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Note: This provision creates a requirement for the owner of an ATV to obtain a
certificate of title. Any owner of an ATV that is subject to registration in this state must
comply with the titling requirement. The titling requirement applies to the owner of a
newly acquired ATV and to the owner of an ATV who applies for registration without
holding a previously issued certificate of title. Any ATV that is exempt from registration
in this state is also exempt from the titling requirement. Although nonresidents who
register an ATV in another state are not required to apply for a certificate of title, a
nonresident may choose to obtain a Wisconsin title for an ATV purchased in this state.

DNR is directed under this provision to implement the statute by promulgating
administrative rules applicable to the procedures for application for a certificate of title,
issuance of a certificate of title, recordkeeping, replacements, transfer of title, security
interests, and all other provisions necessary for the titling program. DNR is directed to
set and collect fees established by rule which shall, as closely as possible, equal the cost
of providing services related to ATV titling. The funds collected by DNR will be placed
in the conservation fund.

The effective date of this provision primarily relates to the commencement of the
requirement to obtain a certificate of title. This effective date means that the owner of
an ATV newly purchased on or after January 1, 2009, or the owner of an ATV who applies
for registration on or after January 1, 2009, and does not have a valid certificate of title
previously issued, must obtain a certificate of title for the ATV.

Note: These provisions increase the annual fee for a nonresident ATV trail pass
to $44.25 and establish a 7-day nonresident trail pass for a fee of $17.25. The current
statute requires DNR to collect an issuing fee of $0.75 for issuing a nonresident ATV trail
pass.

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These provisions result in a total fee for each annual and 7-day nonresident trail
pass to $45 and $18, respectively. Based on current nonresident ATV trail pass sales
estimates of 12,500 annually, the current fee raises approximately $215,000 annually.
Assuming, under the new fees, that 80% of the nonresidential ATV trail users will
purchase a weekly pass and the remaining 20% of nonresident ATV trail users will
purchase an annual pass, the weekly pass will raise approximately $250,000 annually
and the annual pass approximately $63,000 annually. This results in total annual
revenue of approximately $313,000, an increase of approximately $98,000 annually.

Note: This provision in current statutes is part of the rules of operation for ATVs.
This paragraph is preceded by an intro. that states: "No person may operate an
all-terrain vehicle:".

This bill expands the property that is subject to the prohibition by applying the
prohibition to public property as well as private property. The bill does this by deleting
"private" in the statute. This bill also creates an exception so that the expanded statute
does not apply to a public highway right-of-way.

Note: Under current ATV statutes, DNR is directed to encourage and supervise
a system of ATV routes and trails. To fulfill this charge, the statutes permit DNR to
establish standards and procedures for certifying the designation (i.e., approval to receive
state funds) of ATV routes and trails.

DNR has issued current standards and procedures for ATV use on department
lands as guidance documents. This bill requires DNR to promulgate administrative rules
to establish standards and procedures for certifying the designation of ATV routes and
trails under the control of the department. By requiring the standards and procedures
to be promulgated as rules, this bill will require public hearings on the current policies,
and any changes to those policies, through the agency process for developing rules and
the legislative administrative rule review process. Under this bill, the department must

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consider the interests of the state trails council and other trail user groups when
promulgating the rules required under this section.

Note: There is no ATV damage claim program under current law. If a person's
property is damaged by the operation of an ATV in an area not designated for ATV use,
the only remedy would be through court-ordered restitution as the judgment in a lawsuit.

This bill establishes an ATV damage claim program under which an applicant may
receive a payment for the repair or restoration of property damaged by the operation of
ATVs in any area not designated as an ATV route or ATV trail. The provision requires
DNR to promulgate rules for implementation of the program. The provision requires the
department to verify that certain minimum standards are met regarding the awarding
of the payments. These standards include:

1. That the damage to the property was caused by the operation of ATVs in an area
not designated as an ATV route or ATV trail.

2. That the applicant reports the trespass and makes reasonable efforts to identify
the responsible individual and obtain payment from the individual.

3. That the applicant makes reasonable efforts to prevent reoccurrence of the
damage.

DNR may submit a claim only if all eligible claims in an annual payment cycle are
paid in full.

Note: The current statutes contain a general provision on trespass to land in s.
943.13. This statute prohibits any person from entering the land of another without the
express or implied consent of the owner or occupant, or remaining on the land of another
after being notified to leave. This statute applies whether or not the person is in a vehicle,
and therefore would apply to trespass by a person who is operating an ATV, snowmobile,
or other off-road vehicle. The penalty for violation of this statute is a Class B forfeiture,
which is a civil penalty of a forfeiture not to exceed $1,000. The trespass statute is
enforced by local law enforcement authorities. Wardens of DNR do not have authority

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to enforce the trespass statute. The trespass statute is enforced by a citation system,
similar to that for a traffic citation. The judicial conference sets the actual amount of the
bond for violations of the trespass statute, and the basic deposit amount that has been
set by the judicial conference is $100. The statutes impose a variety of other surcharges
on the basic amount, with the result that the total deposit amount for a person who pleads
no contest to a trespass citation is $249.

The current statutes also have provisions regarding entry onto the private
property of another without the consent of the owner or lessee, when operating an ATV,
snowmobile, or other off-road vehicle. The current penalty for violation of these statutes
is a forfeiture not to exceed $250. The judicial conference has also set the amount of the
deposit for these violations at $100, with a total deposit for the citation of $249. This
statute is enforced by DNR wardens.

This Section of the bill increases the penalty for violation of the current statute
that prohibits trespass with an ATV to a forfeiture of not less than $250 and not more than
$1,000. If the judicial conference sets the deposit amount at the minimum of $250, the
total deposit for this violation would be $438.

It is also possible that the district attorney could issue a complaint and summons
and seek a forfeiture up to the maximum of $1,000.

Note: The new provision in this bill related to creating an ATV titling program
contains a prohibition on the intentional falsification of either a certificate of title, or an
application for a certificate of title, and the intentional authorization, removal, or change
of any number or character in an ATV engine serial number or ATV serial number. This
provision makes violation of those prohibitions a Class H felony. The maximum penalty
for a Class H felony is a fine not to exceed $10,000 or imprisonment not to exceed 6 years,
or both.

Note: This provision repeals the current ATV gas tax formula, and replaces it with
a new formula. The funds generated by the formula are paid to DNR conservation fund
and are used to provide aid to towns, villages, cities, counties, and federal agencies for
nonstate ATV projects.

The current gas tax payment is calculated by multiplying the sum of the number
of ATVs registered for public use and the number of reflectorized plates issued for
commercial ATV use on the last day of February of the previous fiscal year. This number
is multiplied by 25 gallons and that product is multiplied by the excise tax on the last day
of February of the previous fiscal year (currently, $0.309 per gallon).

The provision in this Section replaces the current formula for ATVs with a formula
similar to the snowmobile gas tax payment. The new ATV gas tax payment, created by
this bill, is calculated by multiplying the number of ATVs registered for public use and
the number of reflectorized plates issued for commercial ATV use on the last day of
February of the previous fiscal year by 50 gallons and multiplying that product by the
motor vehicle fuel excise tax on the last day of February of the previous fiscal year. This
total is then increased by an additional 40%.

Based on DNR estimates of approximately 230,000 public ATV registrations, and
assuming that those registrations will not increase, the current fee raises about $1.7
million annually. Assuming the same 230,000 registrations, the fee increase in this
provision of the bill would raise approximately $5 million annually. The result is an
increase in revenue of approximately $3.3 million annually.