WI
Wisconsin Senate Bill SB218

Wisconsin 2025-2026 Regular Session

Wisconsin Senate Bill SB218 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
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11 2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE
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44 2025 SENATE BILL 218
55 April 25, 2025 - Introduced by Senators STAFSHOLT, CABRAL-GUEVARA, FEYEN,
66 NASS and WANGGAARD, cosponsored by Representatives GREEN, ALLEN,
77 ARMSTRONG, BEHNKE, BROOKS, DITTRICH, DUCHOW, FRANKLIN, GOEBEN, B.
88 JACOBSON, KREIBICH, MIRESSE, MURPHY, MURSAU, NOVAK, O'CONNOR, ORTIZ-
99 VELEZ, PENTERMAN, PIWOWARCZYK, VANDERMEER and SUMMERFIELD.
1010 Referred to Committee on Insurance, Housing, Rural Issues and Forestry.
1111 AN ACT to renumber and amend 77.24; to amend 16.967 (7) (am) 2., 16.967
1212 (7) (b), 20.505 (1) (uc), 25.55 and 77.22 (1); to create 16.967 (7) (c), 59.43 (13)
1313 and 77.24 (2) of the statutes; relating to: the amount and distribution of the
1414 real estate transfer fee, grants under the land information program, real
1515 property recording notification systems, and making an appropriation.
1616 Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
1717 Current law, generally, requires a person who conveys an interest in real
1818 property to file a real estate transfer return with the county register of deeds and
1919 pay a real estate transfer fee equal to 30 cents for each $100 of the value of the
2020 conveyance. The county retains 20 percent of the fees collected and transmits the
2121 remainder to the state.
2222 This bill decreases the real estate transfer fee to 20 cents for each $100 of the
2323 value of the conveyance. Under the bill, 30 percent of the fees collected are
2424 deposited into the general fund, 20 percent of the fees are deposited into the land
2525 information fund, and the county retains 50 percent of the fees.
2626 Under current law, the Department of Administration administers a land
2727 information program, using revenue from the land information fund, that provides
2828 funding to counties for the modernization of local land records. Under the land
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3737 SECTION 1
3838 information program, DOA awards land information system base budget grants to
3939 counties to enable county land information offices to develop, maintain, and operate
4040 basic land information systems. Currently, the minimum amount of a grant is
4141 $100,000 less the amount of certain fees retained by the county in the preceding
4242 fiscal year. The bill increases that base amount to $175,000 less the retained fees.
4343 Under current law, DOA may award a grant under the land information
4444 program to any county in an amount not less than $1,000 per year to be used for the
4545 training and education of county employees for the design, development, and
4646 implementation of a land information system. The bill increases the minimum
4747 training and education grant amount from $1,000 to $5,000.
4848 The bill directs DOA to award additional local government contribution based
4949 grants to counties to fully distribute 46 percent of the amount of real estate transfer
5050 fees that are deposited into the land information fund under the bill in each fiscal
5151 year. Under the bill, DOA annually must award 46 percent of those deposited
5252 amounts as grants to counties based on the relative proportion of the fees each
5353 county collected.
5454 This bill also requires any county that retains real estate transfer fee moneys
5555 to establish a real property recording notification system to be administered by the
5656 county[s register of deeds. Upon application by a person, such a system monitors
5757 publicly recorded real property records for activity and changes related to
5858 properties owned by a specific person or a specific property, and, upon the recording
5959 of a new document against a monitored property, notifies the person who applied
6060 for monitoring. The bill specifies that no fee may be charged to an applicant for
6161 application, monitoring, or notification under such a system.
6262 For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be
6363 printed as an appendix to this bill.
6464 The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
6565 enact as follows:
6666 SECTION 1. 16.967 (7) (am) 2. of the statutes is amended to read:
6767 16.967 (7) (am) 2. The minimum amount of a grant under this paragraph is
6868 determined by subtracting the amount of fees that the county retained under s.
6969 59.72 (5) (b) in the preceding fiscal year from $100,000 $175,000. The department
7070 is not required to award a grant to a county that retained at least $100,000
7171 $175,000 in fees under s. 59.72 (5) (b) in the preceding fiscal year.
7272 SECTION 2. 16.967 (7) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
7373 16.967 (7) (b) In addition to any other grant received awarded under this
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8585 SECTION 2
8686 subsection, the department may award a grant to any county in an amount not less
8787 than $1,000 $5,000 per year to be used for the training and education of county
8888 employees for the design, development, and implementation of a land information
8989 system.
