2019 Assembly BILL 795

January 24, 2020 - Introduced by Representatives Tranel, Kurtz, Tauchen, Krug, Summerfield, Novak, Kitchens, Felzkowski, Shankland, Pope, Hebl, Kulp, Gruszynski, VanderMeer, Anderson, Zimmerman, Considine, Neubauer, Oldenburg, Sargent, Mursau, Ballweg, Doyle, Magnafici, Kolste, Petryk, Plumer, Swearingen, Vining, Stubbs, Subeck, Milroy, Katsma, C. Taylor, Quinn, Spreitzer, Sinicki, Emerson, Zamarripa, Ohnstad, Cabrera, Billings, Vruwink, Born, Ott and Spiros, cosponsored by Senators Cowles, Jacque, Petrowski, Feyen, Olsen, Wanggaard, Wirch and Smith. Referred to Committee on Agriculture.

AB795,1,7 An Act to amend 92.14 (6) (c), 93.59 (2) (a), 93.59 (2) (d), 93.59 (3), 281.68 (1t) (intro.) and 281.68 (3) (a) 1.; and to create 20.115 (4) (f), 20.115 (4) (fm), 20.115 (7) (d), 93.485, 93.65 and 281.68 (1) (ar) of the statutes; relating to: grants and funding for water stewardship certification, a grazing coordinator position, producer-led watershed protection grants, lake protection, soil and water conservation, and crop insurance premium rebates for cover crops; granting rule-making authority; and making an appropriation.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Grazing coordinator

The bill provides funding for one full-time equivalent GPR position in the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection to serve as a coordinator for managed grazing initiatives in this state. The bill provides $64,800 in fiscal year 2019-20 for the position, and $86,400 in fiscal year 2020-21. Under the bill, the new position would convene a stakeholder working group to develop a state grazing plan, serve as the primary point of contact for assistance on effective grazing strategies, identify new technologies and best practices in grazing that are best suited for the state, and leverage federal funding to promote effective grazing practices and assist producers in implementing those practices.

Water stewardship certification

The bill creates a grant program for DATCP to provide grants to reimburse the costs for agricultural producers to apply for a certification of water stewardship from the Alliance for Water Stewardship. The grants must be made to the party that pays those costs and may be made only after the certification is provided. Before awarding a grant, DATCP must enter into a memorandum of understanding with the party that pays the certification costs. The bill requires DATCP, in prioritizing these grant awards, to be guided by an agricultural producer's overall impact to water quality. A grant may reimburse up to 50 percent of costs and may not exceed $10,000. The bill creates a new $250,000 continuing general fund appropriation for this purpose.

Cover crop rebates

The bill authorizes DATCP to cooperate with the Risk Management Agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide rebates in the amount of $5 per acre of a cover crop planted for crop insurance premiums paid for those acres. Under the bill, DATCP determines the cover crops for which crop insurance premium rebates are provided, and a person must plant cover crops before submitting an application to DATCP for a crop insurance premium rebate. Also, under the bill, a crop insurance premium rebate may not be provided for the planting of a cover crop on an acre for which funding for planting a cover crop is available from a producer-led watershed protection grant, the soil and water resource management program, the federal Environmental Quality Incentives Program, or the federal Conservation Stewardship Program. The bill creates a new $200,000 continuing general fund appropriation for this purpose.

Producer-led watershed protection grants

Under current law, DATCP administers a program to provide watershed protection grants to producer-led groups made up of farmers located in one watershed. This bill allows grants under the program to be awarded to producer-led groups that are made up of farmers located in adjacent watersheds. The bill also creates a new $250,000 annual general fund appropriation for the producer-led watershed protection grants.

Lake protection grants

Under current law, DNR provides lake protection grants for monitoring and improving water quality in lakes. Currently, eligible recipients for these grants include nonprofit conservation organizations, counties and municipalities, qualified lake associations, town sanitary districts, qualified school districts, public inland lake protection and rehabilitation districts, and other local governmental units that are established for the purpose of lake management. This bill provides that producer-led groups are eligible to receive lake protection grants provided by DNR. The bill defines “producer-led group” to mean any group that meets the criteria for a producer-led watershed protection grant issued by DATCP.

Soil and water resource conservation grants — allocation plan

Under rules promulgated by DATCP, when DATCP prepares its annual allocation plan for soil and water resource conservation grants to counties, it may consider a county's demonstrated commitment to implementing the county's approved land and water resource management plan. Under the bill, if DATCP considers this factor in preparing the annual allocation plan, it must also take into account any externalities, such as weather, that may have affected the county's ability to implement its management plan.

For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB795,1 Section 1 . 20.005 (3) (schedule) of the statutes: at the appropriate place, insert the following amounts for the purposes indicated: - See PDF for table - See PDF for table - See PDF for table

AB795,2 Section 2 . 20.115 (4) (f) of the statutes is created to read:

AB795,3,6 20.115 (4) (f) Water stewardship certification grants. As a continuing appropriation, the amounts in the schedule for water certification grants under s. 93.485.

AB795,3 Section 3. 20.115 (4) (fm) of the statutes is created to read:

AB795,4,4 20.115 (4) (fm) Crop insurance rebates for planting cover crops. As a continuing appropriation, the amounts in the schedule to make payments under s. 93.65 for crop insurance premium rebates for the planting of cover crops.

AB795,4 Section 4 . 20.115 (7) (d) of the statutes is created to read: