Eligibility for unemployment insurance benefits and payment of extended benefits; excluding recovery and reinvestment act moneys from the calculation of expenditure restraint payments; eligibility for participation in the programs of a community action agency; financial assistance under the Clean Water Fund Program and the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program; the confidentiality of pupil records provided to the Department of Public Instruction; financial assistance for criminal justice programs; authorizing political subdivisions to make residential energy efficiency improvement loans and impose special charges for the loans; definition of low-income household under energy and weatherization assistance programs; eligibility and notice changes for state continuation of coverage for health insurance; changes to enterprise zone jobs credits; providing an exemption from emergency rule procedures; granting rule-making authority; and making an appropriation

Commerce must consider a number of factors related to the area prior to designating the area as an enterprise zone. These factors include the housing values and average wages in the area, whether the area has experienced job losses or a population decline, and whether designation as an enterprise zone would promote the creation of jobs and economic and community development in the area.

This bill eliminates the requirement that the area to be designated as an enterprise zone not exceed 50 acres. The bill requires Commerce to specify whether the enterprise zone is located in a Tier I or Tier II county or municipality. Commerce is directed to define "Tier I county or municipality" and "Tier II county or municipality" by administrative rule. The bill also authorizes Commerce to consider whether designation as an enterprise zone would promote the retention of jobs in the area.

Under current law, a taxpayer who creates jobs in an enterprise zone may claim an income and franchise tax credit equal to 7 percent of the taxpayer's payroll in the enterprise zone that is paid to new full-time employees who earn more than $30,000, but less than $100,000, in annual wages. In addition, the taxpayer may claim a credit equal to the amount the taxpayer paid in the taxable year to provide certain job-related training to the taxpayer's full-time employees in the enterprise zone.

Under this bill, a taxpayer who creates jobs in an enterprise zone located in a Tier I county or municipality may claim an income and franchise tax credit equal to no more than 7 percent of the taxpayer's payroll in the enterprise zone that is paid to new full-time employees who earn more than $20,000, but less than $100,000, in annual wages. A taxpayer who creates jobs in an enterprise zone located in a Tier II county or municipality may claim an income and franchise tax credit equal to no more than 7 percent of the taxpayer's payroll in the enterprise zone that is paid to new full-time employees who earn more than $30,000, but less than $100,000, in annual wages.

In addition, if the taxpayer is able to retain jobs in an enterprise zone, the taxpayer may claim a credit equal to no more than 7 percent of the taxpayer's enterprise zone payroll in a Tier I county or municipality that is paid to full-time employees who earn more than $20,000, but less than $100,000, in annual wages, less the amount paid to new full-time employees, or no more than 7 percent of the taxpayer's enterprise zone payroll in a Tier II county or municipality that is paid to full-time employees who earn more than $30,000, but less than $100,000, in annual wages, less the amount paid to new full-time employees. A taxpayer seeking to claim job retention credits must satisfy the following conditions:

1. The taxpayer must make a significant capital investment in property in the enterprise zone.

2. The taxpayer must either be an original equipment manufacturer with a significant supply chain in the state or must employ more than 500 full-time employes in the enterprise zone.

Commerce is directed to define original equipment manufacturer by rule. A taxpayer may claim the credit for retaining jobs for no more than five consecutive taxable years.

Education With certain exceptions, current law requires that all pupil records maintained by a public school be kept confidential. One exception requires a school board, upon request by the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), to provide DPI with any information contained in a pupil record that relates to an audit or evaluation of a federal or state-supported program or that is required to determine compliance with state laws governing public schools. Current law directs DPI to keep confidential all pupil records provided to DPI by a school board.

This bill eliminates the requirement that DPI keep confidential pupil records received from a school board. Under current federal regulations, however, DPI may make further disclosures of personally identifiable information from a pupil's records only on behalf of the educational agency or institution that disclosed the information to DPI, and only if the disclosure falls into one or more of the existing exceptions to the confidentiality requirement.

Environment Under the Clean Water Fund Program, this state provides financial assistance for projects for controlling water pollution, including sewage treatment plants, using state and federal funds. One form of financial assistance provided under the Clean Water Fund Program is a loan at a subsidized interest rate. The law specifies the interest rates at which loans are provided. The Clean Water Fund Program also provides grants to municipalities that satisfy financial hardship criteria. The budget bill for each fiscal biennium establishes the present value of the subsidies that may be provided under the Clean Water Fund Program during that fiscal biennium.

