A rule authorized by this statement of scope will do the following:
•
Create county or multi-county or township or multi-township quarantines in which an exotic pest is detected. The quarantine will prohibit the movement of all articles potentially harboring the damaging pest. These regulated articles would likely include: firewood, nursery stock, green lumber, and other woody material living, dead, cut or fallen, including logs, stumps, roots, branches and composted and uncomposted chips in the cases of Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALB), Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA) or Thousand Cankers Disease (TCD), as examples.
•
Provide an exemption for items that have been inspected and certified by a pest control official and are accompanied by a written certificate issued by the pest control official (some products, such as nursery stock, cannot be given an exemption).
•
Provide an exemption for businesses that enter into a state or federal compliance agreement. The compliance agreement describes in detail what a company can and cannot do with regulated articles.
Preliminary Policy Analysis
DATCP has authority under s.
93.07 (12), Stats., to conduct surveys and inspections for the detection and control of pests injurious to plants, and to make, modify, and enforce reasonable rules needed to prevent the dissemination of pests. DATCP also has plant inspection and pest control authority under s.
94.01, Stats. DATCP may by rule impose restrictions on the importation or movement of serious plant pests, or items that may spread serious plant pests.
In recent years the rate of arrival of new exotic plant pests to the United States has increased significantly. Some of the exotic pests which have already invaded our country include Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALB), Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA), Thousand Cankers Disease (TCD) and Gypsy Moth (GM). The annual cost of these invasive forest insects to local governments is estimated at more than $2 billion; residential property value loss due to exotic forest pests averages $1.5 billion per year nationally. To date, EAB and GM have infested Wisconsin. EAB is an exotic pest that endangers Wisconsin's 770 million ash trees and ash tree resources. This insect has the potential to destroy entire stands of ash, including up to 20% of Wisconsin's urban street trees (with an estimated cost of $3 billion) and residential landscaping trees, and may result in substantial losses to forest ecosystems. The insect can cause great harm to state lands and to the state's tourism and timber industries. At this time, EAB has been identified in twenty-two states including Wisconsin, and two Canadian provinces. Twenty Wisconsin counties are currently quarantined to restrict the movement of ash wood in order to prevent the spread of EAB.
Nature of the Emergency
This emergency rule is necessary to create a timely quarantine of the counties or townships, and possibly bordering counties or townships, with new exotic plant pest detections until a federal quarantine is enacted. The federal quarantine will take effect up to six months after a formal submission by the state plant regulatory official.
Statutory Authority for the Rule (Including the Statutory Citation and Language)
Section
93.07 (1), Stats., directs DATCP to make such regulations as are necessary for the discharge of all the powers and duties of the department. Section
93.07 (12), Stats., authorizes DATCP to conduct surveys and inspections for the detection and control of pests injurious to plants, and to make, modify, and enforce reasonable rules needed to prevent the dissemination of pests. DATCP also has plant inspection and pest control authority under s.
94.01, Stats.
Current and Proposed Federal Legislation and Comparison to Proposed Rule
In order to limit the spread of exotic plant pests, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the United States Department of Agriculture (APHIS) has imposed quarantines for EAB in 20 states, ALB in 3 states, and GM in 18 states. Including Wisconsin, six states plus Canada have imposed an external quarantine for HWA, and sixteen states have done the same for TCD. DATCP rules currently prohibit movement of regulated plant articles from any federally quarantined area except under authorized conditions. This proposed rule is consistent with current state and federal rules.
Entities Affected
According to the American Forest and Paper Association (June 2011), Wisconsin is first in the nation in forestry jobs, employing over 56,000 workers and annually shipping forest industry products valued over $16.2 billion. Each year the agricultural industry also produces $1.38 billion of corn grain, and $511 million in soybeans. Additionally, Wisconsin leads the nation in snap bean production ($61 million annually) and ranks third in potato production ($293 million annually). Wisconsin apple orchards produce an annual yield of $28 million. This emergency rule could have an impact on persons or companies that deal in any agricultural crop or forest product from the quarantined counties or townships to locations outside of the quarantined counties.
The Wisconsin Department of Tourism reports that travelers to Wisconsin spent a total of $9.9 billion in 2011. Tourism directly sustains an estimated 128,000 jobs, or 5.5% of total employment in the state. Should Wisconsin's forests, parks, recreational areas and community trees be significantly damaged by an exotic plant pest, our tourism industry could also suffer substantially.