9090 SECTION 3. 16.967 (7) (c) of the statutes is created to read:
9191 16.967 (7) (c) In addition to any other grant awarded under this subsection,
9292 the department shall award local government contribution based grants to
9393 counties, for the purposes specified under par. (am), to fully distribute 46 percent of
9494 the amounts received by the department under s. 77.24 (2) (b) in each fiscal year.
9595 The department shall determine the amount of a grant awarded to a county as
9696 follows:
9797 1. Determine the total amount of moneys received by the department under s.
9898 77.24 (2) (b) in the preceding fiscal year.
9999 2. Determine the total amount of moneys received by the department under s.
100100 77.24 (2) (b) in the preceding fiscal year that were collected by the county.
101101 3. Divide the amount determined under subd. 2. by the amount determined
102102 under subd. 1.
103103 4. Multiply the amount determined under subd. 1. by 46 percent.
104104 5. Multiply the quotient under subd. 3. by the product under subd. 4.
105105 SECTION 4. 20.505 (1) (uc) of the statutes is amended to read:
106106 20.505 (1) (uc) Land information program; local aids. From the land
107107 information fund, all moneys received by the department under s. ss. 59.72 (5) (a)
108108 and 77.24 (2) (b), except moneys appropriated under par. (ub), for aids to counties
109109 under s. 16.967 (7).
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137137 SECTION 5
138138 SECTION 5. 25.55 of the statutes is amended to read:
139139 25.55 Land information fund. There is created a separate nonlapsible
140140 trust fund designated as the land information fund, consisting of moneys received
141141 under s. ss. 59.72 (5) (a) and 77.24 (2) (b).
142142 SECTION 6. 59.43 (13) of the statutes is created to read:
143143 59.43 (13) REAL PROPERTY RECORDING NOTIFICATION SYSTEM. A county that
144144 retains moneys under s. 77.24 shall establish a real property recording notification
145145 system to be administered by the register of deeds. Upon application by a person,
146146 the system shall monitor publicly recorded real property records for activity and
147147 changes related to properties owned by a specific person or a specific property, and,
148148 upon the recording of a new document against a monitored property, notify the
149149 applicant. No fee may be charged to an applicant for application, monitoring, or
150150 notification under a system established under this subsection.
151151 SECTION 7. 77.22 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
152152 77.22 (1) There is imposed on the grantor of real estate a real estate transfer
153153 fee at the rate of 30 20 cents for each $100 of value or fraction thereof on every
154154 conveyance not exempted or excluded under this subchapter. In regard to land
155155 contracts, the value is the total principal amount that the buyer agrees to pay the
156156 seller for the real estate. This fee shall be collected by the register at the time the
157157 instrument of conveyance is submitted for recording. Except as provided in s.
158158 77.255, at the time of submission the grantee or his or her duly authorized agent or
159159 other person acquiring an ownership interest under the instrument, or the
160160 judgment creditor in the case of a foreclosure under s. 846.16, shall execute a
161161 return, signed by both grantor and grantee, on the form prescribed under sub. (2).
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189189 SECTION 7
190190 The register shall enter the fee paid on the face of the deed or other instrument of
191191 conveyance before recording, and, except as provided in s. 77.255, submission of a
192192 completed real estate transfer return and collection by the register of the fee shall
193193 be prerequisites to acceptance of the conveyance for recording. The register shall
194194 have no duty to determine either the correct value of the real estate transferred or
195195 the validity of any exemption or exclusion claimed. If the transfer is not subject to a
196196 fee as provided in this subchapter, the reason for exemption shall be stated on the
197197 face of the conveyance to be recorded by reference to the proper subsection under s.
198198 77.25.
199199 SECTION 8. 77.24 of the statutes is renumbered 77.24 (1) and amended to
200200 read:
201201 77.24 (1) Twenty Fifty percent of all fees collected under this subchapter shall
202202 be retained by the county and the balance shall be transmitted to the state as
203203 provided in sub. (2).
204204 (3) Remittances shall be made monthly by the county treasurers to the
205205 department of revenue by the 15th day of the month following the close of the month
206206 in which the fee was collected. The remittance to the department shall be
207207 accompanied by the returns executed under s. 77.22.
208208 SECTION 9. 77.24 (2) of the statutes is created to read:
209209 77.24 (2) (a) Thirty percent of all fees collected under this subchapter shall be
210210 deposited into the general fund.
211211 (b) Twenty percent of all fees collected under this subchapter shall be
212212 deposited into the land information fund.
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239239 SECTION 10
240240 SECTION 10. Initial applicability.
241241 (1) This act first applies to conveyances filed on the effective date of this
242242 subsection.
243243 SECTION 11. Effective date.
244244 (1) This act takes effect on the 30th day after the day of publication.
245245 (END)
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