Scope statements
Commerce
Subject
Private Sewage System Replacement or Rehabilitation Grant Program. Objective of the rule. The objectives of this rule revision is to update the provisions of the Department's administrative rules relating to Private Sewage System Replacement and Rehabilitation. The update will primarily incorporate any Statutory changes since the current rule became effective February 1999, create language for an available loan program, and update terminology.
Policy analysis
Existing policies. The current rule has been in effect since February 1, 1999 and due to the application and funding cycle provided in s.
Comm 87.02, this rule pertained to the February 1, 2000 application and funding cycle.
The current rule was adopted and effective prior to a major revision of ch.
Comm 83, Private Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems, in which several newly-recognized system types became codified, thus creating on-going staff time allocated to communication and interpretation. Section
145.245 (11) (e), Stats., allows for a portion of the fund to be allocated for experimental systems; however, the current rule does not include a pre-approval process.
The current rule does not acknowledge maintenance and monitoring work conducted by POWTS maintainers. Also, the current rule does not reflect loan provisions under s.
145.245 (12m), Stats.
New policies. The revised rule would: incorporate terminology, definitions and other changes in chs.
Comm 81 and
83 and any Statutory changes since the current rule became effective in February 1999; create a specific process for allocations for experimental systems; acknowledge the work that POWTS maintainers can perform relative to the maintenance provisions of the program; and may include other improvements based on additional input from program participants.
Policy alternatives. Continue current policy. The alternative of not revising the code will result in rules being inconsistent with other department rules, specifically chs.
Comm 81 and
83.
Promulgate rule revisions as stated herein. This grant program is an important component in protecting the state's groundwater resource with 68 governmental units (counties) participating. The funding appropriation is generally fully expended each year of allocation. The participants in this program deserve rules that are up-to-date and respond to the costs of system rehabilitation and replacement.
Statutory authority
Section
145.245, Stats. provides the Department authority to implement and administer a financial assistance program to replace or rehabilitate failing private sewage systems.
Staff time required
The department estimates the amount of time it will take staff to develop this rule will be 460 hours. This time includes research, meeting with an advisory council, drafting of the rule and related documents, and processing the rule through public hearings and legislative review. The department will assign current staff to develop the rule. There are no other resources necessary to develop this rule.
Commerce
Subject
Rental Unit Energy Efficiency. Objective of the rule. The objectives of this rule, to be incorporated into one or more rule packages, are to: Conform with s.
101.122 (2) (e) which requires the department to review this chapter at least once every 5 years; the last revision occurred in 1999. Revise the rule to recognize process efficiencies undertaken within the program, and review definitions and requirements for clarity and appropriateness and revise the rule where necessary.
Policy analysis
Section
101.122, Stats., requires the department to promulgate rules that provide minimum energy efficiency standards for rental units. The review will look at new energy conservation technologies and whether the rules should require the use of these new technologies. A new policy will be examined that would permit the satisfaction of existing stipulations to be achieved by meeting the current standards instead of the old standard under which the stipulation was issued.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
The department estimates the amount of time it will take staff to develop this rule will be 200 hours. This time includes research, meeting with an advisory council, drafting of the rule and related documents, and processing the rule through public hearings and legislative review. The department will assign existing staff to develop the rule. There are no other resources necessary to develop this rule.
Health and Family Services
Subject
To amend ch.
HFS 15, Assessment for Occupied Beds in Nursing Homes and Intermediate Care Facilities for the Mentally Retarded, in response to changes
2003 Wisconsin Act 33 made to s.
50.14 of the Wisconsin statutes.
Policy analysis
2003 Wisconsin Act 33 modified s.
50.14 of the Wisconsin statutes, relating to assessments on occupied, licensed beds in nursing homes and intermediate care facilities for the mentally retarded (ICF-MR.)
Under section 50.14 of the Wisconsin Statutes, nursing facilities (nursing homes and ICF-MRs) are assessed a monthly fee for each occupied bed. Facilities owned or operated by the state, federal government, or located out of state are exempt from the assessment. Beds occupied by a resident whose nursing home costs are paid by Medicare are also exempt. The rate, specified in s.
50.14 (2) of the statutes, was $32 per month per occupied bed for nursing homes and $100 per month per occupied bed for ICF-MRs.
