Emergency Rules Now in Effect
Under s. 227.24, Stats., state agencies may promulgate rules without complying with the usual rule-making procedures. Using this special procedure to issue emergency rules, an agency must find that either the preservation of the public peace, health, safety or welfare necessitates its action in bypassing normal rule-making procedures.
Emergency rules are published in the official state newspaper, which is currently the Wisconsin State Journal. Emergency rules are in effect for 150 days and can be extended up to an additional 120 days with no single extension to exceed 60 days.
Occasionally the Legislature grants emergency rule authority to an agency with a longer effective period than 150 days or allows an agency to adopt an emergency rule without requiring a finding of emergency.
Extension of the effective period of an emergency rule is granted at the discretion of the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules under s. 227.24 (2), Stats.
Notice of all emergency rules which are in effect must be printed in the Wisconsin Administrative Register. This notice will contain a brief description of the emergency rule, the agency finding of emergency or a statement of exemption from a finding of emergency, date of publication, the effective and expiration dates, any extension of the effective period of the emergency rule and information regarding public hearings on the emergency rule.
Copies of emergency rule orders can be obtained from the promulgating agency. The text of current emergency rules can be viewed at www.legis.state.wi.us/rsb/code.
Beginning with rules filed with the Legislative Reference Bureau in 2008, the Legislative Reference Bureau will assign a number to each emergency rule filed, for the purpose of internal tracking and reference. The number will be in the following form: EmR0801. The first 2 digits indicate the year of filing and the last 2 digits indicate the chronological order of filing during the year.
Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (3)
Finding of Emergency
(1)
The Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) administers state food processing plant license requirements under s.
97.29, Stats.
(2) Recent legislation (
2009 Act 101, enacted on February 4, 2010) created a limited exemption from food processing plant license requirements under s.
97.29, Stats., for persons who home-can limited quantities of acidic, acidified or fermented vegetable and fruit products for retail sale at community and social events or at farmers' markets.
(3) Home-canned food products, if not properly canned, may pose a risk of serious food safety hazards such as botulism.
(4) DATCP has received many requests for clarification of the new license exemption under Act 101. In order to facilitate compliance and protect consumers from potentially serious food safety hazards, DATCP must adopt administrative rules to clarify the scope, application and terms of the new license exemption.
(5) Implementing rules are urgently needed because of the seriousness of the potential food safety hazards, and the seasonal nature of the farmers' markets and other events at which home-canned products may be sold. The normal rulemaking process takes over a year to complete, and cannot be completed in time for this summer's farmers' markets (which begin as early as mid-April or May). Persons who wish to sell home-canned food products must clearly understand the scope of the license exemption, and the food safety standards that must be met in order to qualify.
(6) This temporary emergency rule clarifies the scope, application and terms of the new license exemption under Act 101, pending the completion of “permanent" rules by the normal rulemaking process. This emergency rule is needed to protect the public health, safety and welfare, and to facilitate fair and orderly implementation of the new license exemption.
(7) This emergency rule also exempts, from food processing plant license requirements under s.
97.29, Stats., a person who collects and processes relatively small quantities of maple sap to produce maple syrup or concentrated maple sap for sale to other processors for further processing. These small-scale processing activities pose minimal food safety risks, and the current license requirement imposes an unnecessary cost and compliance burden. An emergency rule is needed to relieve these cost and compliance burdens for the maple sap collection and processing season that typically begins in March. This emergency rule creates a temporary license exemption, pending the completion of “permanent" rules by the normal rulemaking process. This emergency rule clearly defines the scope, application and terms of the exemption, in order to protect public health, safety and welfare.
Publication Date:
April 22, 2010
Effective Dates:
April 22, 2010 through
September 18, 2010
Extension Through:
November 17, 2010
Hearing Date:
May 25, 2010
emergency_rules EmR1038
2. EmR1038 — Rule adopted to create
section ATCP 21.21, relating to restricting the import of certain plants, wood and wood products to prevent the introduction of thousand cankers disease of walnut trees into this state.
Finding of emergency
(1) Thousand cankers disease is an emerging fungal disease that can be carried by the walnut twig beetle (the beetle is native to this country). The disease poses a serious threat to black walnut trees, an important forest species in Wisconsin. Black walnut is known for its highly valuable lumber, which is used for finished products such as furniture, musical instruments and gun stocks. There are approximately 18.5 million black walnut trees in Wisconsin, with over 13% of them located in the southeastern part of the state. Wisconsin businesses export over $4 million in black walnut products annually.
(2) Thousand cankers disease was first observed in New Mexico in the 1990's. The disease has spread throughout the western United States, causing dieback and mortality in black walnut trees. In July, 2010, the disease was also confirmed in the Knoxville, Tennessee area. The Tennessee infestation is the first confirmed infestation east of the Mississippi River, the native range of the black walnut tree.
(3) Thousand cankers disease is currently known to exist in the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah and Washington. The disease has not yet been found in Wisconsin.
(4) Thousand cankers disease may be spread by the movement of firewood, nursery stock, and unfinished or untreated wood products. It is important to restrict the import of host materials from infested areas, to prevent the disease from being introduced into Wisconsin. The disease, if introduced into Wisconsin, could cause great damage to Wisconsin's economically-important and environmentally important walnut forest resource.
(5) It is important to restrict the import of host materials from infested areas as soon as possible. Without this emergency rule, host materials may be imported into Wisconsin from infested areas without adequate safeguards to prevent the introduction of thousand cankers disease into this state.
(6) It would take over a year to adopt the necessary import restrictions by the normal rulemaking procedure prescribed in ch.
227, Stats. DATCP is therefore adopting this temporary emergency rule under s.
