This bill allows DHS to require a county to maintain a specified level of
contribution, which is determined by DHS based on historical county expenditures,
for the disabled children's long-term support program. Counties are required by the
bill to cooperate with DHS to determine an equitable funding methodology and
county contribution mechanism going forward and to ensure that county
contributions are being expended for the disabled children's long-term support
program. The bill also allows DHS to contract with a county or group of counties to
deliver disabled children's long-term support program services.
Children
This bill grants juvenile courts exclusive original jurisdiction over any child
who is a victim of, or at substantial risk of becoming the victim of, child sex
trafficking.
This bill makes certain changes relating to background checks of 1) a person
who has or who is seeking a license to operate a child care center, certification for
purposes of reimbursement under the Wisconsin Shares child care subsidy program,
or a contract with a school board to operate a child care center (collectively “
child care
program"); 2) an employee or contractor of a child care provider (caregiver); and 3)
a nonclient resident of the child care provider's home to conform to the federal Child
Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014. The bill also makes certain changes
relating to the training required of a person certified as a child care provider for
purposes of reimbursement under Wisconsin Shares and of a caregiver of such a
provider to conform those training requirements to the Child Care and Development
Block Grant Act of 2014.
This bill allows DCF to visit and inspect the premises and records of any child
care program established or contracted for by a school board if the child care program
receives funding from Wisconsin Shares. Under current law, DCF is authorized to
visit and inspect the premises and records of a licensed child care center. A school
board may establish or contract for the provision of child care programs for children
under current law. While such a child care program must meet the standards for
licensed child care centers established by DCF, current law does not require it to be
licensed as a child care center.
This bill requires DCF, in cooperation with DPI, to develop and implement a
text message-based intervention program to increase the share of college-intending
high school seniors who successfully enroll in a postsecondary educational
institution, and requires DCF to award grants to eligible school districts in fiscal
years 2018-19 and 2019-20 to offset a portion of school or district costs associated
with the intervention.
Health
This bill reduces the blood lead level defined as “lead poisoning or lead
exposure” from 10 or more micrograms per 100 milliliters of blood to 5 or more
micrograms per 100 milliliters of blood. The presence of lead poisoning or lead
exposure in a child under six years of age allows DHS to request admission to the
premises to conduct a lead investigation. DHS also awards grants for lead poisoning
or lead exposure prevention and may promulgate rules specifying lead poisoning or
lead exposure screening methods and intervals for children under six years of age.
This bill requires that first responders and emergency medical technicians
renew their certifications or licenses every four years instead of every two years. The
bill creates an endorsement for an intravenous technician for all levels of emergency
medical technicians. An intravenous technician is trained to administer intravenous
and intraosseous infusions of medicated and nonmedicated fluids.
This bill allows DHS to pay for aid for first responder training and
examinations. Currently, DHS may pay aid for emergency medical technician —
basic training and examinations. The bill also allows ambulance service providers
that receive aids from DHS to escrow unused moneys and use those moneys in a
subsequent year for first responder training and examinations or emergency medical
technician training and examinations at any level.
Mental health and developmental disabilities
This bill creates youth crisis stabilization facilities, which have a maximum of
eight beds and which admit minors to prevent or de-escalate the minor's mental
health crisis and avoid admission of the minor to a more restrictive setting. Youth
crisis stabilization facilities must be certified by DHS to operate.
This bill removes the requirement that a licensed physician or psychologist of
a state treatment facility sign a statement of the need for treatment for an inmate
in a state prison to be involuntarily committed. Current law requires that a petition
for involuntary commitment of an inmate of a state prison contain allegations that
the inmate is mentally ill, a proper subject for treatment, and in need of treatment;
that less restrictive forms of treatment were unsuccessful; and that the inmate has
been informed of his or her treatment needs and rights. The petition must also
contain, among other things, the inmate's sentence and expected release and signed
statements by both a licensed physician or psychologist of a state prison and a
licensed physician or psychologist of a state treatment facility attesting that the
inmate needs either inpatient treatment at a state treatment facility or outpatient
treatment in the prison.