1. It broadened the scope of which types of long-term care facilities must pay a monetary assessment to the Department by:
a. eliminating exemptions from being subject to the assessments of facilities owned or operated by the state or federal government, and beds occupied by residents whose care is reimbursed in whole or in part by medicare under
42 USC 1395 to
1395ccc; and
b. eliminating the exclusion of unoccupied facility beds from facility bed count calculations.
2. It increased the per bed fee limit the Department may charge subject ICF-MRs, from $100 per bed to $435 per bed in fiscal year 2003-04 and $445 per bed in fiscal year 2004-05.
3. It increased the per bed fee limit the Department may charge subject nursing homes, from $32 per bed to $75 per bed.
4. It establishes the requirement that amounts collected in excess of $14.3 million in fiscal year 2003-04, $13.8 million in fiscal year 2004-05, and, beginning July 1, 2005, amounts in excess of 45% of the amount collected be deposited in the Medical Assistance Trust Fund.
5. It specifies that facility beds that have been delicensed under section
49.45 (6m) (ap) 1. of the statutes, but not deducted from the nursing home's licensed bed capacity under section 49.45 (6m) (ap) 4. a., are to be included in the number of beds subject to the assessment.
Given these statutory changes, the Department is proposing to modify ch.
HFS 15 accordingly. The Department has issued an emergency rule, currently in effect, that contains identical changes to HFS 15.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
10 hours.
Health and Family Services
Subject
The Department proposes to amend ch.
HFS 138, relating to administration of a program that provides health insurance premium subsidies to eligible persons.
Policy analysis
Sections
252.16 and
252.17, Stats., direct the Department to operate a program that provides subsidies to cover the cost of health insurance premiums for persons with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection who, because of a medical condition resulting from that infection, must take an unpaid leave from their jobs or are unable to continue working or must reduce their hours of work. The Department has been operating this program since November 1990 under ch.
HFS 138 administrative rules.
1999 Wisconsin Act 103 modified section 252.17 in several respects. First, it increased the family income eligibility limits under section
252.17 (3) (b), Stats., from 200% to a maximum of 300% of the federal poverty line. Second, it created a new section
252.17 (4) (d), Stats., that specifies that the Department will pay a portion of the health insurance premium for individuals whose family income is between 200% and 300% of the federal poverty line. It further specifies that the Department will establish the schedule for payment in administrative rule. Finally, Act 103 created a new section
252.17 (6) (c), Stats., that directs the Department to establish, in rule, the premium contribution schedule for individuals who have a family income that exceeds 200% but does not exceed 300% of the federal poverty line. It further directs the Department to take into consideration both income level and family size in establishing the schedule.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
The Department estimates that it will take about 10 hours to draft these rules.
Natural Resources
Subject
Waiver of the slow-no-wake speed restriction on Elkhorn Lake
Policy analysis
The City of Elkhorn has petitioned the Department to waive the slow-no-wake speed restriction that is imposed by s.
30.635 Wis. Stats. for Elkhorn Lake. Elkhorn Lake is a manmade lake that is surrounded by City of Elkhorn property. The city has issued permits to the Lauderdale Lakes Aqua Skiers to use the lake for water ski shows and practicing. Section
30.635 allows the Department to adopt rules to waive or modify the slow-no-wake speed restriction for individual lakes. S.
NR 5.20 Admin. Code allows a municipality to petition the Department to waive the slow-no-wake restriction for a particular lake and sets the procedure for the Department to follow.
Statutory authority
Section. 30.635, Stats.
Staff time required
Approximately 15 hours will be needed by Department staff.
Natural Resources
Subject
Changes to chs.
NR 405,
406 and
408, Wis. Adm. Code, pertaining to implementing the new source review program revisions promulgated by USEPA in December 2002. These revisions alter the applicability of the regulations in such a way that the New Source Review (NSR) program will likely no longer regulate many projects that were covered by the old rule.
Policy analysis
The new NSR regulations are very controversial. Thirteen states, including Wisconsin, have filed lawsuits challenging EPA's decision to revise the NSR program. The petitions are based on the states' claims that the revised regulations will result in emission increases that will have a variety of negative impacts, such as making the achievement of air quality standards for ozone more difficult. Nine states have filed motions to intervene in the lawsuit in support of EPA's regulatory changes. These lawsuits are still pending in Federal court. Additionally, Massachusetts has decided to return the Federal Program to USEPA and to only operate a State Program under the pre-December 2002, rules.
