AB338: Bill Text

AB338,8,3 24.01 (5) “Normal school lands" embraces all parcels of said “swamp lands" which the legislature has declared or otherwise decided, or may hereafter declare or otherwise decide, were not or are not needed for the drainage or reclamation of the same or other lands, as well as any land received under s. 24.09 (1) (bm) (3) in exchange for such land.

AB338,14 Section 14. 24.01 (7) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,8,7 24.01 (7) “School lands" embraces all lands made a part of “the school fund" by article X, section 2, of the constitution, as well as any land received under s. 24.09 (1) (bm) (3) in exchange for such land.

AB338,15 Section 15. 24.01 (9) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,8,15 24.01 (9) “Swamp lands" embraces all lands which have been or may be transferred to the state pursuant to an act of congress entitled “An act to enable the state of Arkansas and other states to reclaim the swamp lands within their limits," approved September 28, 1850, or pursuant to an act of congress entitled “ An act for the relief of purchasers and locators of swamp and overflowed lands," approved March 2, 1855, as well as any land received under s. 24.09 (1) (bm) (3) in exchange for such land.

AB338,16 Section 16. 24.01 (10) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,8,19 24.01 (10) “University lands" embraces all lands the proceeds of which are denominated “the university fund" by article X, section 6, of the constitution, as well as any land received under s. 24.09 (1) (bm) (3) in exchange for such land.

AB338,17 Section 17. 24.09 (title) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,8,21 24.09 (title) Procedure before sale or exchange; withdrawal; resale.

AB338,18 Section 18. 24.09 (1) (a) of the statutes is renumbered 24.09 (1) and amended to read:

AB338,9,2 24.09 (1) Except as provided under par. (c) sub. (4), the board may not sell or exchange any public lands which were not appraised or appraised under s. 24.08. Except as provided under pars. (b), (bm) and (c) subs. (2m), (3), and (4), the board may not sell or exchange any public lands except at public auction or by sealed bid.

AB338,19 Section 19. 24.09 (1) (b) of the statutes is renumbered 24.09 (2m).

AB338,20 Section 20. 24.09 (1) (bm) of the statutes is renumbered 24.09 (3) and amended to read:

AB338,9,15 24.09 (3) The board may exchange part or all of any parcel of public lands for any other land of approximately equal value if the board determines that the exchange will contribute to the consolidation or completion of a block of land, enhance conservation of lands or otherwise be in the public interest. Under this paragraph subsection, an exchange is of “approximately equal value" if the difference in value between the more highly valued land and the less highly valued land does not exceed 10 percent of the value of the more highly valued land. All expenses necessarily incurred in making an exchange under this paragraph subsection shall be deducted from the gross receipts of the fund to which the proceeds of the sale of the exchanged land will be added.

AB338,21 Section 21. 24.09 (1) (c) of the statutes is renumbered 24.09 (4).

AB338,22 Section 22. 24.09 (1) (d) of the statutes is renumbered 24.09 (5) and amended to read:

AB338,9,23 24.09 (5) All sales other than sales under par. (b) or (c) sub. (2m) or (4) shall be made at the times and public places by sealed bid or public sale as the board designates. Prior to any sale, the board shall publish a class 3 notice, under ch. 985, specifying the time and place and describing the lands to be sold in a newspaper published in the county where the lands are situated.

AB338,23 Section 23. 24.09 (2) of the statutes is repealed.

AB338,24 Section 24. 24.10 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,10,12 24.10 (1) If the sale is to be by public auction, at the time and place specified in the notice under s. 24.09 (1) (d) (5), the board shall commence the sale of the lands described in the notice and thereafter continue the same from day to day, Sundays excepted, between 9 a.m. and the setting of the sun, until all lands described in the notice have been offered. The order of the sale shall be to begin at the lowest number of the sections, townships, and ranges in each county and proceed regularly to the highest, until all then to be sold are offered for sale. Except for lands withheld from sale under s. 24.09 (2), each Each lot, tract of lands, or collection of tracts of lands to be sold shall be offered at the minimum price fixed by law and shall be cried at public auction long enough to enable every one present to bid. If the minimum price or more is bid, the lot or tract shall be struck off to the highest bidder, but if the minimum price is not bid the tract shall be set down unsold.

AB338,25 Section 25. 24.10 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,10,19 24.10 (2) If the sale is to be by sealed bid, the highest bid for any lot, tract of lands, or collection of tracts of lands shall be accepted, unless the highest bid is below the minimum price fixed by law. If the highest bid is below the minimum price fixed by law, then all bids may be rejected. If all bids are rejected or if no bid is received, the board may readvertise the sale, or adjourn the sale to a definite date, or withhold the lands from sale pursuant to s. 24.09 (2).

AB338,26 Section 26. 24.11 (1) (c) of the statutes is repealed.

AB338,27 Section 27. 24.59 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,11,3 24.59 (1) Notwithstanding ss. 24.09, 24.10, 24.15, 24.16, and 24.32, but subject to subs. sub. (2) and (3), if the board determines that the sale of all lands under its jurisdiction will not breach the board's duty as trustee, the board may sell to the state all public lands that the board identifies as available for sale to the state under its jurisdiction on the effective date of this subsection .... [LRB inserts date]. Notwithstanding s. 24.08 (4), the public lands shall be sold at the appraised value determined under sub. (2).

AB338,28 Section 28. 24.59 (3) of the statutes is repealed.

AB338,29 Section 29. 24.605 of the statutes is repealed.

AB338,30 Section 30. 24.61 (2) (cm) of the statutes is repealed.