Other health and human services
This bill makes various changes to the Board on Aging and Long-Term Care
and the ombudsman program. The bill specifies that the seven members of BOALTC
must be members of the public and must not be persons who currently own, or owned
or had a certain interest within the previous five years in, a long-term care provider
or health care insurance company. The bill specifies that BOALTC appoints an
executive director who serves as the state long-term care ombudsman and that the
population served by the ombudsman program are those 60 years of age or older who
receive long-term care in certified or licensed long-term care facilities or under
programs administered by state or federal governmental agencies. The bill specifies
that BOALTC's ability to monitor and make recommendations, as it currently does
for COP, extends to the Family Care Program, the Family Care Partnership
Program, and the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly and specifies that
the ability to provide advocacy services, as it does currently for potential or actual
enrollees of the Family Care Program, extends to potential or actual enrollees of the
Family Care Partnership Program and the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the
Elderly and to potential or actual recipients of the self-directed services option,
known as IRIS. The bill clarifies that the long-term care ombudsman program must
comply with certain federal statutes and regulations. The bill also, among other
things, prohibits any person from willfully interfering with the actions of an
ombudsman by acting or attempting to act to intentionally prevent, interfere with,
or impede the ombudsman from performing functions or responsibilities under law.
This bill allows DHS to recognize accreditation by certain accrediting
organizations that are approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services instead of performing inspections and investigations itself for licensure of
home health agencies and hospices. DHS, under current law, is allowed to accept
accreditation of hospices by the Joint Commission in lieu of performing inspections
and investigations. The bill expands accrediting organizations from which DHS will
recognize accreditation of hospices.
This bill creates an allocation of moneys from Indian gaming receipts to
American Indian tribes for the performance of a feasibility study for and
development of a business plan for a youth wellness center.
Housing
This bill allows WHEDA to implement two separate programs related to the
federal Housing Choice Voucher Program. First, the bill authorizes WHEDA to
develop policies and procedures for and implement a two-year pilot program that
gives priority to chronically homeless individuals and families on the waiting list
WHEDA or a public housing agency that contracts with WHEDA maintains under
the federal Housing Choice Voucher Program. The bill also authorizes WHEDA to
provide case management services for chronically homeless individuals and families
who receive a voucher after being prioritized on the waiting list.
Second, the bill authorizes WHEDA to request approval from the federal
Department of Housing and Urban Development to implement a pilot program that
requires a recipient of a voucher under the federal Housing Choice Voucher Program
to satisfy work requirements as a condition of the voucher. The bill also provides that
WHEDA may provide certain employment, training, and self-sufficiency services,
in partnership with certain organizations that contract with WHEDA, to recipients
of vouchers under the federal Housing Choice Voucher Program.
This bill eliminates the requirement that a recipient of a transitional housing
grant awarded by DOA may not permit homeless persons to reside in housing
facilities provided by the grant recipient for more than 24 months. The bill also
eliminates the requirement that DOA reasonably balance among geographic areas
of this state certain other grants and loans DOA makes to defray the housing costs
of persons and families of low and moderate income.
Insurance
Under current law, a local governmental unit, including any city, county, town,
village, school, or library board, may pass a resolution to insure its property, and
property that it does not own but for which it is contractually liable if the property
is damaged or destroyed, in the local government property insurance fund (fund).
The fund is managed by the commissioner of insurance and provides protection for
the property insured in the fund against fire and extended coverage perils. This bill
provides that no new coverage may be issued under the fund on or after July 1, 2017;
no coverage may be renewed after December 31, 2017; no coverage may extend
beyond December 31, 2018; and all claims must be filed by July 1, 2019, or they will
not be covered under the fund, and any moneys remaining after all operations cease
will be distributed among the local governmental units that were insured on July 1,
2017.
This bill transfers some of the information technology employees from OCI to
the Division of Enterprise Technology in DOA. The bill also transfers assets and
liabilities, personal property, contracts, rules and orders, and pending matters
related to information technology from OCI to DOA.
Justice
This bill requires DOJ to award grants to cities to reimburse overtime salary
and fringe benefit costs for beat patrol officers. The grants are limited to the ten cities
that apply that have the highest rates of violent crime. The bill allows DOJ to
determine the amount of a grant, except that no more than $400,000 may be awarded
to a city for a calendar year. The bill also specifies requirements for applying for the
grants.
This bill changes the information that DOJ must include in its report to DOA
and JCF regarding restitution received by crime victims. Under the bill, the report
must specify the total number of individuals who received restitution instead of
identifying the individuals who received restitution and must provide the total
amount paid to all recipients instead of providing the amount paid to each recipient.
local government
This bill clarifies that if a unit of government has a responsibility to carry out
a certain function, and it enters into an intergovernmental cooperation contract with
another unit of government to jointly perform the responsibility, the jointly
established entity fulfills the unit of government's responsibility to carry out that
function until the contract expires or is terminated. In addition, if two or more units
of government enter into such a contract and create a commission to jointly or
regionally administer a function or project, the commission shall be considered to be
a single entity that represents, and may act on behalf of, the joint interests of the
signatories to the contract.
