Rules adopted revising
ch. PI 35, relating to the Milwaukee parental choice program.
Finding of emergency
The Department of Public Instruction finds an emergency exists and that a rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public welfare. The facts constituting the emergency are as follows:
In the past, private schools that intended to participate in the Milwaukee parental choice program were required to submit to the state superintendent a notice of intent to participate by May 1,
2001 Wis. Act 16 changed the submission date of the notice from May 1 to February 1. The rules allow a private school to choose from a variety of student application periods. The student application period chosen by the private school must be indicated on its notice. Because the notice is due at the department by February 1, emergency rules must be in place as soon as possible.
Publication Date:
January 28, 2002
Effective Date:
January 28, 2002
Expiration Date:
June 27, 2002
Hearing Date:
April 9, 2002
State Treasurer
Rules adopted creating
ch. Treas 1 relating to the Wisconsin College Savings Program Board.
Exemption from finding of emergency
Analysis prepared by the Office of the State Treasurer
Statutes interpreted: s.
14.64 et seq., Stats.
The Wisconsin College Savings Program Board establishes a rule for the operation of the College Savings Program. The rule is designed to grant flexibility to program participants wherever possible, while enabling the State and its private-sector partners to administer the program in a manner that protects the program's financial integrity and viability. Maintaining eligibility as a “qualified tuition program" pursuant to section
529 of the Internal Revenue Code [
26 USC 529] is another primary objective. “529" programs are eligible for a number of federal tax benefits that are attractive to families saving for future college costs. Significant features of the rule are addressed below:
Sections
Treas 1.03,
1.04 and
1.05 describe who may open an account and how to open an account. Section
Treas 1.06 discusses designating a successor owner and describes how to change ownership of an account. Sections
Treas 1.07 and
1.08 define the account beneficiary and how to change the beneficiary on an account.
Section
Treas 1.09 details how to make contributions to an account, including minimum and maximum contribution limits, and how to “rollover" an account balance to another section 529 program. IRS requirements relating to investment direction are also detailed.
Sections Treas 1.11, 1.12 and 1.13 describe account withdrawals, distributions and refunds. Special circumstances are also provided for in these sections, such as the death or disability of the beneficiary or receipt of a scholarship by a beneficiary. Section Treas 1.14 sets forth conditions under which the Board may terminate an owner's account. Sections Treas 1.15 and 1.16 address related fees and penalties.
Publication Date:
January 7, 2002
Effective Date:
January 7, 2002
Hearing Date:
March 5, 2002
Workforce Development
(Unemployment Compensation, Chs. DWD 100-150)
Rules adopted amending
s. DWD 129.01 (1), relating to extension of the time period allowed for filing an initial claim for unemployment insurance benefits.
Exemption from finding of emergency
Pursuant to
2001 Wis. Act 35, s.
72 (2) (b), the Department is not required to provide evidence that promulgating this rule is necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare and is not required to provide a finding of emergency for this rule.
Analysis Prepared by the Department of Workforce Development
Pursuant to s.
108.08 (1), Stats., a claimant must give notice to the department with respect to a week of unemployment “within such time and in such manner as the department may by rule prescribe" in order to receive benefits for that particular week.
Under the current s.
DWD 129.01 (1), a claimant must file his or her initial claim for benefits no later than the close of the week in which the claimant intends the claim to start. For example, a claimant who files two weeks late cannot obtain unemployment benefits retroactively unless the department waives the time limit under the exceptional circumstances provision in s.
DWD 129.01 (4). This emergency rule extends the time period for filing an initial claim by seven days beyond the end of the week for which the claimant expects to get the benefits.
Increasing the time frame within which a claimant may file a timely initial unemployment insurance benefit claim would reduce disparate treatment of claimants in like situations by removing the subjectivity of finding “exceptional circumstances" before allowing late claims and ease an increasing workload for the unemployment insurance division. The institution of this change would eliminate approximately 67% of untimely filing issues. This would translate into savings of 5 to 6 full-time employees (FTEs). These positions would then be able to turn attention and time to resolving other eligibility issues at a time when the unemployment insurance division is currently experiencing a sharp increase in workload and anticipates continued increase over the next three years.
The telephone initial claims system allows the department to be more lenient in proscribing filing deadlines due to its expanded accessibility and speed in identifying and resolving eligibility issues. Programming changes to the telephone initial claims system are estimated to require 50 hours at approximately $50 to $60 per hour for a total of $2500 to $3000.
Publication Date:
April 14, 2002
Effective Date:
April 14, 2002
Expiration Date:
September 11, 2002
Workforce Development
(Prevailing Wage Rates, Chs. DWD 290-294)
Rules adopted revising
ch. DWD 290 and creating
ch. DWD 293, relating to the adjustment of thresholds for application of prevailing wage rates and payment and performance assurance requirements.
Finding of emergency
The Department of Workforce Development finds that an emergency exists and a rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare. A statement of facts constituting the emergency is:
The Department of Workforce Development is acting under its statutory authority to adjust thresholds for the application of prevailing wage laws on state or local public works projects and the application of payment and performance assurance requirements for a public improvement or public work. The thresholds are adjusted in proportion to any change in the construction cost index since the statutes were effective or the last adjustment.
If these new thresholds are not put into effect by emergency rule, the old thresholds will remain effective for approximately six to seven months, until the conclusion of the permanent rule-making process. The thresholds are based on national construction cost statistics and are unlikely to be changed by the permanent rule-making process. The department is proceeding with this emergency rule to adjust the thresholds of the application of the prevailing wage rates to avoid imposing an additional administrative burden on local governments and state agencies caused by an effective decrease of the thresholds due solely to inflation in the construction industry. The department is proceeding with this emergency rule to adjust the thresholds of the application of the payment and performance assurance requirements in s.
779.14, Stats., to avoid imposing an additional administrative burden on contractors for the same reason. Adjusting the thresholds by emergency rule will also ensure that the adjustments are effective on a date certain that is prior to the time of year that the relevant determinations are generally made.
Publication Date:
December 27, 2001
Effective Date:
January 1, 2002
Expiration Date:
May 31, 2002
Hearing Date:
February 27, 2002