Nurseries, firewood producers/dealers, saw mills and farmers that sell or distribute articles potentially harboring the damaging exotic plant pest would all be impacted. In order to sell regulated products outside of a quarantined county, veneer mills and wood processors will have to enter into a compliance agreement with DATCP or APHIS. The agreement authorizes movement of products outside the quarantine only when there is assurance that the movement will not spread the plant pest to other locations. Licensed nursery growers will not be able to sell regulated nursery stock outside of the quarantined counties. Firewood dealers would need to be certified to sell firewood outside of the quarantined counties. Farmers would be required to treat with an approved treatment option, should one exist, before movement out of the quarantine. Grain elevators could enter into compliance agreements with DATCP or APHIS.
Policy Alternatives
If DATCP does nothing, potentially infested wood or agricultural products will be allowed to move freely and the department will not be able to regulate its movement. The department would have no regulatory authority in the counties with new exotic plant pest finds, raising the potential of a more rapid spread of an exotic invasive plant pest.
Statutory Alternatives
At this time there are no existing or proposed statutory alternatives.
Staff Time Required
DATCP estimates that it will use approximately 0.1 FTE staff time to develop these rules. This includes time required for investigation and analysis, rule drafting, preparing related documents, holding public hearings, and communicating with affected persons and groups. DATCP will use existing staff to develop this rule.
DATCP Board Authorization
DATCP may not begin drafting a rule until the Governor and the Board of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection approves this scope statement. The Board may not approve this scope statement any sooner than 10 days after this scope statement is published in the Wisconsin Administrative Register. The scope statement may not be published in the administrative register until DATCP has received written approval of the scope statement from the Governor. Before the department may publish an emergency rule, it must receive written approval of the proposed emergency rule from the Governor.
Contact Person
Corrections
This statement of scope was approved by the Governor on October 31, 2013.
Rule No.
Relating to
Delivering of money to inmates.
Rule Type
Emergency.
1. Description of the Objective of the Rule
The objective of the rule is to amend s.
DOC 309.46 to limit the form in which funds are received by an institution for the benefit of an inmate.
2. Description of Existing Policies and New Policies Included in the Proposed Rule and an Analysis of Policy Alternatives
The current rule provision provides in pertinent part that “all money in any form delivered to any institution for the benefit of an inmate shall be delivered to the institution business manager." The Department established a policy and procedure under this rule provision which restricted the form of the funds it would accept to money orders or cashier checks. The Department does not accept cash or personal checks.
A recent Dane County Circuit Court case determined that the Department by its own rule is prohibited from limiting the form of the funds it will accept. State ex rel. White v. Hamblin, Dane County Circuit Court 13CV0362 (8/19/13). The Department recognizes that the decision has limited precedential value. However, the Department will abide by the decision as it applies to the inmate who brought the action. But the Department believes it prudent to pursue a change to the rule provision to avoid additional lawsuits brought by other inmates.
The Department is in the process of reviewing all of ch.
DOC 309, Resources for Inmates. However, the review of the entire chapter will not be completed for another year. The Department believes that this issue needs to be addressed more quickly.
3. Statutory Authority
Section
227.11 (2) (a) to
(c): Rule–making authority is expressly conferred as follows:
(a) Each agency may promulgate rules interpreting the provisions of any statute enforced or administered by the agency, if the agency considers it necessary to effectuate the purpose of the statute, but a rule is not valid if the rule exceeds the bounds of correct interpretation. All of the following apply to the promulgation of a rule interpreting the provisions of a statute enforced or administered by an agency:
1. A statutory or nonstatutory provision containing a statement or declaration of legislative intent, purpose, findings, or policy does not confer rule-making authority on the agency or augment the agency's rule-making authority beyond the rule-making authority that is explicitly conferred on the agency by the legislature.
2. A statutory provision describing the agency's general powers or duties does not confer rule-making authority on the agency or augment the agency's rule-making authority beyond the rule-making authority that is explicitly conferred on the agency by the legislature.
3. A statutory provision containing a specific standard, requirement, or threshold does not confer on the agency the authority to promulgate, enforce, or administer a rule that contains a standard, requirement, or threshold that is more restrictive than the standard, requirement, or threshold contained in the statutory provision.
(b) Each agency may prescribe forms and procedures in connection with any statute enforced or administered by it, if the agency considers it necessary to effectuate the purpose of the statute, but this paragraph does not authorize the imposition of a substantive requirement in connection with a form or procedure.
(c) Each agency authorized to exercise discretion in deciding individual cases may formalize the general policies evolving from its decisions by promulgating policies as rules which the agency shall follow until they are amended or repealed. A rule promulgated in accordance with this paragraph is valid only to the extent that the agency has discretion to base an individual decision on the policy expressed in the rule.
Section
301.02: The department shall maintain and govern the state correctional institutions.
Section
301.03 (2): Supervise the custody and discipline of all prisoners and the maintenance of state correctional institutions and the prison industries under s.
303.01.
