Chapter
NR 165 contains rules for administering the Small Loan Program (SLP), which is a subprogram of the Clean Water Fund Program (CWFP). Under the SLP, municipalities receive subsidy payments to reduce the interest they pay on loans received from the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands (also known as the State Trust Fund) for eligible wastewater projects. The SLP offers municipalities a streamlined application process for small loans secured through a general obligation pledge and reduces Department administrative time for such loans. The amount of subsidy awarded may not exceed the amount a municipality would receive through a regular CWFP loan.
When ch.
NR 165 was last revised in 1996, the dollar limit for loans granted by the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands was $750,000. Both that dollar limit and the cost of wastewater projects have increased since then.
Regular CWFP loans for similar projects are administered under ch.
NR 162. That chapter was revised effective March 1, 2001. The revisions included incorporating as subchapters the old ch.
NR 161, relating to the CWFP's project priority system, and the old ch.
NR 163, relating to the CWFP's hardship subprogram. Those incorporations were made in part to provide greater clarity, simplicity, and consistency in the administrative code. Incorporating ch.
NR 165 into ch.
NR 162 as a subchapter would provide similar benefits.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
260 hours
Revenue
Subject
Sections
Tax 11.46,
11.65 and
11.87, relating to summer camps; admissions; and meals, food, food products and beverages. The objectives of the proposed rule are to:
• Reflect law changes relating to:
a. Restaurants' meals provided to employees.
b. Vending machine sales being considered sales for off-premises consumption.
c. Sales of and admissions to time-share properties.
• Reflect a change in department policy, to now exempt campgrounds' sales of certain food, food products and beverages to campers for consumption at their campsites.
• Clarify provisions relating to:
a. The taxability of admissions to campgrounds.
b. Sales of admissions to places of amusement or athletic events.
c. The transfer of food, food products and beverages to an employee for consideration.
• Update the presumed rate for lodging, based on the consumer price index, when no allocation is made between taxable and exempt receipts by a camp.
• List additional instances of nontaxable sales of admissions.
• Add a provision relating to when and where a sale of admissions takes place.
• Provide additional definitions relating to “meal," “sandwich" and “work hours."
Policy Analysis
Existing policies are as set forth in the rules. In addition to revised policies to reflect law changes, a new policy is being proposed, to exempt campgrounds' sales of certain food, food products and beverages to campers for consumption at their campsites.
If the rules are not changed, they will be incorrect in that they will not reflect current law or current department policy. In addition, the presumed rate for lodging will remain outdated, and the department will be unable to implement the new policy to exempt certain food, food product and beverage sales at campgrounds.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
The department estimates it will take approximately 80 hours to develop this rule order.
