74.43
74.43
Return of unpaid taxes, special assessments and special charges. 74.43(1)(1)
Delivery of tax roll. Except as provided in
s. 74.12, on or before February 20, the taxation district treasurer, except the treasurer of a city authorized to act under
s. 74.87, shall transfer the tax roll to the county treasurer. The tax roll transferred to the county treasurer shall meet all of the following conditions:
74.43(1)(c)
(c) Reflect all payments received by the taxation district treasurer.
74.43(2)
(2) Correction of property description. If the county treasurer discovers any error or inadequacy in the description of any property in the tax roll, he or she may correct the description in the tax roll at any time prior to issuance of the tax certificate under
s. 74.57. If the county treasurer corrects a description of property, he or she shall keep a record identifying the place where each correction is made, briefly describing the correction and specifying the date when the correction was made.
74.43(3)
(3) County treasurer to accept unpaid taxes. If the roll is delivered under
sub. (1), the county treasurer shall accept all unpaid real property taxes, special assessments, special charges and special taxes contained in the tax roll.
74.43 History
History: 1987 a. 378;
1991 a. 39.
74.45
74.45
Certificate of delinquent taxes; endorsement of treasurer's bond. 74.45(1)(1)
Certificate of delinquent taxes by county treasurer. After the taxation district treasurer transfers the tax roll under
s. 74.12 or
74.43, the county treasurer shall prepare a certificate of the amount that is delinquent on real property and the amount that is not delinquent but payable in subsequent instalments on real property and the amount of delinquent special assessments, special charges and special taxes.
74.45(2)
(2) Endorsement of taxation district treasurer's bond. After the taxation district treasurer has fulfilled the requirements for settlement with the county under
s. 74.25 or
74.30, the county treasurer if requested to do so, shall endorse the bond of the taxation district treasurer executed under
s. 70.67 (1) as satisfied and paid. The endorsement fully discharges the taxation district treasurer and his or her sureties from the obligations of the bond, unless the return of the taxation district treasurer under
s. 74.43 is false. If the return is false, the bond continues in force and the taxation district treasurer and his or her sureties are subject to action upon the bond for all deficiencies and damages resulting from the false return.
74.45 History
History: 1987 a. 378;
1991 a. 39.
74.47
74.47
Interest and penalty on delinquent amounts. 74.47(1)(1)
Interest. The interest rate on delinquent general property taxes, special charges, special assessments and special taxes included in the tax roll for collection is one percent per month or fraction of a month.
74.47(2)(a)(a) Any county board and the common council of any city authorized to act under
s. 74.87 may by ordinance impose a penalty of up to 0.5% per month or fraction of a month, in addition to the interest under
sub. (1), on any delinquent general property taxes, special assessments, special charges and special taxes included in the tax roll.
74.47(2)(b)
(b) Any ordinance enacted under
par. (a) may specify that the penalty under this subsection shall apply to any general property taxes, special assessments, special charges and special taxes that are delinquent on the effective date of the ordinance.
74.47(3)(a)(a) All interest and penalties collected by the county treasurer on payments of real property taxes and special taxes shall be retained by the county treasurer for the county.
74.47(3)(b)
(b) All interest and penalties on payments of delinquent special assessments and special charges collected by the county treasurer of a county which settles for unpaid special assessments and special charges under
s. 74.29 shall be retained by the county treasurer for the county.
74.47(3)(c)
(c) All interest on payments of delinquent special assessments and special charges collected by the county treasurer of a county which does not settle for unpaid special assessments and special charges under
s. 74.29 shall, along with the delinquent amounts that have been paid, be paid to the taxing jurisdiction which assessed the special assessment or special charge as follows:
74.47(3)(c)1.
1. If collected on or before July 31, as part of the settlement under
s. 74.29.
74.47(3)(c)2.
2. If collected after July 31 and before issuance of the tax certificate under
s. 74.57, on or before September 15.
74.47(3)(d)
(d) All interest and penalties on delinquent general property taxes, special assessments, special charges and special taxes collected on or before July 31 by the treasurer of a taxation district which has enacted an ordinance under
s. 74.12 shall be retained by the taxation district treasurer for the taxation district.
74.47(3)(e)
(e) All interest and penalties on payments of delinquent personal property taxes collected by the taxation district treasurer shall be retained by the taxation district treasurer for the taxation district.
74.47(3)(f)
(f) All penalties on payments of delinquent special assessments and special charges collected by the county treasurer of a county which does not settle for unpaid special assessments and special charges shall be retained by the county treasurer for the county.
