2. The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act has a compliance date of December 19, 2008.
3. The department estimates that 3,700 existing pools and water attractions will need to be modified in order to comply with the federal act.
4. The current department plan review fees and inspection fees under s.
Comm 2.68 reflect an estimated average time and cost to provide those services. For the types of pool and water attraction modifications necessary to comply with the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act, the department believes that the time and cost to provide the service will be below the averages reflected under the current fee structure of section
Comm 2.68.
5. The department believes that a temporary fee reduction to facilitate plan review and inspection relative to the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act is in alignment with the direction provided under s.
101.19, Stats., of keeping fees consistent with the costs of providing service.
Publication Date:
December 15, 2008
Effective: December 15, 2008
through May 13, 2009
Hearing Date:
January 8, 2009
Commerce
Exemption From Finding of Emergency
Under the nonstatutory provisions of
2007 Wisconsin Act 205, the Department of Commerce is directed to issue emergency rules that implement provisions of the Act. The Act specifically states: “Notwithstanding section
227.24 (1) (a) and
(3) of the statutes, neither the department of commerce or the department of health services is required to provide evidence that promulgating rules under this subsection as emergency rules is necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare and is not required to provide a finding of emergency for the rules promulgated under this subsection."
The Act mandates the installation and maintenance of carbon monoxide alarms in buildings accommodating certain types of residential occupancies and within which fuel burning appliances are located. Residential occupancies include tourist rooming houses, bed and breakfast establishments, and any public building that is used for sleeping or lodging, such as, hotels, motels, condominiums, apartment buildings, dormitories, fraternities, sororities, convents, seminaries, community based residential facilities, home shelters, but not hospitals and nursing homes. The Act requires the installation of carbon monoxide alarms in new buildings as of October 1, 2008. The owners of existing buildings will have until April 1, 2010 to install the carbon monoxide alarms. The Act also provides for the omission of carbon monoxide alarms in certain instances which are further clarified by the administrative rules.
Publication Date:
September 10, 2008
Effective: October 1, 2008 through
February 27, 2009
Hearing Date:
October 14, 2008
Commerce (2)
Financial Resources for Businesses and Communities, Chs.
Comm 104-
135
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Commerce finds that an emergency exists and that adoption of the rule included in this order is necessary for the immediate preservation of public health, safety, and welfare. The facts constituting the emergency are as follows.
Currently under sections
Comm 108.06,
108.07, and
108.22 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code, as promulgated under sections
560.04,
560.045, and
560.9809 of the Statutes, the Department may annually use up to 5 percent of its federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to repair or replace public infrastructure or facilities, or for emergency services necessitated by a natural disaster or catastrophic event. Also under sections
Comm 108.07 and
108.22, the maximum amount of CDBG funds that the Department can award to any local government for a natural disaster or catastrophic event is $500,000.
Currently under section
Comm 154.06, as promulgated under sections
560.02 (4) and
560.9809 (2) of the Statutes, the Department may annually use up to $2,000,000 of CDGB funds to address emergency housing needs caused by natural disasters or catastrophic events.
Because of the unprecedented levels of damage to public infrastructure and facilities from the severe storms and widespread flooding that occurred throughout the State in June 2008, the need for emergency assistance to communities far exceeds the $1.35 Million of CDBG funding that results from the above 5-percent limit, and the need for emergency housing assistance for low and moderate income households far exceeds the above $2,000,000. Communities and households in 28 of the 30 counties where the Governor has declared a state of emergency are eligible for this CDBG program assistance.
This emergency rule repeals the above limits of 5 percent, $500,000 and $2,000,000. This will enable the Department to (1) use any available CDBG funds for emergency assistance with repairing or replacing public infrastructure and facilities, and with repairing or replacing homes damaged by the severe storms and flooding; and (2) base the award amounts on the scope of the damages and destruction in the community and on the funds available.