Under the new regulations, the Department has 3 years (until January 2, 2006) for final action to determine what features of the new NSR regulations should be implemented into Wisconsin rules. Since Wisconsin has incorporated the federal NSR permitting requirements into our administrative rules, we will have to respond to these new federal regulations in one of three ways:
1)
Do not adjust our rules to reflect any of the federal changes.
2) Incorporate portions of the new federal regulations into state administrative rules.
3) Incorporate all of the new federal regulations into state administrative rules.
To this end, we will be seeking input from internal and external stakeholders, other state permitting authorities, EPA, and national air quality regulatory organizations (STAPPA/ALAPCO, ECOS, etc.) to determine how to implement these changes in the best interest of the citizens of Wisconsin. The Department realizes that there were many features of the previous NSR regulations that were in need of improvement. The January 2, 2006 deadline represents an excellent opportunity to develop a consensus on new source review changes amongst the wide variety of stakeholders that have an interest in this matter.
EPA expects that most of the states with NSR programs approved by EPA, such as Wisconsin, will update their programs within 3 years of the new Federal regulations taking effect. Section
NR 1.52, Wis. Adm. Code, sets forth the procedures for making such changes to State regulations in these instances. The timeline for making changes in Wisconsin differs from the process in States with delegated programs (such as those in Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois). In delegated states, their programs have had to conform to the federal NSR regulations as soon as they become effective, in this case by March 3, 2003.
EPA has also proposed additional revisions be made to the NSR regulations in regard to routine maintenance, repair and replacement (RMRR). The deadline for submitting comments on these proposed changes was May 3, 2003. The NSR program currently exempts RMRR activities that occur at facilities from new source review. However, the way this exclusion is implemented by EPA can be highly subjective. Therefore, EPA has proposed a more defined method for addressing whether a project would fit into this exclusion. This proposal seeks to establish a “safe harbor" under which a facility could physically change its equipment as long as the cost of doing so falls within the “safe harbor" amounts. These changes are also expected to be controversial when they are promulgated by USEPA. Promulgation of the RMRR rules is presently expected by December 2003.
Schedule
To update Wisconsin's NSR rules as soon as practicable in response to the NSR regulation changes made by USEPA in December 2002, the Department will be convening an Advisory Committee to assure that all of the varying perspectives on this complicated topic can be finally aired. Board adoption of the rule package containing Wisconsin's revised NSR rules is anticipated in May 2004 with a hearing authorization request anticipated in December 2003.
Please contact Jay Hochmuth at 608-267-9521 or Lloyd Eagan at 608-266-0603, if you have any questions.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
2700 hours.
Natural Resources
Subject
The proposed rule would establish minimum qualification for metallic mining and prospecting permit applicants and operators.
Policy analysis
A statutory directive to adopt minimum qualifications for mining and prospecting permit applicants and operators has been present in the statutes for nearly 30 years. The mining rules, for the most part, were drafted in the early 1980s through a consensus process that involved a diverse group of participants. For unknown reasons, the rules did not directly and thoroughly address the requirement to establish minimum qualifications. The omission and hence the need for additional rule-making was recently brought to the Department's attention through a Notice of Intent to File a Citizen Suit submitted by a coalition of environmental and tribal interests.
The proposed rule will have direct application to the proposed Crandon Mine project and will likely be extremely controversial. At some point in the regulatory process, the applicant will need to demonstrate compliance with the minimum qualifications. The rule will be of interest to legislators and a number of environmental, tribal and business groups. We expect that there will be a wide range of viewpoints as to the nature and scope of the minimum qualifications.
As required by statute, the rules must be developed in consultation with the Metallic Mining Council, a nine-member advisory body. The Council has not met for a number of years and the terms of all of its members have expired. The Council will need to be re-formed.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
Approximately 250 hours of staff time will be required to complete the rule.
