This bill makes changes regarding compliance of governmental entities with
certain statutory requirements for mailing, printing, or publishing certain
documents. A statute is subject to the bill if the statute applies to a “governmental
entity,” which the bill defines as any of the following: a state agency or other body
created or authorized to be created by the constitution or any law; the governor's
office; the legislature or a legislative council, committee, or service agency; a court
or judicial branch agency; an authority; a city, village, town, or county; a special
purpose district; or an agency, corporation, combination, or subunit of a city, village,
town, county, or special purpose district. Also, the bill applies to statutes regarding
the mailing, printing, or publishing of documents, with the following exemptions: 1)
a notice and certificate of election, facsimile ballot, or referenda; 2) certain
election-related documents, including sample ballots and nomination forms; 3) a
notice of public hearing before a governmental body; or 4) a notice of meetings of
private and public bodies required by law. The bill also exempts the following
documents: a summons, order, citation, notice of sale or other notice that is intended
to inform a person of rights or duties that must be exercised or performed within a
designated period or by a designated date.
For mailing, this bill provides that a statute requiring a governmental entity
to mail a nonexempt document must be construed to allow the governmental entity
to mail the document electronically. However, that provision does not apply to a
statute requiring a governmental entity to use certified or registered mail or obtain
a certificate of mailing from the post office. For printing, the bill provides that a
statute requiring a governmental entity to print a nonexempt document must be
construed to allow the governmental entity to make the document available to the
public on its Internet site.
For publishing, this bill provides that a statute requiring a governmental entity
to publish a nonexempt document must be construed to allow the governmental
entity to publish the document electronically on its Internet site. The foregoing
applies even if the statute requires publication in a newspaper in a specified location.
Also, if a statute requires publication both on the Internet and in another form, the
bill provides that the statute must be construed to allow the governmental entity to
publish the document only on its Internet site. If a governmental entity publishes
a nonexempt document on its Internet site as allowed under the bill, the bill provides
that the date on which the governmental entity first publishes the document on its
Internet site is considered the date of the publication of the document.
This bill also allows the secretary of administration to waive in whole or in part
any statutory requirement for an executive branch agency to mail, print, or publish
any document, except for a document that is exempt from the provisions described
above. However, the bill allows the secretary to waive such a requirement only if the
secretary determines that the waiver will reduce spending while 1) keeping
information accessible to the public; and 2) protecting public health and welfare.
Under this bill, the state and local units of government are prohibited from
engaging in certain practices in letting bids for state procurement or public works
contracts. Under the bill, the state and local governments may not do any of the
following in specifications for bids for the contracts: 1) require that a bidder enter
into an agreement with a labor organization; 2) consider, when awarding a contract,
whether a bidder has or has not entered into an agreement with a labor organization;
or 3) require that a bidder enter into an agreement that requires that the bidder or
bidder's employees become or remain members of a labor organization or pay any
dues or fees to a labor organization.
Under this bill, the Building Commission may authorize money from the state
building trust fund to be available for any project costing $900,000 or less, and the
Building Commission may authorize the design and construction of any building, the
acquisition of land, or the repair or improvement of any building, structure, or
facility that costs more than $900,00 only if the project is enumerated in the state
building program. Under current law, each of those thresholds is set at $760,000.
Subject to limited exceptions, this bill also prohibits the state from entering into
a contract for the construction of or addition to any building in connection with a
building project involving a cost that exceeds $250,000 without the approval of the
Building Commission. Current law sets that threshold at $185,000.
Also, under this bill, the secretary of administration is required to establish a
committee for each construction project under the department's supervision, except
certain emergency projects, for the purpose of selecting a project architect or
engineer. If the estimated cost of a project is $6,800,000 or more, the selection
committee must use a request-for-proposal process established by the department
to select the architect or engineer.
This bill requires that DOA adjust on an annual basis all of the above and other
project cost thresholds based on the increase or decrease in construction costs over
time.
This bill eliminates a number of state entities based on the 2017-19 budget
request of DSPS. Current law requires DSPS to include in its agency budget request
a proposal to eliminate any council, board, or commission that has not held a meeting
since the preceding September 15, unless the council, board, or commission is
required to exist under federal law. The entities eliminated under the bill include
the Bioenergy Council; the Automatic Fire Sprinkler System Contractors and
Journeymen Council; and the Plumbers Council.
This bill also eliminates the Depository Selection Board and transfers its
powers and duties to the secretary of administration or his or her designee and
eliminates the Examining Board of Professional Geologists, Hydrologists and Soil
Scientists and transfers its powers and duties to DSPS.
This bill eliminates the Building Inspector Review Board and transfers its
powers and duties to the Uniform Dwelling Code Council. Under the bill, the
Uniform Dwelling Code Council, rather than the board, receives and reviews
complaints regarding building inspectors, may revoke a building inspector's
certification under certain circumstances, and may modify or reverse erroneous
decisions of a building inspector. The bill also eliminates the Contractor
Certification Council and the Manufactured Housing Code Council and transfers
their duties to the Uniform Dwelling Code Council.
This bill authorizes DOA to replace vehicles in the state fleet using certain
settlement proceeds specified in the bill. DOA may expend no more than $16,000,000
in the 2017-19 fiscal biennium for that purpose. The bill also requires, subject to
certain conditions, DOA to transfer $26,000,000 of the settlement proceeds to a
county having a population of 750,000 or more for the replacement of vehicles owned
by the county.
This bill requires DOA, beginning on July 1, 2018, to administer human
resources and payroll services for all executive branch agencies except DPI and DOJ
and for all independent agencies except the UW Board of Regents and the TCS board.
The bill also requires that DOA administer all printing and mailing services for all
agencies, except the Board of Regents of the UW System, unless the agency
demonstrates to the satisfaction of the secretary of administration that a valid
business reason exists for an exemption.
This bill requires that each server that an executive branch agency, except the
Board of Regents, uses for information technology purposes must be housed in the
data center located at 5830 Femrite Drive in the city of Madison, unless an executive
branch agency demonstrates to the satisfaction of the secretary of administration
that a valid business reason exists for an exemption.
This bill creates a grant program under which DOA may award a grant of up
to $75,000 to a municipality for the purpose of connecting homeless individuals with
permanent employment. The municipality must itself contribute at least $50,000 for
the purpose of the grant. In awarding a grant, DOA must give preference to a
municipality that obtains an agreement from a nonprofit organization to provide
additional employment and support services to homeless individuals participating
in the grant program. The bill also transfers from DOA to DHS a grant program for
providing certain mental health services to homeless individuals.
This bill makes the following changes to the service award program, which
provides length-of-service awards to volunteer fire fighters, first responders, and
volunteer emergency medical technicians:
1. DOA is required to double, rather than match as required under current law,
annual municipal contributions paid for volunteer fire fighters, first responders, and
voluntary emergency medical technicians up to $500 per fiscal year, rather than $250
per fiscal year.
2. A volunteer fire fighter, first responder, or volunteer emergency medical
technician is fully vested to receive a service award once he or she attains 15 years
of service for a municipality and reaches the age of 53. Under current law, vesting
occurs once a volunteer fire fighter, first responder, or volunteer emergency medical
technician attains 20 years of service and reaches the age of 60.
Under this bill, no later than September 15 of each even-numbered year, the
legislature must submit to DOA the following proposals, which correspond to certain
budget proposals required under current law for all executive state agencies:
1. A proposal to reduce the legislature's budget, subject to certain limitations,
for each fiscal year of the succeeding fiscal biennium by an amount equal to a total
of 5 percent of its base level for the current fiscal year.
2. A proposal to maintain its base level for the current fiscal year, subject to
certain limitations, for each fiscal year of the succeeding fiscal biennium.
