Section 30.123(6s), Wis. Stats., grants authority to the department to promulgate rules concerning exempt activities found in s. 30.123(6), Wis. Stats. Section 227.11(2)(a) Wis. Stats., grants authority to the department to promulgate rules to interpret the provisions of any statute enforced or administered by the agency if the agency considers it necessary to effectuate the purpose of the statute. Structures in navigable waterways are subject to ss. 30.12, 30.123, 30.206 and 30.208, Wis. Stats., and additional interpretation through rulemaking is required to effectuate the purpose of the statute. 5. Estimate of amount of time that state employees will spend developing the rule and of other resources necessary to develop the rule:
The department anticipates that the lead drafter of the rule will spend 2,000 hours on the rule development process, other waterway and wetland program staff will spend another 1,200 hours on the rule, and the following groups will spend a combined 500 hours on the rule development: rule coordinators, bureau director, division administrator, economist, board liaison, and program attorneys.
6. List with description of all entities that may be affected by the proposed rule:
State of Wisconsin riparian/waterfront property owners to include waterway exemption, general permit, and individual permit recipients, professional consultants, landscaping and construction contractors, department staff, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers staff, county land and water conservation departments, Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP) cost share project administrators, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and the United States Forest Service (USFS).
7. Summary and preliminary comparison with any existing or proposed federal regulation that is intended to address the activities to be regulated by the proposed rule:
The US Army Corps of Engineers regulates similar activities through a tiered permitting process. Design standards and impact thresholds may differ from the department’s present approach; however, the department will evaluate opportunities to align such standards and thresholds.
8. Anticipated economic impact of implementing the rule (note if the rule is likely to have a significant economic impact on small businesses):
The economic impact of implementing the rule is expected to be minimal overall and minimal for small businesses (less than $50,000 annually). The department believes that updates to exemption and permitting standards to bring the rules in line with statutory updates and current practices may result in minimally increased compliance costs to support some application submittals and potentially lower compliance costs for projects that qualify for exemptions or have reduced costs to support some application submittals.
9. Anticipated number, month, and locations of public hearings:
The department intends to hold two public hearings during the months of June and July 2023. The hearings will be conducted virtually on an online platform. There may also be an in-person option for the meetings, with one in Madison and one in Green Bay. The department will hold these hearings in these locations to get statewide input on the proposed revisions to the newly consolidated administrative code chapter consisting of chs. NR 320, 323, 326, 328, and 329, Wis. Adm. Code. Contact Person: Kyle McLaughlin, Waterway Team Leader, 715-360-6148
