2023 WISCONSIN ACT 40
An Act to repeal 77.70 (2) (b) 2., 77.705, 77.707 (1), 77.76 (6), 229.64 (2), 229.65 (7), 229.66 (2) (c), 229.68 (11), 229.68 (15) and 229.682 (3); to renumber 77.707 (2); to renumber and amend 77.70 (2) (b) 1. and 229.64 (1); to amend 16.58 (3), 77.54 (41), 77.70 (2) (a), 77.707 (1), 77.71 (intro.), (1), (2), (3), (4) and (5), 79.037 (2) (intro.), 79.037 (3), 229.65 (1), 229.66 (2) (a), 229.66 (2) (b), 229.66 (2) (g), 229.66 (4), 229.67, 229.68 (intro.), 229.68 (4) (b), 229.68 (4) (d), 229.68 (7), 229.68 (9), 229.68 (12), 229.68 (13), 229.68 (16) (intro.), 229.68 (16) (a), 229.682 (1), 229.682 (4), 229.682 (7), 229.685 (1), 229.69 (4), 229.71, 229.75 (3), 229.76 and 341.14 (6r) (b) 13. b.; to repeal and recreate 229.66 (3); and to create 13.94 (1) (z), 13.94 (1s) (c) 10., 16.09, 25.17 (1) (es), 59.90 (7), 77.54 (9a) (gm), 77.70 (2) (b) 1m. to 3m., 79.037 (4), 229.65 (6m), 229.66 (2) (bm), 229.66 (2) (cm), 229.66 (2) (gm), 229.68 (8) (d), 229.68 (8m), 229.6802, 229.6805, 229.682 (9), 229.682 (10), 229.682 (11), 229.682 (12), 229.685 (3), 229.687, 229.695, 229.80 and 229.805 of the statutes; relating to: baseball park district administration, funding for improvement of professional baseball park facilities, use of the Milwaukee County sales tax, expiration of the Milwaukee County sales tax, and Milwaukee County pension obligation bonds.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
40,1Section 1. 13.94 (1) (z) of the statutes is created to read: 13.94 (1) (z) After the end of each fiscal biennium, concluding with the 2049-51 fiscal biennium, conduct a financial audit of a local professional baseball park district created under subch. III of ch. 229. The legislative audit bureau shall file a copy of each audit report under this paragraph with the distributees specified in par. (b).
40,2Section 2. 13.94 (1s) (c) 10. of the statutes is created to read: 13.94 (1s) (c) 10. A local professional baseball park district created under subch. III of ch. 229 for the cost of the audit required to be performed under sub. (1) (z).
40,3Section 3. 16.09 of the statutes is created to read: 16.09 Grant to a local professional baseball park district; short-term loans. (1) Public purpose. The legislature finds and determines that baseball park facilities encourage economic development and tourism in this state, reduce unemployment in this state, preserve business activities within this state, generate additional tax revenues that would not exist without the baseball park facilities, and bring needed capital into this state for the benefit and welfare of people throughout the state. It is therefore in the public interest and serves a statewide public purpose, and it is the public policy of this state, to assist a local professional baseball park district created under subch. III of ch. 229 in the development, construction, improvement, repair, and maintenance of baseball park facilities.
(2) Definitions. In this section:
(a) “Baseball park facilities” has the meaning given in s. 229.65 (1).
(b) “District” has the meaning given in s. 229.65 (5).
(c) “Gap payment” means payment of the amount specified in sub. (3) (a), which is intended to substantially equal the total estimated taxes imposed under ch. 71 in calendar years 2021, 2022, and 2023 on the payroll of the professional baseball team and of visiting professional baseball franchises using the professional baseball park facilities.
(d) “Professional baseball team” has the meaning given in s. 229.65 (6m).
(3) Grant. Subject to sub. (4), the department shall award a grant to a district to assist in the development, construction, improvement, repair, and maintenance of baseball park facilities. The grant shall consist of the following:
(a) The gap payment of $35,800,000 upon execution of the lease and nonrelocation agreements satisfying s. 229.6802.
(b) The payment of $25,000,000 upon execution of the lease and nonrelocation agreements satisfying s. 229.6802. The district shall maintain the moneys paid under this paragraph in a separate account in the baseball park facilities improvement segregated fund established under s. 229.687 and may expend the moneys only for the purpose of winterizing the baseball park facilities.