227.24, Stats., pending the adoption of a more “permanent" rule by the normal rulemaking procedures. This temporary emergency rule is necessary to protect the public peace, health, safety and welfare, and to help prevent the introduction of a serious plant disease in this state, pending the adoption of a “permanent" rule by the normal procedure.
Publication Date:
November 1, 2010
Effective Dates:
November 1, 2010 through
March 30, 2011
Exemption from Finding of Emergency
Under s.
91.84(2), the department may use the procedure under s.
227.24 to promulgate a rule designating an agricultural preservation area or modifying or terminating the designation of an agricultural preservation area. Notwithstanding s.
227.24(1)(c) and
(2), a rule promulgated under that subsection remains in effect until the department modifies or repeals the rule. Notwithstanding s.
227.24(1)(a) and
(3), the department is not required to determine that promulgating a rule under that subsection as an emergency rule is necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare and is not required to provide a finding of emergency for a rule promulgated under that subsection.
The department views s.
91.84(2) as authority to adopt permanent rules that shall be published immediately in the Wisconsin Administrative Code.
Publication Date:
November 9, 2010
Effective Dates:
January 1, 2011 until the Department modifies or repeals the rule
Children and Families
Exemption From Finding of Emergency
Section
14m (b) of
2009 Wisconsin Act 335 provides that the department is not required to provide evidence that promulgating a rule under s.
48.625 (1g), Stats., as an emergency rule is necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare and is not required to provide a finding of emergency.
Section 14m (b) also provides that notwithstanding s.
227.24 (1) (c) and
(2), Stats., an emergency rule promulgated under s.
48.625 (1g), Stats., remains in effect until the permanent rules promulgated under s.
48.625 (1g), Stats., take effect.
Publication Date:
September 2, 2010
Effective Dates:
September 2, 2010 through
the date permanent rules
become effective
Hearing Date:
October 21, 2010
Children and Families
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Children and Families finds that an emergency exists and that an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare. A statement of facts constituting the emergency is:
The Department of Children and Families has determined that significant disparities currently exist between DCF 201 and the intent of
2009 Wisconsin Acts 28 and
77 regarding Wisconsin Shares program integrity efforts. The recent efforts of the legislature and the department to address child care fraud and program integrity are estimated to save $100 million over the course of the biennium. Currently over $7.1 million of child care provider overpayments have yet to be collected due to the lack of authority to use basic collections practices such as tax intercept, wage levy, and property liens. This rule will permit the department to more aggressively collect on these debts, strengthen the department's ability to further tighten requirements for child care providers wishing to do business with the Wisconsin Shares program, and better enforce the rules of the program. These changes will result in continued fiscal savings as well as ensure better quality child care for the children of Wisconsin.
Publication Date:
July 9, 2010
Effective Dates:
July 9, 2010 through
December 5, 2010
Extension Through:
December 31, 2010
Hearing Date:
August 6, 2010
Commerce
Wis. Commercial Building Code, Chs.
Comm 60-
66
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Commerce finds that an emergency exists within the state of Wisconsin and that adoption of an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health, safety and welfare. A statement of the facts constituting the emergency is as follows.
2. Under the Act, the department is to establish by rule uniform characteristics for no smoking signs.
3. Under the Act, the responsibilities of person in charge of a public conveyance or at a location where smoking is prohibited include the posting of no smoking signs.
4. The department believes that the emergency rules are necessary in order to clarify the minimum no smoking sign characteristics so that persons in charge may fulfill the statutory obligations.
Publication Date:
June 28, 2010
Effective Dates:
July 5, 2010 through
December 1, 2010
Hearing Date:
July 26, 2010
Commerce (4)
Financial Resources for Businesses and Communities, Chs.
Comm 104—
Finding of Emergency
The Department of Commerce finds that an emergency exists and that an emergency rule is necessary for the immediate preservation of public welfare.
The facts constituting the emergency are as follows. Under sections
71.07 (3rm),
71.28 (3rm) and
71.47 (3rm) of the Statutes, as created in
2009 Wisconsin Act 295, a taxpayer may claim a tax credit for investments in food processing plants and food warehouses during taxable years beginning after December 31, 2009.
Section
560.2056 (4) of the Statutes, as likewise created in
2009 Wisconsin Act 295, requires the Department to (1) implement a program for certifying taxpayers as eligible for the food processing plant and food warehouse investment credit, (2) determine the amount of credits to allocate to those taxpayers, and (3) in consultation with the Department of Revenue, promulgate rules to administer the program. No other provisions are established in the Statutes regarding the specific process for taxpayers to use in applying for the credits, and for the Department of Commerce to use in certifying eligible taxpayers and in allocating the credits.
Because of enactment of
2009 Wisconsin Act 295, a number of entities that may be eligible for the tax credits have contacted the Department with inquiries concerning the process for applying for the credits, for expenditures that have been or will be incurred during taxable years that began after December 31, 2009. In addition, section
71.07 (3rm) of the Statutes includes a $1,000,000 tax-credit allocation that became available on May 27, 2010, and expires on June 30, 2010.
Although the Department of Commerce has begun promulgating the permanent rule that is required by
2009 Act 295, the time periods in chapter 227 of the Statutes for promulgating permanent rules preclude the permanent rule from becoming effective in time to accommodate allocating the tax credits for the 2009-10 fiscal year. This emergency rule will enable the Department of Commerce to establish an application, certification, and tax credit allocation process for the entities that will be eligible for the allocation that expires on June 30, 2010.
Publication Date:
June 8, 2010
Effective Dates:
June 8, 2010 through
November 4, 2010
Extension Through:
January 3, 2011
Hearing Date:
August 17, 2010