AB338,31 Section 31 . 28.12 of the statutes is created to read:

AB338,11,9 28.12 Department land managed by a county. (1) In this section, “department land” means land that meets all of the conditions under sub. (2).

AB338,11,15 (2) Except as provided under sub. (6), if a county has adopted a resolution under s. 59.52 (6) (f) authorizing the county to manage, maintain, and improve land acquired by the department under s. 23.1989 and has notified the department of the resolution, and if the department notifies the county under s. 23.1989 (5) that it has acquired the land described in the resolution, then the county shall manage, maintain, and improve the land as provided under this section.

AB338,11,22 (3) If a county has prepared a comprehensive county forest land use plan under s. 28.11 (5), the county may incorporate department land into the plan without approval by the department. A committee designated under s. 28.11 (3) (a) has the same powers, duties, procedures, and functions with respect to department land as it has with respect to county forests, except to the extent those powers, duties, procedures, or functions conflict with the state's ownership of the land. The county may use grant money received under s. 28.11 (5m) and (5r) on department land.

AB338,11,24 (4) A county board of a county in which department land is located may do any of the following:

AB338,12,2 (a) Establish regulations for the use of department land by the public and to provide penalties for their enforcement.

AB338,12,4 (b) Appropriate funds for the development, protection, and maintenance of department land.

AB338,12,6 (c) Enter into cooperative agreements with the department for protection of department land from fire.

AB338,12,7 (d) Establish aesthetic management zones along roads and waters.

AB338,12,10 (e) Establish transplant nurseries for growing seedlings, from the state forest nurseries, to larger size for planting in department land, but no ornamental or landscape stock shall be produced in such nurseries.

AB338,12,12 (f) Establish forest plantations and engage in silviculture, forest management, and timber sales on department land.

AB338,12,14 (g) Engage in other projects designed to achieve optimum development of forests on department land.

AB338,12,24 (h) Establish energy conservation projects that permit individual members of the public to remove up to 10 standard cords of wood without charge from department land for individual home heating purposes. The county board shall limit removal of wood for energy conservation projects to wood that is unsuitable for commercial sale. The county board may require a permit to remove wood for energy conservation projects and may charge a fee for the permit to administer projects established under this paragraph. A county board shall restrict participation in projects established under this paragraph to residents, as defined in s. 29.001 (69), but may not restrict participation to residents of the county. No timber sale contract is required for wood removed under this paragraph.

AB338,13,6 (4m) Nothing in this section may be interpreted to infringe on any authority the state has to enter into leases or agreements to explore and prospect for ore, minerals, gas, or oil on department land, except that, if an extraction cannot be accomplished without permanently affecting the surface of the land, extraction may not commence until the county adopts a resolution under sub. (7) ending its responsibilities under this section.

AB338,13,11 (5) (a) Any timber sale from department land with an estimated value of $3,000 or more shall be by sealed bid or public sale after publication of a classified advertisement announcing the sale in a newspaper having general circulation in the county in which the timber to be sold is located. Any timber sale with an estimated value below $3,000 may be made without prior advertising.

AB338,13,13 (b) Paragraph (a) does not apply to any sale of timber that has been damaged by fire, snow, hail, ice, insects, disease, or wind.

AB338,13,15 (c) A county is not required to pay any severance share to the state or to share any revenue with the state from timber sold from department lands.

AB338,13,21 (6) The department may construct and use forest fire lookout towers, telephone lines, and fire lanes or other forest protection structures on any lands described in par. (a) and the county may not interfere with any department activity on department land that is necessary for forest protection. The county and the department shall permit public access to department land for the purposes of hunting, fishing, hiking, sight-seeing, and cross-country skiing.

AB338,14,2 (7) A county board may adopt a resolution stating that the county no longer intends to manage, maintain, and improve department land. As soon as practicable after adopting the resolution, the county shall provide notice of the resolution to the department. The county's responsibility to manage, maintain, and improve the land ends when this notice is provided to the department.

AB338,32 Section 32. 36.49 (title) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,14,5 36.49 (title) Environmental program grants and scholarships; Wisconsin Merit scholarships.

AB338,33 Section 33. 36.49 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB338,14,8 36.49 (3) Award the balance Provide $200,000 to the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point for environmental programs.

AB338,34 Section 34. 36.49 (4) of the statutes is created to read:

AB338,14,17 36.49 (4) Award the balance in annual scholarships called “Wisconsin Merit scholarships,” which shall be based only on merit to students who are enrolled in an institution or college campus and who have either graduated from high school in this state or been granted a high school diploma by the administrator of a home-based private educational program, as defined in s. 115.001 (3g), in this state. The board shall determine merit based on a performance on standardized college entrance examinations and, if applicable, cumulative high school grade point averages. An annual scholarship awarded to a student under this subsection shall equal $5,000.

AB338,35 Section 35 . 59.52 (6) (f) of the statutes is created to read:

AB338,14,22 59.52 (6) (f) Management of certain department of natural resources lands. Subject to s. 28.12, manage, maintain, and improve lands located in the county that are acquired by the department of natural resources under s. 23.1989. The board may exercise the powers under this paragraph if all of the following apply:

AB338,15,2 1. No later than 6 months after the effective date of this subdivision .... [LRB inserts date], the board adopts a resolution stating the county's intention to exercise the powers under this paragraph. The county shall include in the resolution a description of the land that the county intends to manage, maintain, and improve.

AB338,15,4 2. The board provides notice of the resolution under subd. 1. to the department of natural resources, including a description of the land identified in the resolution.

AB338,15,6 3. The department notifies the county that it has acquired the land under s. 23.1989.

AB338,15,7 (End)