This bill also sets the per diem compensation received by a member of the Ethics
Commission or of the Elections Commission at $50 for each day the member attends
or participates in a meeting of the member's commission. Currently, members of
each commission receive, for each day the commission member was actually and
necessarily engaged in performing his or her duties, a per diem equal to the amount
paid to a reserve judge sitting in circuit court.
This bill requires the Elections Commission to spend funds received from the
federal government under the Help America Vote Act on the costs of election
administration before spending state funds appropriated for the purpose of replacing
HAVA funds once they have been depleted.
This bill transfers the administration of telecommunications relay service from
DOA to PSC. Current law does not define “telecommunications relay service,” but
it refers to a service that allows individuals with speech or hearing challenges to
engage in voice telecommunications in a manner that is functionally equivalent to
individuals without those challenges.
taxation
Income taxation
Under this bill, an individual who is eligible to claim the federal Earned Income
Tax Credit may claim as a credit against Wisconsin taxes due 11 percent of the
amount that the taxpayer may claim under the federal credit if the taxpayer has one
or two qualifying children who have the same principal place of abode as the
taxpayer. The credit is refundable. Currently, the percentage of the federal EITC
that an individual may claim for Wisconsin purposes is 4 percent of the EITC if the
claimant has one qualifying child with the same principal place of abode, 11 percent
if the claimant has two qualifying children, and 34 percent if the claimant has three
or more qualifying children. The bill does not change the percentage for claimants
with three or more qualifying children.
This bill creates a refundable individual income tax credit, based on the EITC,
for noncustodial parents. A claimant who meets a number of conditions may claim
a credit equal to 7.5 percent of the federal basic EITC for which the claimant would
have been eligible if he or she had a qualifying child under the EITC.
To be eligible to claim the credit, all of the following must apply:
1. The claimant did not claim the state EITC, is at least 18 years old, and is a
full-year resident of this state.
2. The claimant is the parent of at least one child who did not reside with him
or her.
3. The claimant was subject to a court order, for at least one-half of the tax year,
requiring him or her to make child support payments, and DOR has verified that the
claimant did in fact make such payments.
This bill authorizes an EITC claimant, who becomes married in the taxable
year, to claim the greater of either the EITC that is calculated based on his or her
current status as a married individual, or the EITC that he or she claimed in the
immediately preceding taxable year. For the next two taxable years, such an
individual may continue to claim the greater of either the EITC calculated for
current year purposes, or the amount that he or she claimed in the taxable year
before the year in which the claimant became married. Generally, married persons
may not claim the EITC.
This bill creates a refundable individual income tax credit for individuals ages
18 to 21 who were either previously in foster care but aged out at age 18 or previously
designated disabled under federal law, as a minor, but lost their disability status
resulting from a redetermination at age 18. The credit that may be claimed is equal
to 125 percent of the federal earned income tax credit for an individual who has no
dependent children and may be claimed without regard to the age requirements for
the federal EITC. The bill requires DOR to work with DCF and DHS to verify the
claims of the claimants.
Under this bill, for homestead tax credit claims filed in 2018 and thereafter,
claims may no longer be filed under current law by an individual who is not disabled
or by an individual under the age of 62. The bill creates a new method to calculate
the homestead tax credit for such individuals, based on the current law provisions,
except able-bodied individuals and those under the age of 62 must have some earned
income in the year to which the claim relates. Under the bill, the credit is calculated
based on the lesser of 20 percent of the claimant's earned income in the taxable year,
or the claimant's property taxes or rent constituting property taxes accrued in that
year on the claimant's homestead.
Beginning with claims filed in 2018, this bill indexes for inflation two of the
homestead tax credit formula factors, maximum income and income threshold, but
only for claimants who are disabled or age 62 or older.
Under this bill, eligibility to claim the EITC and the homestead tax credit is
limited for certain high-wage earners who have investment or business losses in
excess of $15,000 in the year to which the claim relates. The limitation created in
the bill does not apply to a farmer whose primary income is from farming and whose
farming generates less than $250,000 in gross receipts.
