July 26, 2021 | Number 30
|
|
League Testifies against Bill Limiting Municipal Raze Powers
Last week, Toni Herkert, the League's Government Affairs Director testified against SB 434, a bill limiting the authority of a municipality to order the razing of certain insured dwellings. Manitowoc Assistant City Attorney Elizabeth Majerus joined Toni in testifying before the Senate Committee on Insurance during a marathon 7-hour public hearing. Staff from the City of Milwaukee and City of Racine also testified against the bill, which is sought by the Wisconsin Insurance Alliance and individual insurance companies.
Read the League's memo opposing SB 434 here.
PFAS Rulemaking Updates
We have seen a flurry of action in the DNR's rulemaking efforts on PFOA and PFOS recently. Below is a summary of pertinent municipal PFAS action.
NR 809 - Sets new drinking water maximum contaminant levels for PFAs including PFOS and PFOA.
Status: Rulemaking on DG-24-19, (SS 089-19) is open until March 3, 2022. The comment period on the draft Economic Impact Analysis is open and the Department of Natural Resources will accept written comments on the EIA until July 31, 2021. The League will be submitting comments on this rule revision.
Comments may be submitted electronically to: DNRNR809Comments@wisconsin.gov
or may be mailed to: Adam D DeWeese – DG/5, Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources, P.O. Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707.
NR 809 is also open under another rulemaking order, DG-31-20, (SS 030-21), until September 15, 2023. Under this permanent rulemaking, DNR is establishing drinking water MCLs for 12 additional PFAS substances and combined standards for 4 PFAS. The Natural Resources Board approved this scope statement on June 23, 2021. Read the League's comments on the Scope Statement here.
NR 140 - Sets numerical standards to minimize the concentration of polluting substances in groundwater.
Status: Rulemaking on DG-15-19 (SS 090-19) is open until March 3, 2022. The League submitted written comments on the NR 140 EIA during the public comment period.
NR 105, 106, and 219 - Establishes surface water quality criteria and analytical methods for PFOS and PFOA and procedures in the WPDES permitting program.
Status: The rulemaking for surface water revisions is WY-23-19 and is open until March 3, 2022. (SS 091-19). The Environmental Impact Analysis is currently out for public comment. The comment period runs until August 18, 2021 and the League will be providing comments to the department before the deadline.
Update on Wetland Mitigation Rule and General Permits for filling Small Wetlands
NR 350 - This spring, DNR announced its first major overhaul in nearly 20 years of the rule governing wetland mitigation, NR 350. Wetland mitigation is the requirement to build replacement wetlands or purchase wetland credits when wetlands are impacted by a project. For municipalities this can be anything from road and pipeline projects to industrial park development. Wetland mitigation can be an expensive and time consuming process, so it is important to have a rule that clearly defines the amount, type and process for wetland mitigation.
The League representative on the Wetland Study Council, attorney Paul Kent, provided key input on a number of critical issues, including the following:
- Clarifying the relationship between state and federal wetland mitigation approvals and specifying the time frames for mitigation decisions
- Ensuring that “on–site” mitigation was not precluded by clarifying the wetland mitigation sequencing process. For some municipal projects on-site mitigation is the most cost-effective option. The sequencing process was partially defined by statute and it was critical to ensure the flexibility in the statute was preserved by the rule
- Clarifying the amount of mitigation required and mitigation ratios for mitigation banks and the “in lieu fee” program
- Reducing the default amount of time required for monitoring of wetland mitigation projects
- Ensuring that wetland mitigation banks could release credits prior to project completing in accordance with statutory changes. This is critical to encourage bank development given the lengthy time and expense of wetland bank projects.
The rule, linked above, was adopted by the Natural Resources Board in June and will take effect upon completion of legislative review.
General Permit 11 - Wetland General Permit to Discharge Dredged or Fill material into a Wetland of the State for Municipal Development.
The wetland law requires permits for filling wetlands. For minor or routine activities there is a general permit (GP). These are easier to obtain, cost less, and do not require wetland mitigation. There had been several GPs that could apply to municipal projects, particularly GP 11, but the terms of the permit were very restrictive so this GP was of limited use. As revisions to GP 11 were being considered, the League weighed in on several points. Among the more significant issues were the following:
- The inclusion of a clarifying statement that the applicant for the GP may be a municipal stormwater or sanitary sewer utility. The term utility had generally been limited to utilities regulated by the Public Service Commission that did not include stormwater or sanitary sewer.
- A provision for temporary placement or discharge of fill material onto not more than 2 acres of wetlands. This is critical especially for pipeline projects which require temporary placement of pipe or equipment.
