Current through August 26, 2024
(1) PURPOSE OF AGREEMENT.
(a) The cost-share agreement is an agreement
listing the urban best management practices and establishing the conditions and
considerations under which a cost-share recipient agrees to install the
practices listed.
(b) A local
governmental unit shall use the cost-share agreement if serving as a cost-share
provider to a landowner or land operator.
(c) For urban best management practices to be
eligible for cost-sharing, the cost-share agreement shall be signed by the
cost-share provider and cost-share recipient before urban best management
practice installation is initiated.
(2) PARTIES TO THE AGREEMENT.
(a) The cost-share agreement shall be between
the governmental unit and the individual landowner or land operator. Agreements
with land operators shall be co-signed by the landowner.
(b) Governmental units, as cost-share
agreement providers, shall enter into cost-share agreements only during the
period specified in the runoff management grant agreement.
(c) The cost-share agreement applies to all
contiguous sites under the same ownership. At the discretion of the
governmental unit, the cost-share agreement may also apply to noncontiguous
sites under the same ownership or operation in the watershed. In this
paragraph, "contiguous" means touching or sharing a common boundary with a
second parcel of land. A lake, river, stream, road, railroad or utility right
of way that separates any part of the parcel from any other part does not
render the parcel of land noncontiguous.
(d) A cost-share agreement may not be signed
with an individual whose name appears on the statewide support lien docket
under s.
49.854(2) (b), Stats., unless the individual submits to
the provider a payment agreement that has been approved by the county child
support agency under s.
59.53(5),
Stats., and that is consistent with rules promulgated under s.
49.858(2) (a), Stats.
(3) CONTENT OF THE AGREEMENT. The cost-share
agreement shall contain or describe:
(a) The
name and address of the cost-share recipient.
(b) The urban best management practices to be
applied and the cost-share rates for those practices that are to be cost
shared. The cost-share agreement shall require that all cost-shared urban best
management practices be implemented and maintained as a condition of the
agreement.
(c) The estimated total
practice cost, cost-share rate and estimated cost-share amount.
(d) The installation schedule for applying
the practices.
(e) A statement of
operation and maintenance requirements.
(f) A prohibition against adopting any land
use or practice which defeats the purposes of the urban best management
practices, the cost-share agreement or the runoff management grant
agreement.
(g) A stipulation that
the cost-share recipient may not discriminate against a contractor on the basis
of age, sex, religion or other prohibited factor.
(h) A provision describing the procedure for
amendment.
(i) The location of the
land on which the cost-shared practice is to be installed, and a specific legal
description of the land.
(j) A
prohibition against any change in land use or management on the entire property
described on the cost-share agreement which may cause sources which were
adequately managed at the time of cost-share agreement signing, including
compliance with performance standards under ch. NR 151 to produce a
significantly increased pollutant loading to surface water or groundwater.
1. If a change in land use or management
occurs, the landowner or land operator shall control the source at the
landowner or land operator's own expense or return any cost-sharing funds
awarded through the cost-share agreement to the provider.
2. Increases in urban pollutant loading
resulting from the conversion of land to urban land cover may not be considered
significant if the land development or redevelopment activity meets the
non-agricultural and transportation performance standards in subchs. III and IV
of ch. NR 151.
(k) A
requirement to amend the cost-share agreement if practices are added or deleted
and to add or delete practices only if they are consistent with the project
grant application.
Note: Compliance with conditions in a cost-share agreement
does not assure compliance with performance standards under ch. NR 151. For
example, the operation and maintenance period for purposes of cost sharing is
10 years for most practices. However, compliance with non-agricultural and
transportation performance standards under ch. NR 151 must be maintained in
perpetuity.
(4)
DEPARTMENT APPROVAL. The governmental unit shall obtain prior department
approval of the cost share agreement. The department shall consider the
cost-effectiveness of the urban best management practices and eligibility for
cost sharing under this chapter in making its decision whether to grant
approval.
(5) SUBMITTAL TO
DEPARTMENT. Unless required otherwise under sub. (4), the cost-share agreement
provider shall submit a copy of the cost-share agreement and amendments to the
department within 30 days of execution. The department may deny reimbursement
to the governmental unit for costs associated with the installation of a urban
best management practice not in conformance with the cost-share agreement, the
runoff management grant agreement and the project grant application.
(6) AGREEMENT PERIOD. The cost-share
agreement period shall be the period from the cost-share agreement signing to
the end of the operation and maintenance period.
(a) The period during which practices in a
signed cost-share agreement may be installed may not extend beyond the period
of the runoff management grant agreement for the project.
(b) For purposes of complying with the
cost-share agreement, the operation and maintenance period for an urban best
management practice begins when the urban best management practice installation
is complete and ends after the required operation and maintenance period has
expired. The operation and maintenance period for each cost-shared and not
cost-shared urban best management practice shall last for a minimum of 10 years
except that the operation and maintenance period shall last for a minimum of 15
years if a payment is made under s.
NR 154.03(1) (i)
3.
(7) FAILURE TO FULFILL AGREEMENT. If the
cost-share recipient fails to fulfill any terms of the cost-share agreement,
including failing to install, operate and properly maintain the practices of
the agreement, the full amount of cost-shared funds received by the cost-share
recipient shall be repaid to the governmental unit which is the provider of the
agreement. The provider shall forward the repayment to the
department.
(8) INEFFECTIVE
PRACTICES. If the practice becomes ineffective either during or beyond the
grant period of the runoff management grant agreement for the project and the
reason for the practice becoming ineffective is beyond the control of the
cost-share recipient, the department may award a new grant agreement or amend
and extend the existing runoff management grant agreement to cost share the
maintenance or replacement of the practice.
(a) The department may not provide cost
sharing for the maintenance or replacement of a practice more than
once.
(b) An appropriate operation
and maintenance period for the replacement practice shall be identified in the
cost-share agreement.
(9) CHANGE IN OWNERSHIP. If a change in
ownership occurs during the cost-share agreement period, the new landowner
shall be responsible for fulfilling all conditions of the cost-share agreement.
Upon receiving written approval from the respective local governmental unit,
the new landowner may implement alternative approved urban best management
practices provided that an equal or greater level of pollution control is
achieved.
(10) RECORDING OF
COST-SHARE AGREEMENTS WITH REGISTER OF DEEDS.
(a) The governmental unit shall record the
cost-share agreement and its amendments in the office of the register of deeds
for each county in which the property is located.
(b) The governmental unit shall record these
documents prior to making reimbursements to the landowner or land
operator.
(11) RELEASE
OF PROPERTY FROM OBLIGATIONS OF COST-SHARE AGREEMENTS. At the request of the
cost-share recipient, a governmental unit may fully or partially release a
property from the obligations of the cost-share agreement provided that the
governmental unit has determined that the urban best management practices
installed on the property will be maintained or replaced with practices which
will not increase the pollutant loading to surface water or groundwater counter
to the water resource objectives of the grant application. The governmental
unit shall obtain written approval from the department before the property may
be released. The release form shall be obtained from the department and filed
with the cost-share agreement.
Forms can be obtained from the department's Bureau of
Watershed Management or the department's Bureau of Community Financial
Assistance, 101 S. Webster St., PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707-7921.