Under this bill, for a married couple that files a joint income tax return, both
spouses must be full-year residents of this state to be eligible to claim the working
families tax credit.
This bill exempts from individual income taxation interest earned on bonds
issued by WHEFA.
This bill clarifies that, when a taxpayer calculates the itemized deductions
credit, the definition of Internal Revenue Code does not include adjustments made
under the federal alternative minimum tax. The bill also modifies the calculation
of the itemized deductions credit for nonresidents of this state by increasing the
amount of the standard deduction that may be used by a nonresident to determine
the claimable level of itemized deductions.
This bill changes the due date for a partnership, limited liability company,
corporation, or tax-option corporation to file a state income or franchise tax return
so that the return is due on the same date that the entity's federal income tax return
is due. The bill also provides that a corporation that is required to pay periodic
installments of estimated Wisconsin income or franchise tax must pay the first
installment of the tax on or before the 15th day of the fourth month of the
corporation's taxable year, except that, if the corporation's taxable year begins in
April, the first installment must be paid in the third month of the corporation's
taxable year. Under current law, the first installment for all corporations is due on
the 15th day of the third month of the corporation's taxable year.
This bill also changes the due date for a partnership, limited liability company,
tax-option corporation, estate, or trust (pass-through entity) to file a withholding
tax return for amounts withheld from income of the pass-through entity that are
distributable to a nonresident partner, member, shareholder, or beneficiary. Under
the bill, a pass-through entity's withholding tax return is due on the same date that
the pass-through entity's federal income tax return is due.
Under current law, if a pass-through entity underpays estimated withholding
tax, the pass-through entity must pay interest on the amount of the underpayment
for the period of the underpayment. This bill provides that no interest must be paid
if the secretary of revenue determines that because of casualty, disaster, or other
unusual circumstances it is not equitable to impose interest.
This bill provides that a taxpayer may not carry forward a net operating or a
net business loss to offset future income of the taxpayer unless the taxpayer filed a
tax return to claim the loss within four years after the due date for filing the tax
return for the taxable year in which the loss was incurred. Additionally, the bill
provides that a taxpayer that is allowed to carry back the loss to offset income in prior
years may only do so if the taxpayer files a tax return to claim the carry-back within
four years after the due date for filing the tax return for the taxable year to which
the loss is carried back.
This bill makes various changes to the requirements for when and how certain
information related to income and franchise taxes must be filed with DOR. The bill
requires that a taxpayer that files ten or more wage statements or ten or more of any
one type of information return with DOR must file those statements or returns
electronically. Under current law, the electronic filing requirement applies to a
taxpayer that files 50 or more statements or returns.
This bill provides that a person who must file the following information returns
with DOR must file those returns no later than January 31 of the year following the
year to which the return applies:
1. A return describing nonwage payments made by a resident of this state or
a nonresident carrying on activities within this state in a calendar year in the
amount of $600 or more for services performed within this state by an individual.
2. A return describing royalties or rents deducted in determining the taxable
income of a person that is not a corporation, except that the return need only describe
royalties of $600 or more paid during the taxable year to an individual who is a
resident of this state and rents of $600 or more paid during the taxable year to an
individual for property that is located in this state.
Under current law, the deadline to file those information returns with DOR is
March 15 for corporations and February 28 for all other persons.
This bill also requires that a resident of this state or a nonresident carrying on
activities within this state must file an information return with DOR that describes
wages paid in a calendar year that were not subject to withholding in this state for
any of the following services:
1. Services performed within this state by an individual who is not a resident
of this state.
2. Services performed by an individual who is a resident of this state, regardless
of where the services are performed.
The deadline to file that return is the same as for the other information returns
described above.
Under this bill, if an employer applies for an extension and shows good cause
why an extension should be granted, DOR may grant a 30-day extension for the
employer to file those information returns. Under current law, DOR may grant a
60-day extension.
