349.13(3m)(dr) (dr)

349.13(3m)(dr)1. 1. A towing service may not remove a vehicle under this subsection if the vehicle has been reported to a law enforcement agency as stolen.

349.13(3m)(dr)2. 2. A towing service may not collect any charges for the removal or storage of an illegally parked vehicle under this subsection, or a vehicle removed under par. (bm), unless the towing service made a good faith effort to comply with par. (d) 2. with respect to the vehicle. A towing service operating in a 1st class city may not collect any charges for the removal or storage of an illegally parked vehicle under this subsection, or a vehicle removed under par. (bm), if the towing service has not complied with par. (d) 2. with respect to the vehicle.

349.13(3m)(e) (e) The department shall promulgate rules establishing all of the following:

349.13(3m)(e)1. 1. Reasonable charges for removal and storage of vehicles under this subsection when no citation has been issued.

349.13(3m)(e)2. 2. The form and manner of display of notice necessary to qualify as “properly posted” under par. (a) 2.

349.13(3m)(e)3. 3. Guidelines for towing services to notify law enforcement under par. (d) upon removal of a vehicle when no citation has been issued.

349.13 Cross-reference Cross-reference: See also ch. Trans 319, Wis. adm. code.

349.13(4) (4) In counties having a population of 750,000 or more whenever any traffic officer finds a vehicle disabled so as to cause a hazard on any portion of the interstate system, limited access highway or any expressway, even though it may be impossible for the operator to avoid stopping or temporarily leaving the vehicle thereon, the county may remove such vehicle to a position where parking is permitted or to either private or public parking or storage premises. The removal may be performed by such officer or under the officer’s direction or such removal may be contracted for by such counties and any charges shall be regulated by ordinance. The operator or owner of the vehicle removed shall pay a reasonable charge for moving or towing or any storage involved based upon said ordinance.

349.13(5) (5) 

349.13(5)(a) (a) No person who removes or stores a vehicle under subs. (3) to (4) or otherwise at the request of a law enforcement officer, and no person who removes or stores a disabled vehicle, accident debris or other object that obstructs the roadway of a freeway or expressway, as defined in s. 346.57 (1) (ag), may incur any civil liability for the act, except for civil liability for failure to exercise reasonable care in the performance of the act or for conduct that is willful, wanton or malicious.

349.13(5)(b) (b)

349.13(5)(b)1. 1. As used in this paragraph:

349.13(5)(b)1.a. a. “Personal property” means all property within the vehicle which is not mounted, attached or affixed to the vehicle.

349.13(5)(b)1.b. b. “Proper identification” means identification which would be sufficient to establish ownership to release the vehicle.

349.13(5)(b)2. 2. A person who has custody of a vehicle removed or stored under subs. (3) to (4) or otherwise at the request of a law enforcement officer, traffic officer, parking enforcer, property owner or property owner’s agent, or operator, as defined in s. 704.90 (1) (d), shall release the personal property within the vehicle to the owner of the vehicle during regular office hours upon presentation by the owner of proper identification.

349.13(5)(b)3. 3. No charge may be assessed against the owner for the removal or release of the personal property.

349.13(5)(b)4. 4. If the owner removes the personal property from a motor vehicle under this paragraph, the vehicle shall be deemed abandoned unless the person enters into a written agreement to pay the full charges for towing and storage. The owner shall be informed of this subdivision by the person who has custody of the vehicle before the property is released. A vehicle deemed abandoned under this subdivision may be disposed of as are other abandoned vehicles by the local authority.

349.13(5)(b)5. 5. The personal property is subject to forfeiture under ss. 961.55 to 961.56 and 973.075 to 973.077.

349.13(5)(c) (c) A traffic or police officer or parking enforcer who requests removal of a vehicle under subs. (3) to (4) by a towing service shall, within 24 hours of requesting the removal, notify the towing service of the name and last-known address of the registered owner and all lienholders of record of the vehicle if the vehicle is to be removed to any location other than a public highway within one mile from the location from which the vehicle is to be removed and if the officer or parking enforcer is not employed by a municipality or county that has entered into a towing services agreement which requires the municipality or county to provide notice to such owner and lienholders of the towing.

349.13(6) (6) Notwithstanding s. 346.54 (1) (e), the governing body of any municipality may, by ordinance, consider mopeds as motorcycles rather than bicycles for the purpose of parking, may establish parking areas for mopeds only marked by appropriate signs, and may regulate the parking of mopeds.

349.13 History History: 1973 c. 248; 1975 c. 299; 1977 c. 29 ss. 1654 (3), (8) (a), 1656 (43); 1977 c. 116, 272, 418; 1979 c. 34, 59, 231, 276, 325; 1981 c. 227; 1981 c. 255 ss. 10, 11, 13; 1983 a. 77 s. 15; 1983 a. 213; 1985 a. 29; 1985 a. 87 s. 5; 1989 a. 304; 1991 a. 269, 316; 1993 a. 246; 1995 a. 448; 1997 a. 27, 159, 258; 1999 a. 85; 2003 a. 142; 2005 a. 326; 2009 a. 246; 2011 a. 73; 2013 a. 76, 326, 327, 359; 2015 a. 60, 73, 124, 176, 195; 2017 a. 207 s. 5; 2017 a. 325; 2019 a. 50; 2021 a. 238 s. 45.

349.13 Annotation Legislative Council Note, 1977: The last 2 sentences of sub. (1) are eliminated as unnecessary. These sentences contain explanations of what is meant by a sign which indicates that stopping or standing is prohibited and what is meant by a sign prohibiting parking. Although these explanations attempt to explain the conduct required of motorists by these signs, they do not define the key terms, “park or parking” and “stand or standing”. In place of these explanations, definitions of the terms “park or parking” and “stand or standing” are created in s. 340.01 (42m) and (59m) in this bill. “Stop” is presently defined in s. 340.01 (62). [Bill 465-A]

349.13 Annotation It is not a violation of due process to tow an illegally parked car without first giving the owner notice and the opportunity to be heard regarding the lawfulness of towing the car. Sutton v. City of Milwaukee, 672 F.2d 644 (1982).

349.132 349.132 Authority to require vehicle registration. The governing body of any town, city, village, or county may enact an ordinance requiring that no vehicle that has been impounded or towed may be released unless the motor vehicle is registered under ch. 341 or exempt from registration under s. 341.05.

349.132 History History: 2015 a. 60.

349.135 349.135 Authority to regulate radios or other electric sound amplification devices.

349.135(1) (1) Notwithstanding s. 346.94 (16), the governing body of any town, city, village or county may, by ordinance, provide that, except as provided in s. 347.38 (1), no person may operate or park, stop or leave standing a motor vehicle while using a radio or other electric sound amplification device emitting sound from the vehicle that is clearly audible under normal conditions from a distance of 50 or more feet, unless the electric sound amplification device is being used to request assistance or warn against an unsafe condition. The ordinance may provide that any person violating the ordinance may be required to forfeit not less than $40 nor more than $80 for the first violation and not less than $100 nor more than $200 for the 2nd or subsequent violation within a year.

349.135(2) (2) Any ordinance enacted under sub. (1) may not apply to any of the following: