers in this state.

Under this bill, for purposes of reviewing DOR's rules, the Tax Appeals Commission must give controlling weight to DOR's interpretation of its rules unless the interpretation is plainly erroneous or inconsistent with the language of the rules or the statutes that govern the rules.

Under current law, generally, the sale of tangible personal property that becomes an ingredient or component part of an article of tangible personal property, or is consumed, destroyed, or loses its identity in manufacturing an article of tangible personal property is exempt from the sales and use tax. This bill provides that the sale of such tangible personal property is exempt from the sales and use tax only if it is also used exclusively and directly in manufacturing an article of tangible personal property.

Under current law, for sales and use tax purposes, "manufacturing" is the production by machinery of a new article of tangible personal property with a different form, use, and name from existing materials, by a process popularly regarded as manufacturing. This bill provides that production begins with conveying raw materials and supplies from plant inventory to the place where work is performed in the same plant and ends with conveying finished units of tangible personal property to the point of first storage in the same plant.

Under current law, for sales and use tax purposes, "manufacturing" includes crushing, washing, grading, and blending sand, rock, gravel, and other minerals and ore dressing. Under this bill, "manufacturing" also includes conveying work in progress directly from one manufacturing process to another in the same plant; testing or inspecting the new article of tangible personal property that is being manufactured; storing work in progress in the same plant where the manufacturing occurs; assembling finished units of tangible personal property; and packaging a new article of tangible personal property, if the manufacturer, or another person on the manufacturer's behalf, performs the packaging and if the packaging becomes part of the new article of tangible personal property as it is customarily offered for sale by the manufacturer.

The sales and use tax is currently imposed on the towing of tangible personal property, unless at the time of towing the sale of the tangible personal property in this state would be exempt from the sales and use tax, not including the exempt sale of a motor vehicle to a nonresident and certain other nontaxable sales. This bill specifies that the sales and use tax is imposed on the towing and hauling of motor vehicles by a tow truck, unless at the time of towing or hauling a sale of the motor vehicle in this state would be exempt from the sales and use tax, not including the exempt sale of a motor vehicle to a nonresident and certain other nontaxable sales.

Under current law, if the IRS requires taxpayers to electronically file information returns or wage statements for federal income tax purposes, the taxpayer must electronically file, with DOR, information or wage statements for state income or franchise tax purposes.

Under this bill, if DOR requires a person to file 50 or more of any one type of information return or 50 or more wage statements, the returns or statements must be filed electronically.

The bill also requires a person who must file a return related to collecting the state rental vehicle fee or dry cleaning fee to file the return in the manner prescribed by DOR.

Under current law, DOR may require a person to produce documents related to any matter that DOR has authority to investigate or for which DOR must make a determination. This bill provides that a person who fails to provide documents to DOR that support information shown on any income or franchise tax return or any sales and use tax return is subject to the disallowance of deductions, credits, or exemptions to which the requested documents relate.

Under current law, for sales and use tax purposes, a person in this state who sells tangible personal property or services must have a valid seller's permit from DOR. This bill requires DOR to post a list of every person who has had a seller's permit revoked on an Internet site created and maintained by DOR.

transportation

Highways

Under current law, the Building Commission may issue revenue bonds for major highway projects and transportation administrative facilities in a principal amount that may not exceed $2,708,341,000. This bill increases the revenue bond limit from $2,708,341,000 to $3,009,784,200.

This bill increases from $303,300,000 to $553,550,000 the general obligation bonding limit for DOT's funding of two southeast Wisconsin freeway rehabilitation projects: the Marquette interchange reconstruction project and the I 94 north-south corridor reconstruction project. The bill also expands the project boundaries of another southeast Wisconsin freeway rehabilitation project, the Zoo interchange reconstruction project.

Under current law, with limited exceptions, all highway improvement construction projects undertaken by DOT must be let by contract based upon competitive bidding. This bill allows DOT, for two years after the bill's effective date, to enter into highway improvement contracts utilizing a design-build procurement process if DOT finds that it would be more feasible and advantageous and if certain conditions are met. A design-build procurement process is calculating a method under which a project's engineering, design, and construction services are provided by a single private entity or consortium selected as part of a single bidding process.

Drivers and motor vehicles

Current law requires the use of seat belts, child safety seats, and booster seats in certain motor vehicles but prohibits a law enforcement officer from stopping or inspecting a motor vehicle solely to determine compliance with these requirements. An officer may, however, issue a citation for a seat belt use violation observed in the course of a stop or inspection made for other purposes.

