Register

•   Current fee amounts for sanitary permits issued by governmental units (counties) would remain unchanged. A new fee would be created for permits issued by the Department.

15. Swimming Pool Plan Review

•   Current fee amounts would be increased 100 percent and the current “discount" for simultaneous submittal of pool plans would be discontinued.

16. Electrician Certification

•   Current fee amounts would be increased as follows:

-   Master Electrician Certification - 25 percent increase

-   Journeyman Electrician Certification - 50 percent increase

-   Beginning Electrician Certification - 20 percent increase

Fiscal Estimate Assumptions

•   Current Program Revenue reserves will be depleted in October, 2000.

•   The proposed fee adjustments will provide sufficient revenues for a four-year period (Sept. 1, 2000 to Sept. 1, 2004).

•   Each program or bundle of programs will be self-sufficient. (Program bundles correspond to Revenue Accounts.) Note: Time and Effort Survey results have been used to identify the distribution of Full Time Equivalents (FTE's) among the programs of the Division.

•   The average annual FTE cost for Fiscal Year (FY) 2001 will be $85,000.

•   Costs will increase at a rate of four percent per year for the four-year period between Sept. 2000 and Sept. 2004.

•   Annual workloads will generally remain at FY 2000 levels except in programs where services are expanding or decreasing, such as fire safety system plan review and plumbing plan review, respectively.

•   The 6.5 FTE increase in staff levels authorized by the FY 00-01 Budget Bill is included in Division expenditure projections.

•   Potential staff increases, such as for the Commercial Building Soil Erosion Control program or Uniform Dwelling Code program have not been included in Division expenditure projections used for this fee increase proposal.

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

1.   Types of small businesses that will be affected by the rules.

The rules will affect any businesses that pay fees to the Safety and Buildings Division for the Division's costs of providing certain plan examination, inspection and certification services. Plan examination services include review of plans for buildings, elevators, gas systems, plumbing and swimming pools. Inspection services include inspection of buildings, elevators, boilers, mechanical refrigeration, amusement rides and ski lifts. Certification services include licensing of blasters and certification of electricians.

2.   Reporting, bookkeeping and other procedures required for compliance with the rules.

There are no new reporting, bookkeeping or other procedures required for compliance with the rules.

3.   Types of professional skills necessary for compliance with the rules.

There are no types of professional skills necessary for compliance with the rules.

Environmental Analysis

Notice is hereby given that the Department has considered the environmental impact of the proposed rules. In accordance with chapter Comm 1, the proposed rules are a Type III action. A Type III action normally does not have the potential to cause significant environmental effects and normally does not involve unresolved conflicts in the use of available resources. The Department has reviewed these rules and finds no reason to believe that any unusual conditions exist. At this time, the Department has issued this notice to serve as a finding of no significant impact.

Notice of Hearing

Employe Trust Funds

[CR 00-11]

The Wisconsin Department of Employe Trust Funds will hold a public hearing to review the emergency rule and the proposed permanent rule, which renumbers and amends s. ETF 20.25 (1) and creates s. ETF 20.25 (1)(b), Wis. Adm. Code, relating to the distribution to annuitants fo the total amount distributed from the transaction amortization account to the annuity reserve under the non-statutory provisions of 1999 Wis. Act 11, in accordance with the provision of s. 227.16 (1), Stats. The public hearing will be held on Friday, February 11, 2000 at 1:00 p.m. at the Department of Employe Trust Funds, Room 2A, 801 West Badger Road, Madison, WI.

Written Comments

The public record on the emergency rule and the proposed permanent rule will be held open until 4:30 p.m. on Friday, February 25, 2000 to permit the submission of written comments from persons unable to attend the public hearing in person, or who wish to supplement testimony offered at the hearing. Any such written comments should be addressed to Shelly Schueller, Department of Employe Trust Funds, 801 W. Badger Road, P.O. Box 7931, Madison, WI 53707-7931.

Analysis Prepared by the Department of Employe Trust Funds

Section 27 (1) (a) of 1999 Wis. Act 11 directs that $4,000,000,000 be distributed from the Transaction Amortization Account of the Public Employe Trust Fund's fixed retirement investment trust to the reserves and accounts of the fixed retirement investment trust, in an amount equal to a percentage of the total distribution determined by dividing each reserve's and account's balance on January 1, 1999 by the total balance of the fixed retirement investment trust on that date.

Section 27 (1) (d) of the Act further directs that the total amount allocated to the annuity reserve by the legislation, shall be distributed as provided under s. 40.27 (2), Stats. That statutory subsection provides that surpluses in the fixed annuity reserve shall be distributed by the Employe Trust Funds Board upon the recommendation of the actuary. These distributions are made in the form of percentage increases in the amount of the monthly annuity in force. Section 40.27 (2) (b), Stats., provides that the ETF Board may, through administrative rule, apply prorated percentages based on the annuity effective date to annuities with effective dates during the calendar year preceding the effective date of the distribution. No distinction, other than annuity effective date, may be made.