Current law prohibits applications from being approved and funds from being expended for clean water fund projects in a fiscal biennium before the budget bill is enacted.

The ARRA provides funds for state programs like the Clean Water Fund Program. This bill authorizes those funds to be expended under the Clean Water Fund Program. The bill allows the funds to be provided as loans at interest rates that may differ from the rates provided under current law and allows forgiveness of a portion of the principal amount of a loan. The bill also allows the funds to be provided as grants, without regard to the financial hardship criteria. The bill allows applications to be approved and funds to be expended before the budget bill is enacted.

Under the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program, this state provides loans to local governmental units for projects for the construction or modification of public water systems, using state and federal funds. The loans are provided at subsidized interest rates. The law specifies the interest rates at which loans are provided. The budget bill for each fiscal biennium establishes the present value of the subsidies that may be provided under the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program during that fiscal biennium. Current law prohibits applications from being approved and funds from being expended for safe drinking water projects in a fiscal biennium before the budget bill is enacted.

The ARRA provides funds for state programs like the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program. This bill authorizes those funds to be expended under the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program. The bill allows the funds to be provided as loans at interest rates that may differ from the rates provided under current law and allows forgiveness of a portion of the principal amount of a loan. The bill also allows the funds to be provided as grants. The bill allows applications to be approved and funds to be expended before the budget bill is enacted.

health and human services Under current law, a community action agency approved by the secretary of children and families and by the legislative body of the local governmental unit serviced by the community action agency is required to develop and implement programs designed to serve persons whose income is at or below 125 percent of the poverty line. Those programs may include provisions that will help those persons secure and retain employment, improve their education, make better use of available income, obtain adequate housing and a suitable living environment, secure needed transportation, obtain emergency assistance, participate in community affairs, and use more effectively other available programs. This bill increases the eligibility threshold for participation in a program of a community action agency to 200 percent of the poverty line until September 30, 2010. After that date the eligibility threshold reverts to 125 percent of the poverty line.

INSURANCE Under current law, an employee who is covered by a group health insurance policy through his or her employer and who is involuntarily terminated from his or her job may elect to continue coverage after termination. Wisconsin law provides for continuation coverage for those not covered under a similar federal law. Current law requires employers to send a notice within five days of the termination describing the terminated employee's right to continue coverage. Within 30 days of receiving the notice, the terminated employee may elect continuation coverage for himself or herself or for his or her spouse and dependents if they had also been covered through the employer's group health insurance.

The ARRA provides specific benefits for certain people who are eligible for continuation coverage under federal law or under state law. Under this bill, for those terminated employees who became eligible for state continuation coverage on or after September 1, 2008, but before the effective date of this bill, the employer has ten days after the effective date of the bill to send an additional notice that contains the information required under the ARRA, and the terminated employee has 60 days to elect continuation coverage instead of 30 days. For those terminated employees who become eligible for state continuation coverage on or after the effective date of this bill but before January 1, 2010, the employer must send the notice as required under current law, but the notice must contain the information as required under the ARRA.

local government Under current law, a municipality (a city, village, or town) is authorized to impose a special charge against real property for current services rendered by allocating all or part of the cost of the service to the property served. A "service" under current law includes snow and ice removal, weed elimination, sidewalks or curb and gutter repair, garbage and refuse disposal, recycling, storm water management, tree care, and other similar services that are not specified in the definition. Special charges are not payable in installments. If a special charge is not paid within the time specified by the municipality, the special charge is delinquent and becomes a lien on the property against which it is imposed.

This bill authorizes a political subdivision (a municipality or county) to make a loan to a resident of the political subdivision for making or installing an energy efficiency improvement or a renewable resource application to the resident's residential property. The bill also authorizes the political subdivision to collect the loan repayment as a special charge. A special charge that is imposed for such a loan repayment may be collected in installments and may be included as a charge on the resident's property tax bill even if the special charge is not delinquent.

shared revenue Under current law, for purposes of determining a municipality's eligibility to receive expenditure restraint payments, a comparison of a municipality's current budget with its previous budget excludes principal and interest on long-term debt, certain revenue sharing payments, and recycling fee payments. Under this bill, expenditures from moneys received under the ARRA are also excluded from municipal budget comparisons for purposes of determining a municipality's eligibility to receive expenditure restraint payments.

