Chapter 74

74.25(1)(a)7. 7. Retain for the taxation district all collections of occupational taxes on grain storage and petroleum and petroleum products and 70 percent of collections of occupational taxes on iron ore concentrates and coal docks.

74.25(1)(a)8. 8. Retain for the taxation district 80 percent of collections of the taxes imposed under ss. 77.04 and 77.84 (2) (a) and (am).

74.25(1)(b) (b) General property taxes. After making the distribution under par. (a), the taxation district treasurer shall do all of the following:

74.25(1)(b)1. 1. Except as provided in subd. 3., pay in full to each taxing jurisdiction within the district all personal property taxes included in the tax roll which have not previously been paid to, or retained by, that taxing jurisdiction, except that the treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall allocate to each tax incremental district within the taxation district and each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the taxation district its proportionate share of personal property taxes. The taxation district treasurer shall also distribute to the county the proportionate share of personal property taxes for each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the county.

74.25(1)(b)2. 2. Pay to each taxing jurisdiction within the district its proportionate share of real property taxes, except that the treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall retain for the taxation district and for each tax incremental district within the taxation district and each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the taxation district its proportionate share of real property taxes. The taxation district treasurer shall also distribute to the county the proportionate share of real property taxes for each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the county.

74.25(1)(b)3. 3. Pay to each taxing jurisdiction within the district its proportionate share of taxes on improvements on leased land, except that the treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county and except the taxation district may pay in full all taxes on improvements on leased land, as provided with subd. 1. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall allocate to each tax incremental district within the taxation district its proportionate share of taxes on improvements on leased land.

74.25(2) (2) Approval of payment not required. The taxation district treasurer shall make payments required under sub. (1) whether or not the governing body of the taxation district has approved those payments. Following a payment required under sub. (1), the taxation district treasurer shall prepare and transmit a voucher for such payment to the governing body of the taxation district.

74.25(3) (3) Return of tax roll. After completing the settlement procedures required under sub. (1), the taxation district treasurer shall transfer the tax roll to the county treasurer as provided under s. 74.43 (1).

74.25(4) (4) Amounts not timely received forwarded to county treasurer. The taxation district treasurer shall forward to the county treasurer all real property taxes, special assessments, special charges and special taxes received which were not settled for or retained for the taxation district.

74.25 History History: 1987 a. 378; 1989 a. 56, 104; 1991 a. 39; 2001 a. 16; 2003 a. 33, 228; 2005 a. 241, 418; 2007 a. 97; 2009 a. 171; 2013 a. 54, 81; 2015 a. 191, 216, 358.

74.27 74.27 March settlement between counties and the state. On or before March 15, the county treasurer shall send to the secretary of administration the state’s proportionate shares of taxes under ss. 74.23 (1) (b) and 74.25 (1) (b) 1. and 2.

74.27 History History: 1991 a. 39; 2003 a. 33.

74.29 74.29 August settlement.

74.29(1) (1) On or before August 20, the county treasurer shall pay in full to the proper treasurer all real property taxes, including taxes offset by the credit under s. 79.10 (5), and special taxes included in the tax roll which have not previously been paid to, or retained by, the proper treasurer. A county may, by resolution adopted by the county board, direct the county treasurer to pay in full to the proper treasurer all special assessments and special charges included in the tax roll which have not previously been paid to, or retained by, the proper treasurer.

74.29(2) (2) On or before August 20, a taxation district treasurer who has not paid in full all taxes on improvements on leased land under s. 74.25 (1) (b) 1. or under s. 74.30 (1) or (2) shall pay in full to each taxing jurisdiction within the district all taxes on improvements on leased land included in the tax roll which have not previously been paid to, or retained by, the taxing jurisdiction, except that the treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall allocate to each tax incremental district within the taxation district its proportionate share of taxes on improvements on leased land.

74.29 History History: 1987 a. 378; 1991 a. 39, 269; 2005 a. 241.

74.30 74.30 Settlement in certain taxation districts. The treasurer of a taxation district which has enacted an ordinance under s. 74.12 shall settle under this section.

74.30(1) (1) February settlement. On or before February 20, the taxation district treasurer shall do all of the following:

74.30(1)(a) (a) Pay to the county treasurer all collections of special assessments or special charges levied under ch. 88.

74.30(1)(b) (b) Pay to the proper treasurer all collections of special assessments, special charges and special taxes, except that occupational taxes under ss. 70.40 to 70.421 and forest cropland and managed forest land taxes under ch. 77 shall be settled for under pars. (e) to (h).

