ARG:cjs:rs
September 2011 Special Session
2011 - 2012 LEGISLATURE
October 11, 2011 - Introduced by Committee on Senate Organization, by request
of Governor Scott Walker, Senator Lazich, and Representative Petrowski.
Referred to Committee on Transportation and Elections.
SB11,1,5 1An Act to amend 348.25 (3), 348.25 (4) (intro.), 348.25 (8) (b) 3. (intro.), 348.25
2(8) (d), 348.27 (1) and 348.28 (1); and to create 348.25 (8) (b) 4., 348.27 (18) and
3348.29 of the statutes; relating to: annual or consecutive month permits for
4certain overweight vehicles or vehicle combinations transporting agricultural
5products.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Under current law, with limited exceptions, no person may operate on a
highway any vehicle or combination of vehicles that exceeds certain statutory weight
limits unless the person obtains a permit issued by the Department of
Transportation (DOT) or a local authority, as applicable. With exceptions, a permit
may not be issued for transporting oversize loads if the load can be reasonably
divided or reduced to comply with statutory limits.
This bill allows DOT to issue overweight permits for vehicles or vehicle
combinations (vehicles) that have six or more axles and that are transporting certain
agricultural products to a farm or from a field or farm to a storage or initial processing
facility. The agricultural products that may be transported under the permit include
fruit, vegetables, grain, and livestock, but exclude milk and raw forest products. The
permit does not authorize the operation of any vehicle at a maximum gross weight
in excess of 90,000 pounds. If the route over which the agricultural products are
transported involves highways that are not state trunk highways, the permit
application must be accompanied by a written statement of route approval by the

officer in charge of maintenance of the local highway. The permit is not valid on an
interstate highway unless operation of the vehicle on the interstate highway is
allowed under federal law. Permit applications must be made electronically to DOT
utilizing an electronic process prescribed by DOT. DOT may issue these permits
regardless of whether the load being transported is divisible.
The bill further specifies that, as with all other vehicle size or weight permits,
if DOT issues an agricultural emergency permit or farm machinery permit, the
permit must be carried on the vehicle during operation.
Under current law, if any bill introduced in either house of the legislature
directly or indirectly establishes an exception to vehicle weight limitations, DOT
must prepare a report, containing specified information, relating to the bill within
six weeks after the bill is introduced and before any vote is taken on the bill. This
bill directs DOT not to prepare such a report on this bill because DOT recently
completed the Wisconsin Truck Size and Weight Study that contained the same or
similar information that would be contained in a report on this bill.
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:
SB11, s. 1 1Section 1. 348.25 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB11,2,132 348.25 (3) The department shall prescribe forms for applications for all single
3trip permits the granting of which is authorized by s. 348.26 and for those annual,
4consecutive month or multiple trip permits the granting of which is authorized by
5s. 348.27 (2) and (4) to (15). The department shall prescribe an electronic application
6process for permits the granting of which is authorized by s. 348.27 (18).
The
7department may impose such reasonable conditions prerequisite to the granting of
8any permit authorized by s. 348.26 or 348.27 and adopt such reasonable rules for the
9operation of a permittee thereunder as it deems necessary for the safety of travel and
10protection of the highways. The department may limit use of the highways under
11any permit issued to specified hours of the day or days of the week. Local officials
12granting permits may impose such additional reasonable conditions as they deem
13necessary in view of local conditions.
SB11, s. 2
1Section 2. 348.25 (4) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB11,3,62 348.25 (4) (intro.) Except as provided under s. 348.26 (5), (6), or (7) or 348.27
3(3m), (4m), (9), (9m), (9r), (9t), (10), (12), (13), or (15), or (18), permits shall be issued
4only for the transporting of a single article or vehicle which exceeds statutory size,
5weight or load limitations and which cannot reasonably be divided or reduced to
6comply with statutory size, weight or load limitations, except that:
SB11, s. 3 7Section 3. 348.25 (8) (b) 3. (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB11,3,108 348.25 (8) (b) 3. (intro.) For Except as provided in subd. 4., for a vehicle or
9combination of vehicles, the weight of which exceeds any of the provisions of s. 348.15
10(3):
SB11, s. 4 11Section 4. 348.25 (8) (b) 4. of the statutes is created to read:
SB11,3,1212 348.25 (8) (b) 4. For a permit issued under s. 348.27 (18), $300.
