Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Getting to Know Chapter 43 of the Wisconsin State Statutes: Part 24, County Tax

You and me and as it is currently being lived and breathed by residents of the Hudson Area Library service area.


Library funding falls short. (Hudson Star-Observer, 3/21/2012)

Excerpt: St. Croix County levies a yearly library tax on property owners in municipalities that don’t have a library. The revenue is used to compensate libraries for users who come from outside of the municipalities that operate the library. 


The Hudson City Council held a special meeting in a packed council chamber Monday night to discuss how to bring the library into compliance with the state requirement. Mayor Alan Burchill said the city and partner municipalities won’t have to reimburse the library for the past shortages, but will need to abide by the state statutes beginning in 2013.

4 options to reach compliance as presented by City Finance Director Neil Soltis presented four options for reaching the level of library funding required by the county and state law.
  • Continuing as a joint library with an increase in city tax support for the library,
  • Continuing as a joint library without an increase in city tax support for the library
  • Reverting to operating as a municipal library with an increase in city funding.
  • Reverting to operating as a municipal library without an increase in city funding.


43.64  County tax.

(1)The county board of a county expending money for public library service to its inhabitants may levy a tax to provide funds for such service and shall include any amount of tax under this subsection in the amount of taxes determined to be levied under s. 70.62 (1). 

(2)  (a) In this subsection, "library fund" means the funds raised by the city, village, town or school district by tax levy or appropriation under s. 43.52 (1). 

(2)   (b) Procedure and formula for exemption from the county library tax.  Except as provided in sub. (2m), any city, town, village or school district in a county levying a tax for public library service under sub. (1) shall, upon written application to the county board of the county, be exempted from the tax levy, if the city, town, village or school district making the application levies a tax for public library service and appropriates and expends for a library fund during the year for which the county tax levy is made a sum at least equal to an amount calculated as follows
  • 1. Divide the amount of tax levied by the county for public library service under sub. (1) in the prior year, less the amount levied for public library capital expenditures, by the equalized valuation of property in that area of the county that was subject to the county property tax levy for public library services in the prior year. 
  • 2. Multiply the amount determined under subd. 1. by the equalized valuation of property in the city, village, town or school district for the current year. 


(2m)No exemption allowed if public library does not comply with standards.  No city, village, town or school district is exempt from the tax levy under sub. (2) for any year if, by September 1 of the year preceding the year for which the tax is levied, the county board determines that the public library of the city, village, town or school district that is a member of the public library system has not complied with standards approved under s. 43.11 (3) (d) and (e).  

(3) Each city, town, village or school district participating in a joint library under s. 43.53 shall be treated individually in determining its eligibility for tax exemption under sub. (2).

Revised Dane County Library Service Standards 2008.  (From June 2008 Director's report to Middleton Public Library Board of Trustees.)

From the 8/4/2011 minutes of the Dane County Library Service Board of Trustees.

Revised Dane County Library Service member library standards found here.

History:
1971 Senate Bill 47.   43 25 (1 , (2), (3) and (4) are renumbered 43.52 (1) and 2) and 43.64 (1) and (2), respectively, and amended.
1977 Assembly Bill 1220. 43.64 (2) is amended.  (Addition of "school district".)
1981 Assembly Bill 66.  43.64 (2) is amended.  (Definition of "library fund".)
1983 Wisconsin Act 27.  43.64 (2) is amended
1985 Wisconsin Act 177.
  • 43.64 (2) is amended.
  • 43.64 (3) is created.
1997 Wisconsin Act 150.
  • 43.64 (2) is renumbered 43.64 (2) (b) (intro.) and amended. 
  • 43.64 (2) (a) and (b) 1. and 2. are created. 
  • 43.64 (2m) of is created.
2005 Wisconsin Act 226. 43.64 (2) (b) 1. is amended.
2005 Wisconsin Act 420. 43.64 (2m) is amended.

Attorney General opinions.

60 Atty. Gen. 389.  A municipality having a traveling library service within its municipal limits could raise a library fund for that service and be exempted from the county tax by meeting the requirement of sub. (4).

65 Atty. Gen 182.  A town, city, or village that does not maintain a public library, but makes contributions to a nearby public library, cannot be exempted from the county library tax levy under sub. (2).

72 Atty. Gen. 190.  A municipality, otherwise qualified, is entitled to an exemption under sub. (2) when the county has not acted to levy a tax specifically designated as a county library tax but does finance money expended for public library services to its inhabitants by a general tax levy.

Related posts:
Part 1:  Legislative findings and declaration of policy.
Part 2:  Definitions.
Part 3:  General duties of the State Superintendent.
Part 4:  General duties of the Division.
Part 5:  Council on Library and Network Development.
Part 6:  Certificates and standards..
Part 7: County library planning committees.
Part 8:  County payment for library service.
Part 9:  Division review
Part 10.  Standards for public library systems.
Part 11.  Resource libraries.
Part 12:  Public library systems; general provisions.
Part 13.  Withdrawal, abolition, and expulsion.
Part 14.  Federated public library systems.
Part 15.  Consolidated public library systems.
Part 16.  State aid.
Part 17.  Public library records.
Part 18.  Municipal libraries.
Part 19.  Joint libraries.
Part 20.  Municipal library board composition.
Part 21.  Consolidated county libraries and county library services.

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