Current law provides a sales and use tax exemption for a product that has as its power source wind energy, direct radiant energy received from the sun, or gas generated from anaerobic digestion of animal manure and other agricultural waste, if the product produces at least 200 watts of alternating current or 600 British thermal units per day. The sale of electricity or energy produced by the product is also exempt.
The bill modifies current law so that the exemption applies to solar power systems and wind energy systems that produce electrical or heat energy directly from the sun or wind and are capable of continuously producing at least 200 watts of alternating current or 600 British thermal units. In addition, the exemption applies to a waste energy system that produces electrical or heat energy directly from gas generated from anaerobic digestion of animal manure and other agricultural waste and is capable of continuously producing at least 200 watts of alternating current or 600 British thermal units. A system for which the exemption applies includes tangible personal property sold with the system that is used primarily to store or facilitate the storage of the electrical or heat energy produced by the system.
Prairie and wetland counseling services
Under current law, the sale of landscaping and lawn maintenance services is subject to the sales tax. The bill excludes from taxable landscaping services the planning and counseling services for the restoration, reclamation, or revitalization of prairie, savanna, or wetlands if such services are provided for a separate and optional fee distinct from other services.
Sales and use tax exemption for professional baseball park districts
The bill exempts from the sales and use tax tangible personal property and taxable services sold to a local professional baseball park district.
Sales and use tax exemption for improving professional sports and entertainment home stadiums
The bill exempts from the sales and use tax building materials, supplies, and equipment sold to owners, contractors, subcontractors, or builders solely for the improvement, repair, or maintenance of a professional sports and entertainment home stadium.
Repeal of sales tax exemption for farm-raised deer
The bill repeals the sales and use tax exemption that applies to the sale of farm-raised deer to a person operating a hunting preserve or game farm in this state.
Providing notices for public utility taxes
Under current law, public utility companies, including railroads and air carriers, are exempt from local property taxes and instead subject to special state taxes. Current law requires DOR to send certain notices regarding these taxes by certified mail. Under the bill, DOR must still provide the notices but is no longer required to send them by certified mail.
Other taxation
Real estate transfer fee
Current law, generally, requires a person who conveys an interest in real property to file a real estate transfer return with the county register of deeds and pay a real estate transfer fee equal to 30 cents for each $100 of the value of the conveyance. Current law provides certain exemptions from paying the fee, including exemptions for conveyances between an entity and the members of the entity who are related to each other as spouses, lineal ascendants, lineal descendants, or siblings.
The bill modifies current law so that the exemptions for conveyances between entities and related members also apply to conveyances to members who are related as an uncle and his nieces or nephews, an aunt and her nieces or nephews, or first cousins.
TRANSPORTATION
Highways and local assistance
Transportation revenue bonds
Under current law, the Building Commission may issue revenue bonds for major highway projects and transportation administrative facilities in a principal amount that may not exceed $4,325,885,700. The bill increases the revenue bond limit to $4,493,600,000, an increase of $167,714,300.
I 94 east-west corridor bonding
Under current law, the state may contract up to $40,000,000 in public debt for the purposes of reconstructing the “I 94 east-west corridor,” which is defined to mean “all freeways, including related interchange ramps, roadways, and shoulders, encompassing I 94 in Milwaukee County from 70th Street to 16th Street, and all adjacent frontage roads and collector road systems.” The bill increases the authorized general obligation bonding limit for these purposes by $140,873,000 to $180,873,000.
Major interstate bridge bonding
Under current law, the state may contract up to $272,000,000 in public debt for DOT to fund major interstate bridge projects, which are projects involving the construction or reconstruction of a bridge on the state trunk highway system that crosses a river forming a boundary of the state and for which this state’s estimated cost share is at least $100,000,000. The bill increases the authorized general obligation bonding limit for this purpose by $47,200,000 to $319,200,000.
General transportation aids
Under current law, DOT administers a general transportation aids program that makes aid payments to a county based on a share-of-costs formula, and to a municipality based on the greater of a share-of-costs formula or an aid rate per mile. The aid rate per mile is $2,734 for 2023. The bill increases the aid rate per mile to $2,843 for 2024 and $2,957 for 2025 and thereafter.
