Health and Family Services
Subject
Ch. HFS 110 relating to licensing of ambulance service providers and emergency medical technicians (EMTs)-basic IV.
Objective of the Rule. To create and amend the chapter to include provisions necessary for the department to issue EMT-basic IV training permits.
Policy analysis
The department licenses emergency medical technicians (EMTs) at the basic and basic IV levels under s. 146.50, Stats., and ch. HFS 110, Wis. Adm. Code. The EMT-basic IV license level was added to ch. HFS 110 through a department rulemaking order that became effective on February 1, 2001. The addition of the EMT-basic licensing level was the result of evolving EMS system-wide changes. However, although the recently promulgated rulemaking order addressed the licensing, training and operational plans related to EMTs-basic IV, the rulemaking order neglected to address the department's issuance of training permits for EMTs-basic IV. A training permit is required at all other EMT levels and is necessary for students who are being trained to the EMT-basic IV level in order for them to get practical experience as part of their training course. The field experience treating patients allows the student to apply skills he or she has learned in class by treating a patient while supervised by an EMT licensed to at least the EMT-basic IV level. The proposed rules will correct the department's oversight of provisions that are necessary for the department to issue EMT-basic IV training permits.
Statutory Authority
Section 146.50 (5) (b) and (d) 1., Stats.
Staff Time Required
5 hours.
Health and Family Services
Subject
Ch. HFS 47 relating to large family child care centers.
Objective of the Rule. To create a new category of care that would allow more children to be cared for in home-based child care facilities without the need to meet the licensing rules for larger group child care centers. It would also increase the ability of family child care providers to care for between 9 - 12 children in a home-based setting, thereby increasing the availability of child care within a geographic area.
Policy analysis
Sections 48.65, 48.66, 48.67, 48.68, 48.69, 48.70, 48.715 and 48.78, Stats., pertain to the Department's licensing and regulation of day care centers. Currently, the Department has established 2 chapters of administrative rules governing the licensing and operation of day care centers. The rules establish different requirements for day care centers depending on the number of children served. Chapter HFS 45, Family Day Care Centers for Children, applies to smaller day care centers, defined as “places where a person, other than a parent, relative or guardian, provides care and supervision for 4 to 8 children under 7 years of age for less than 24 hours a day and for compensation" [s. HFS 45.02 (4)]. Chapter HFS 46, Group Day Care Centers for Children, applies to places “where a person other than a relative or guardian provides care and supervision for 9 or more children for less than 24 hours a day for compensation" [s. HFS 46.02 (13)]. Typically, Group Day Care Centers for Children are known as “day care centers," “nursery schools," “preschools," “head start" or “school-age child care programs."
Currently, day care centers wishing to care for more than 8 children must obtain a license to operate a Group Day Care Center for children under ch. HFS 46. Family child care providers (those providing care for 4 to 8 children) have asked the Department to consider another arrangement that would allow them to care for a few more children without having to meet the group licensing rules. The proposed new rules, chapter HFS 47, would be a melding of existing day care rules into a separate and distinct category of care that would contain elements of both the current ch. HFS 45 (family) and ch. HFS 46 (group) day care rules. Advocates of establishing “large family child care centers" under ch. HFS 47 maintain that the category's establishment will result in an increase in the availability and accessibility of both the total number of child care center licensees (those licensed under ch. HFS 45, 46 and 47) and the total number of child care “slots" or “positions" of those child care center licensees in a geographic area. In so doing, these proposed rules would respond to the increased child care needs created by W-2 and the continuing trend of parents being employed outside the home. The creation of the “large family child care" category of rules being proposed by the Department in this Statement of Scope was supported by the predecessor to the DWD Office of Child Care Council, known as the DHSS Day Care Advisory Committee. The Department proposes a maximum size of 12 children in each large family child care center because that number coincides with the maximum permissible size of child care centers eligible for reimbursement by the USDA Child and Adult Care Food Program.
Under current state law, large family child care licensees would not be entitled to the same exemptions that currently apply to family day care centers for 4 to 8 children. For example, under s. 66.1017, Stats., family day care centers for 4 though 8 children are exempt from local zoning requirements. However, the section 66.1017 statutory exemption from compliance with local zoning requirements would not extend to large family child care centers, making such centers subject to local zoning requirements. In addition, Wisconsin Department of Commerce building codes in chapters Comm 50 to 64 govern child care centers that either serve 9 or more children or that are located outside of a residence. The Dept. of Commerce rules would also apply to large family child care centers. In either case, a Department-certified agency or individual must periodically inspect the child care center for compliance with chapters Comm 50 to 64. Given the applicability of chapters Comm 50 to 64, the Department will consult with Department of Commerce representatives in developing the proposed ch. HFS 47 rules to help ensure that buildings used for large family child care centers are safe.
The Department expects that its establishing the licensure category of “large family child care centers" would have the following effects:
•
It would allow child care providers to care for 9 – 12 children without requiring them to meet the ch. HFS 46, Group Day Care rules. Some smaller group child care centers would also fall into this intermediate category of care, thereby relaxing some of the licensing rules smaller group child care center providers are currently required to meet under ch. HFS 46.
•
It would increase the variety of sites where large family child care could be provided. Some residences are sufficiently large to serve more than 8 children and other types of settings, such as store fronts, would also be candidates for housing large family child care centers.
•
It will expand a given community's child care capacity.
•
It may attract more individuals and agencies into providing child care.