Current law allows an individual to claim an income tax deduction for the
capital gain realized from an investment in a qualified Wisconsin business. A
business may register with DOR as a qualified Wisconsin business if it has at least
two full-time employees in this state and its payroll compensation to employees in
this state is equal to at least 50 percent of its total payroll compensation.
This bill provides that, for purposes of registering with DOR, an employee of a
professional employer organization or a professional employer group who is
performing services for a client is considered an employee solely of the client. Under
current law, a professional employer organization is any person contracting with a
client to provide the client with an ongoing employee workforce. A professional
employer group is two or more professional employer organizations controlled by the
same person.
Currently, a corporation engaged in a unitary business with one or more
corporations must report to DOR its share of income from the unitary business in the
amount determined by the combined report filed by the agent of all such
corporations. This requirement, however, does not apply to a corporation if all its
income is exempt from state taxation. Under this bill, the reporting requirement
applies to a captive insurance company even if its income is exempt from taxation.
A “captive insurance company" is defined in the bill as a corporation that insures the
risks primarily of itself or persons to which it is related.
This bill allows DOR to recover all or part of any tax credit allocated by WEDC
for which WEDC has revoked its allocation. The bill also prohibits DOR and DOA
from paying interest on refunds issued for the jobs tax credit, enterprise zone jobs
credit, and business development credit. In addition, the bill prohibits DOR from
issuing an income tax refund to an employed individual before March 1 unless both
the individual and the individual's employer have filed all required returns and
forms with DOR.
This bill modifies current law so that the income and franchise tax is imposed
on the gross receipts from services relating to tangible personal property delivered
to customers in this state and purchased by individuals who are physically present
in this state at the time the services are received.
This bill prohibits a taxpayer from claiming both the manufacturing and
agriculture credit and the other state credit on the same income.
Property taxation
This bill eliminates the forestation state property tax. Proceeds from the tax
are paid into the conservation fund and used to acquire, preserve, and develop the
forests of the state. The tax rate is 0.1697 mills for each dollar of the assessed value
of the property of the state as determined by DOR. The bill provides that in each
fiscal year an amount equal to 0.1697 mills for each dollar of the assessed value of
the property of the state is transferred from the general fund to the conservation fund
to be used for the same purpose as the tax.
This bill increases from $853,000,000 to $940,000,000 the amount appropriated
for the school levy property tax credit, beginning with payments made in 2018. The
bill also allows a municipality to pass an ordinance to have DOA distribute the
amounts of the school levy, lottery and gaming, and first dollar property tax credits
directly to the municipality rather than to the county, if the total amount of the
credits in any year is at least $3,000,000. DOA would continue to distribute the
amounts in this manner until the municipality repeals the ordinance or until the
total amount of the credits in any year is less than $3,000,000. Under current law,
the municipality must approve the distribution in each year in which the total
amount of the credits is at least $3,000,000.
Other taxation
Under this bill, with regard to any income tax or franchise tax credit, deduction,
or exemption that takes effect after December 31, 2016, no new claims for such a
credit, deduction, or exemption may be filed more than seven years after the
provision's initial applicability. In addition, the bill prohibits a person from claiming
any sales and use tax, excise tax, or occupational tax exemption or credit more than
seven years after the provision's effective date, unless the exemption is necessary to
comply with the multistate sales and use tax agreement.
This bill provides that, with regard to a single-owner entity that is disregarded
as a separate entity for federal tax purposes, any notice that DOR sends to the owner
or to the entity is considered a notice sent to both and both are liable for any amounts
due as specified in the notice. The bill applies to all laws administered by DOR.
Under this bill, for the two-day period beginning on the first Saturday in
August and ending on the following Sunday, the sales of the following items are
exempt from the sales tax and the use tax:
1. An item of clothing, not including clothing accessories, if the sales price of
any single item is no more than $75.
2. A computer purchased by the consumer for the consumer's personal use, if
the sales price of the computer is no more than $750.
3. School computer supplies, if the sales price of any single item is no more than
$250.