This bill authorizes a law enforcement officer to stop or inspect a vehicle solely to determine compliance with seat belt use requirements, subject to any constitutional requirement that the officer have probable cause to believe that a violation has occurred. The bill also increases from $10 to $25 the penalty for violating this state's laws requiring the use of seat belts. As under current law, violators pay no additional costs, fees, or assessments.

Under current law, law enforcement officers are prohibited from using any radar device combined with photographic identification of a vehicle (photo radar speed detection) to determine compliance with motor vehicle speed limits.

This bill allows state and local law enforcement agencies to use photo radar speed detection to identify speed limit violations in highway work zones (work zone speed violations). The bill also allows DOT and local authorities to use traffic control photographic systems to identify motor vehicles that fail to stop at red traffic signals at intersections (red light violations). Subject to certain defenses, the bill allows liability to be imposed on the owner of a vehicle involved in a work zone speed violation detected through photo radar speed detection or involved in a red light violation detected by a traffic control photographic system.

Under current law, DOT issues two registration plates for most motor vehicles, which are generally required to be displayed on the front and rear of the vehicle. This bill directs DOT to issue only one registration plate for most motor vehicles, which is generally required to be displayed on the rear of the motor vehicle.

Under current law, when renewing a vehicle registration, DOT may issue a decal, to be placed on the vehicle's registration plate, to indicate the vehicle's period of registration. Current law also requires registration plates for most vehicles registered on the basis of gross weight to indicate the weight class into which the vehicle falls.

This bill eliminates the requirements that vehicle registration plates display an indication of the vehicle's registration period or expiration date and that registration plates for certain vehicles indicate the weight class into which the vehicle falls. The bill also eliminates DOT's issuance of decals to indicate a vehicle's period of registration.

Under current law, to renew most operator's licenses, DOT must administer an examination of the applicant's eyesight and make provisions for giving eyesight examinations at examining stations in each county. Under this bill, DOT is not required to provide eyesight examinations at examining stations in each county.

Under current law, a person who operates a motor vehicle after his or her operating privileges has been revoked is subject to a forfeiture up to $2,500, but if he or she has a prior conviction within the last five years for operating after his or her operating privilege was revoked or if his or her operating privilege was revoked for an offense related to operating a vehicle while intoxicated (OWI), the person is subject to a fine up to $2,500, imprisonment for up to one year, or both.

Under this bill, any person who operates a motor vehicle after his or her operating privileges have been revoked is subject to a forfeiture up to $2,500 unless his or her operating privileges were revoked for an offense related to OWI. The bill does not change the penalty for a person who operates a vehicle after his or her operating privileges have been revoked for an offense related to OWI.

Under current law, a creditor's security interest in a motor vehicle is generally perfected by notation of the security interest on the certificate of title for the vehicle. A creditor may perfect its security interest by delivering to DOT any existing certificate of title for the vehicle and an application for a certificate of title noting the creditor's security interest. To release a security interest, the creditor executes and delivers to the owner a release of the security interest and the owner provides the release and certificate of title to DOT, after which DOT issues a new certificate of title free of the security interest notation. There is a single fee of $4 for the original notation and subsequent release of each security interest noted on a certificate of title.

This bill requires creditors, other than individuals, that hold security interests in motor vehicles to utilize an electronic process for having these creditors' security interests noted on the certificates of title and for releasing these security interests. DOT rules may provide exemptions from this requirement. The bill also increases from $4 to $10 the fee for notation and release of a security interest noted on a certificate of title and eliminates a $5 fee imposed on financial institutions for each transaction electronically transmitted to DOT relating to a certificate of title or vehicle registration.

This bill specifies that DOT may maintain any motor vehicle certificate of title or other motor vehicle title information in an automated format, including in digital or electronic form, and may consider any record maintained in an automated format to be the original and controlling record, notwithstanding the existence of any printed version of the same record.

Current law requires DOT to establish new designs for most vehicle registration plates every ten years and to issue the new plates on a rolling basis as vehicle registrations are renewed by the vehicle owners. This bill eliminates this ten-year redesign and reissuance schedule and instead requires these registration plates to be redesigned and reissued at intervals determined by DOT.

This bill requires DOT to develop and administer a program to award grants to providers of approved driver education courses, to supplement the cost of providing these courses to low-income individuals.