The ETF Board previously adopted s. ETF 20.25 (1) with respect to prorating the annual fixed annuity dividend for annuities which began before the calendar year preceding the dividend. For these annuities, the prorated percentage is calculated by multiplying the number of full months the annuity was in force during the year times the percentage change applicable to annuities effective for the full year, dividing the result by 12 and rounding the answer to the nearest tenth of a percent. If the resulting increase would be less than 1%, no increase applies.

Had the ETF Board taken no action, the same prorating would apply to annuities which became effective during 1999 with regard to the distribution of the funds transferred into the annuity reserve by 1999 Wis. Act 11, section 27 (1) (a). The ETF Board promulgated an emergency rule, effective on December 31, 1999, identical to this proposed rule. Both this proposed rule and the emergency administrative rule currently in effect provide that there will be no prorating of the distribution of the funds transferred into the annuity reserve as a result of 1999 Wis. Act 11. The same percentage increase will be applied to annuities in effect for the full year or in effect for only part of 1999.

In December 1999, the Employe Trust Funds Board and Department of Employe Trust Funds commenced litigation concerning the constitutionality of portions of 1999 Wis. Act 11, including the $4 billion transfer, and the action is now pending before the Supreme Court. See Employe Trust Funds Board, et al. v. Lightbourn, et al., Case No. 99-3297-OA. The Supreme Court issued a preliminary injunction against implementation of Act 11. This rule-making is part of contingency planning by the Department of Employe Trust Funds and ETF Board in case the Act, or parts of it, are approved by the courts and is not prohibited under the terms of the injunction. This rule-making shall not be construed as an endorsement of the transfer of funds from the TAA as mandated by Act 11.

As provided by s. 227.24 (1) (c), Stats., the present emergency rule will expire on May 29, 2000, (150 days after its effective date) unless extended. It is the intention of the Department of Employe Trust Funds and ETF Board that if the $4 billion transfer from the TAA is ultimately upheld by the courts and implemented, this rule will continue to control the treatment of the surplus in the annuity reserve which results from the extraordinary distribution mandated by Act 11 in the same manner as the emergency rule currently does. If an injunction or other court action delays the TAA transfer until after the extraordinary dividend would be paid, then any amounts which become payable to annuitants as a result of the Act and this rule will be calculated retroactive to the normal annual dividend dates.

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

This rule does not affect small businesses.

Fiscal Estimate

The rule has no fiscal impact on county, city, village, town, school district, technical college district and sewerage district fiscal liabilities and revenues. This rule itself has no anticipated state fiscal effect during the current biennium and no future effect on state funds, which do not include the Public Employe Trust Funds. The costs of implementing an April 1, 2000, distribution to annuitants of funds transferred into the annuity reserve by the special TAA transfer mandated in this legislation was incorporated into the fiscal effect prepared for 1999 Assembly Bill 495. However, if the payment of the special dividend resulting from the extraordinary transfer from the TAA was to be delayed after April 1, 2000 – for example because of the present injunction or other court action, then previously unanticipated costs in distributing these funds will arise. If the $4 billion distribution survives review by the courts, then additional payments would be owed to annuitants, some of whom may have died in the interim. DETF anticipates at least some administrative costs in locating, notifying and processing claims by estates or heirs of deceased annuitants, similar to the costs incurred in making the distribution required by the Supreme Court in WRTA v. Employe Trust Funds Board, 207 Wis. 2d 1, 558 N.W.2d 83 (1997). The exact amount of these costs will depend, in large part, on how long the litigation over this legislation remains before the courts and the mortality experience among the affected annuitants during that period.

Contact Information

David Stella, Administrator

Division of Retirement Services

Dept. of Employe Trust Funds

P.O. Box 7931

Madison, WI 53707

Telephone: [phone]

Text of Emergency and Proposed Rule

SECTION 1. ETF 20.25 (1) is renumbered ETF 20.25 (1) (a) and amended to read:

ETF 20.25 (1) (a) A Except as otherwise provided in par. (b), a fixed annuity dividend, as recommended by the actuary and approved by the chair of the employe trust funds board and the department's secretary, shall be distributed based on each December 31 valuation as specified in s. 40.27 (2), Stats. The dividend shall be effective on the April 1 following the valuation date and shall apply to fixed annuities effective on or prior to the date of the valuation. As authorized under s. 40.27 (2) (b), Stats., different percentages shall be determined for annuities effective for less than a full year on the valuation date. The percentages shall be determined by multiplying the number of full months the annuity was in force times the percentage change applicable to annuities effective for the full year, dividing the result by 12 and rounding the answer to the nearest tenth of a percent. No increase shall be applied to any annuity for which the resulting increase would be less than one percent.

