AB520: Bill Text

2005 - 2006 LEGISLATURE

2005 Assembly BILL 520

June 28, 2005 - Introduced by Representatives Berceau, Black, Sinicki, Shilling, Zepnick and Grigsby, cosponsored by Senators Miller and Carpenter. Referred to Committee on Labor.

AB520,1,6 An Act to amend 16.75 (6) (e), 16.855 (18), 16.855 (21) and 16.855 (22); and to create 16.753, 16.855 (23) and 560.29 of the statutes; relating to: requiring companies to report net losses of jobs to the Department of Commerce, making such companies and certain expatriate companies ineligible for certain tax exemptions, governmental contracts, grants, and loans, granting rule-making authority, and providing a penalty.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Beginning in January 2007, this bill requires a business that experienced a net loss of at least 50 employees in the preceding calendar year to notify the Department of Commerce (Commerce). The company must also complete and submit to Commerce a job relocation survey that includes, among other things, a statement of the number of those jobs that were transferred to employees located outside the United States and any contracts with or grants or loans made by the state or local government.

Under the bill, any company that has had a net loss of at least 50 employees because of jobs being transferred to employees outside of the United States and any expatriate company (a company that is organized under the laws of another country that is closely related to a company or former company organized in the United States) is, for a period of seven years, ineligible to: 1) receive any income or franchise tax credit or property tax exemption; 2) enter into a contract with the state or a local governmental unit for the construction, remodeling, or repair of a public work or building, or for the furnishing of supplies, services, equipment, or material of any kind; and 3) receive any grants or loans from the state or from a local governmental unit. Under the bill, Commerce is required to maintain and update a list of such companies, and to post the list on its Web site. Agencies and local governmental units must review the list before entering into public contracts.

The ineligibility of a company under the bill may be waived or modified if Commerce believes that doing so is necessary to meet a compelling public interest, Commerce submits a written justification to the Department of Administration (DOA) and the Joint Committee on Finance (JCF), and both DOA and JCF approve the waiver. Finally, before entering into a contract with an agency or local governmental unit, a company must submit a declaration that the company is eligible to enter the contract under the bill. A company that knowingly makes a false, material statement in a declaration is guilty of a misdemeanor.

For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB520, s. 1 Section 1. 16.75 (6) (e) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB520,2,11 16.75 (6) (e) The governor or his or her designee may waive any requirement of this subchapter if the governor or his or her designee finds that there exists an emergency which threatens the public health, safety or welfare and the waiver is necessary to meet the emergency. The governor or his or her designee shall require the award of each contract under this paragraph to be made with such competition as is practicable under the circumstances. The governor or his or her designee shall file with the department a statement of facts constituting the emergency for each waiver issued under this paragraph, and a statement of the basis for selection of each contractor under the emergency procedure. This paragraph does not apply to the requirement requirements specified in sub. (7) and s. 16.753.

AB520, s. 2 Section 2. 16.753 of the statutes is created to read:

AB520,3,6 16.753 Companies experiencing job losses and expatriate companies. No company whose name is certified by the department of commerce under s. 560.29 (3) and no expatriate company, as defined in s. 560.29 (1), is eligible to enter into any contract with an agency for the purchase of materials, supplies, equipment, or contractual services for a period of 7 years beginning with the year in which the company is required to submit a report under s. 560.29 (2).

AB520, s. 3 Section 3. 16.855 (18) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB520,3,11 16.855 (18) This Except as provided in sub. (23), this section shall not apply to restoration or reconstruction of the state capitol building, historic structures at the old world Wisconsin site and at Heritage Hill state park when the department determines that a waiver of this section would serve the best interests of this state.

AB520, s. 4 Section 4. 16.855 (21) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB520,3,16 16.855 (21) This Except as provided in sub. (23), this section does not apply to contracts by the department of natural resources for construction work related to hazardous substance spill response under s. 292.11 or environmental repair under s. 292.31.

AB520, s. 5 Section 5. 16.855 (22) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB520,4,2 16.855 (22) The provisions of this section, except sub. subs. (10m) and (23), do not apply to construction work for any project the estimated construction cost of which does not exceed $100,000 if the project is constructed in accordance with policies and procedures prescribed by the building commission under s. 13.48 (29). If the estimated construction cost of any project is at least $30,000, and the building commission elects to utilize the procedures prescribed under s. 13.48 (29) to construct the project, the department shall provide adequate public notice of the project and the procedures to be utilized to construct the project on a publicly accessible computer site.

AB520, s. 6 Section 6. 16.855 (23) of the statutes is created to read:

AB520,4,9 16.855 (23) No company whose name is certified by the department of commerce under s. 560.29 (3) and no expatriate company, as defined in s. 560.29 (1) (c), is eligible to enter into any contract with an agency for engineering or architectural services or for construction work, as defined in s. 16.87 (1) (a) for a period of 7 years beginning with the year in which the company is required to submit a report under s. 560.29 (2).

AB520, s. 7 Section 7. 560.29 of the statutes is created to read:

AB520,4,12 560.29 Companies experiencing job losses and expatriate companies. (1) Definitions. In this section:

AB520,4,13 (a) "Agency" has the meaning given in s. 16.70 (1e).

AB520,4,16 (b) "Company" means any organization or enterprise operated for profit, including a proprietorship, partnership, firm, business trust, joint venture, syndicate, corporation, limited liability company, or association.