74.48
74.48
Penalty for transfer of ownership. 74.48(1)
(1) If land that has been valued under
s. 70.32 (2r) (b) is sold by a person who has owned it for less than 5 years and who has benefited from a value lower than that established by
s. 70.32 (2r) (a), there is imposed on that person a penalty equal to 5% of the difference between the sale price of the agricultural land and the value that would be established for it under
s. 70.32 (2r) (c) during the last year of the person's ownership.
74.48(2)
(2) Any amount due under
sub. (1) shall be paid to the department of revenue.
74.48(3)
(3) The department of revenue shall administer the penalty under this section.
74.48 History
History: 1995 a. 27.
74.49
74.49
Payment of delinquent taxes in instalments. 74.49(1)(1)
Instalments allowed. Delinquent property taxes, special assessments, special charges and special taxes may be paid to the appropriate treasurer in partial payments of not less than $20, unless the treasurer agrees to accept a lower amount.
74.49(2)(a)(a) The treasurer shall determine that portion of a partial payment to be applied as principal by dividing the amount of the partial payment by a figure which is the sum of one plus a figure which is the product of the number of months of delinquency, as determined under
s. 74.11,
74.12 or
74.87:
74.49(2)(a)2.
2. Times a decimal which reflects the applicable percentage, if a penalty under
s. 74.47 (2) applies.
74.49(2)(b)
(b) The amount of the payment that is in excess of the amount of principal determined under
par. (a) is the interest and penalty accrued from the date of the delinquency on the amount of the partial payment which is principal. After any partial payment is made, subsequent determinations of interest and penalty shall be computed only on the unpaid balance of the principal, from the date of the delinquency as determined under
s. 74.11,
74.12 or
74.87.
74.49 History
History: 1987 a. 378;
1991 a. 39.
74.51
74.51
Discharge of delinquent taxes. 74.51(1)
(1)
Payment to discharge delinquency. Any person may, at any time before issuance of a tax certificate under
s. 74.57, discharge delinquent real property taxes, special assessments, special charges or special taxes on real property by paying the delinquent amounts, together with interest and any penalty provided under
s. 74.47 (2).
74.51(2)
(2) Receipts for taxes paid. After a payment is made under
sub. (1), the treasurer shall execute duplicate receipts showing the name of the person making the payment, the date of the payment, the description of the property upon which the payment was made and the amount paid. One copy of the receipt shall be delivered to the person making the payment and the other copy filed in the treasurer's office.
74.51 History
History: 1987 a. 378.
74.53
74.53
Personal liability for delinquent taxes and other costs. 74.53(1)(1)
Recovery of taxes and costs against persons. Except as provided in
subs. (3) and
(5), a county or a municipality may bring a civil action against a person to recover any of the following amounts that are included in the tax roll for collection and any of the amounts under
pars. (b) and
(c) that are not included in the tax roll for collection:
74.53(1)(a)
(a) Delinquent real property taxes, special charges, special assessments and special taxes, not including amounts under
pars. (b) and
(c), that were delinquent during the period that the person owned the property.
74.53(1)(b)
(b) The cost of razing and removing property and restoring the site to a dust-free and erosion-free condition incurred under
s. 66.05 (2),
(5),
(8) (bg) or
(10) or of filling an excavation incurred under
s. 66.05 (6) if the person owned the property when the property was razed and removed and the site restored or the excavation was filled.
74.53(1)(c)
(c) The cost of abating a public nuisance under
s. 254.595 or
823.04 if the person owned the property when the public nuisance was abated.
74.53(2)
(2) Coowner liability. Coowners of property are jointly and severally liable for the payment of real property taxes, assessments or costs collectible under
sub. (1).
74.53(3)
(3) Limitation. A county or a city authorized to act under
s. 74.87 may not proceed against any person under
sub. (1) for amounts under
sub. (1) (a) unless the property against which the amounts are levied in the tax roll is included in a tax certificate issued under
s. 74.57.
74.53(4)
(4) Recovery limited. A county or a municipality that proceeds against a property owner under this section may not recover more than the amount owed plus interest and penalties.
74.53(5)
(5) Prior approval; notice. No action may be commenced under
sub. (1) for the amounts under
sub. (1) (a) unless it is approved by the county board or the governing body of the municipality. The clerk shall mail, to the last-known address of the person against whom an action is proposed to be commenced, advance written notice of the time and place the county board will meet to consider approval of legal action. A county board or the governing body of the municipality may abrogate its duty to approve and notice each action to be commenced under
sub. (1) by adopting an ordinance waiving the duty and specifying procedures by which an action under
sub. (1) may be commenced.
74.53(6)
(6) Action by taxing jurisdiction. A taxing jurisdiction may bring a civil action under this section against a person to recover special assessments as defined in
s. 75.36 (1) and special charges levied by it for which the county or municipality did not settle in full or which were not fully paid by proceeds distributed under
s. 75.05 or
75.36. Any amount recovered in an action under this subsection shall be reported to the county or city treasurer, who shall subtract it from the amount owed for purposes of
sub. (4).
74.53(7)
(7) Appointment of receiver. A court may appoint a receiver to take charge of property included in a tax certificate under
s. 74.57 if a county or a city authorized to act under
s. 74.87 proceeds against the owner of the property under this section. The receiver shall manage the property, collect rents and apply income to the payment of delinquent real property taxes.
74.53 Annotation
Land contract vendor is not an owner of real estate under this section. City of Milwaukee v. Greenberg, 163 W (2d) 28, 471 NW (2d) 33 (1991).
74.55
74.55
Action to collect delinquent personal property taxes. 74.55(1)(1)
Civil action. Delinquent personal property taxes, together with any interest and penalty under
s. 74.47, may be recovered by the taxation district in a civil action, including an action under
ch. 799, if the action is brought within 6 years after the January 1 of the year in which the taxes are required to be paid.
74.55(2)
(2) Certain property not exempt from execution. In a proceeding to enforce a judgment rendered in an action under this section to recover delinquent personal property taxes, the personal property on which the taxes were delinquent is not exempt from execution under
s. 815.18.
74.55 History
History: 1987 a. 378.
ISSUANCE OF TAX CERTIFICATE
74.57
74.57
Issuance of tax certificate. 74.57(1)
(1)
Issuance. Annually, on September 1, the county treasurer shall issue to the county a tax certificate which includes all parcels of real property included in the tax roll for which real property taxes, special charges, special taxes or special assessments remain unpaid at the close of business on August 31.
74.57(2)(a)(a) Issuance of a tax certificate commences the redemption period on all real property included in the tax certificate unless
s. 74.59 (2) applies.
74.57(2)(b)
(b) Two years after the issuance of the tax certificate, unless
s. 74.59 (2) or
75.03 applies, the county is entitled, as to any property included in the tax certificate which has not been redeemed, to do any of the following:
74.57(2)(b)3.
3. Commence an action to foreclose the tax lien represented by the certificate under
s. 75.521.
74.57(3)
(3) Certificate not transferable. The county may not sell, assign, or otherwise transfer a tax certificate. However, if a city authorized to act under
s. 74.87 pays delinquent taxes under an agreement entered into under
s. 74.83, the county treasurer shall issue or reissue tax certificates to the city on all property for which the delinquent taxes have been paid.
74.57(4)(a)(a) The tax certificate shall group by taxation district all parcels for which real property taxes, special assessments, special charges or special taxes remain unpaid.
74.57(4)(b)
(b) Unless it is issued by a city authorized to act under
s. 74.87, the tax certificate shall:
74.57(4)(b)1.
1. Contain a legal description of each parcel of property.
74.57(4)(b)2.
2. For each parcel, state the amount of the unpaid real estate taxes, special assessments, special charges or special taxes and the date from which the interest and any penalty accrue.
74.57(4)(b)3.
3. State the earliest date upon which the county may be entitled to a tax deed or equivalent evidence of title.
74.57(4)(c)
(c) The format of the tax certificate shall be prescribed by the department of revenue under
s. 70.09 (3).
74.57(4)(d)
(d) If a parcel of property is redeemed after the tax certificate is issued, the date on which the property was redeemed shall be noted on the certificate, together with the amount for which the property was redeemed.
74.57(5)
(5) Certain lands exempt. This section does not apply to public lands held on contract, lands mortgaged to the state or lands subject to
s. 74.65.
74.59
74.59
Notice of issuance of tax certificate. 74.59(1)
(1)
Notice of issuance of tax certificate. 74.59(1)(a)(a) Within 90 days after issuance of the tax certificate under
s. 74.57, the county treasurer shall mail a notice to each owner of record, as shown in the tax roll, of property included in the certificate for which real property taxes, special assessments, special charges or special taxes remain unpaid as of the date the notice is mailed. Unless it is issued by a city authorized to act under
s. 74.87, the notice shall state all of the following:
74.59(1)(a)1.
1. That real property taxes, special assessments, special charges or special taxes remain unpaid as of the date of mailing on property which the tax roll shows is owned by the addressee.
74.59(1)(a)2.
2. That the records showing the delinquency under
subd. 1. are available for inspection in the treasurer's office.
74.59(1)(a)3.
3. That, on the previous September 1, a tax certificate was issued to the county for all property for which real property taxes, special assessments, special charges or special taxes remained unpaid at the close of business on August 31.
74.59(1)(a)4.
4. That failure to pay the delinquent real property taxes, special charges, special taxes or special assessments will result in eventual transfer, no earlier than 2 years after issuance of the tax certificate, of the ownership of the property to the county.