(c) Twenty consecutive annual payments beginning in 2024, subject to the following:
1. The initial payment in 2024 shall equal $13,400,000.
2. Except as provided in subd. 3., the amount of each subsequent annual payment shall increase from the initial payment at the rate of 4 percent per year compounded annually.
3. No annual payment may exceed $20,000,000, and beginning on July 1, 2041, no annual payment may exceed $10,000,000.
4. No annual payment may be made after expiration or termination of the lease specified in s. 229.6802 (1).
5. Beginning with the 20th annual payment and working backward, the annual payments scheduled to be made under this paragraph shall be reduced by an amount equal to the amount certified under s. 229.682 (12) (d).
6. The department shall notify the district when it determines that the current annual payment will be the final annual payment under this subsection.
(4) Contract requirements. The department may not award a grant under sub. (3) unless s. 229.6802 has been satisfied.
(5) Loans to a local professional baseball park district. (a) Upon a majority vote of all current members appointed to the board of a district and eligible to vote on the matter, the department shall issue loans to the district in the amount approved by the board no later than 10 days after receipt of the board’s request for the loan. The department may not issue more than a total of $35,000,000 in loans under this paragraph.
(am) The district shall maintain all proceeds from loans issued under this subsection in a separate account in the baseball park facilities improvement segregated fund established under s. 229.687 and may expend the loan proceeds only for major capital repairs, retractable roof maintenance and repairs, and necessary improvements to the baseball park facilities.
(b) Interest on each loan issued under par. (a) shall accrue monthly at a rate equal to the state investment fund earnings rate during the immediately preceding month, as certified by the secretary.
(c) The district shall pay all interest accruing on each loan issued under par. (a) on a quarterly basis to the secretary for deposit in the general fund. The outstanding balance of each loan issued under par. (a) shall be paid no later than 15 years after the date of issuance or upon expiration or termination of the lease specified in s. 229.6802 (1), whichever is earlier.
(d) At least quarterly, the department shall submit a report to the joint committee on finance specifying the outstanding principal and interest owed by the district on each loan issued under par. (a).
(e) The department may not issue a loan under this subsection after December 31, 2045.
40,4Section 4. 16.58 (3) of the statutes is amended to read: 16.58 (3) The department may provide financial consulting services to a local exposition district created under subch. II of ch. 229 or a local professional baseball park district created under subch. III of ch. 229.
40,5Section 5. 25.17 (1) (es) of the statutes is created to read: 25.17 (1) (es) Funds of a local professional baseball park district created under subch. III of ch. 229 (s. 229.68 (9)), but subject to the terms of the contract under s. 229.68 (9);
40,6Section 6. 59.90 (7) of the statutes is created to read: 59.90 (7) Repayment of pension bonds. Not later than December 31, 2030, the county shall retire its pension bond obligations and any debt incurred to refund its pension bond obligations.
40,7Section 7. 77.54 (9a) (gm) of the statutes is created to read: 77.54 (9a) (gm) A local professional baseball park district under subch. III of ch. 229.
40,8Section 8. 77.54 (41) of the statutes is amended to read: 77.54 (41) The sales price from the sale of building materials, supplies and equipment to; and the storage, use or other consumption of those kinds of property by; owners, contractors, subcontractors or builders if that property is acquired solely for or used solely in, the construction, improvement, renovation, repair, maintenance, or development of property that would be exempt under s. 70.11 (36).
40,9Section 9. 77.70 (2) (a) of the statutes, as created by 2023 Wisconsin Act 12, is amended to read: 77.70 (2) (a) In addition to the taxes imposed under sub. (1), a county in which a 1st class city is located may adopt an ordinance, by a two-thirds majority vote of all members elect of the county board, to impose sales and use taxes under this subchapter at the rate of 0.4 percent of the sales price or purchase price. An ordinance adopted under this subsection shall be effective on January 1, April 1, July 1, or October 1 and the taxes shall be imposed only in their entirety as provided in this subchapter. A certified copy of the ordinance shall be delivered to the secretary of revenue at least 120 days prior to its effective date. No county may impose a tax under this subsection unless the county makes an election to join the Wisconsin Retirement System for all new employees, pursuant to s. 40.21 (7) (a), and the county contributes the amount calculated under s. 59.875 (4) to its retirement system’s unfunded actuarial accrued liability from the taxes imposed under this subsection in 2025 and in each year thereafter until the first year in which the retirement system is determined by the retirement system’s actuary to be fully funded. After the retirement system is first fully funded, or until 30 years have elapsed since the effective date of the tax December 31, 2050, whichever is earlier, the actuary shall determine all future required contributions from the county on the basis of standard actuarial practices, and the county shall repeal the ordinance imposing the tax. A certified copy of that ordinance shall be delivered to the secretary of revenue at least 120 days prior to its effective date. The repeal of any such ordinance shall be effective on December 31. A certified copy of a repeal ordinance shall be delivered to the secretary of revenue at least 120 days before the effective date of the repeal. Except as provided under s. 77.60 (9), the department of revenue may not issue any assessment or act on any claim for a refund or any claim for an adjustment under s. 77.585 after the end of the calendar year that is 4 years after the year in which the county has enacted a repeal ordinance under this subsection.
40,10Section 10. 77.70 (2) (b) 1. of the statutes, as created by 2023 Wisconsin Act 12, is renumbered 77.70 (2) (b) (intro.) and amended to read: 77.70 (2) (b) (intro.) Annually, after making the required payment to its retirement system’s unfunded actuarial accrued liability under par. (a), the county shall make the required payment for its pension bond obligations from use the remaining revenues received under this subsection. for any of the following:
40,11Section 11. 77.70 (2) (b) 1m. to 3m. of the statutes are created to read: 77.70 (2) (b) 1m. Payments for its pension bond obligations.
2m. Additional payments for its retirement system’s unfunded actuarial accrued liability.
3m. Payments for its employer contribution to a retirement system established under chapter 201, laws of 1937.
40,12Section 12. 77.70 (2) (b) 2. of the statutes, as created by 2023 Wisconsin Act 12, is repealed. 40,13Section 13. 77.705 of the statutes, as affected by 2023 Wisconsin Act 19, is repealed. 40,14Section 14. 77.707 (1) of the statutes is amended to read: 77.707 (1) Retailers and the department of revenue may not collect a tax under s. 77.705, 2021 stats., for any local professional baseball park district created under subch. III of ch. 229 after the last day of the fiscal quarter in which the local professional baseball park district board makes a certification to the department of revenue under s. 229.685 (2), 2021 stats., or after August 31, 2020, whichever is earlier, except that the department of revenue may collect from retailers taxes that accrued before the termination date and fees, interest and penalties that relate to those taxes. Except as provided under s. 77.60 (9), the department of revenue may not issue any assessment nor act on any claim for a refund or any claim for an adjustment under s. 77.585 after the end of the calendar year that is 4 years after the year in which a local professional baseball park district tax has terminated. The department of revenue shall estimate the amount of the refunds, including interest, that the department may need to pay during that 4-year period and retain that amount from the taxes collected for the district after the termination date. Any amount that remains after the payment of refunds shall be distributed to the counties based on the population of each county that is part of the district.
40,15Section 15. 77.707 (1) of the statutes, as affected by 2023 Wisconsin Act .... (this act), is repealed. 40,16Section 16. 77.707 (2) of the statutes is renumbered 77.707. 40,17Section 17. 77.71 (intro.), (1), (2), (3), (4) and (5) of the statutes, as affected by 2023 Wisconsin Act 12, are amended to read: 77.71 Imposition of county, municipality, and special district sales and use taxes. (intro.) Whenever a sales and use tax ordinance is adopted under s. 77.70 or 77.701 or a special district resolution is adopted under s. 77.705 or 77.706, the following taxes are imposed:
(1) For the privilege of selling, licensing, leasing, or renting tangible personal property and the items, property, and goods specified under s. 77.52 (1) (b), (c), and (d), and for the privilege of selling, licensing, performing, or furnishing services a sales tax is imposed upon retailers at the rates under s. 77.70 in the case of a county tax, at the rate under s. 77.701 in the case of a municipality tax, or at the rate under s. 77.705 or 77.706 in the case of a special district tax of the sales price from the sale, license, lease, or rental of tangible personal property and the items, property, and goods specified under s. 77.52 (1) (b), (c), and (d), except property taxed under sub. (4), sold, licensed, leased, or rented at retail in the county, municipality, or special district, or from selling, licensing, performing, or furnishing services described under s. 77.52 (2) in the county, municipality, or special district.