Generally, under current law, local levy limits are applied to the property tax
levies that are imposed by political subdivisions in December of each year. Current
law prohibits a political subdivision from increasing its levy by a percentage that
exceeds its “valuation factor,” which is defined as the greater of either zero percent
or the percentage change in the political subdivision's equalized value due to new
construction, less improvements removed.
Current law contains a number of exceptions to the levy limit. Under one of
these exceptions, a political subdivision may increase its current year levy limit, up
to a maximum increase of 1.5 percent of the actual levy of the prior year, if the
allowable levy from the prior year was greater than the actual levy in that year
(carryover utilization).
Also under current law, a political subdivision must reduce its levy limit if the
amount of its levy in the current year, for its payment of debt service for debt issued
before July 1, 2005, is less than its levy for that purpose in the previous year (negative
adjustment for debt service). The amount of the levy reduction is the amount by
which its levy for such debt service was reduced. Under current law, the negative
adjustment for debt service requirement does not apply to a political subdivision in
any year in which the political subdivision does not increase its levy increase limit
by carryover utilization.
This bill eliminates the carryover utilization exception to the negative
adjustment for debt service requirement.
military affairs
This bill authorizes the adjutant general to operate a state emergency
operations center during a declared state of emergency. Costs incurred to operate the
center for more than 36 hours are payable from the petroleum inspection fund based
on JCF approval under passive review. The bill also authorizes the Division of
Emergency Management to award grants to Wisconsin law enforcement agencies to
fund crowd-control training and equipment.
natural resources
Fish, game, and wildlife
This bill appropriates any administrative fees DNR receives for pheasant
hunting in the Bong area lands or any state recreation area for the purpose of
stocking and propagating pheasants on DNR lands.
Forestry
This bill requires DNR to relocate the headquarters for the chief state forester
to an existing DNR facility north of STH 29 no later than January 1, 2018. The bill
authorizes DNR to allow current employees located at the central DNR office in
Madison to relocate to existing state facilities north of STH 29 designated by the chief
state forester and requires DNR to report, by February 1, 2019, to the governor and
JCF the number of employees who have relocated. The bill also requires DNR to
authorize payment of moving expenses for any such employee who relocates.
This bill specifies that a person who sets a forest fire is liable to the state for all
of the fire suppression expenses that are shared by the state and the county and that
the county's share of expenses, which is otherwise equal to the state's share, is
reduced by the amount by which such damages, if paid, exceed the state's share of
expenses.
This bill also provides that the requirement that the sale of timber cut from a
state, county, or community forest be advertised in a local newspaper may be
satisfied by posting notice on certain official Internet sites. The bill also provides
that approval and notice requirements apply to the sale of timber with an estimated
value of $10,000 or more that was cut from a state, county, or community forest. The
bill also provides that a county cutting merchantable wood products from a county
forest must furnish DNR with a report not more than five years after filing a cutting
notice.
Recreation
Current law specifies the fees for vehicle admission receipts, which authorize
the operation of a vehicle in certain recreational areas and in state parks. This bill
establishes a range of fees that DNR may charge for a vehicle admission receipt,
authorizing DNR to charge up to $10 more for an annual receipt than the fee under
current law, and up to $5 more for a daily receipt.
This bill also increases the maximum fees that DNR may charge for each night
of camping in a state campground to $30 for a resident and $35 for a nonresident.
This bill also requires DNR and DOT to jointly develop a plan to authorize the
purchase of a recreational passport when an individual initiates or renews his or her
annual vehicle registration. The bill requires DNR and DOT to evaluate the option
of the creation of the recreational passport as a special license plate registration
sticker that shows both the vehicle registration expiration year and an indicator that
the sticker is also a recreational passport.
Other natural resources
This bill makes numerous changes in the appropriation structure of DNR. The
bill renumbers various appropriations and eliminates appropriations that are no
longer used.
This bill eliminates the Wisconsin Natural Resources Magazine, which is
currently published six times a year by DNR. The bill directs DNR to publish the
final issue in February 2018 and, by June 30, 2018, to refund to each subscriber a
prorated amount of the subscription cost for all issues after February 2018 for which
the subscriber subscribed but that the subscriber will not receive.
Safety and Professional services
Buildings and safety
This bill eliminates rental unit energy efficiency standards and certification
requirements and certain powers of DSPS related to those standards and
requirements. The bill allows DSPS to take enforcement action related to violations
of those standards that occur before the effective date of the bill. The bill also
eliminates the requirement that an owner of a rental unit, before transferring an
ownership interest in the unit, must do one of the following:
1. Have the unit inspected by a certified inspector who issues a certificate
stating that the unit meets the minimum energy efficiency standards.