Under current law, a person who commits an out-of-service violation is subject to a criminal penalty. An out-of-service violation is a violation for operating a commercial motor vehicle while the operator or vehicle is ordered out-of-service under state or federal law. Under this bill, a person who commits an out-of-service violation is subject to a civil penalty rather than a criminal penalty. The bill also makes other changes relating to out-of-service violations.

Under current law, DOT issues identification cards only to residents who do not possess valid operator's licenses.

This bill prohibits DOT from charging a fee to an applicant for the initial issuance of an identification card if the applicant's valid operator's license has been cancelled or surrendered due to a medical condition and the license was not less than six months from expiring. The bill also repeals current law allowing a person whose license is cancelled due to poor eyesight to retain the license for use like an identification card.

Under current law, a person may purchase a specialized registration plate for his or her vehicle by paying an additional fee.

This bill establishes a second authorized special group and provides for the issuance of special registration plates for persons who support endangered resources. The fees charged to special group members are the same as for the existing endangered resources special group plates. The words or symbols used on the second endangered resources special group plate must be different from the existing one and the new design must cover the entire plate. In addition, the second endangered resources special group plate may be issued only if DOT purchases the plates from the state of Minnesota.

The bill also establishes an authorized special group and provides for the issuance of special distinguishing registration plates for persons who support the Milwaukee Brewers. Fees are the same as for the endangered resources plates. However, the $25 annual fee provides funds to retire the debt of the professional baseball park district where the Milwaukee Brewers' home field is located.

Under current law, DOT's state traffic patrol has specified duties and is authorized to conduct investigations relating to the use or operation of vehicles. This bill allows the state traffic patrol to charge a lead law enforcement agency for services provided by the state traffic patrol in assisting with a traffic accident investigation or reconstruction.

Under current law, upon request by any person, DOT must furnish an abstract of the operating record of any person. DOT must charge the following fees for searches of vehicle operators' records: $5 for any file search, $5 for any computerized search, and $6 or a monthly rate determined by DOT for any search requested by telephone. Under this bill, DOT must charge $2 for providing a paper copy of an abstract. Also under this bill, DOT is prohibited from charging the fee for a computerized search or for a search requested by telephone to any governmental unit.

Transportation aids

Under current law, DOT administers a general transportation aids program that makes aid payments to a county based on a share-of-costs formula, and to a municipality based on the greater of a share-of-costs formula or an aid rate per mile. This bill decreases, for 2010 and thereafter, the aid rate per mile for municipalities and the maximum amount of aid that may be paid to counties and municipalities.

Under current law, DOT provides state aid payments, for each of four classes of mass transit systems, to local public bodies in urban areas served by mass transit systems to assist with their costs.

This bill increases in 2010 and 2011 the amount of state aid to each class of mass transit.

This bill authorizes DOT to award grants to cities, villages, towns, and counties, or enter into contracts with private providers of intercity bus service, for the purpose of increasing the availability of intercity bus service. The amount of DOT funding related to any particular bus route is limited to the lesser of 50 percent of the net operating loss of the route or the net operating loss of the route that is not covered by federal funding.

This bill creates the southeast Wisconsin Transit Capital Assistance Program under which DOT may award grants, subject to certain conditions and restrictions, for transit capital improvements to qualifying transit authorities located in southeastern Wisconsin (presently only the southeast regional transit authority if such an authority is created under authorization provided in this bill — see Other transportation). The state may issue up to $100,000,000 in general obligation bonds to provide grants under the program.

This bill authorizes within DOT to award grants to American Indian tribes or bands for the purpose of assisting in providing transportation services to elderly persons. The bill appropriates Indian gaming receipts to fund the grants.

Rail and air transportation

This bill increases the authorized general obligation bonding limit for the acquisition and improvement of rail property from $66,500,000 to $126,500,000.

This bill increases from $82,000,000 to $122,000,000 the authorized general obligation bonding authority for DOT's rail passenger route development program.

Other transportation

This bill creates, or authorizes the creation of, three regional transit authorities: a southeast regional transit authority (SE RTA), a Dane County regional transit authority (DC RTA), and a Fox Cities regional transit authority (FC RTA). The SE RTA is created if the governing body of Milwaukee County or Kenosha County, or of any municipality located within that portion of Racine County east of I 94, adopts a resolution authorizing the county or municipality to become a member of the SE RTA. If any of these counties or municipalities fails to adopt a resolution creating the SE RTA, these counties and municipalities, as well as Racine County, may also join the SE RTA after it has been created. If Milwaukee County or Kenosha County joins the SE RTA, all municipalities located within Milwaukee County or Kenosha County, respectively, become members of the SE RTA. Waukesha County, Ozaukee County, and Washington County may join the SE RTA and any municipality located within these counties may join the SE RTA upon approval of the SE RTA's board of directors. The jurisdictional area of the SE RTA is the geographic area formed by the combined territorial boundaries of counties and municipalities that are members of the SE RTA.

