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SB841: Bill Text
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2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE
LRB-5357/1
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2025 SENATE BILL 841
January 15, 2026 - Introduced by Senators
Spreitzer
,
Keyeski
,
Carpenter
,
Dassler-Alfheim
,
Drake
,
Habush Sinykin
,
Hesselbein
,
L. Johnson
,
Larson
,
Pfaff
,
Ratcliff
,
Roys
,
Smith
and
Wall
, cosponsored by Representatives
Miresse
,
Anderson
,
Arney
,
Bare
,
Billings
,
Brown
,
Clancy
,
DeSanto
,
DeSmidt
,
Emerson
,
Fitzgerald
,
Goodwin
,
Hong
,
Hysell
,
J. Jacobson
,
Joers
,
Johnson
,
Madison
,
McCarville
,
Neubauer
,
Phelps
,
Roe
,
Sheehan
,
Sinicki
,
Stubbs
,
Subeck
,
Tenorio
and
Udell
. Referred to Committee on Agriculture and Revenue.
SB841,1,5
1
An Act
to amend
20.115 (7) (dm), 20.115 (7) (tm), 71.613 (2) (intro.) and 91.84
2
(1) (b);
to create
71.613 (2e) and 91.10 (7) of the statutes;
relating to:
3
farmland preservation implementation grants, maximum acres of
4
agricultural enterprise areas, indexing the farmland preservation tax credit
5
for inflation, and making an appropriation.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill authorizes the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection to award grants to cities, villages, towns, counties, regional planning commissions, and tribal governments for various purposes related to implementing a county’s certified farmland preservation plan. Under the bill, DATCP must enter into a contract with a grant recipient before distributing grant funds, and the contract must identify costs eligible for reimbursement through the grant for the following activities: 1) certifying a farmland preservation zoning ordinance for the first time; 2) enrolling land in farmland preservation agreements; 3) designating an agricultural enterprise area or facilitating agricultural preservation and development; 4) monitoring compliance with land and water conservation standards; and 5) farmland preservation program outreach.
Under current law, DATCP may designate agricultural enterprise areas targeted for agricultural preservation and development. Current law authorizes DATCP to designate agricultural enterprise areas in the state with a combined area of not more than 2,000,000 acres.
The bill increases this authorization to a combined area of not more than 3,000,000 acres.
The bill also indexes for inflation the dollar amounts used to calculate the farmland preservation income tax credit. Under current law, claimants may claim a farmland preservation income tax credit for qualifying acres of farmland at a rate of $10 or $12.50 per qualifying acre, depending on certain factors.
For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
SB841,1
1
Section
1
.
20.115 (7) (dm) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB841,2,4
2
20.115
(7)
(dm)
Farmland preservation planning
and implementation
grants.
3
The amounts in the schedule for farmland preservation planning grants under s.
4
91.10 (6)
and for farmland preservation implementation grants under s. 91.10 (7)
.
SB841,2
5
Section
2
.
20.115 (7) (tm) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB841,2,9
6
20.115
(7)
(tm)
Farmland preservation planning
and implementation
grants,
7
working lands fund.
From the working lands fund, the amounts in the schedule for
8
farmland preservation planning grants under s. 91.10 (6)
and for farmland
9
preservation implementation grants under s. 91.10 (7)
.
SB841,3
10
Section
3
.
71.613 (2) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB841,3,4
11
71.613
(2)
Filing claims.
(intro.) Subject to
sub. (2e) and to
the limitations
12
and conditions provided in sub. (3), a claimant may claim as a credit against the tax
13
imposed under s. 71.02, 71.23, or 71.43, an amount calculated by multiplying the
14
claimant’s qualifying acres by one of the following amounts, and if the allowable
15
amount of the claim exceeds the income taxes otherwise due on the claimant’s
16
income or if there are no Wisconsin income taxes due on the claimant’s income, the
1
amount of the claim not used as an offset against income taxes shall be certified by
2
the department of revenue to the department of administration for payment to the
3
claimant by check, share draft, or other draft from the appropriation under s.
4
20.835 (2) (do):
SB841,4
5
Section
4
.
71.613 (2e) of the statutes is created to read:
SB841,3,19
6
71.613
(2e)
Indexing for inflation.
(a) Except as provided in pars. (b) and
7
(c), in August 2026, and every August thereafter, the department, in consultation
8
with the department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection, shall increase
9
the dollar amounts in sub. (2) (am), (bm), (cm), and (d) by a percentage equal to the
10
percentage change over the previous 12 months of an index of prices paid by
11
farmers, as determined by the national agricultural statistics service of the U.S.
12
department of agriculture. The adjustment may occur only if the resulting dollar
13
amounts are greater than the corresponding amounts that were calculated for the
14
previous year. If an adjustment is not made in a previous year due to a negative
15
change in the index, any subsequent adjustment shall be based on the percentage
16
change in the index since August of the year that an adjustment under this
17
paragraph last occurred, except that following a negative change in the index, no
18
adjustment may occur under this paragraph until the current level of the index
19
exceeds the highest level that the index had previously reached.