State Government Under current law, DOA administers programs for providing energy and weatherization assistance to low-income households. Under the programs, "low-income household" is defined, in part, as a household with income that is not more than 150 percent of income poverty guidelines or a poverty line determined under federal law. This bill defines "low-income household" for the programs as, in part, not more than 60 percent of the statewide median household income.

unemployment insurance This bill expands eligibility for unemployment insurance benefits and changes the duration of federal/state extended benefits.

Benefit eligibility Voluntary termination of employment.

Currently, if an employee voluntarily terminates his or her work for an employer, the employee is generally ineligible to receive benefits until four weeks have elapsed since the end of the week in which the termination occurs and the employee earns wages after the week in which the termination occurs equal to at least four times the employee's weekly benefit rate in employment covered by the unemployment insurance law of any state or the federal government. However, an employee may terminate his or her work and receive benefits without requalifying under this provision, among other reasons, if the employee: 1) terminates his or her work due to domestic abuse or concerns about the personal safety or harassment of the employee's family or household members;

or 2) was unable to work due to the health of a family member. This bill expands the domestic abuse exception to include abuse or threat of abuse by an unrelated individual with whom the employee had a personal relationship, includes an adopted relative in the definition of family member, and permits the domestic abuse or concerns to be verified either by a protective order, by a report of a law enforcement agency, or evidence provided by a licensed health care professional or an employee of a domestic violence shelter. The bill broadens the exception concerning the health of a family member to apply to any verified illness or disability that necessitates the care of a family member for a period of time that is longer than the employee's employer is willing to grant leave. The bill also provides that requalification is not required if an employee's spouse changed his or her place of employment to a place to which it is impractical to commute and the employee terminated his or her work to accompany the spouse to that place.

Approved training in high-demand occupations.

Currently, benefits may not be denied to an otherwise eligible claimant because the claimant is enrolled in a vocational training course or a basic education course that is a prerequisite to such training ("approved training") under certain conditions. Currently, unless a claimant qualifies for federal/state extended benefits, Wisconsin supplemental benefits, or federal emergency compensation and unless certain other exceptions apply, no claimant may receive total benefits based on employment in a base period (period preceding a claim during which benefit rights accrue) greater than 26 times the claimant's weekly benefit rate or 40 percent of the claimant' s base period wages, whichever is lower. This bill provides additional benefits to certain claimants. The bill provides, with certain exceptions, that if a claimant has exhausted all other rights to benefits, is currently enrolled in an approved training program under current law and was so enrolled prior to the end of the claimant's benefit year (period during which benefits are payable) that qualified the claimant for benefits, if not in a current benefit year, has a benefit year that ended no earlier than 52 weeks prior to the week for which the claimant first claims additional benefits, and is not receiving any similar stipends or other training allowances for nontraining costs is entitled to additional benefits of up to 26 times the same benefit rate that applied to the claimant during his or her most recent benefit year if the claimant: 1) has been separated from employment in a declining occupation or involuntarily separated from employment as a result of a permanent reduction in operations by his or her employer; and 2) is being trained for entry into a high-demand occupation. In addition, the bill provides that if the benefit year of such a claimant expires in a week in which extended or other additional federal or state benefits are payable generally (see below), the claimant is also eligible for the additional benefits while enrolled in a training program as provided under the bill if the claimant first enrolled in the program within 52 weeks after the end of the claimant's benefit year that qualified the claimant for benefits.

Payment of extended benefits Currently, the maximum number of weeks of benefits that an eligible claimant may qualify to receive is normally 26 weeks. However, during certain periods of high unemployment in this state, as defined by law, claimants who have exhausted all their rights to receive benefits in a given benefit year may potentially qualify to receive up to an additional 13 weeks of "extended benefits," the costs of which, with certain exceptions, are shared between the federal government and employers in this state. Under recent federal legislation, the employer share is also paid in most cases by the federal government beginning with weeks of unemployment that begin on or after February 17, 2009, and ending with the last week beginning in 2009, and, for claimants who begin an extended benefit claim before that date, ending with the last week ending before June 1, 2010. In addition, under the federal legislation, during periods of exceptionally high unemployment in this state, claimants who qualify for extended benefits may qualify to receive an additional seven weeks of extended benefits that are financed in the same manner. This bill changes state law to conform with the recent federal legislation so as to enable claimants in this state to qualify for these additional extended benefits and to enable full participation by this state in federal cost sharing for these benefits.