4. School supplies, if the sales price of any single item is no more than $75.
The bill provides, however, that the exemption does not apply after 2018.
Under current law, there is a sales and use tax exemption for occasional sales
of property, items, goods, and services. “Occasional sales” is defined to include
isolated and sporadic sales of property, items, goods, and services where the
infrequency supports the inference that the seller is not pursuing a full-time or
part-time vocation, occupation, or business. This bill modifies the definition of
occasional sales to provide a presumption that a seller who sells less than $2,000 of
property, items, goods, and services during a calendar year is not pursuing a
full-time or part-time vocation, occupation, or business.
This bill creates an exemption from the state sales and use tax for certain frozen
foods manufactured by a retailer at the retailer's off-site manufacturing facility.
Under current law, the sale of food and food ingredients is generally exempt from the
sales and use tax, but most prepared foods are excluded from that exemption. Under
current law, “prepared food” includes, among other things, two or more food
ingredients mixed or combined by a retailer for sale as a single item. The bill creates
a sales and use tax exemption for prepared food sold by a retailer that meets all of
the following conditions:
1. The prepared food is manufactured by the retailer in a building assessed for
property tax purposes as manufacturing property or that would be assessed as
manufacturing property if the building was located in this state.
2. The retailer makes no retail sales of prepared food at the building in which
the prepared food is manufactured.
3. The retailer freezes the prepared food prior to its sale.
4. The retailer sells the prepared food at retail in a frozen state.
5. The prepared food is not sold with eating utensils that are provided by the
retailer.
6. The prepared food is not candy, soft drinks, or dietary supplements.
This bill expands the sales and use tax exemption for property, items, and
services (products) sold in connection with real property construction activities as
part of a lump sum contract to all construction contracts. Under current law, there
is a sales and use tax exemption for products sold by a contractor as part of a lump
sum contract for real property construction activities if the total sales price
attributable to the taxable products is less than 10 percent of the total contract price.
Under the bill, the exemption is expanded to apply to all construction contracts
involving real property construction activities if the total sales price of the taxable
products is less than 10 percent of the total contract price. If the exemption applies,
the contractor is the consumer of, and pays the sales tax on, the products.
This bill also provides that, if the prime contract qualifies for the exemption, the
exemption applies to all subcontracts entered into with respect to the real property
construction activities. If the exemption applies to a subcontract, the subcontractor
is the consumer of, and pays the sales tax on, the products. Under current law, if a
construction contract is between a contractor and a tax-exempt entity, the contractor
may purchase, without tax for resale to the tax-exempt entity, any products that will
be sold by the contractor to the tax-exempt entity as part of a construction contract.
The bill extends that sales and use tax exemption to products purchased by a
subcontractor for eventual resale to the tax-exempt entity.
This bill provides that a seller who continues to collect sales tax erroneously on
a product after receiving two or more written notices from DOR indicating that the
product is not taxable is entitled to an adjustment or a refund of the tax collected only
if the seller returns the tax and related interest to the buyers or to DOR if the buyers
cannot be located. A seller who fails to submit the tax and interest within the 90-day
period is subject to a penalty equal to 25 percent of the tax and interest or, in the case
of fraud, a penalty equal to the tax and interest. The penalty provided in the bill is
the same as the penalty under current law for other instances when a seller claims
an adjustment or a refund of sales tax, but fails to submit the tax and interest to the
buyer or to DOR.
Current law requires a state agency to enter into an agreement with DOR to
have DOR collect debts owed to the agency that are more than 90 days past due,
except under certain circumstances. This bill requires an agency to exclude certain
debts from collection if the agency receives written notice from DOA or DOR
identifying the specific debts for exclusion.
Transportation
Highways
This bill allows general obligation bonding in an amount not exceeding
$449,738,300 under one of the provisions authorizing bonding for DOT to fund state
highway rehabilitation projects.
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 $3,931,472,900. This bill increases the revenue bond
limit to $4,096,634,600.