Statutory Authority
Section 48.67, Stats.
Staff Time Required
The Department anticipates taking about 18 months to develop and promulgate the ch. HFS 47 rules. The Department estimates that approximately 2,000 hours of Department staff time will be necessary. Principal staffing will be provided by the Bureau of Regulation and Licensing that includes the child care program specialist, licensing staff and supervisors and input from representatives from the Department's Office of Legal Counsel.
The Department will form an advisory group with representation from the Department, child care providers, professional organizations, the child care resource and referral agency network, Wisconsin Child Care Improvement Project, advocacy organizations, local agencies, Department of Workforce Development, the Department of Commerce and others. In addition, as the Department develops sections of the rules, the sections would be shared with representative groups of child care providers for review and comment and with regional and statewide forums and groups representing numerous stakeholders. These opportunities for public input would precede and would be in addition to ch. 227, Stats., formal public hearings.
Natural Resources
Subject
Clarify the definition of “indirect source" in s. NR 400.02 (85), Wis. Adm. Code, and update sections in chs. NR 438 and 484 to refer to a revised version of USEPA guidance document AP-42, Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors, Volume I.
Policy analysis
The existing definition of “indirect source" needs to be clarified to distinguish between indirect emissions from roads and direct emissions from roads. Direct emissions from roads should be reported on the air program's emission inventory and should be subject to emission fees, while indirect emissions need not be reported. This rule change will affect any source that has a road that creates particulate emissions due to vehicular traffic. The reference tot he AP-42 publication needs to be updated to reflect the most recently published supplements. This publication, which the air rules incorporate by reference, contains emission factors for various categories of air pollution sources.
The proposed rule clarifies a definition and updates sections of the administrative code that refer to a USEPA reference that is updated by USEPA annually.
Statutory Authority
Sections 227.11 (2) (a), 227.21 (2), 285.11 (1) and (6) and 285.17 (1) (a).
Staff Time Required
114 hours.
Regulation and Licensing
Subject
Revision and clarification of administrative rules relating to the regulation of licensed and certified real estate appraisers.
Under federal law, the department is required to follow the guidelines set forth in the Policy Statements Regarding State Certification and Licensing of Real Estate Appraisers adopted by the Appraisal Subcommittee of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council and the Real Property Appraiser Qualification Criteria established by the Appraiser Qualifications Board of the Appraisal Foundation. The proposed revisions will primarily incorporate changes relating to these guidelines.
Objective of the Rule. Clarify and update administrative rules. Recommended changes relate to:
[1] revisions to the examination, education and experience requirements for licensed and certified real estate appraisers;
[2] revisions to the rules for unprofessional conduct, and
[3] clarity, grammar, punctuation, and use of plain language.
Policy analysis
Existing policies are contained in Chapters RL 80-87 and Appendix I, Wis. Admin. Code. The proposal would revise the following:
[1] definitions;
[2] examination, education and experience requirements;
[3] rules of unprofessional conduct and,
[4] Chapters RL 80-87 to make minor, technical and grammatical changes.
Statutory Authority
Sections 227.11 (2); 458.03 (1); 458.06; 458.08; 458.085, Stats.
Estimate of the amount of time that state employees will spend to develop the rule and of other resources necessary to develop the rule.
Staff Time Required
100 hours.
Rustic Roads
Subject
Objective of the Rule. To amend Trans RR 1.04 (3), relating to qualifications for rustic road designation, by deleting a reference to ch. Trans 76, which was repealed in 1997, dealing with functional classification.
Policy analysis
The purpose of the Rustic Roads program is to identify, designate and preserve a system of lightly traveled roads for the enjoyment of the traveling public.
Trans RR 1.04 defines a set of criteria that a potential rustic road should have in order to be nominated. Criteria in this section include:
(1) definition of "rustic" characteristics;
(2) specification that the route be a low-volume road;
(3) requirement that the road not be scheduled or anticipated for major improvement;
(4) requirement that the proposed route currently does not have high density development along it;
(5) a minimum length requirement of 2 miles, and
(6) specifying that the land adjacent to the rustic road should have appropriate zoning so that its rustic character and low density development be preserved.
Trans RR 1.04 (3) is also part of the set of defining criteria, referencing the now repealed ch. Trans 76 on highway functional classification system. This chapter used a type of classification system that grouped streets and highways according to the type of service they provided, ranging from mobility to land access function. At the upper end of the system, principal arterials emphasize traffic mobility with long uninterrupted travel and at the lower end, local streets and roads emphasize access.
There is no definition for the term "arterial" or "collector" in state statutes or in the Administrative Code. The criteria in Trans RR 1.04 are considered to be sufficient for selection of roads appropriate for inclusion in the rustic roads program without the need to include functional classification as a factor.
Therefore, Trans RR 1.04 (3) will be amended to delete the reference to ch. Trans 76.
Statutory Authority
Section 83.42, Stats.
Staff Time Required
20 hours.
Veterinary Examining Board
Subject
Modification of the definition of “unprofessional conduct" of the practice of veterinary medicine.
Policy analysis
Objective of the Rule. To define as unprofessional conduct failure to notify clients that the person assisting the veterinarian is a veterinary student or unlicensed assistant.
This rule change will make it unprofessional conduct for a veterinarian to not inform a client that the person assisting them could be an unlicensed person.
Statutory authority
Sections 15.08 (5) (b), 227.11 (2) and 453.03 (1).
Staff Time Required
80 hours.
