Wis. Stat. § 66.1103 — WI Code / Chapter 66 / Section 66.1103
Industrial development revenue bonding.
Status: in_force

(1) Findings.

(a) It is found and declared that industries located in this state have been induced to move their operations in whole or in part to, or to expand their operations in, other states to the detriment of state, county and municipal revenue raising through the loss or reduction of income and franchise taxes, real estate and other local taxes causing an increase in unemployment; that such conditions now exist in certain areas of the state and may well arise in other areas; that economic insecurity due to unemployment is a serious menace to the general welfare of not only the people of the affected areas but of the people of the entire state; that unemployment results in obligations to grant public assistance and in the payment of unemployment insurance; that the absence of new economic opportunities has caused workers and their families to migrate elsewhere to find work and establish homes, which has resulted in a reduction of the tax base of counties, cities and other local governmental jurisdictions impairing their financial ability to support education and other local governmental services; that security against unemployment and the preservation and enhancement of the tax base can best be provided by the promotion, attraction, stimulation, rehabilitation and revitalization of commerce, industry and manufacturing; and that there is a need to stimulate a larger flow of private investment funds from banks, investment houses, insurance companies and other financial institutions. It is therefore the policy of this state to promote the right to gainful employment, business opportunities and general welfare of its inhabitants and to preserve and enhance the tax base by authorizing municipalities and counties to acquire industrial buildings and to finance the acquisition through the issuance of revenue bonds for the purpose of fulfilling the aims of this section. These purposes are declared to be public purposes for which public money may be spent and the necessity in the public interest for the provisions of this section is declared a matter of legislative determination.

(b) It is found and declared that the control of pollution of the environment of this state, the provision of medical, safe employment, telecommunications and telegraph, research, industrial park, dock, wharf, airport, recreational, convention center, trade center, headquarters and mass transit facilities in this state, and the furnishing of electric energy, gas and water in this state, are necessary to retain existing industry in, and attract new industry to, this state, and to protect the health, welfare and safety of the citizens of this state.

(c) It is found and declared that the revitalization of counties and of the central business districts of the municipalities of this state is necessary to retain existing industry in, and attract new industry to, this state and to protect the health, welfare and safety of residents of this state.

(2) Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) “Authorized developer” means a corporation organized under ch. 180 or 181 which the governing body designates as an authorized developer after making a finding that the principal purpose of the corporation is the general promotion of business development in the municipality or county or in the local area containing the municipality or county.

(as) “County” means any county in this state.

(b) “Distributor” includes any person engaged primarily in the business of making sales of any products of agriculture, forestry, mining or manufacture in the ordinary course of business to purchasers for purposes of resale or further processing or manufacturing.

(c) “Eligible participant” includes any person, other than the state or any other governmental unit, who enters into a revenue agreement with a municipality or county with respect to an industrial project. If more than one eligible participant is a party to a revenue agreement, the undertaking of each shall be either several or joint and several as the revenue agreement provides. An eligible participant need not be directly or indirectly a user of the project.

(d) “Equip” means to install or place on or in any building or improvements or the site of the building or improvements equipment of any kind, including machinery, utility service connections, pollution control facilities, building service equipment, fixtures, heating equipment and air conditioning equipment.

(e) “Governing body” means the board, council or other body in which the legislative powers of the municipality or county are vested.

(f) “Improve,” “improving,” “improvements,” and “facilities” include any real or personal property or mixed property of whatever useful life that can be used or that will be useful in an industrial project including sites for buildings, equipment, or other improvements, rights-of-way, roads, streets, sidings, foundations, tanks, structures, pipes, pipelines, reservoirs, lagoons, utilities, materials, equipment, fixtures, machinery, furniture, furnishings, improvements, instrumentalities, pollution control facilities, and other real, personal, or mixed property.

(g) “Indenture” means an instrument under which bonds may be issued and the rights and security of the bondholders are defined, whether the instrument is in the form of an indenture of trust, deed of trust, resolution of the governing body, mortgage, security agreement, instrument of pledge or assignment or any similar instrument or any combination of these forms and whether or not the instrument creates a lien on property.