4. Estimate of the Amount of Time State Employees will Spend Developing the Proposed Rule and of Other Resources Necessary to Develop the Rule
The Department estimates that it will take approximately 50 hours to develop this rule, including drafting the rule and complying with rulemaking requirements.
5. Description of All of the Entities that will be Affected by the Rule
This rule will affect all persons who are committed to adult correctional institutions and department staff.
6. Summary of and Preliminary Comparison with any Existing or Proposed Federal Regulation that is Intended to Address the Activities to be Regulated by the Proposed Rule
There are no applicable federal regulations.
7. Anticipated Economic Impact of Implementing the Rule (Note if the Rule is Likely to Have a Significant Economic Impact on Small Businesses)
The department anticipates that the proposed rule will have minimal to no economic impact statewide or locally.
Contact Person
Kathryn R. Anderson, Chief Legal Counsel, Wisconsin Department of Corrections, 3099 East Washington Avenue, P.O. Box 7925, Madison, WI 53707-7925, (608) 240-5049,
kathryn.anderson@wisconsin.gov.
Corrections
This statement of scope was approved by the Governor on October 31, 2013.
Rule No.
Relating to
The general operations of the department of corrections.
Rule Type
Permanent.
1. Description of the Objective of the Rule
The objective of the rule is to create a rule chapter which addresses general operations of the department of corrections, including the requirement under s.
895.59, Stats., for the department to promulgate a rule relating to small businesses.
2. Description of Existing Policies and New Policies Included in the Proposed Rule and an Analysis of Policy Alternatives
Although the department of corrections has numerous rule chapters which address program areas relating to adult institutions, community corrections and juveniles, it does not currently have a rule chapter which addresses general operations. The department seeks to create a chapter which may be used for rule proposals which do not readily fit within one of the program areas. The department anticipates creating uniform definitions and operational language for inclusion in this chapter.
Although the nature of the department's statutory charge does not normally impact on or regulate small businesses as that term is defined in s.
227.114 (1), Stats., the department is mandated under s.
895.59 (2), Stats., to promulgate a rule “which requires the agency to disclose in advance the discretion that the agency will follow in the enforcement of rules and guidelines against a small business
…." The department intends on placing a rule section to address this statutory mandate in the new general operations chapter.
There are no policy alternatives to developing the rule.
3. Statutory Authority
Section
227.11 (2) (a) to
(c), Stats.: Rule–making authority is expressly conferred as follows:
(a) Each agency may promulgate rules interpreting the provisions of any statute enforced or administered by the agency, if the agency considers it necessary to effectuate the purpose of the statute, but a rule is not valid if the rule exceeds the bounds of correct interpretation. All of the following apply to the promulgation of a rule interpreting the provisions of a statute enforced or administered by an agency:
1. A statutory or nonstatutory provision containing a statement or declaration of legislative intent, purpose, findings, or policy does not confer rule-making authority on the agency or augment the agency's rule-making authority beyond the rule-making authority that is explicitly conferred on the agency by the legislature.
2. A statutory provision describing the agency's general powers or duties does not confer rule-making authority on the agency or augment the agency's rule-making authority beyond the rule-making authority that is explicitly conferred on the agency by the legislature.
3. A statutory provision containing a specific standard, requirement, or threshold does not confer on the agency the authority to promulgate, enforce, or administer a rule that contains a standard, requirement, or threshold that is more restrictive than the standard, requirement, or threshold contained in the statutory provision.
(b) Each agency may prescribe forms and procedures in connection with any statute enforced or administered by it, if the agency considers it necessary to effectuate the purpose of the statute, but this paragraph does not authorize the imposition of a substantive requirement in connection with a form or procedure.
(c) Each agency authorized to exercise discretion in deciding individual cases may formalize the general policies evolving from its decisions by promulgating policies as rules which the agency shall follow until they are amended or repealed. A rule promulgated in accordance with this paragraph is valid only to the extent that the agency has discretion to base an individual decision on the policy expressed in the rule.
Section
895.59 (2), Stats.: Each agency shall promulgate a rule that requires the agency to disclose in advance the discretion that the agency will follow in the enforcement of rules and guidelines against a small business. The rule promulgated under this subsection shall include the reduction or waiver of penalties for a voluntary disclosure, by a small business, or actual or potential violations of rules or guidelines. The rule promulgated under this subsection may include the consideration of the violator's ability to pay when determining the amount of any monetary penalty, assessment, or surcharge. The rule promulgated under this subsection shall specify when the agency will not allow discretion in the enforcement of a rule or guideline against small businesses and shall include all of the following situations in which discretion is not allowed:
(a) The agency discovers the violation before the small business discloses the violation.
(b) The violation is disclosed after an agency audit or inspection of the small business has been scheduled.