Currently, the maximum annual amount of aid that may be paid to counties under the program is $127,140,200. The bill maintains this amount for 2023 and increases this amount to $132,225,800 for 2024 and $137,514,800 for 2025 and thereafter. Currently, the maximum annual amount of aid that may be paid to municipalities under the program is $398,996,800. The bill maintains this amount for 2023 and increases this amount to $414,956,700 for 2024 and $431,555,000 for 2025 and thereafter.
Local roads improvement program discretionary grants
Under current law, DOT administers the local roads improvement program (LRIP) to assist political subdivisions in improving seriously deteriorating local roads by reimbursing political subdivisions for certain improvements. LRIP has several components, including discretionary grants. Current law specifies dollar amounts that DOT must allocate in each fiscal year to each of three project types that exceed specified cost thresholds: 1) county trunk highway improvements, 2) town road improvements, and 3) municipal street improvement projects.
Under the bill, in fiscal year 2023-24 and each fiscal year thereafter, of the amount appropriated to DOT for LRIP discretionary grants, DOT must allocate 35.6 percent to county trunk highway improvements, 39.0 percent to town road improvements, and 25.4 percent to municipal street improvements.
Transportation projects
Under current law, for certain highway projects for which DOT spends federal money, federal money must make up at least 70 percent of the funding for those projects. DOT is required to notify political subdivisions receiving aid for local projects whether the aid includes federal moneys and how those moneys must be spent. For certain projects that receive no federal money, DOT may not require political subdivisions to comply with any portion of DOT’s facilities development manual other than design standards. Any local project funded with state funds under the surface transportation program or the local bridge program must be let through competitive bidding and by contract to the lowest responsible bidder. The bill repeals all of these requirements.
Electric vehicle infrastructure program
Under the bill, DOT may establish and administer a program to provide funding for electric vehicle infrastructure projects.
Establishment of bikeways and pedestrian ways in highway projects
Under current law, DOT must, with exceptions, give due consideration to establishing bikeways and pedestrian ways in all new highway construction and reconstruction projects funded from state or federal funds.
Under the bill, with several exceptions, DOT must ensure that bikeways and pedestrian ways are established in all new highway construction and reconstruction projects funded from state or federal funds and must promulgate administrative rules identifying certain exceptions to the requirement.
Interconnected traffic signal and railroad signal systems
Under current law, DOT is appropriated federal, state, and local moneys for the purpose of railroad crossing improvements. The bill appropriates to DOT state and local moneys specifically for the planning and installation of interconnected traffic signal and railroad signal systems.
State funding for local transportation facilities
Under current law, DOT is appropriated moneys received from local units of government and the federal government for the purposes of providing public access roads to navigable waters; improving highway connections between the UW System and state charitable or penal institutions; constructing and maintaining UW System, state charitable or penal institution, and state capitol roadways; constructing and maintaining state park, forest, and riverway roads; and improving transportation facilities.
The bill creates an appropriation of state moneys from the transportation fund for the same purposes.
Traffic calming grants
Under the bill, DOT must develop and administer a local traffic calming grant program. Under the program, DOT must award grants to political subdivisions for infrastructure projects designed to reduce the speed of vehicular traffic.
Ray Nitschke Memorial Bridge
The bill requires DOT, in the 2023-24 fiscal year, to set aside $1,200,000 of the amounts appropriated to DOT for bridge development, construction, and rehabilitation for repairs to the Ray Nitschke Memorial Bridge in Brown County.
Bonding authority for Southern Bridge project
Under current law, the state may contract up to $46,849,800 in public debt for DOT to acquire, construct, develop, enlarge, or improve local bridges and interstate bridges. The bill authorizes the state to contract an additional $50,000,000 in public debt for the construction of the Southern Bridge project crossing the Fox River in Brown County.
Tribal nation welcome signs
The bill authorizes a federally recognized American Indian tribe or band in this state to erect and maintain within the right-of-way of any highway within the boundaries of an Indian reservation or other land held in trust for the tribe or band a tribal nation welcome sign. Under the bill, “tribal nation welcome sign” means an official sign erected and maintained by a federally recognized American Indian tribe or band in this state that the tribe determines is necessary to inform motorists of the territorial boundaries of tribal reservation and trust lands. The bill provides that welcome signs may not be erected within the right-of-way of an interstate highway and are not subject to the Wisconsin manual on traffic control devices adopted by DOT.