74.30(1)(c) (c) Retain all collections of special assessments, special charges and special taxes due to the taxation district, except that occupational taxes under ss. 70.40 to 70.421 and forest cropland and managed forest land taxes under ch. 77 shall be settled for under pars. (e) to (h).

74.30(1)(d) (d) Retain all collections of omitted property taxes under s. 70.44, except those subject to sharing under par. (dm).

74.30(1)(dm) (dm) Pay to each taxing jurisdiction within the district its proportionate share of the taxes and interest under s. 70.995 (12) (a) and the taxes under s. 74.315.

74.30(1)(e) (e) Pay to the secretary of administration all collections of occupational taxes on mink farms, 30 percent of collections of occupational taxes on iron ore concentrates, and 10 percent of collections of occupational taxes on coal docks.

74.30(1)(f) (f) Pay to the county treasurer 20 percent of collections of occupational taxes on coal docks, 20 percent of collections of the taxes imposed under ss. 77.04 and 77.84 (2) (a), (am), and (bp), and 20 percent of collections of payments for lands under s. 77.84 (2) (b) and (bm).

74.30(1)(g) (g) Retain for the taxation district all collections of occupational taxes on grain storage and petroleum and petroleum products and 70 percent of collections of occupational taxes on iron ore concentrates and coal docks.

74.30(1)(h) (h) Retain for the taxation district 80 percent of collections of the taxes imposed under ss. 77.04 and 77.84 (2) (a) and (am).

74.30(1)(i) (i) Except as provided in par. (k), pay in full to each taxing jurisdiction within the district all personal property taxes included in the tax roll which have not previously been paid to, or retained by, each taxing jurisdiction, except that the treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall allocate to each tax incremental district within the taxation district and each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the taxation district its proportionate share of personal property taxes. The taxation district treasurer shall also distribute to the county the proportionate share of personal property taxes for each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the county.

74.30(1)(j) (j) Pay to each taxing jurisdiction within the district its proportionate share of real property taxes, except that the treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall retain for the taxation district and for each tax incremental district within the taxation district and each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the taxation district its proportionate share of real property taxes. The taxation district treasurer shall also distribute to the county the proportionate share of real property taxes for each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the county.

74.30(1)(k) (k) Pay to each taxing jurisdiction within the district its proportionate share of taxes on improvements on leased land, except that the treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall allocate to each tax incremental district within the taxation district its proportionate share of taxes on improvements on leased land.

74.30(1m) (1m) March settlement between counties and the state. On or before March 15, the county treasurer shall send to the secretary of administration the state’s proportionate shares of taxes under sub. (1) (i) and (j).

74.30(2) (2) Subsequent settlements. On or before the 15th day of each month following the month in which an installment payment of real property taxes is required by the ordinance, the taxation district treasurer shall do all of the following:

74.30(2)(a) (a) Pay to the proper treasurer all collections of delinquent special assessments, special charges and special taxes not previously settled for, as directed by sub. (1) (a) to (h).

74.30(2)(b) (b) Pay to each taxing jurisdiction within the district its proportionate share of real property taxes collected, except that the taxation district treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county, and the county treasurer shall settle for that share under s. 74.29. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall retain for the taxation district and for each tax incremental district within the taxation district and each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the taxation district its proportionate share of real property taxes. The taxation district treasurer shall also distribute to the county the proportionate share of real property taxes for each environmental remediation tax incremental district created by the county.

74.30(2)(c) (c) Pay to each taxing jurisdiction within the district its proportionate share of taxes on improvements on leased land, except that the treasurer shall pay the state’s proportionate share to the county. As part of that distribution, the taxation district treasurer shall allocate to each tax incremental district within the taxation district its proportionate share of taxes on improvements on leased land.

74.30(3) (3) Approval of payment not required. The taxation district treasurer shall make payments required under subs. (1) and (2) whether or not the governing body of the taxation district has approved those payments. Following a payment required under subs. (1) and (2), the taxation district treasurer shall prepare and transmit a voucher for that payment to the governing body of the taxation district.

74.30 History History: 1987 a. 378; 1991 a. 39; 1995 a. 408; 2001 a. 16; 2003 a. 33, 228; 2005 a. 241, 418; 2007 a. 97; 2009 a. 171; 2013 a. 54, 81; 2013 a. 151 s. 28; 2015 a. 191, 216, 358.

74.31 74.31 Failure to settle timely. If the taxation district treasurer or county treasurer does not settle as required under ss. 74.23 to 74.30:

74.31(1) (1) Interest charge. The taxation district or county which has not settled shall pay 12 percent annual interest on the amount not timely paid to the taxing jurisdiction, including this state, to which money is due, calculated from the date settlement was required.