Natural Resources
Subject
Approval of an amendment to the Willow Flowage Scenic Waters Area Master Plan to open up approximately 1.7 additional miles of the “Iron Gate Road" on the Willow Flowage property to licensed highway vehicular access during the nine day November deer gun season.
Policy analysis
A number of hunters have asked that the master plan be amended to allow more vehicle access during the gun deer season. Some others are opposed to the change citing that the area was established to provide opportunities for non-motorized recreation, including hunting, and that an increase in access will reduce those opportunities.
The current property master plan states, “The recreation management objective for the area is to emphasize opportunities for non-motorized, dispersed recreational activities in a large, forested setting offering solitude and a sense of remoteness". The plan further states:
“1. Motorized public access to the area shall be limited. Except for the Iron Gate Road and the designated snowmobile and ATV trails access shall be only by foot from the flowage shore or public roads along the edge of the property.
2. The Iron Gate Road from Highway Y to the (relocated) second gate, about 2.3 miles, is open seasonally for public highway licensed vehicles."
Statutory authority
Staff time required
Approximately 75 hours will be needed by the Department.
Natural Resources
Subject
Revision of ch.
NR 714, Public Notification and Participation.
Policy analysis
Chapter
NR 714, Wis. Admin. Code, governs information provided to the public regarding environmental contamination. The rule was initially developed to help DNR obtain federal grants for our leaking underground storage tank cleanup program. The rule currently contains significant detail for those tank sites, with other lesser provisions for other contaminated sites.
In March of 2001 the Department held public hearings on proposed revisions to ch.
NR 714 to address comments that we received during promulgation of ch.
NR 746, “Risk screening and closure criteria for petroleum product contaminated sites". Those comments indicated that the Department should create a uniform requirement that neighbors are quickly informed of the results of environmental sampling that is conducted on their property by the person who is responsible for the contamination, if contamination has crossed the boundary line onto their property. However, during public hearings for those proposed changes we received other comments indicating that the Department should provide more uniformity in public information requirements between leaking underground storage tank sites and other types of contaminated sites. At that time we decided to revise the entire rule.
The revisions that we are proposing at this time would address all of the public comments that we have received to date, and also clarify and streamline the entire rule. These revisions would include conditions where those who are responsible for contaminated sites of concern would be required to provide general information to the community and to local officials about the progress of their investigation and environmental cleanup.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
Approximately 150 hours will be needed.
Transportation
Subject
Objective of the rule. This proposed rule making amending ch.
Trans 300, relating to school bus equipment standards, will address the installation, operation and specifications for retractable school bus crossing gates which will be required on all school buses effective May 1, 2004 as provided by
2001 Wis. Act 58. The Department is also taking this opportunity to clarify minor points of confusion and to update the rule to include approved changes in equipment manufacturing standards, practices and technology.
Currently, ch.
Trans 300.81 (6) states that a safety control arm is an authorized optional piece of equipment for use on school buses.
2001 Wis. Act 58 requires a crossing gate, also known as a safety control arm, to be mandatory equipment for all school buses effective May 1, 2004. The Department is to establish standards for the equipment. The Department will also include clarification on the required visibility of front license plates as well as updates in equipment technology such as the use of light emitting diodes.
Statutory authority
Staff time required
It is estimated that approximately 80 hours will be spent in the development of the rule.
Workforce Development
Subject
Transfer of Personnel Commission responsibilities to the Equal Rights Division and other revisions to civil rights rules.
Policy analysis
2003 Wisconsin Act 33 abolishes the Personnel Commission and transfers the responsibility for processing certain employment-related complaints against state respondents to the Equal Rights Division (ERD). A nonstatutory provision of
2003 Wisconsin Act 33 transfers to ERD the Personnel Commission rules relating to the responsibilities transferred to the ERD.
The department will be repealing the transferred Personnel Commission rules and amending existing ERD rules to include complaints filed against state respondents. A new rule governing complaints filed under the whistleblower law will be created with procedures similar to the fair employment rules, except that appeal of ERD decisions on whistleblower cases will be directly to circuit court instead of the Labor and Industry Review Commission.
In addition to the above changes that are in effect by emergency rule, the permanent rule will include miscellaneous revisions and clean-up of the fair employment, fair housing, public accommodations, and family and medical leave rules.
Statutory authority
Staff Time Required
100 hours.