The DC RTA is created if the governing body of Dane County adopts a resolution authorizing the county to become a member of the DC RTA. Once created, the members of the DC RTA consist of Dane County and all municipalities located within the Madison metropolitan planning area (MMPA). Any other municipality located within Dane County may join the DC RTA upon approval of the DC RTA's board of directors. The jurisdictional area of the DC RTA is the geographic area consisting of the MMPA and all municipalities outside the MMPA that join the DC RTA.

The members of the FC RTA consist of Outagamie County, Calumet County, and Winnebago County and all municipalities located within the urbanized area of the Fox Cities metropolitan planning area (UFCMPA). Any other municipality located within Outagamie County, Calumet County, or Winnebago County may join the FC RTA upon approval of the FC RTA's board of directors. The jurisdictional area of the FC RTA is the geographic area consisting of the UFCMPA and all municipalities outside the UFCMPA that join the FC RTA.

An RTA's authority is vested in its board of directors. Directors serve four-year terms. An RTA's bylaws govern its management, operations, and administration and must include specified provisions, including the maximum rate of the sales and use tax, not exceeding the statutory limit, that may be imposed by the RTA.

An RTA may establish or acquire a transportation system, and operate the transportation system or contract for its operation by another. An RTA may also contract with a public or private organization to provide transportation services in lieu of directly providing these services and may purchase and lease transportation facilities to public or private transit companies. An RTA may acquire property by condemnation; impose, by the adoption of a resolution by the RTA's board of directors, a sales and use tax in the RTA's jurisdictional area at a rate of not more than 0.5 percent of the gross receipts or sales price; and issue tax-exempt revenue bonds.

Charges received by an RTA must be used only for the general expenses and capital expenditures of the RTA, to pay interest, amortization, and retirement charges on the RTA's revenue bonds, and for other specific purposes of the RTA, and may not be transferred to any political subdivision. An RTA must provide, or contract for the provision of, transit service within the RTA's jurisdictional area.

Under current law, the counties of Kenosha, Racine, and Milwaukee must create a Regional Transit Authority (KRM RTA). The KRM RTA is responsible for the coordination of transit and commuter rail programs within these counties but has no authority to manage or operate any transit system. The KRM RTA may receive funding by imposing a rental car transaction fee within these counties, but the fee may be used only to hire staff, conduct studies, and prepare a report to the legislature and the governor, due by November 15, 2008. This bill terminates the KRM RTA and modifies the rental car transaction fee so that it provides a funding source for the SE RTA if the SE RTA is created.

Under current law, DOT may accept payment by credit card of certain fees, particularly those relating to motor vehicle ownership and operation. This bill allows DOT to accept payment by credit card, debit card, or any other electronic payment mechanism for these fees. The bill also allows DOT to charge a convenience fee, set by DOT, for each payment made by credit card, debit card, or any other electronic payment mechanism. The convenience fee must approximate the cost to DOT for providing the service.

Under current law, the state may contract up to $53,400,000 in public debt for DOT to award grants for harbor improvements. This bill increases this authorized general obligation bonding limit from $53,400,000 to $72,450,000.

veterans and military affairs

Currently, DVA assists veterans whose need for services is based on homelessness, incarceration, or other circumstances, including assistance in receiving medical care, dental care, education, employment, and transitional housing. This bill expands the types of services that DVA may provide to include single room occupancy housing.

As a condition for receiving reimbursement for tuition from DVA, current law requires a veteran to provide DVA with the veteran's name, the educational institution the veteran is attending, whether the veteran is enrolled full time or part time, and an estimate of the amount of tuition reimbursement the veteran will later claim. This bill eliminates that requirement.

Current law requires a veteran to submit an application to DVA for tuition reimbursement within 60 days after completion of the semester or course. This bill allows DVA to set the time limit for submitting the application.

This bill eliminates the use of money in the veterans trust funds to assist indigent veterans to pay the costs of residing at the Wisconsin Veterans Home at Union Grove, and instead uses money provided to pay for the operation of the veterans homes for that purpose, but limits the amount that may be used for that purpose to not more than 1 percent of the moneys received from residents of the Home, the federal department of veterans affairs, and from Medical Assistance.