2. If the unit is scheduled for demolition within two years, obtain a waiver of
the certification requirement from DSPS or a certified inspector.
3. Obtain a stipulation between the transferee of the unit and DSPS or the city,
village, or town in which the unit is located stating that the transferee will bring the
unit into compliance with the minimum energy efficiency standards no later than
one year after the date of the transfer.
Under current law, the register of deeds may not record a document that
transfers real estate that contains a rental unit unless the document is accompanied
by that certificate, waiver, or stipulation. This bill eliminates that restriction.
This bill also exempts individuals who complete specified apprenticeship
programs from an examination required for the following trade profession licenses:
journeyman electrician, journeyman plumber, journeyman automatic fire sprinkler
system fitter, and automatic fire sprinkler contractor.
Professional licensure
Under current law, various professions are regulated by DSPS and various
examining boards and affiliated credentialing boards are created under DSPS.
Affiliated credentialing boards are each attached to a specific examining board. This
bill makes numerous changes to the laws governing DSPS and the examining
boards, affiliated credentialing boards, and councils under DSPS, including all of the
following:
1. Under current law, the Radiography Examining Board regulates the practice
of radiographers and limited X-ray machine operators in Wisconsin, the Podiatry
Affiliated Credentialing Board, which is attached to the Medical Examining Board,
regulates the practice of podiatrists, and the Optometry Examining Board regulates
the practice of optometrists. This bill eliminates each of those boards and transfers
their functions to the Medical Examining Board.
2. Under current law, physical therapists and physical therapist assistants are
regulated by the Physical Therapy Examining Board, occupational therapists and
occupational therapy assistants are regulated by the Occupational Therapists
Affiliated Credentialing Board, athletic trainers are regulated by the Athletic
Trainers Affiliated Credentialing Board, and massage therapists and bodywork
therapists are regulated by the Massage Therapy and Bodywork Therapy Affiliated
Credentialing Board. This bill eliminates the aforementioned boards and transfers
their functions to a newly created Medical Therapy Examining Board.
3. Under current law, a license is generally required to perform sign language
interpretation services, and a license to act as a sign language interpreter is issued
by DSPS. However, also under current law, there is a Sign Language Interpreter
Council that is required to perform certain duties, including advising DSPS on rule
making regarding sign language interpreting and promulgating certain rules for
sign language interpreters. This bill eliminates the Sign Language Interpreter
Council and transfers the duties of both DSPS and the Sign Language Interpreter
Council regarding sign language interpreters to the Hearing and Speech Examining
Board. In addition, the bill eliminates one of the hearing instrument specialist
members on the Hearing and Speech Examining Board and adds to that board two
sign language interpreters and one additional public member.
4. Under current law, there are four councils created to serve the Medical
Examining Board in an advisory capacity regarding certain professions for which
licenses or certificates are issued by the Medical Examining Board: 1) the
Perfusionists Examining Council; 2) the Council on Physician Assistants; 3) the
Council on Anesthesiologist Assistants; and 4) the Respiratory Care Practitioners
Examining Council. This bill eliminates these four councils and transfers their
duties to a newly created council called the Medical Assistants Council. Under the
bill, the Medical Assistants Council includes two licensed anesthesiologist
assistants; two certified respiratory care practitioners; two licensed perfusionists;
one physician; two physician assistants; and one public member.
This bill creates the Occupational License Review Council. The council is
created in DSPS and consists of the following members:
1. Eight members appointed by the governor to serve at the pleasure of the
governor.
2. One majority party member and one minority party member from each house
of the legislature, appointed as are the members of standing committees in their
respective houses.
3. The secretary of safety and professional services or his or her designee, who
serves as the council's chair. The secretary or designee is a nonvoting member, except
that he or she may vote in the case of a tie.
The council is required to submit a report by December 31, 2018, to the
governor, the chief of the LRB, and the legislature that includes the council's
recommendations for the elimination of occupational licenses in this state and the
reduction or elimination of occupational license continuing education requirements.
The council's recommendations for the elimination of occupational licenses must
take into account a number of considerations, including an evaluation of whether the
unregulated practice of the profession, occupation, or trade can clearly harm or
endanger the health, safety, or welfare of the public.
The LRB is required to prepare legislation based on the council's
recommendations, and the proposed legislation is required to be introduced without
change. The proposed legislation may not be amended, and the legislature must take
final action on the proposed legislation no later than June 30, 2019.
For purposes of this bill, the term “occupational license” means not only any
license, permit, certification, registration, or other approval granted by DSPS or a
board under DSPS but also any other license, permit, certification, registration, or
approval granted to a person by this state in order that the person may engage in a
profession, occupation, or trade or use a title in association with his or her profession,
occupation, or trade.
