Publications

The owner of a motor vehicle that is customarily kept in one of seven southeastern Wisconsin counties must comply with a vehicle emission inspection and maintenance program operated by the Department of Transportation. The program operates pursuant to state law that implements the federal Clean Air Act, a comprehensive law regulating outdoor air pollutants. The program operates in counties experiencing air quality that does not meet a federal standard for ground-level ozone. This issue brief provides an overview of relevant federal and state law and of the inspection and maintenance program.

Numerous and unpredictable market factors influence the agricultural economy. These factors include consumer preferences, the setting of federal trade and export policies, and the cost of agricultural inputs such as fuel and fertilizer. To support the success of Wisconsin’s agricultural producers in the face of such uncertainties, the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection administers several marketing assistance programs. This issue brief highlights a few of these programs.

Surface water quality is regulated primarily under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA). Although the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency develops national criteria for certain pollutants and retains an oversight role, the state Department of Natural Resources exercises “delegated authority” to implement many CWA requirements.

This information memorandum provides an overview of the statutory requirements applicable to the University of Wisconsin (UW) System set forth in ch. 36, Stats. Chapter 36, Stats., grants broad authority and responsibility to the UW Board of Regents (BOR) to operate the UW System. In addition, ch. 36, Stats., contains provisions relating to faculty and student governance; eligibility for in-state tuition; faculty and academic staff layoffs and termination; numerous special programs that the UW System must offer; and tuition remission programs. This information memorandum also references certain BOR policies and administrative rules where added detail is relevant.

The governmental immunity statute confers immunity for intentional torts and discretionary acts on units of government and their officers. Section 893.80, Stats., sets forth the general principles of governmental immunity in Wisconsin, including notice requirements, immunity for intentional and discretionary acts, and limits on damages. This information memorandum describes the historical development of the immunity defense and discusses current law on governmental immunity in Wisconsin, including exceptions to immunity established in case law.

Wisconsin legislators, along with members of the U.S. Congress and state legislators across the country, routinely request information from administrative agencies on behalf of their constituents. This representational activity, commonly referred to as “casework,” is rooted in a citizen’s constitutional right to petition government. Each legislator determines the scope of casework he or she will provide as a service to help constituents deal with administrative agencies by acting as “facilitators, ombudsmen, and in some cases advocates.”

The Wisconsin Consumer Act (WCA) is set forth in chapters 421 through 427 of the Wisconsin Statutes. Enacted in 1971, the stated purpose of the WCA is to simplify and clarify the laws governing consumer transactions, protect consumers against unfair merchant practices, encourage the development of fair consumer practices, and coordinate state and federal regulations. This issue brief describes the kinds of transactions regulated by the WCA and then briefly summarizes the remaining chapters.

While agencies typically promulgate permanent rules, an agency may temporarily adopt a rule as an emergency rule if the agency determines that the preservation of public peace, health, safety, or welfare necessitates placing a rule into effect prior to the time it could take effect as a permanent rule. As with permanent rules, the Legislature maintains an oversight role with respect to emergency rules, primarily through the statutory powers granted to the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules. This issue brief summarizes the emergency rulemaking process and the mechanisms for legislative oversight of emergency rules.