SB11, s. 5 13Section 5. 348.25 (8) (d) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB11,3,1714 348.25 (8) (d) For the purpose of computing the fees under this subsection, if
15the vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds weight limitations, no fee in addition
16to the fee under par. (a) 3., (b) 3. or 4., or (bm) shall be charged if the vehicle also
17exceeds length, width or height limitations or any combination thereof.
SB11, s. 6 18Section 6. 348.27 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB11,3,2519 348.27 (1) Applications. All applications for annual, consecutive month or
20multiple trip permits for the movement of oversize or overweight vehicles or loads
21shall be made to the officer or agency designated by this section as having authority
22to issue the particular permit desired for use of the particular highway in question.
23All applications under subs. (2) and (4) to (15) shall be made upon forms prescribed
24by the department. All applications under sub. (18) shall be made utilizing an
25electronic process prescribed by the department.
SB11, s. 7
1Section 7. 348.27 (18) of the statutes is created to read:
SB11,4,32 348.27 (18) Permits for the transportation of certain agricultural
3products.
(a) In this subsection:
SB11,4,54 1. "Agricultural product" means any of the following or any combination of the
5following:
SB11,4,66 a. Fruit.
SB11,4,77 b. Vegetables.
SB11,4,88 c. Grain, including distillers' grain.
SB11,4,109 d. Live livestock, as defined in s. 95.51 (1), feed for livestock, or nutritional
10supplements for livestock.
SB11,4,1211 2. "Agricultural product" does not include liquid milk or liquid milk
12by-products, manure or animal waste, or raw forest products.
SB11,4,2213 (b) Subject to par. (c), the department may issue annual or consecutive month
14permits for the transportation of agricultural products in vehicles or vehicle
15combinations that have 6 or more axles and that exceed the maximum gross weight
16limitations under s. 348.15 (3) (c) if the vehicle or vehicle combination does not exceed
17the maximum gross weight limitations under s. 348.29. Notwithstanding s. 348.15
18(8), any axle of a vehicle or vehicle combination that does not impose on the highway
19at least 8 percent of the gross weight of the vehicle or vehicle combination may not
20be counted as an axle for the purposes of this paragraph. A permit issued under this
21subsection does not authorize the operation of any vehicle or vehicle combination at
22a maximum gross weight in excess of 90,000 pounds.
SB11,5,223 (c) A permit under this subsection is valid only for the transportation of
24agricultural products to a farm or from a field or farm to a storage facility on the

1grower's owned or leased land, a facility for initial storage that is not on the grower's
2owned or leased land, or a facility for initial processing.
SB11,5,63 (d) If the roads desired to be used by an applicant for a permit under this
4subsection involve highways other than those within the state trunk highway
5system, the application shall be accompanied by a written statement of route
6approval by the officer in charge of maintenance of the other highway.
SB11,5,97 (e) A permit under this subsection is not valid on any interstate highway
8designated under s. 84.29 (2) except to the extent allowed by federal law without any
9loss or reduction of federal aid or other sanction.
SB11, s. 8 10Section 8. 348.28 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB11,5,1211 348.28 (1) Permits issued under ss. 348.25, 348.26 and 348.27 (1) to (10), (12)
12to (13), and (15)
shall be carried on the vehicle during operations so permitted.
SB11, s. 9 13Section 9. 348.29 of the statutes is created to read:
SB11,5,20 14348.29 Weight limitations for certain permits. Notwithstanding s. 348.15
15(3) (c), for any vehicle or vehicle combination operating under a permit issued under
16s. 348.27 (18), the gross weight imposed on the highway by any group of 6 or more
17consecutive axles of a vehicle or combination of vehicles may not exceed the
18maximum gross weights in the following table for each of the respective distances
19between axles and the respective numbers of axles of a group: [See Figure 348.29
20following]
SB11,5,22 22Figure 348.29:
SB11, s. 10 2Section 10. Nonstatutory provisions.
SB11,7,93 (1) Exception to review by the department of transportation.
4Notwithstanding section 13.096 (2) of the statutes, the department of transportation
5shall not prepare a report on this bill under section 13.096 (2) and (3) of the statutes
6because the department recently completed the Wisconsin Truck Size and Weight
7Study, with a final report dated June 15, 2009, that contained the same or similar
8information that would be contained in a report on this bill under section 13.096 (2)
9and (3) of the statutes.
SB11, s. 11 10Section 11. Effective date.
SB11,7,1211 (1) This act takes effect on the first day of the 7th month beginning after
12publication.
SB11,7,1313 (End)
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