SB841,4,6
20
(b) Except as provided in par. (c), in August 2026, and every August
21
thereafter, if the department is unable to make the adjustment described in par. (a)
22
for a reason other than the resulting dollar amounts not being greater than the
23
corresponding amounts calculated for the previous year, the department shall
1
increase the dollar amounts in sub. (2) (am), (bm), (cm), and (d) by a percentage
2
equal to the percentage change over the previous 12 months of the consumer price
3
index for all urban consumers, U.S. city average, as determined by the U.S.
4
department of labor. The adjustment may occur only if the resulting dollar
5
amounts are greater than the corresponding amounts that were calculated for the
6
previous year.
SB841,4,10
7
(c) For the first increase described under this subsection in August 2026, the
8
department shall increase the dollar amounts in sub. (2) (am), (bm), (cm), and (d)
9
based on the percentage change of the index used by the department for the period
10
between January 2023 and August 2026.
SB841,5
11
Section
5
.
91.10 (7) of the statutes is created to read:
SB841,4,17
12
91.10
(7)
(a) From the appropriation under s. 20.115 (7) (dm) or (tm), the
13
department may award a grant to a city, village, town, county, regional planning
14
commission, or tribal government to implement a county’s certified farmland
15
preservation plan. In determining priorities for awarding grants under this
16
paragraph and under sub. (6) (a), the department shall first consider applications
17
for grants under sub. (6) (a).
SB841,4,20
18
(b) The department may award an implementation grant under par. (a) for the
19
costs of any of the following activities in an area that is planned for farmland
20
preservation in a county’s certified farmland preservation plan:
SB841,4,22
21
1. Certifying a farmland preservation zoning ordinance under s. 91.36 for the
22
first time.
SB841,4,23
23
2. Entering into farmland preservation agreements under s. 91.60.
SB841,5,3
1
3. Designating an agricultural enterprise area under s. 91.84 or developing a
2
project to facilitate agricultural preservation and development if the project is in a
3
designated agricultural enterprise area under s. 91.84.
SB841,5,4
4
4. Monitoring compliance under s. 91.82.
SB841,5,6
5
5. Targeted outreach for the farmland preservation program under this
6
chapter.
SB841,5,13
7
(c) The department shall enter into a contract with a city, village, town,
8
county, regional planning commission, or tribal government to which it awards an
9
implementation grant under par. (a) before the department distributes any grant
10
funds to the recipient. In the contract, the department shall identify the costs for
11
the activities under par. (b) that are eligible for reimbursement through the grant
12
and a benchmark of activities that the recipient must complete before the
13
department will distribute more than 50 percent of the grant funds.
SB841,5,19
14
(d) The department may distribute grant funds under this subsection only
15
after the city, village, town, county, regional planning commission, or tribal
16
government shows that it has incurred costs that are eligible for reimbursement
17
under par. (c). The department may not distribute more than 50 percent of the
18
amount of a grant under par. (a) for an implementation project before the recipient
19
completes the benchmark identified in the contract under par. (c).
SB841,5,22
20
(e) The department may require the recipient of an implementation grant
21
under par. (a) to contribute matching funds of up to 50 percent of the amount of the
22
grant.
SB841,6,2
1
(f) The department may consider the following factors when awarding grants
2
under par. (a):
SB841,6,5
3
1. The applicant’s demonstrated commitment to implementing the county’s
4
certified farmland preservation plan and the strength of documentation supporting
5
the plan.
SB841,6,8
6
2. The applicant’s demonstrated commitment and capacity to implement and
7
maintain farm conservation practices established in rules promulgated by the
8
department under ss. 92.05 (3) (c) and (k), 92.14 (8), and 281.16 (3) (b) and (c).
SB841,6,11
9
3. The likelihood that activities funded by the grant will address goals in the
10
county’s certified farmland preservation plan or grow local participation in the
11
farmland preservation program under this chapter.
SB841,6,13
12
4. The relative cost-effectiveness of activities funded by the grant in locally
13
implementing the farmland preservation program under this chapter.
SB841,6,14
14
5. The timeliness and completeness of plans and applications.
SB841,6,16
15
6. The applicant’s demonstrated cooperation and commitment to manage and
16
implement funded projects.
SB841,6,19
17
7. A county’s annual financial contribution for soil and water resource
18
management programs or funding awarded to county land conservation committees
19
as part of an annual grant under s. 92.14.
SB841,6,21
20
8. Any other factor relevant to administering the grant program under this
21
subsection.
SB841,6
22
Section
6
.
91.84 (1) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB841,7,2
1
91.84
(1)
(b) The department may designate agricultural enterprise areas
2
with a combined area of not more than
2,000,000
3,000,000
acres of land.
SB841,7
3
Section
7
. Initial applicability.
SB841,7,6
4
(
1
)
Indexing farmland preservation tax credit for inflation.
The
5
treatment of s. 71.613 (2) (intro.) and (2e) first applies to taxable years beginning on
6
January 1, 2026.
SB841,7,7
7
(end)
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true
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proposaltext/2025/REG/SB841
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true
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