74.31(2) (2) Penalty. The taxing jurisdiction, including this state, to which money is due may demand, in writing, payment from the taxation district or county which has not settled. If, within 3 days after receipt of a written demand, settlement is not made, the taxation district or county shall pay the taxing jurisdiction, including this state, making the demand a 5 percent penalty on the amount remaining unpaid.

74.31 History History: 1987 a. 387; 1991 a. 39.

74.315 74.315 Omitted property.

74.315(1) (1) Submission. No later than October 1 of each year, the taxation district clerk shall submit to the department of revenue, on a form prescribed by the department, a listing of all the omitted taxes under s. 70.44 to be included on the taxation district’s next tax roll, if the omitted taxes for any single description of property are $250 or more.

74.315(1m) (1m) Amount collected from property in a tax incremental district. A tax may not be included on a form submitted under sub. (1) if the tax was levied on a property within a tax incremental district, as defined in s. 60.85 (1) (n) or 66.1105 (2) (k), unless the current value of the tax incremental district is lower than the tax incremental base, as defined in s. 60.85 (1) (m) or 66.1105 (2) (j), in the assessment year for which the tax was collected.

74.315(2) (2) Amount determined. After receiving the form under sub. (1), but no later than November 15, the department of revenue shall determine the amount of taxes to be shared with each taxing jurisdiction for which the taxation district collected taxes and determine the amount of taxes collected under s. 70.44 to be shared with each taxing jurisdiction for which the taxation district collected taxes. The department’s determination under this subsection is subject to review only under s. 227.53.

74.315(3) (3) Notice and distribution. The department shall notify the taxation district and the taxation district shall distribute the collections under ss. 74.23 (1) (a) 5., 74.25 (1) (a) 4m., and 74.30 (1) (dm) resulting from the determinations made under sub. (2).

74.315 History History: 2009 a. 171; 2021 a. 1.

subch. V of ch. 74 SUBCHAPTER V

ADJUSTMENT

74.33 74.33 Sharing and charging back of taxes due to palpable errors.

74.33(1) (1) Grounds. After the tax roll has been delivered to the treasurer of the taxation district under s. 74.03, the governing body of the taxation district may refund or rescind in whole or in part any general property tax shown in the tax roll, including agreed-upon interest, if:

74.33(1)(a) (a) A clerical error has been made in the description of the property or in the computation of the tax.

74.33(1)(b) (b) The assessment included real property improvements which did not exist on the date under s. 70.10 for making the assessment.

74.33(1)(c) (c) The property is exempt by law from taxation, except as provided under sub. (2).

74.33(1)(d) (d) The property is not located in the taxation district for which the tax roll was prepared.

74.33(1)(e) (e) A double assessment has been made.

74.33(1)(f) (f) An arithmetic, transpositional or similar error has occurred.

74.33(2) (2) Exceptions. The governing body of a taxation district may not refund or rescind any tax under this section if the alleged error may be appealed under s. 70.995 (8) (c) or if the alleged error is solely that the assessor placed a valuation on the property that is excessive.

74.33(3) (3) Charging back and sharing taxes. If an error under sub. (1) has been discovered, the governing body of the taxation district shall proceed under s. 74.41.

74.33 History History: 1987 a. 378; 1991 a. 39; 1993 a. 307; 1995 a. 408.

74.33 Annotation A potential error in classifying a mobile home as real, not personal, property was not a clerical error under sub. (1) (a), nor could it be considered to be the inclusion of a real property improvement that did not exist under sub. (1) (b), as the property did exist. Ahrens v. Town of Fulton, 2000 WI App 268, 240 Wis. 2d 124, 621 N.W.2d 643, 99-2466.

74.33 Annotation Affirmed on other grounds. 2002 WI 29, 251 Wis. 2d 135, 641 N.W.2d 423, 99-2466.

74.35 74.35 Recovery of unlawful taxes.

74.35(1) (1) Definitions. In this section “unlawful tax” means a general property tax with respect to which one or more errors specified in s. 74.33 (1) (a) to (f) were made. “Unlawful tax” does not include a tax in respect to which the alleged defect is solely that the assessor placed a valuation on the property that is excessive.

74.35(2) (2) Claim against taxation district.

74.35(2)(a) (a) A person aggrieved by the levy and collection of an unlawful tax assessed against his or her property may file a claim to recover the unlawful tax against the taxation district which collected the tax.

74.35(2)(b) (b) A claim filed under this section shall meet all of the following conditions:

74.35(2)(b)1. 1. Be in writing.