Under current law generally, no sign may be placed within the limits of any street or highway except as necessary for the guidance or warning of traffic, the safeguard of children at play, or to indicate the presence of a neighborhood watch program. This prohibition does not apply to directional and other official signs or to municipal welcome signs.
Drivers and motor vehicles
Driver’s cards
Under 2007 Wisconsin Act 20, certain provisions specified in the federal REAL ID Act of 2005 (REAL ID) were incorporated into state law and these provisions became effective on January 1, 2013. Among these provisions was the requirement that DOT follow certain procedures in processing applications for driver’s licenses and identification cards. However, under 2011 Wisconsin Acts 23 and 32, DOT may process applications for driver’s licenses and identification cards in a manner other than that required by REAL ID if the driver’s licenses and identification cards are marked to indicate that they are not REAL ID compliant and DOT processes the applications in compliance with DOT practices and procedures applicable immediately prior to implementation of REAL ID. Under current law, an applicant for a driver’s license or identification card, regardless of whether it is REAL ID compliant or REAL ID noncompliant, must provide to DOT 1) an identification document that includes either the applicant’s photograph or both the applicant’s full legal name and date of birth; 2) documentation, which may be the same as item 1, above, showing the applicant’s date of birth; 3) proof of the applicant’s social security number or verification that the applicant is not eligible for a social security number; 4) documentation showing the applicant’s name and address of principal residence; and 5) documentary proof that the applicant is a U.S. citizen or is otherwise lawfully present in the United States. However, in processing an application for a REAL ID noncompliant driver’s license or identification card, DOT is not required to meet the standards for document retention and verification that are imposed for REAL ID compliant products.
Under the bill, an applicant for a REAL ID noncompliant driver’s license or identification card (noncompliant REAL ID) is not required to provide documentary proof that the applicant is a U.S. citizen or is otherwise lawfully present in the United States. Also, an applicant may, in lieu of item 1 above, provide an individual taxpayer identification number, a foreign passport, or any other documentation deemed acceptable to DOT and, in lieu of items 2 and 4 above, provide documentation deemed acceptable to DOT. If the applicant does not have a social security number, the applicant is required to provide verification only that he or she does not have one, rather than verification that he or she is not eligible for one. In processing an application for, and issuing or renewing, a noncompliant REAL ID, DOT may not include any question or require any proof or documentation as to whether the applicant is a U.S. citizen or is otherwise lawfully present in the United States. The license document issued must display, on its face, the words “Not valid for voting purposes. Not evidence of citizenship or immigration status.” The bill does not change any current law requirements related to driver qualifications such as minimum age or successful completion of knowledge and driving skills tests.
With limited exceptions, DOT may not disclose social security numbers obtained from operator’s license or identification card applicants. The bill prohibits DOT from disclosing the fact that an applicant has verified to DOT that the applicant does not have a social security number, except that DOT may disclose this information to the Elections Commission.
The bill also prohibits discrimination on the basis of a person’s status as a holder or a nonholder of a noncompliant REAL ID, adding this license status as a prohibited basis for discrimination in employment, housing, and the equal enjoyment of a public place of accommodation or amusement.
Electronic renewal of operator’s licenses
Under current law, most operator’s licenses issued by DOT must be renewed every eight years. In general, an applicant for renewal of an operator’s license must pass an eyesight test and have his or her photograph taken.
Under the bill, if an applicant for renewal of an operator’s license meets certain requirements, the applicant may apply for renewal, and DOT may renew the license, by electronic means. The renewal may occur without an eyesight test and without a photograph. One of the eligibility requirements for use of the electronic procedure is that the applicant meets any additional criteria for eligibility established by DOT.
Driving skills test waiver
Under current law, with limited exceptions, an applicant for an operator’s license authorizing operation of “Class D” vehicles, which are automobiles and most passenger vehicles, must successfully complete a knowledge test and a driving skills (road) test. The bill allows DOT to waive the road test for a person if all of the following are satisfied:
1. The person is under 18 years of age.
2. The person is applying for authorization to operate only “Class D” vehicles.
3. The person has satisfactorily completed a course in driver education.
4. An adult sponsor of the person consents to a waiver of the driving skills test.
Electronic notifications
Under current law, DOT must provide certain notifications by postal mail. The bill allows DOT to provide some of these notifications by electronic means if the person being notified has requested electronic notifications from DOT. The notifications covered in the bill are notices of extensions of probationary license restrictions, notices related to amount of security required under certain financial responsibility requirements, and certain notices related to operator’s license revocations, suspensions, or disqualifications.