Publication Date:
July 16, 2008
Effective: July 16, 2008 through
December 12, 2008
Hearing Date:
August 27, 2008
Extension Through:
February 10, 2009
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Commerce finds that an emergency exists and that adoption of the rule included in this order is necessary for the immediate preservation of public welfare.
The facts constituting the emergency are as follows. Because of widespread disruption of the housing markets, Congress has enacted the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (the “Act"), which contains various relief measures relating to housing. Section 3021 of the Act creates a special one-time additional allocation of volume cap for calendar year 2008, to be used for the issuance of single-family housing bonds and multifamily housing bonds no later than December 31, 2010.
Under section
560.032 of the Statutes, the Department of Commerce is charged with allocating to Wisconsin issuers the private activity bond volume cap allocated to Wisconsin under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986,
26 USC 146. This emergency rule is necessary to implement the special allocation of volume cap under the Act, as described above.
Pursuant to section
227.24 of the Statutes, this rule is adopted as an emergency rule to take effect upon publication in the official state newspaper and filing with the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Publication Date:
September 27, 2008
Effective: September 27, 2008
through February 23, 2009
Hearing Date:
October 27, 2008
Corrections
emergency_rules EmR0835
EmR0835 — Rules adopted creating
s. DOC 332.20, relating to establishing a reimbursement fee to offset the costs of monitoring persons subject to global positioning system tracking or passive positioning system tracking.
Finding of Emergency
The department of corrections finds that an emergency exists and that rules included in this order are necessary for the immediate preservation of public peace, health, safety and welfare. A statement of the facts constituting the emergency is:
Under
2005 WI Act 431, section
8, the legislature requires certain persons who have been convicted of a serious child sex offense, who have been found not guilty of a serious child sex offense by reason of mental disease or mental defect, or who are the subject of notification under s.
301.46 (2m) (am), Stats., to be placed on lifetime tracking under a global positioning system (GPS) or a passive positioning system (PPS). The legislature also authorized the department to establish a rule to require persons who are subject to GPS tracking or PPS tracking to pay the cost of tracking.
If the rule is not created promptly and immediately, the department will not be able to collect the fees which are to be used to offset the costs of the tracking program, which could result in a lessening of tracking due to budget limitations.
The purpose of the emergency rule is to require all persons who are subject to tracking to pay the tracking fee which is used to offset the costs of the tracking program. The permanent rule process has been started. However, the permanent rule process will take approximately nine months to complete. Emergency rules are necessary to respond promptly to the collection of tracking fees while permanent rules are being developed.
Publication Date:
November 12, 2008
Effective: November 12, 2008
through April 10, 2009
Hearing Date:
December 11, 2008
Financial Institutions — Securities
Finding of Emergency
The Division of Securities of the Department of Financial Institutions for the State of Wisconsin finds that an emergency exists and that the rules are necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety or welfare. A statement of the facts constituting the emergency follows:
The Division is taking immediate, emergency-rule action to protect seniors in Wisconsin from being misled through the use by securities licensees of designations and credentials that imply or represent that a person has special expertise, certification, or training in financial planning for seniors, but where such designations and/or credentials are either non-existent or do not involve significant education, testing, training or experience, and in reality are marketing ploys.
Publication Date:
September 18, 2008
Effective: September 18, 2008
through February 14, 2009
Government Accountability Board
emergency_rules EmR0830
EmR0830 — Rules adopted repealing and recreating
Chapter GAB 4, relating to observers at a polling place or other location where votes are being cast, counted or recounted.
Finding of Emergency
Pursuant to section
227.24, Stats., the Government Accountability Board finds that an emergency exists in the Board's May 5, 2008 decision to decline to reaffirm the administrative rule section ElBd 4.01 because the rule was inconsistent with the requirements of its enabling statute, s.
7.41, Stats. The statute states that any member of the public is allowed to be present at the polls on Election Day to observe; however, it does not specify standards of conduct they must abide by.
