Top 10 Municipal Law Developments of 2016
Stafford Rosenbaum’s Government Law and Government Relations teams continuously stay apprised of the latest developments in Wisconsin municipal law. Below, in no particular order, are the top 10 municipal law developments of 2016.
Public records; open meetings. Three important cases affecting Wisconsin Public Records and Open Meetings Law came down this year.
First, in New Richmond News v. City of New Richmond, 2016 WI App 43, 370 Wis. 2d 75, 881 N.W.2d 339, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held that police departments are permitted to release unredacted copies of accident reports upon request. However, the Court remanded several issues relating to the release of incident reports upon request, questioning whether police departments should release unredacted incident reports containing driver’s information from the DMV. We posted about this decision in May.
Second, in Voces de la Frontera, Inc. v. Clarke, 2016 WI App 39, 369 Wis. 2d 103, 880 N.W.2d 417, review granted (June 15, 2016), the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held that, according to Wisconsin’s Public Records Law, the Milwaukee County Sheriff must produce unredacted immigration detainer forms received from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Finally, in State ex rel. Krueger v. Appleton Area Sch. Dist. Bd. of Educ., No. 2015AP231, 2016 WL 3510300 (Wis. Ct. App. June 28, 2016) (unpublished), review granted, (Oct. 11, 2016), the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held that a committee created by members of the Appleton School District curriculum department “on their own initiative” was not a “governmental body” subject to the open meetings law.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court has granted petitions for review in both Voces de la Frontera and Krueger. We previewed the Supreme Court’s consideration of the Krueger case here.
Home rule; preemption. In Milwaukee Police Association v. City of Milwaukee, 2016 WI 47, ___ Wis. 2d ___, ___ N.W.2d ___, the Wisconsin Supreme Court held that Wis. Stat. §66.0502, which essentially prohibits local governments from enacting residency requirements, precluded the City of Milwaukee from enforcing its residency requirement. We posted about this case when it was decided in June.
Alcohol licensing; social host ordinances. In County of Fond du Lac v. Muche, 2016 WI App 84, ___ Wis. 2d ___, ___ N.W.2d ___, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals invalidated Fond du Lac County’s social host ordinance because it did not strictly conform with Wis. Stat. §125.07(1) regulating underage drinking. The Court stated that Wis. Stat. §125.07 does not penalize social hosts for conduct in private residences because “premises” is a defined term that only includes places under permit or license to supply alcohol, not private residences. The Court concluded that the social host ordinance that penalizes underage drinking at private residences prohibits conduct allowed under the state statute and thus does not “strictly comply” with state law. For more on this case, see our post from November.
Zoning ordinances. Generally, 2015 Wisconsin Act 391 created and amended legislation regarding shoreland zoning. It has several provisions that will significantly affect property owners and development. One interesting provision that applies to all Wisconsin land, near water or not, created Wis. Stat. §895.463. That new statutory provision states that, in any dispute, “the court shall resolve an ambiguity in the meaning of a word or phrase in a zoning ordinance or shoreland zoning ordinance in favor of the free use of private property.” As detailed in this post from July it is not clear how, if at all, this will affect zoning disputes.
Voter apportionment; redistricting. In Evenwel v. Abbott, 578 U.S. ___ (2016), the United States Supreme Court held that states and local governments may apportion legislative districts based on total population under the one‑person, one‑vote rule. The challengers in this case had argued that Texas should not have considered total population but instead should have looked at the population of eligible voters in each district. The Supreme Court held that such an approach would be permissible, but is not required, as states draw congressional districts and seek to make those districts have populations that are close to equal. We explained the import of this decision in April.
In Whitford v. Gill, No. 15-CV-421-BBC, 2016 WL 6837229 (W.D. Wis. Nov.21, 2016), a panel of three federal judges held that Wisconsin’s 2012 redistricting involved an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander. Of particular import, the decision accepted a new measure, known as the efficiency gap, of how much partisan effect the placement of district lines has. In 2017, the three-judge panel will consider possible remedies for the improper districts, and then the case will almost certainly be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. When, as a result of the Whitford decision or as a matter of course after the 2020 census, Wisconsin next draws district lines, both the Whitford decision and the Evenwel decision will be at the forefront of legislators’ minds.
Takings. On January 15, 2016, theU.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari review of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals decision, Murr v. Wisconsin, 2015 WI App 13, 359 Wis. 2d 675, 859 N.W.2d 628 (unpublished) (per curiam), cert. granted, 136 S. Ct. 890 (2016). In Murr, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held that an ordinance effectively merging the Murrs’ two adjacent, riparian lots for development purposes, did not deprive the Murrs of all or substantially all practical use of their property and was not an uncompensated taking of property. The Supreme Court’s decision in this case has the potential to substantially alter takings jurisprudence; however, the Court has not scheduled oral argument in this case, which has been fully briefed since July. For a more in-depth discussion on this case, see our discussion of an amicus brief we filed on behalf of municipal government interests in June here.
Eminent domain; compensation. In Hoffer Properties, LLC v. State, Department of Transportation, 2016 WI 5, 366 Wis. 2d 372, 874 N.W.2d 533, the Wisconsin Supreme Court held that Wis. Stat. §84.25(3) authorizes the DOT to change a property owner’s access to state highways in whatever way it deems “necessary or desirable.” Such changes, including elimination of direct access points, are duly authorized exercises of the police power and are not compensable under Wis. Stat. §32.09, (the just compensation statute), as long as alternate access is provided. Further, the Court held that as long as alternate access is given or exists, a property owner is precluded as a matter of law from challenging the reasonableness of the access and receiving compensation under §32.09.
Annexation. In Town of Burnside v. City of Independence, 2016 WI App 94, ___ Wis. 2d ___, ___ N.W.2d ___, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of an intervening town’s challenge to a city’s annexation ordinance where the town intervened in an action started by two other towns outside the applicable statute of limitations.
Preemption. On January 11, 2016, the Wisconsin Supreme Court accepted Wisconsin Carry’s petition for review in Wisconsin Carry, Inc. v. City of Madison, 2015 WI App 74, 365 Wis. 2d 71, 870 N.W.2d 675, review granted, 2016 WI 16, 367 Wis. 2d 125, 876 N.W.2d 511. In Wisconsin Carry, Inc., the Court distinguished between agency rules and ordinances or resolutions in applying the preemption provision in Wis. Stat. §66.0409 when it upheld a City of Madison Transit and Parking Commission rule prohibiting riders on city buses from carrying weapons. The decision in this case could have a significant impact on the ability of municipal agencies to regulate firearms. The Court held oral arguments in September; thus, we expect the Court to issue a decision in the first half of 2017. For more on this case, see this post from March.
Dane County Zoning. 2015 Wisconsin Act 178 (which, despite its name, was enacted on February 29, 2016) establishes a process for certain towns to withdraw from county zoning. This Act applies only to towns in counties with a population of at least 485,000, and therefore, effectively applies only to towns located in Dane County, as there are no towns within Milwaukee County.