Ignition interlock device requirement expansion
Under current law, if a person is convicted of a second or subsequent offense related to operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant or other drug, with a prohibited alcohol concentration, or with a measurable amount of a controlled substance in his or her blood (OWI offense) or a first OWI offense for which his or her alcohol concentration is 0.15 or greater, a court must order the person’s operating privilege restricted to operating vehicles that are equipped with an ignition interlock device. The bill expands the ignition interlock requirement to all OWI offenses that involve the use of alcohol.
Increased safety belt violation forfeiture
The bill increases the forfeiture from $10 to $25 for violations of motor vehicle safety belt requirements. Under current law, if a motor vehicle is required to be equipped with safety belts, no person may operate the vehicle unless the person and each passenger who is at least eight years old is properly restrained. Separate requirements and penalties apply to passengers for whom child safety restraint systems are required.
Seasonal period for farm service license endorsement
Under current law, no person may operate a motor vehicle upon a highway in this state unless the person possesses a valid operator’s license. Additional endorsements are required for the operation of certain vehicles. An “F” endorsement authorizes a seasonal farm employee who is eligible for a restricted commercial driver license under federal law to operate certain commercial vehicles for a seasonal period not to exceed 180 days in any calendar year. The bill increases the seasonal period for an “F” endorsement to 210 days.
Electric vehicle identification sticker
The bill requires DOT to issue a decal for each hybrid and nonhybrid electric vehicle that identifies the vehicle as electric and which must must be displayed on the front and rear registration plates of the vehicle. The bill provides that there is a onetime fee of $1 for the issuance of the decals.
General transportation
General fund transfers to the transportation fund
The bill requires two transfers from the general fund to the transportation fund in each fiscal year, beginning on June 30, 2024. The first transfer must be in an amount equal to the amount of sales tax generated by the sale of electric vehicles in this state, as calculated by DOA. Beginning in fiscal year 2025-26, the amount transferred may not exceed 120 percent of the amount transferred in the previous year, or $75,000,000, whichever is less. The second transfer must be equal to the marginal difference between the sales tax generated from the sale of automotive parts, accessories, tires, and repair and maintenance services in fiscal year 2020-21 and the fiscal year of the transfer, as calculated by DOA.
Mass transit aid amounts
Under current law, DOT provides state aid payments to local public bodies in urban areas served by mass transit systems to assist the local public bodies with the expenses of operating those systems. There are five classes of mass transit systems, and the total amount of state aid payments to four of these classes is limited to a specific amount in each calendar year. The fifth class consists of certain commuter or light rail systems, and no state aid amounts are specified for this class. For the four classes of mass transit systems for which state aid amounts are specified, the bill does the following to the total amount limits:
1. For mass transit systems having annual operating expenses of $80,000,000 or more, the bill maintains the current limit of $65,477,800 in calendar year 2023 and increases the limit to $68,096,900 in calendar year 2024 and $70,820,800 in calendar year 2025 and thereafter.
2. For mass transit systems having annual operating expenses of over $20,000,000 but less than $80,000,000, the bill maintains the current limit of $17,205,400 in calendar year 2023 and increases the limit to $17,893,600 in calendar year 2024 and $18,609,400 in calendar year 2025 and thereafter.
3. For the two classes of mass transit systems having annual operating expenses of no more than $20,000,000, the bill does not make changes to the current limits.
Transit capital assistance grants
The bill requires DOT to establish a transit capital assistance grant program, under which DOT awards grants to eligible applicants for the replacement of public transit vehicles.
Transportation facilities revenue obligation repayment fund
Under current law, the Building Commission may issue revenue bonds for major highway projects and transportation administrative facilities. DOT may deposit in special trust funds certain revenues pledged for the repayment of these revenue bonds. Moneys pledged in excess of the amount needed for repayment of the bonds are transferred to the transportation fund, free of any pledge.