The Board further finds that given the intense interest in the fall election, the expected high turnout, the increasing use of observers in the polling place, and the comments of municipal and county clerks regarding the obstacles observers can pose to the orderly conduct of elections, it is necessary to codify standards to regulate the observers' conduct and that the attached rule governing observer conduct must be adopted prior to the fall elections to ensure the public peace and safety with respect to the administration of the fall elections.
Publication Date:
September 26, 2008
Effective: September 26, 2008
through February 22, 2009
Hearing Date:
November 11, 2008
Health Services (2)
(Formerly Health and Family Services)
Management & Technology & Strategic Finance,
Chs.
HFS (DHS) 1—
emergency_rules EmR0832
1.
EmR0832 — Rule adopted to repeal
s. HFS (DHS) 12.03 (15) and to create ss. HFS (DHS) 12.03 (20m), 12.115 and Table HFS (DHS) 12.115, relating to background checks of individuals who provide personal care services, and affecting small businesses.
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Health Services finds that an emergency exists and that the adoption of an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health, safety and welfare. The facts constituting the emergency are as follows:
2007 Wisconsin Act 172 requires the department to specify by rule, the crimes, a conviction of which an entity must disclose to a client or a client's guardian before the caregiver provides the client with personal care services in the client's home. Act 172 also requires the department to define the term “substitute caregiver". Under s.
50.065 (2m) (d), Stats., as created by
2007 Wisconsin Act 172, the department created a list of crimes required and also as required defined the term “substitute caregiver".
Effective November 1, 2008, entities, including home health agencies and temporary employment agencies, are required under s.
50.065 (2m) (d), Stats., to disclose to the client or the client's guardian, the assigned caregiver's convictions of crimes specified by the department by rule.
Publication Date:
October 20, 2008
Effective: November 1, 2008 through
March 31, 2009
Hearing Date:
January 6, 2009
emergency_rules EmR0834
2.
EmR0834 — Rules adopted amending
s. HFS (DHS) 10.23 (2) (d) 2., relating to confidentiality requirements of the Family Care program that prohibit benefit specialists from disclosing personally identifying information about a client without the client's informed consent, unless required by law.
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Health Services finds that an emergency exists and that adoption of an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health, safety and welfare. The facts constituting the emergency are as follows:
Chapter
HFS 10 is the department's rule that guides the implementation of the department's Family Care program. Included in these provisions are standards for confidentiality which prohibit disability benefit specialists from disclosing personally identifying information about a client without the client's consent unless required by law. Because disability benefit specialists are permissive reporters, and thus not required to report abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation of elder adults and adults at risk under ss.
46.90 (4) (ar) and
55.043 (1m) (br), Stats., s.
HFS 10.23 (2) (d) 2., effectively prevents disability benefits specialists from making such disclosures.
Amending s.
HFS 10.23 (2) (d) 2., to allow disability benefit specialists to report abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation under ss.
46.90 (4) (ar) and
55.043 (1m) (br), Stats., would help to ensure that elder adults and adults-at-risk who may have been abused, neglected, or financially exploited are brought to the attention of the abuse, neglect and exploitation response systems outlined under ss.
46.90 and
55.043, Stats.
Publication Date:
November 3, 2008
Effective: November 3, 2008 through
April 1, 2009
Hearing Date:
January 27, 2009
Health Services
(Formerly Health and Family Services)
EmR0825 — Rule adopted creating
Chapter HFS 119, to require emergency medical technicians, first responders, and individuals who provide instruction to emergency medical technicians and first responders to complete training on the use of automated external defibrillators and to specify the content of the training, qualifications of providers, and frequency with which training is to be completed, and affecting small businesses
.
Exemption From Finding of Emergency
The legislature by
2007 Act 104 provides the department with an exemption from a finding of emergency to adopt these emergency rules.
Publication Date:
August 29, 2008
Effective: September 1, 2008 through
January 28, 2009
Hearing Date:
December 11, 2008