The bill also allows up to $100,000 of the amount appropriated for the operation of the veterans homes to be used for grants to counties and American Indian tribes and bands for the improvement of services to veterans.

The bill extends the sunset date for the grant program to train volunteers to assist individuals who return to this state after active duty in the national guard or armed forces from June 30, 2007, to June 30, 2011.

This bill provides funding from the petroleum inspection fund for the general program operations of the division of emergency management.

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

AB75, s. 1 Section 1. 5.68 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB75,87,5 5.68 (1) The Except as provided in sub. (7), the cost of acquisition of ballot boxes and voting booths, voting machines or electronic voting systems and regular maintenance thereof shall be borne by the municipalities in which the boxes, booths, machines or systems are used.

AB75, s. 2 Section 2. 5.68 (7) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB75,87,17 5.68 (7) Any municipality that maintained polling hours beginning later than 7 a.m. prior to April 29, 2006, and that incurs additional costs to adjust its polling hours to begin at 7 a.m. at any election held after April 29, 2006, may file a claim with the board for reimbursement of those costs. The claim shall be accompanied by appropriate substantiation of all costs incurred. The board shall audit the claim and, if the board finds that the costs have been incurred by the municipality, and the costs would not have been incurred but for the requirement to open polling places at 7 a.m., the board shall may reimburse the municipality for those costs or any portion of those costs. No claim is payable under this subsection unless the claim is filed with the board, together with appropriate substantiation, within 60 days following the date on which the costs are incurred.

AB75, s. 3 Section 3. 7.33 (1) (c) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB75,88,3 7.33 (1) (c) "State agency" has the meaning given under s. 20.001 (1) and includes an authority created under subch. II of ch. 114 or ch. 52, 231, 232, 233, 234, or 237.

AB75, s. 4 Section 4. 7.33 (4) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB75,88,14 7.33 (4) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, each local governmental unit, as defined in s. 16.97 (7), may, and each state agency shall, upon proper application under sub. (3), permit each of its employees to serve as an election official under s. 7.30 without loss of fringe benefits or seniority privileges earned for scheduled working hours during the period specified in sub. (3), without loss of pay for scheduled working hours during the period specified in sub. (3) except as provided in sub. (5), and without any other penalty. For employees who are included in a collective bargaining unit for which a representative is recognized or certified under subch. V or VI of ch. 111, this subsection shall apply unless otherwise provided in a collective bargaining agreement.

AB75, s. 5 Section 5. 13.101 (6) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB75,89,9 13.101 (6) (a) As an emergency measure necessitated by decreased state revenues and to prevent the necessity for a state tax on general property, the committee may reduce any appropriation made to any board, commission, department, or the University of Wisconsin System, or to any other state agency or activity, by such amount as it deems feasible, not exceeding 25% of the appropriations, except appropriations made by ss. 20.255 (2) (ac), (bc), (bh), (cg), and (cr) (vr), 20.395 (1), (2) (cq), (eq) to (ex) and (gq) to (gx), (3), (4) (aq) to (ax), and (6) (af), (aq), (ar), and (au), and (av), 20.435 (6) (7) (a) and (7) (da), and 20.437 (2) (a) and (dz) or for forestry purposes under s. 20.370 (1), or any other moneys distributed to any county, city, village, town, or school district. Appropriations of receipts and of a sum sufficient shall for the purposes of this section be regarded as equivalent to the amounts expended under such appropriations in the prior fiscal year which ended June 30. All functions of said state agencies shall be continued in an efficient manner, but because of the uncertainties of the existing situation no public funds should be expended or obligations incurred unless there shall be adequate revenues to meet the expenditures therefor. For such reason the committee may make reductions of such appropriations as in its judgment will secure sound financial operations of the administration for said state agencies and at the same time interfere least with their services and activities.

AB75, s. 6 Section 6. 13.106 (1) (b) of the statutes is repealed.

AB75, s. 7 Section 7. 13.106 (1) (e) of the statutes is repealed.

AB75, s. 8 Section 8. 13.106 (2) of the statutes is repealed.

AB75, s. 9 Section 9. 13.111 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB75,89,16 13.111 (2) Duties. The joint committee on employment relations shall perform the functions assigned to it under subch. subchs. V and VI of ch. 111, subch. II of ch. 230 and ss. 16.53 (1) (d) 1., 20.916, 20.917, 20.923 and 40.05 (1) (b).