SECTION 2. ETF 20.25 (1) (b) is created to read:

ETF 20.25 (1) (b) The total amount distributed to the annuity reserve under 1999 Wis. Act 11, section 27 (1) (a) shall be distributed effective April 1, 2000, in the form of a percentage increase. The percentage shall be recommended by the actuary separate from the distribution of any surplus created by the annual distribution under s. 40.04 (3) (a) or otherwise. The percentage under this paragraph shall be the same for all affected annuities, including those with effective dates after December 31, 1998 and before January 1, 2000.

Notice of Hearing

Financial Institutions

Division of Securities

Notice is hereby given that pursuant to ss. 551.32 (4) and 551.63 (2), Stats., the Division of Securities of the Department of Financial Institutions will hold a public hearing at the time and place indicated below to consider the amendment and adoption of administrative rules under the Wisconsin Uniform Securities Law affecting s. DFI-Sec 5.01 (4) (b) and (e), relating to investment adviser representative competency examination grandfathering provisions.

Hearing Information

Date & Time   Location

March 13, 2000   Conference Room

Monday   4th Floor

10:00 A.M.   345 West Washington Ave.

  MADISON, WI

Written Comments

Written comments in lieu of public hearing testimony may be submitted which must be received no later than the hearing date and should be addressed to the Administrator for the Division of Securities, 345 West Washington Avenue, P.O. Box 1768, Madison, Wisconsin 53701.

Analysis Prepared by the Dept. of Financial Institutions, Div. of Securities

Statutory authority: ss. 551.32 (4) and 551.63 (2)

Statute interpreted: s. 551.32 (4)

These proposed permanent rules are being promulgated to be in place upon the expiration of identical emergency rules currently in effect that were issued by Order of the Administrator of the Division of Securities on December 23, 1999, and became effective on January 1, 2000 following publication in the official state newspaper and the required filings with the Secretary of State and the Revisor of Statutes Bureau. The proposed permanent rules, as do the current emergency rules, are necessary to establish certain “grandfathering"/examination-waiver provisions applicable to a newly-enacted investment adviser representative competency examination requirement, so as to be uniform with equivalent grandfathering provisions adopted in most states.

The Division recently adopted for January 1, 2000 effectiveness as part of its annual rule revision process for 1999, a new administrative rule in s. DFI-Sec 5.01 (3) that prescribes a new examination requirement for investment advisers and investment adviser representatives seeking licensure in Wisconsin on or after January 1, 2000. That new examination requirement, which includes completely revised Series 65 and Series 66 examinations, was developed over a 3-year period by a Project Group of the North American Securities Administrators Association (“NASAA").

The new NASAA examination requirement (which also included certain “grandfathering"/examination-waiver provisions) was approved by vote of NASAA member states (including Wisconsin) at the NASAA 1999 Spring Conference to become effective on December 31, 1999. The NASAA membership vote was accompanied by a recommendation that for uniformity purposes, each NASAA member state complete the necessary steps to adopt and have effective by January 1, 2000, the new examination requirement conforming to the NASAA format in all respects.

Following the adoption on November 18, 1999 by the Division of the new investment adviser examination requirement in s. DFI-Sec 5.01 (3) as part of the Division's annual rule revision process, it was noted that the “grandfathering"/examination waiver provisions that had been included in s. DFI-Sec 5.01 (4) did not track the NASAA model language in two respects.

Because it is critical that the grandfathering provisions for the new Wisconsin investment adviser examination requirement be uniform with those of other NASAA member states so that applicants for licensing in Wisconsin receive equivalent treatment to that accorded them by other states in which they may be seeking licensure, both the emergency rulemaking and the permanent rulemaking are necessary.

The rulemaking action is comprised of two provisions which do the following:

1) Provide an examination waiver in new s. DFI-Sec 5.01 (4) (e) for any applicant licensed as an investment adviser or investment adviser representative in any jurisdiction in the U.S. on January 1, 2000; and

2) Provide an examination waiver in amended s. DFI-Sec 5.01 (4) (b) for any applicant that has been licensed as an investment adviser or investment adviser representative in any jurisdiction in the U.S. within two years prior to the date the application is filed.

Text of Rule

SECTION 1. DFI-Sec 5.01 (4) (b) is amended to read:

DFI-Sec 5.01 (4) (b) The applicant was has been licensed as an investment adviser or licensed as an investment adviser representative under ch. 551, Stats., in any jurisdiction in the United States within 2 years prior to the date the application is filed.

SECTION 2. DFI-SEC 5.01 (4) (e) is created to read: