CHAPTER 26
PROTECTION OF FOREST LANDS AND FOREST PRODUCTIVITY
26.03 Harvest of raw forest products.
26.06 Enforcement, seizure and sale of materials.
26.07 Money, how disposed of.
26.08 Leases and licenses.
26.09 Civil liability for unauthorized cutting, removal or transportation of raw forest products.
26.10 Reports by the department to the board of commissioners of public lands.
26.11 Forest fires; department jurisdiction; procedure.
26.12 Forest protection areas, organization, emergency fire wardens, county cooperation, setting fire.
26.13 Town fire wardens; duties, expenses.
26.14 Forest fires, authority of fire fighters, compensation, penalties, civil liability.
26.145 Fire suppression aids.
26.15 Responsibility of wardens and citizens.
26.18 District attorneys to prosecute.
26.19 Destruction of forest protection equipment or notices.
26.20 Fire protection devices.
26.205 Tractors, spark arresters.
26.21 Civil liability for forest fires.
26.30 Forest insects and diseases; department jurisdiction; procedure.
26.35 Forest productivity.
26.36 Forest energy resources.
26.37 Lake states wood utilization consortium.
26.38 Private forest grants.
26.97 Law enforcement and police power.
26.985 Penalties, repeaters.
26.99 Parties to a violation.
Ch. 26 Cross-reference
Cross-reference: See definitions in s.
24.01.
26.01
26.01
Definition. In this chapter, unless the context requires otherwise "department" means the department of natural resources.
26.03
26.03
Harvest of raw forest products. 26.03(1b)(a)
(a) "Harvest" means to cut, remove or transport.
26.03(1b)(b)
(b) "Harvesting" means cutting, removing or transporting.
26.03(1g)
(1g) Prohibition; delinquent taxes. No person may harvest any raw forest products, or direct the harvest of any raw forest products, from any land for which taxes are delinquent.
26.03(1m)(a)1.1. Unless otherwise authorized to do so by the county, no person may harvest any raw forest products, or direct the harvesting of any raw forest products, from any land until 14 days after the clerk of the county in which the land is located is notified of the person's proposal to harvest. The person shall notify the county clerk each year and may do so in any manner acceptable to the county. Each time the person notifies the county, the person shall describe the land upon which the harvesting will occur by quarter-quarter section, government lot or fractional lot, unless the county requires a different method for describing the land. Notification under this subdivision expires on the December 31 immediately following the notification, and no person may harvest, or direct the harvesting of, any additional raw forest products from the land until further notification that complies with this subdivision is provided to the county.
26.03(1m)(a)2.
2. Upon receipt of notifications under
subd. 1., the county clerk shall provide notice to the town chairperson of each town in which the land from which raw forest products will be harvested is located and to the county treasurer. The county treasurer shall determine whether the county holds a tax certificate or tax deeds to any of the land involved. If the county holds a tax certificate, the county treasurer shall take action to collect the unpaid taxes represented by county-owned tax certificates or to prevent the harvesting of raw forest products from the land. If the county holds a tax deed, the county treasurer shall take action to prevent the harvesting of raw forest products from the land.
26.03(1m)(b)
(b) Paragraph (a) 1. does not apply to a person harvesting raw forest products on public lands, as defined in
s. 70.13 (7), to a person harvesting raw forest products for fuel wood for his or her home consumption, to a person harvesting for the purpose of clearing the land for agricultural use or to a person harvesting from the person's own land, any of the following:
26.03(1r)(a)(a) No purchaser of Indian reservation land or land to be placed upon the tax roll for the first time may harvest any raw forest products, or direct the harvesting of any raw forest products, from the land without first recording the instrument by which title to the land was acquired in the office of the register of deeds for the county in which the land is located.
26.03(1r)(b)
(b) Paragraph (a) does not apply to a person harvesting raw forest products for fuel wood for his or her home consumption.
26.03(2)(a)(a) Whoever violates
sub. (1g), or a rule promulgated under
sub. (1g), shall forfeit not less than $500 nor more than $10,000.
26.05
26.05
Timber theft. 26.05(1)(1)
Definition. In this section, "raw forest products" means forest products not altered by a manufacturing process off the land from which they are taken and includes seedlings, saplings, shrubs, whole-tree chips, boughs, logs, pilings, posts, poles, cordwood products, pulpwood, fuel wood and Christmas trees.
26.05(2)
(2) Consent of owner required. No person may cut, remove or transport raw forest products or direct the cutting, removal or transportation of raw forest products without the consent of the owner.
26.05(3)(a)(a) A person who violates this section or a rule promulgated under this section is subject to a forfeiture of not less than $100 nor more than $10,000.