(h) “Initial resolution” means a resolution of the governing body expressing an intention, which may be subject to conditions stated in the resolution, to issue revenue bonds under this section in an amount stated, or a sum not to exceed a stated amount, on behalf of a specified eligible participant, for a stated purpose.

(i) “Municipality” means any city, village or town in this state.

(j) “Pollution control facilities” include, without limitation because of enumeration, any facilities, temporary or permanent, which are reasonably expected to abate, reduce or aid in the prevention, measurement, control or monitoring of noise, air or water pollutants, solid waste and thermal, radiation or other pollutants, including facilities installed principally to supplement or to replace existing property or equipment not meeting or allegedly not meeting acceptable pollution control standards or which are to be supplemented or replaced by other pollution control facilities.

(k) “Project” and “industrial project” mean any of the following:

1. Assembling, fabricating, manufacturing, mixing or processing facilities for any products of agriculture, forestry, mining or manufacture, even though the products may require further treatment before delivery to the ultimate consumer;

2. Generating, manufacturing, transmission or distributing facilities for electric energy, gas or water;

3. Telecommunications and telegraph facilities;

4. Pollution control facilities, including any connected environmental studies and monitoring systems;

5. Sewage and solid and liquid waste disposal facilities;

6. Printing facilities;

7. Hospital, clinic or nursing home facilities.

7m. Animal hospitals and veterinary clinics;

8. Industrial park facilities;

9. Dock, wharf, airport, railroad or mass transit facilities;

10. National or regional headquarters facilities;

11. Recreational facilities, convention centers and trade centers, as well as related hotels, motels or marinas;

12. Facilities to provide service activities, including but not limited to warehousing, storage, distribution, research and data processing, which are directly related to and used in conjunction with a project enumerated in this paragraph having the same principal user;

13. Facilities required for compliance with a lawful order of the U.S. occupational safety and health administration or any similar governmental agency; and

14. In addition to subd. 12. , facilities used primarily for the storage or distribution of products described under subd. 1. , materials, components or equipment, but not including facilities regularly used for the sale of goods or services to ultimate consumers for personal, family or household purposes.

15. Facilities for compliance with a lawful order of any state or federal governmental agency controlling the use of land with respect to any of the industries, activities or facilities enumerated in this paragraph.

16. Repair or new construction of dry dock facilities, storage facilities or other harbor improvements.

17. Nonresidential facilities including, but not limited to, one or more shopping centers, office buildings, convention or trade centers, hotels, motels or other nonresidential buildings, with respect to which an urban development action grant has been made under 42 USC 5318 as in effect on April 30, 1980.

19. Facilities for research and development activities relating to the production of products described under subd. 1. regardless of whether the user of the facilities is also engaged in the production of one or more of those products.

20. A shopping center, or an office building, convention or trade center, hotel, motel or other nonresidential facility, which is located in or adjacent to a blighted area as defined by s. 66.1105 (2) (ae) , 66.1331 (3) (a) or 66.1333 (2m) (b) or in accordance with a redevelopment plan or urban renewal plan adopted under s. 66.1331 (5) or 66.1333 (6) .

21. Cable television facilities which provide services only in a municipality having a population of 2,500 or less.

22. Facilities with respect to which is issued either a recovery zone facility bond under 26 USC 1400U-3 or a qualified Midwestern disaster area bond under 26 USC 1400N (a), as modified by P.L. 110-343 , title VII, subtitle A, section 702 (d) (intro.) and (1).

(L) “Revenue agreement” includes any lease, sublease, installment or direct sales contract, service contract, take or pay contract, loan agreement or similar agreement providing that an eligible participant agrees to pay the municipality or county an amount of funds sufficient to provide for the prompt payment of the principal of, and interest on, the revenue bonds and agrees to construct the project.

(m) “Revenue bonds” and “bonds” means bonds, notes or any other contract or instrument evidencing a debt or providing for the payment of money entered into or issued in connection with a revenue agreement.