AB520,4,20 (c) "Expatriate company" means an entity that the department determines is incorporated under the laws of a foreign country, that issues shares for which the United States is the principal market for public trading, that has no substantial business activities in its country of incorporation, and that was one of the following:

AB520,5,6 1. Established in connection with a transaction or series of related transactions pursuant to which the entity directly or indirectly acquired substantially all of the properties held by a corporation incorporated in the United States or all of the properties constituting a trade or business of a partnership organized in the United States or a related partnership not organized in the United States, and immediately after the acquisition, more than 50 percent of the shares, by vote or value, of the entity was held by former shareholders of the corporation incorporated in the United States or by former partners of the partnership organized in the United States or a related partnership not organized in the United States. For purposes of this subdivision, any shares sold in a public offering related to the transaction or a series of transactions is disregarded.

AB520,5,15 2. Established in connection with a transaction or series of related transactions pursuant to which the entity directly or indirectly acquired substantially all of the properties held by a corporation incorporated in the United States or all of the properties constituting a trade or business of a partnership organized in the United States or a related partnership not organized in the United States, if the acquiring entity is more than 50 percent owned, by vote or value, by shareholders or partners who are residents of the United States. For purposes of this subdivision, indirect acquisition of property includes the acquisition of a share, or any portion thereof, of the owner of that property.

AB520,5,16 (d) "Local governmental unit" has the meaning given in s. 66.0131 (1) (a).

AB520,5,19 (e) "Public contract" means a contract for the construction, execution, repair, remodeling, or improvement of a public work or building or for the furnishing of supplies services, equipment, or material of any kind.

AB520,5,23 (2) Reporting. (a) On or before January 31, 2007, and annually by January 31 thereafter, any company doing business in this state that had a net loss of at least 50 employees in this state during the preceding calendar year shall notify the department of the loss.

AB520,6,3 (b) The department shall send to each company that notifies the department under par. (a) a job relocation survey that shall include, in addition, to any other information required by the department, all of the following:

AB520,6,4 1. The name and principle place of business of the company.

AB520,6,6 2. Identification of any public contracts that the company has with the state or a local governmental unit.

AB520,6,8 3. Identification of any grants or loans that the company has received from this state or a local governmental unit.

AB520,6,10 4. Identification of any tax exemptions or credits that the company claims under ch. 70 or 71.

AB520,6,12 5. A statement of the number of the company's employees in this state who lost their jobs in the preceding calendar year.

AB520,6,14 6. A statement of the number of jobs that the company added in this state in the preceding calendar year.

AB520,6,17 7. A statement of the number of the company's employees in this state who lost their jobs because the jobs were transferred to employees located outside of the United States.

AB520,6,21 (c) A company shall complete and return the survey to the department within 30 days of receiving it. A company that fails to respond to the survey is subject to the penalties under sub. (4) until such time that the survey is completed and returned to the department.

AB520,6,25 (3) Certified list. The department shall maintain a list of companies that are subject to the penalties under sub. (4) and shall post, and update, that list on its Web site. Waivers or modifications made under sub. (5) shall be noted on the list and Web site.

AB520,7,6 (4) Penalties. Notwithstanding the provisions of any tax exemption under ch. 70 or tax credit under ch. 71 for which a company would otherwise be eligible, no company that has had a net loss of at least 50 employees because of jobs being transferred to employees outside of the United States, as reported under sub. (2) (b) 7., an no expatriate company shall, for a period of 7 years beginning with the year in which the company is required to report the loss under sub. (2), be eligible to:

AB520,7,7 (a) Receive any tax exemption under ch. 70 or any tax credit under ch. 71.

AB520,7,8 (b) Enter into a public contract with a local governmental unit.

AB520,7,10 (c) Receive any grants or loans from this state or from a local governmental unit.

AB520,7,12 (d) Enter into a contract for the purchase of materials, supplies, equipment, or contractual services with any agency.

AB520,7,14 (e) Enter into a contract for engineering or architectural services or for construction work, as defined in s. 16.87 (1) (a), with any agency.

AB520,7,22 (5) Waivers; modifications. (a) A waiver or modification of a penalty in sub. (4) may be granted if the appropriate agency finds that the waiver or modification of a penalty that would otherwise be imposed is necessary to meet a compelling public interest, the department concurs, and the conditions of par. (b) are met. A waiver or modification of a penalty in sub. (4) that would otherwise be imposed on a company that is a prospective vendor to a local governmental unit may be granted if the department finds that the waiver or modification is necessary to meet a compelling public interest and the conditions of par. (b) are met.

AB520,8,6 (b) If the department under par. (a) concurs with an agency or finds that a waiver or modification request is necessary to meet a compelling public interest, it shall prepare a detailed opinion to that effect and submit the opinion and the request to the department of administration and the joint committee on finance. A waiver or modification request may only be granted under this section if both the department of administration and the joint committee on finance approve the request. The department of administration and the joint committee on finance shall approve or disapprove under this paragraph within 30 days of submission of the opinion and request.

AB520,8,11 (6) Declaration; misdemeanor for false statements. (a) Before entering into a public contract, all agencies and local governmental units shall review the department's Web site list described under sub. (3). As a condition of entering into a public contract with an agency or local governmental unit, a company shall submit a declaration stating that the company is not on the list under sub. (3).

AB520,8,14 (b) A company that declares as true any material matter in a declaration under par. (a) that the company knows or has reason to believe is false is guilty of a misdemeanor.

AB520,8,16 (7) Rules. The department shall promulgate rules to implement and administer this section.

AB520,8,17 (End)