- A provision for maintenance of stormwater treatment features under this GP for stormwater features that are not “directly connected” to navigable waterways and where wetland conversion for stormwater management occurred prior to August 1, 1991. “Directly connected” under this GP means contiguous surface water discharge from a stormwater treatment feature to a navigable waterway during non-storm events (e.g. online pond). While it would have been preferable to eliminate this restriction on maintenance for stormwater features “connected” to navigable waterways, we were successful in limiting the scope of this restriction.
General Permit 11 was reauthorized with the above League comments on June 1, 2021 and remains effective until May 31, 2021.
DOR Seeks Municipal Feedback on Draft Uniform Municipal Room Tax Return
2021 Wisconsin Act 55, which the league lobbied in support, requires DOR to prepare a uniform local municipal room tax return that online marketplace providers, such as Airbnb, must use when distributing room taxes to municipalities. Effective October 1, 2021, when short-term lodging is sold/furnished in a municipality that imposes a room tax, the marketplace provider must collect the tax and forward it to the municipality along with the form prepared by DOR.
DOR's goal is to finalize the form and make it available on its website in early August.
|
|
RECENTLY INTRODUCED LEGISLATION
|
|
SB 456, Local Regulation of Pesticides. This bill allows a political subdivision to regulate pesticides for the purpose of protecting pollinators and pollinator habitats. Current law prohibits a political subdivision (a city, village, town, or county) from prohibiting the use of or otherwise regulating pesticides, but provides numerous exemptions. By Senator Agard (D-Madison) and Representative Snodgrass (D-Appleton). The League supports this bill.
SB 468, Changing the Phase-Out of Utility Aid Payments for Decommissioned Power Plants. This bill provides that if a power production plant that is exempt from property taxes is decommissioned, and therefore becomes taxable, the county and municipality where the plant is located will receive a utility aid payment for the first 10 years (current law is 5 years) in which the plant is subject to the property tax in an amount equal to a percentage of the utility aid payment that the county or municipality received for the last year in which the plant was exempt. The bill also provides that, with regard to a power production plant that has multiple power generation units, the utility aid payment received by a county or municipality will not be reduced until all of the power generation units are no longer generating electricity. By Senator Cowles (R-Green Bay) and Representative Oldenburg (R-Viroqua). The League supports this bill.
|
|
PUBLIC HEARINGS THIS WEEK
|
|
AB 292, Composition of Local Health Boards. By the Assembly Committee on Health on Thursday, July 29th at 9:00 am in room 412 East, State Capitol. The League supports this bill.
AB 296, Funding for Free and Charitable Clinics and Defining Telehealth. By the Assembly Committee on Health on Thursday, July 29th at 9:00 am in room 412 East, State Capitol. The League supports this bill.
|
|
IN THE NEWS
(Paywalls may apply)
|
|
Officials: Court decision bolsters dark store fight: State judges shoot down appeal by big box store Read the article. Click here to like, comment or share this story on the League's Facebook page.
Proposed agreement with opioid distributors would direct $400 million to Wisconsin Read the article.
Wisconsin employers are offering more perks, better pay and hefty signing bonuses to attract workers in a 'buyer's market' Read the article.
'It's going to be a bad fall,' Prevea CEO says as he urges the unvaccinated to get shots now before it's too late Read the article.
Throwing Shade: How Cities Are Using Trees As 'Green Infrastructure' To Beat The Heat Read the article.
Sauk County receives funding, progresses with Baraboo historic depot restoration Read the article.
Kenosha Innovation Neighborhood project awarded $4.9 million in federal stimulus funds for infrastructure Read the article.
|
|
League's next Member Roundtable via Zoom
August 10, 2021, 12:00-1:00
__________
Chief Executives Summer Workshop
August 19 & 20, 2021 – Hotel Retlaw, Fond du Lac
Please thank our sponsor! MPIC
2021 Municipal Attorneys Institute
Monday -Wednesday!
August 30 – September 1, 2021
Osthoff Resort, Elkhart Lake
Please thank our sponsors!
Local Government 101
For New & Experienced Local Officials and Staff
Sept. 10 in Waupaca in person (capped at 65)
Please thank our sponsors!
2021 Plumbing Inspectors Institute
September 15-17, 2021 Eau Claire
Hotel Lismore
Municipal Assessors Institute 2021
Sept 28-30, 2021 in Oshkosh
Best Western Premier Waterfront Hotel & Convention Center
Building Inspectors Institute
October 6-8, 2021
Lismore Hotel, Eau Claire
Police & Fire Commission Workshop
November 3, 2021 in Wisconsin Dells
Wilderness Resort, Glacier Canyon Conference Center
The League's 123rd Annual Conference
Room Block at the Conference Hotel is NOW OPEN!
Pre-conference Webinars October 12-14 Via Zoom
Annual Conference October 20-22
K-I Center, Green Bay
|
|
Email questions or comments to:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|