(n) “Trustee” means any corporation, bank or other entity authorized under any law of the United States or of any state to exercise trust powers or any natural person, or any one or more of them, acting as trustee, cotrustee or successor trustee under an indenture pursuant to designation of the governing body.

(3) Powers. A municipality or county may:

(a) Construct, equip, reequip, acquire by gift, lease or purchase, install, reconstruct, rebuild, rehabilitate, improve, supplement, replace, maintain, repair, enlarge, extend or remodel industrial projects.

(b) Borrow money and issue revenue bonds:

1. To finance all or part of the costs of the construction, equipping, reequipping, acquisition, purchase, installation, reconstruction, rebuilding, rehabilitation, improving, supplementing, replacing, maintaining, repairing, enlarging, extending or remodeling of industrial projects and the improvement of sites for industrial projects;

2. To fund the whole or part of any revenue bonds issued by the municipality or county, including any premium payable with respect to the bonds and any interest accrued or to accrue on the bonds; or

3. For any combination of the purposes under subd. 1. or 2.

(c) Enter into revenue agreements with eligible participants with respect to industrial projects.

(d) Mortgage all or part of the industrial project or assign the revenue agreements in favor of the holders of the bonds issued for the industrial project and in connection with the mortgage or assignment irrevocably waive any rights it would otherwise have to redeem the mortgaged premises in the event of foreclosure.

(e) Sell and convey the industrial project and site, including without limitation the sale and conveyance subject to a mortgage, for the price and at the time that the governing body determines, but no sale or conveyance of any industrial project or site may be made that impairs the rights or interests of the holders of any bonds issued for the industrial project.

(f) Finance an industrial project which is located entirely within the geographic limits of the municipality or county or some contiguous part of which is located within and some contiguous part outside the geographic limits of the municipality or county; or, finance an industrial project which is located entirely outside the geographic limits of the municipality or county, but only if the revenue agreement for the project also relates to another project of the same eligible participant, part of which is located within the geographic limits of the municipality or county. The power granted by this paragraph does not include the power to annex, tax, zone or exercise any other municipal or county power with respect to that part of the project located outside of the geographic limits of the municipality or county.

(g) Consent, whenever it deems it necessary or desirable in fulfillment of the purposes of this section, to a modification of a rate of interest, a time of payment of any installment of principal or interest or any other term of the revenue agreement, indenture or bonds.

(h) Provide for any type of insurance against any risk including, without limitation, insurance on the revenues to be derived pursuant to the revenue agreement or on the obligation to make payment of the principal of or interest on the bonds.

(4) Bonds.

(a) Bonds issued by a municipality or county under this section are limited obligations of the municipality or county. The principal of and interest on the bonds are payable solely out of the revenues derived under the revenue agreement pertaining to the project to be financed by the bonds, or, if there is a default of the agreement and to the extent that the municipality or county provides in the proceedings of the governing body authorizing the bonds to be issued, out of any revenues derived from the sale, releasing or other disposition of the project, or out of any collateral securing the revenue agreement, or out of the proceeds of the sale of bonds. Bonds and interest coupons issued under this section are not an indebtedness of the municipality or county, within the meaning of any state constitutional provision or statutory limitation. Bonds and interest coupons issued under this section are not a charge against the municipality’s or county’s general credit or taxing powers or a pecuniary liability of the municipality or county or a redevelopment authority under s. 66.1333 , including but not limited to:

1. Liability for failure to investigate or negligence in the investigation of the financial position or prospects of an eligible participant, a user of a project or any other person or for failure to consider, or negligence concerning, the adequacy of terms of, or collateral security for, the bonds or any related agreement to protect interests of holders of the bonds; and

2. Any liability in connection with the issuance or sale of bonds, for representations made, or for the performance of the obligation of any person who is a party to a related transaction or agreement except as specifically provided in this section or by an express provision of the bond or a related written agreement to which the municipality or county is a party.

(b) The limitation of liability provided by par. (a) (intro.) shall be plainly stated on the face of each bond.