74.35(2)(b)2. 2. State the alleged circumstances giving rise to the claim, including the basis for the claim as specified in s. 74.33 (1) (a) to (e).

74.35(2)(b)3. 3. State as accurately as possible the amount of the claim.

74.35(2)(b)4. 4. Be signed by the claimant or his or her agent.

74.35(2)(b)5. 5. Be served on the clerk of the taxation district in the manner prescribed in s. 801.11 (4).

74.35(2m) (2m) Exclusive procedure. A claim that property is exempt, other than a claim that property is exempt under s. 70.11 (21) or (27), may be made only in an action under this section. Such a claim may not be made by means of an action under s. 74.33 or an action for a declaratory judgment under s. 806.04.

74.35(3) (3) Action on claim.

74.35(3)(a) (a) In this subsection, to “disallow” a claim means either to deny the claim in whole or in part or to fail to take final action on the claim within 90 days after the claim is filed.

74.35(3)(b) (b) The taxation district shall notify the claimant by certified or registered mail whether the claim is allowed or disallowed within 90 days after the claim is filed.

74.35(3)(c) (c) If the governing body of the taxation district determines that an unlawful tax has been paid and that the claim for recovery of the unlawful tax has complied with all legal requirements, the governing body shall allow the claim. The taxation district treasurer shall pay the claim not later than 90 days after the claim is allowed.

74.35(3)(d) (d) If the taxation district disallows the claim, the claimant may commence an action in circuit court to recover the amount of the claim not allowed. The action shall be commenced within 90 days after the claimant receives notice by certified or registered mail that the claim is disallowed.

74.35(4) (4) Interest. The amount of a claim filed under sub. (2) or an action commenced under sub. (3) may include interest at the average annual discount rate determined by the last auction of 6-month U.S. treasury bills before the date of filing the claim per day for the period between the time when the tax was due and the date that the claim was paid.

74.35(5) (5) Limitations on bringing claims.

74.35(5)(a) (a) Except as provided under par. (b), a claim under this section shall be filed by January 31 of the year in which the tax is payable.

74.35(5)(b) (b) A claim under this section for recovery of taxes paid to the wrong taxation district shall be filed within 2 years after the last date specified for timely payment of the tax under s. 74.11, 74.12 or 74.87.

74.35(5)(c) (c) No claim may be filed or maintained under this section unless the tax for which the claim is filed, or any authorized installment payment of the tax, is timely paid under s. 74.11, 74.12 or 74.87. This paragraph does not apply to taxes due and payable in 2020 if paid by October 1, 2020, or by any installment date for which taxes are due after October 1, 2020, nor to taxes due and payable in 2021 if paid by October 1, 2021, or by any installment date for which taxes are due after October 1, 2021.

74.35(5)(d) (d) No claim may be made under this section based on the contention that the tax was unlawful because the property is exempt from taxation under s. 70.11 (21) or (27).

74.35(6) (6) Compensation for taxation district. If taxes are refunded under sub. (3), the governing body of the taxation district may proceed under s. 74.41.

74.35 History History: 1987 a. 378; 1989 a. 104; 1991 a. 39; 1997 a. 237; 2007 a. 19; 2019 a. 185; 2021 a. 80, 162.

74.35 Annotation This section only authorizes courts to determine whether a taxpayer is exempt from taxes already paid, not taxes that might be assessed in the future. Tax exempt status, once granted, is not automatic. It is subject to continuing review, a notion inconsistent with a declaration that property is exempt from future property taxes. Northwest Wisconsin Community Services Agency, Inc. v. City of Montreal, 2010 WI App 119, 328 Wis. 2d 760, 789 N.W.2d 392, 09-2568.

74.35 Annotation An installment payment is timely within the meaning of sub. (5) (c) if it meets the criteria contained in s. 74.87 (7). An installment payment is not considered timely simply because it is not considered delinquent under s. 74.87 (6). Because the taxpayer in this case failed to timely pay its March installment payment, the taxpayer did not meet the statutory requirements to pursue its claim under this section. WGLB Scholarship in Memory of Joel J. Kinlow, Inc. v. City of Milwaukee, 2021 WI App 43, 398 Wis. 2d 760, 963 N.W.2d 110, 19-2352.

74.35 Annotation Separate installment payments do not give rise to their own separate claims. In other words, a taxpayer is allowed to file and maintain one claim under this section for a given tax assessment. WGLB Scholarship in Memory of Joel J. Kinlow, Inc. v. City of Milwaukee, 2021 WI App 43, 398 Wis. 2d 760, 963 N.W.2d 110, 19-2352.