2005 Wisconsin Act 363. 2005 Wis. Act 363 amends s. 348.07(4), Stats., effective August 1, 2006. That Act also requires the Department to promulgate emergency and permanent rules governing long trucks. It's effect on this proposed rule change has not been determined.

None of the states adjacent to Wisconsin (Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois and Iowa) have administrative rules relating to long truck routes in their states.

Due to the federal requirement that requests for access to the designated highway system in a state be decided within 90 days of the request, a proposed rule making to add requested routes is initiated without investigation. The public hearing and Department investigation undertaken in preparation for the hearing provide the engineering and economic data needed to make a final decision on whether to withdraw the proposal or proceed to final rule making.

The provisions of this rule adding a highway segment to the designated system have no direct adverse effect on small businesses, and may have a favorable effect on those small businesses which are shippers or carriers using the newly-designated routes. The Department's Regulatory Review Coordinator may be contacted by e-mail at andrew.ruiz@dot.state.wi.us, or by calling (414) 438-4585.

The Department estimates that there will be no fiscal impact on the liabilities or revenues of any county, city, village, town, school district, vocational, technical and adult education district, sewerage district, or federally-recognized tribes or bands. The Department estimates that there will be no fiscal impact on state or private sector revenues or liabilities.

The public record on this proposed rule making will be held open until close of business the day of the hearing to permit the submission of comments in lieu of public hearing testimony or comments supplementing testimony offered at the hearing. Any such comments should be submitted to Ashwani Sharma, Department of Transportation, Bureau of Highway Operations, Room 501, P. O. Box 7986, Madison, WI 53707-7986. You may also contact Mr. Sharma by phone at (608) 266-1273.

To view the proposed amendments to the rule, view the current rule, and submit written comments via e-mail/internet, you may visit the following website: http://www.dot.wisconsin.gov/library/research/law/rulenotices.htm.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to s. 84.01 (13), amended by 2005 Wis. Act 89, Stats., interpreting s. 84.01 (13), Stats., the Department of Transportation will hold a public hearing on the 8th day of August, 2006, at the Hill Farms State Transportation Building, Room 951, 4802 Sheboygan Avenue, Madison, WI, at 10:00 AM, to consider the emergency rule creation of ch. Trans 515, Wisconsin Adm. Code, relating to contractual service procurement.

Parking for persons with disabilities and an accessible entrance are available.

Requests for copies of the emergency rule should be submitted to Randy Knoche, Department of Transportation, Bureau of State Highway Programs, Room 951, P. O. Box 7913, Madison, WI 53707-7913. You may also contact Mr. Knoche by phone at (608) 266-1824.

To view the emergency rule or the proposed permanent rule, or submit written comments on the permanent rule via e-mail/internet, you may visit the following website:

http://www.dot.wisconsin.gov/library/research/law/
rulenotices.htm.

Statutes interpreted: ss. 16.70 (3g) and 84.01 (13), Stats.

Statutory authority: ss. 16.70 (3g) and 84.01 (13), Stats.

Explanation of agency authority: The Department of Transportation is authorized to execute contracts for engineering and other services under s. 84.01(13), Stats. That statute also requires the Department to conduct a cost-benefit comparison of having that work performed by state employees, if the contract will cost $25,000 or more. In addition to promulgating permanent rules, Act 89 requires the Department to promulgate emergency rules on this subject not later than July 1, 2006, and requires the Department to conduct this comparison for all contractual services solicited on or after July 1, 2006.

Related statute or rule: ss. 16.70 (3g), 84.01(13) and 84.06 (1m), Stats.

Plain language analysis: The proposed rule requires a cost benefit analysis before procuring engineering or other specialized services under s. 84.01(13), Stats., in excess of $25,000 when those services are normally performed by state employees. The required analysis includes a comparison between the costs of contracting out and performing the services with state employees. The analysis also considers other subjective factors such as timeliness, quality and technical expertise.

Factual data and analytical methodologies: 2005 Wisconsin Act 89 requires the Department to promulgate this rule.

Michigan: Department legal counsel is unaware of and was unable to locate any rules in this state pertaining to this subject.

Minnesota: Department legal counsel is unaware of and was unable to locate any rules in this state pertaining to this subject.

Illinois: Department legal counsel is unaware of and was unable to locate any rules in this state pertaining to this subject.

Iowa: Iowa Code sec. 23A.2 (2205) prohibits the state from offering to the public any supply or service that is also offered by private enterprise. This prohibition does not apply to supplies or services to be used or consumed solely by the state. There appears to be no requirement that the state compare costs and benefits of obtaining services by state employees or private enterprise.

The proposed rule does not affect the amount or quality of engineering or specialized services procured from private enterprise and therefore is expected to have no effect on small businesses.

The requirements of the rule will be implemented by Department employees and will have no effect on external parties including small business. The Department's Regulatory Review Coordinator may be contacted by e-mail at andrew.ruiz@dot.state.wi.us, or by calling (414) 438-4585.

The Department estimates that compliance with 2005 Wisconsin Act 89 will cost it $217,000 per year. No similar costs will be borne by the private sector.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to Sections 108.04 (2), 108.14 (2) and 227.11, Stats. the Department of Workforce Development proposes to hold a public hearing to consider rules affecting Ch. DWD 127, relating to the unemployment insurance work search.

Interested persons are invited to appear at the hearings and will be afforded the opportunity to make an oral presentation of their positions. Persons making oral presentations are requested to submit their facts, views, and suggested rewording in writing.

Visitors to the GEF 1 building are requested to enter through the left East Washington Avenue door and register with the customer service desk. The entrance is accessible via a ramp from the corner of Webster Street and East Washington Avenue. If you have special needs or circumstances regarding communication or accessibility at the hearing, please call (608) 267-9403 at least 10 days prior to the hearing date. Accommodations such as ASL interpreters, English translators, or materials in audiotape format will be made available on request to the fullest extent possible.

Statutory authority: Sections 108.04 (2), 108.14 (2) and 227.11, Stats.

Statutes interpreted: Sections 108.04 (2), Stats.

Explanation of agency authority. Section 108.04 (2) (a) 3., Stats., provides that a claimant is eligible for unemployment benefits as to any given week for which he or she earns no wages if, among other things, the individual conducts a reasonable search for suitable work during that week. The search for suitable work must include 2 actions that constitute a reasonable search as prescribed by rule of the department. Section 108.04 (2) (b), Stats., provides that the requirements for registration for work and search for work shall be prescribed by rule of the department, and the department may by general rule waive these requirements under certain stated conditions. Section 108.14 (2), Stats., provides that the department may adopt and enforce all rules which it finds necessary or suitable to carry out Chapter 108, Stats., regarding unemployment insurance.

Summary of proposed rule. Section 108.04 (2), Stats., provides that an unemployment insurance claimant must conduct a reasonable search for suitable work. The department may waive this requirement under certain stated conditions. Chapter DWD 127 currently provides that the department shall waive the work search requirement for a given week if certain specified circumstances apply to a unemployment insurance claimant and may waive the work search requirement for a given week when others apply. The proposed rule will make all waivers of the work search requirement mandatory if any of the specified circumstances apply.

The proposed rule will also modify two of the waiver criteria. Currently, the department may waive a claimant's work search requirement if the claimant has a reasonable expectation of starting work with a new employer within 4 weeks after the week in which he or she initiates a claim or in which an eligibility review is conducted. Under the proposed rule, the department will waive the work search requirement if the claimant has an offer of work that begins within 4 weeks regardless of when this occurs. In addition, currently the department waives a claimant's work search requirement if the claimant's most recent employer failed to post or maintain any notice as to claiming unemployment benefits. Under the proposed rule, this provision will be modified to clarify that this waiver criteria does not apply if the claimant was aware of the work search requirement.

The proposed rule will also make various technical corrections. Section 108.04 (1) (e), Stats., as affected by 2005 Wisconsin Act 86, repeals the provision that self-employed individuals shall not be eligible for benefits for any week in which the individual worked at self-employment, unless the individual establishes that he or she has made an active and bona fide search for employment. Self-employed claimants are now subject to the same work search requirements and waivers as non-self-employed claimants. The proposed rule will repeal s. DWD 127.09 relating to the definition of self-employment.

Section 108.04 (2) (a) 3. (intro.), Stats., as affected by 2003 Wisconsin Act 197, provides that the work search requirement does not apply to an individual if the department determines that the individual is currently laid off from employment with an employer but there is a reasonable expectation of reemployment of the individual by that employer. The proposed rules will repeal an obsolete provision at s. DWD 127.02 (2) that limited the work search waiver based on a reasonable expectation of reemployment to 12 weeks after the claimant initiated the claim or 6 weeks after an eligibility review is conducted. The proposed rule will also repeal an obsolete provision at s. DWD 127.035 that limited the work search waiver to 18 months under certain conditions when the layoff was due to a disaster or the temporary closing of the employer's worksite for refurbishing or relocation of the worksite and the department believed that a customary work search would impose a hardship on employers in the labor market and would not be likely to result in suitable employment for a substantial number of the affected employees.

In addition, the proposed rule will update certain rule provisions to reflect changes in 1999 Wisconsin Act 15. Section 108.04 (2) (a) 3., Stats., as affected by 1999 Wisconsin Act 15, provides that the requirement that the individual conduct a reasonable search for work during the week must include 2 actions that constitute a reasonable search. The current s. DWD 127.01 does not specify 2 actions. The proposed rule will also repeal an obsolete statutory reference to s. 108.04 (7) (i), Stats., in s. DWD 127.01 (2) (b). This rule provision allows a claimant to refuse to apply for work with an employer if the claimant previously terminated employment with the same employer with good cause attributable to the employer under s. 108.04 (7) (b), Stats., or because the employer made employment, compensation, promotion or job assignments contingent upon the employee's consent to sexual contact or sexual intercourse under s. 108.04 (7) (i), Stats. 1999 Wisconsin Act 15 repealed s. 108.04 (7) (i), Stats., and amended s. 108.04 (7) (b) to include sexual harassment.

The proposed amendment to s. DWD 127.04 (1) clarifies that the department may notify a claimant that evidence of his or her work search will be required for a future week, as well as past weeks. Sections DWD 127.05 (2) and (3) on the requirement to report work search efforts are repealed because they duplicate requirements found in other sections of Chapter DWD 127.

Summary of factual data and analytical methodologies. The criteria for a mandatory waiver of the work search requirement in s. DWD 127.03 and the permissive waiver criteria in s. DWD 127.02 are combined into one section of mandatory criteria to better reflect current department informal practice to always grant a waiver when any of the specified conditions are met.

The requirement to grant a waiver of the work search requirement when the claimant's last employer failed to post the required notice on claiming insurance is amended to clarify that the claimant must have been unaware of the work search requirement. This amendment is in response to a decision by the Labor and Industry Review Commission that found that the current language requires a waiver even after the department notifies a claimant of the work search requirement.

Other changes are primarily statutory updates and clarifications of rule language.

There is a federal requirement that UI claimants search for work, but there is no federal law on the specific issues addressed in the proposed rule.

Iowa. The work search requirement shall be waived if a claimant is temporarily unemployed from the claimant's regular job in which the claimant worked full-time and will again work full-time, for a period not to exceed 4 weeks due to a plant shut-down, vacation, inventory, lack of work, or emergency.

Michigan. The work search requirement shall be waived if the layoff is temporary and work is expected to be available within 45 calendar days following the last day the individual worked and the employer notifies the agency in writing or by electronic data exchange that the layoff is temporary before the claimant is certified for his or her first compensable week following the layoff. The work search requirement may be waived if the return-to-work date is not later than 15 days following the layoff and the work search requirement is not waived under the previous provision. The work search requirement may also be waived if the state unemployment rate equals or exceeds 8.5%.

Illinois. The Illinois work search rules provide that a claimant must register in person at the Employment Service Office unless otherwise instructed by the local office for one of 10 listed reasons. Many of the reasons are similar to Wisconsin's work search waiver.

Minnesota. The department was unable to locate any Minnesota statutes or rules on the work search waiver.

The proposed rules do not add or change any requirements for small businesses. There are no reporting, bookkeeping, or other procedures required for compliance with the proposed rule and no professional skills are required. The DWD Small Business Regulatory Coordinator is Jennifer Jirschele, (608) 266-1023, jennifer.jirschele@dwd.state.wi.us.

The proposed rules have no fiscal effect on state or local governments.

Carla Breber, UI Disputed Benefit Claims, (608) 266-7564, carla.breber@dwd.state.wi.us.

You may review and print a copy of the proposed rules at the department's proposed rule hearing website at http://www.dwd.state.wi.us/dwd/hearings.htm. You may receive a paper copy of the rule by contacting:

Elaine Pridgen
Office of Legal Counsel
Dept. of Workforce Development
P.O. Box 7946
Madison, WI 53707-7946
(608) 267-9403
fax: (608) 266-1784
elaine.pridgen@dwd.state.wi.us

Written comments on the proposed rules received at the above address, email, or fax no later than July 26, 2006, will be given the same consideration as testimony presented at the hearing.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to Sections 108.06 (2) (bm), 108.06 (2) (d), 108.08 (1), 108.14 (2), and 227.11, Stats., the Department of Workforce Development proposes to hold a public hearing to consider rules affecting Ch. DWD 129, relating to unemployment insurance benefit claiming procedures.

Interested persons are invited to appear at the hearings and will be afforded the opportunity to make an oral presentation of their positions. Persons making oral presentations are requested to submit their facts, views, and suggested rewording in writing.

Visitors to the GEF 1 building are requested to enter through the left East Washington Avenue door and register with the customer service desk. The entrance is accessible via a ramp from the corner of Webster Street and East Washington Avenue. If you have special needs or circumstances regarding communication or accessibility at the hearing, please call (608) 267-9403 at least 10 days prior to the hearing date. Accommodations such as ASL interpreters, English translators, or materials in audiotape format will be made available on request to the fullest extent possible.

Statutory authority: Sections 108.06 (2) (bm) and (d), 108.08 (1), 108.14 (2) and 227.11, Stats..

Statutes interpreted: Sections 108.06 (2) and 108.08 (1), Stats.

Explanation of agency authority. Section 108.08 (1), Stats., provides that to receive unemployment insurance benefits for any given week of employment, a claimant shall give notice to the department with respect to such week of unemployment within such time and in such manner as the department may by rule prescribe.

Section 108.06 (2) (bm), Stats., provides that an employee's benefit year begins on the Sunday of the week in which the employee files a valid request to establish a benefit year with the department, except that the department may permit an employee to begin a benefit year prior to that time under circumstances prescribed by rule of the department.

Section 108.06 (2) (d), Stats., provides that a claimant may request that the department set aside a benefit year by filing a written, verbal or electronic request in the manner that the department prescribes by rule. If the statutory criteria for set aside are not met, the department shall not set aside the benefit year unless the department defines by rule exceptional circumstances in which a claimant may be permitted to set aside a request to establish a benefit year and the claimant qualifies to make such a request under the circumstances described in the rule.