The council and the bill's requirements sunset effective July 1, 2019.
This bill also requires DOA to prepare a report containing certain information
on any bill that is introduced in the legislature that requires an individual to obtain
a license in order to engage in a particular profession or occupation or that requires
that a license be obtained in order for a particular type of business to be owned or
operated. The LRB must submit any bill to which the requirement applies to DOA,
and the report must be distributed before certain actions are taken on the bill in the
legislature.
Under current law, DSPS and various credentialing boards in DSPS have the
authority to discipline credential holders that are credentialed by DSPS or a
credentialing board. This bill allows DSPS and various credentialing boards in
DSPS that do not otherwise currently have the authority to assess administrative
forfeitures against credential holders to, in addition to or in lieu of any disciplinary
action imposed against a credential holder, assess a forfeiture of not more than
$1,000 for each separate offense against a person who commits a violation that is
grounds for professional discipline if the violation presents a serious risk to public
health or public safety. The bill provides that each day of continued violation
constitutes a separate offense.
Also under current law, DSPS, which regulates barbers, and the Cosmetology
Examining Board, which regulates cosmetologists and other related professionals,
may assess such forfeitures, in addition to or in lieu of certain disciplinary actions,
for violations of the laws relating to barbering or cosmetology. This bill limits the
circumstances under which such forfeitures may be assessed to when the violation
presents a serious risk to public health or public safety.
In addition, this bill exempts an individual who has completed an
apprenticeship program that satisfies certain requirements from an examination
required for licensure as a cosmetologist or barber.
This bill eliminates mandatory annual and semiannual meeting requirements
for examining boards, affiliated credentialing boards, and other boards and councils
under DSPS, except for the Medical Examining Board, which is required to meet 12
times each year. Under the bill, those boards and councils are instead generally
required to meet on the call of the chairperson or a majority of the members of the
board or council.
This bill provides that, except as otherwise permitted by law, DSPS and various
credentialing boards in DSPS may require a credential holder to submit proof of
completion of continuing education programs or courses only if a complaint is made
against the credential holder.
shared revenue
This bill reduces the annual county and municipal aid payment to a county
receiving certain settlement proceeds from DOA by $1,950,000 beginning with the
payments in 2018 and ending with the payments in 2027. If in any year the amount
of the county and municipal aid payment is less than $1,950,000, DOA will reduce
the county's county and municipal aid payment and its public utility aid payment by
a total of $1,950,000.
State government
Administrative rules; guidance documents
This bill makes various changes regarding the rule-making procedures
established under current law and the adoption by state agencies of guidance
documents. Significant changes are described below.
Preliminary public hearings and comment periods on scope statements
Current law requires an agency to prepare a statement of the scope of a
proposed rule (scope statement), which must be approved by the governor and the
agency head before any state employee or official may perform any activity in
connection with the drafting of the proposed rule. Scope statements must be
published in the Wisconsin Administrative Register after approval by the governor,
and an agency head may not approve a scope statement until at least ten days after
publication of the scope statement in the register.
This bill eliminates the ten-day waiting period for the agency head to approve
a scope statement. The bill also requires an agency, following approval of a scope
statement by the governor, to hold a preliminary public hearing and comment period
on a scope statement if directed to do so by a cochairperson of the Joint Committee
for Review of Administrative Rules (JCRAR). Following such a directive, the agency
must hold a preliminary public hearing on the scope statement and submit all
comments and feedback received to the agency head. A preliminary public hearing
and comment period under the bill is in addition to the public hearing required under
current law for certain rules. The bill allows an agency to work on a proposed rule
after the scope statement is approved by the governor, but requires the agency to stop
work on a proposed permanent rule if JCRAR requests a preliminary public hearing
and comment period. In that case, the agency may resume work on the proposed
permanent rule once the preliminary public hearing and comment period are
concluded.
Passage of bill required for certain rules
This bill provides that if an economic impact analysis, a revised economic
impact analysis, or an independent economic impact analysis for a proposed rule
indicates that $10,000,000 or more in implementation and compliance costs are
reasonably expected to be incurred by or passed along to businesses, local
governmental units, and individuals over any two-year period as a result of the
proposed rule, the agency must stop work on the proposed rule and may not continue
to promulgate the rule except as follows:
1. The agency may resume the rule-making procedure for the proposed rule
upon enactment of a bill that authorizes its promulgation.
2. The agency may resume the rule-making procedure for the proposed rule if
the agency modifies the proposed rule to address the proposed rule's implementation
and compliance costs, as verified by a revised economic impact analysis and any
subsequently prepared independent economic impact analyses.
