Signed By Governor: Contaminated Well Remediation, Homelessness Bills, Constitutional Convention, Wetland Mitigation

Gov. Scott Walker signed 55 bills into law this week at the Wisconsin state capitol. The bills will be some of the last signed in 2017, as the legislature held its final floor sessions of the year in early November. The bills included:

Monday, Nov. 27

  • Act 69, allowing local governments to remediate contaminated private wells or failing private wastewater treatment systems or make low-interest loans to contaminated well or failing treatment system owners. The new law also increases the limit of well compensation grants from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to $12,000. (AB 226)
  • Act 71, requiring DNR to use up to $4.5 million under the Warren Knowles-Gaylord Nelson Stewardship 2000 Program to fund critical health and safety-related water infrastructure projects in state parks. (SB 421)
  • Several bills to combat homelessness in Wisconsin.
  • Act 83, determining procedures for appointing delegates for a constitutional convention, under Article V of the U.S. Constitution. The Assembly and Senate have also enrolled resolutions applying to Congress for such a convention.

Thursday, Nov. 30

  • Act 100, legalizing industrial hemp in Wisconsin. (SB 119)
  • Act 108, making various changes to administrative rule review processes, including an expedited procedure for repealing rules, agency review of rules, a biennial report on rules by the Legislative Reference Bureau, and retrospective impact analyses, among other reforms. (AB 317)
  • Act 118, loosening wetland mitigation requirements for permits to public utilities. (AB 497)
  • Act 119, clarifying that if a provider acting within his or her scope of practice, such as a physician assistant or nurse, orders a service covered by Medical Assistance, the order need not be co-signed by a physician. (AB 529)