Forestry

Forest Tax Laws

Program Resources

Managed Forest Law Revisions

2006

Governor Doyle signed into law 2005 Wisconsin Act 299 that made changes to the Managed Forest Law (MFL) program effective April 21, 2006. The change affected the land eligible for entry into the MFL program.

Formerly, land applied for enrollment had to consist of 10 contiguous acres under the same ownership and in a single municipality. Landowners therefore applied for entry into the program by municipality. 2005 Wisconsin Act 299 made it possible for an owner of land to apply for 10 contiguous acres under the same ownership, even if it crossed municipal lines. This change also affected the eligibility requirements for land added to existing MFL parcels or land converted from the Forest Crop Law (FCL) program to the MFL program.

  1. New order. A parcel of land is eligible for designation as MFL land if it consists of at least 10 contiguous acres under the same ownership.
  2. Addition. A parcel of land is eligible for an addition to an existing MFL parcel (entered in 2005 or later) if the new land is at least 3 acres in size, contiguous to the existing MFL land, and is under the same ownership.
  3. Withdrawal and re-designation. If a landowner would like to add land to an existing MFL parcel entered prior to 2005 and the new land does not meet the new order eligibility requirements, the existing MFL parcel can be withdrawn and re-designated with the additional land. A parcel of land is eligible for a withdrawal and re-designation if the new land is at least 3 acres in size, contiguous to the existing MFL land, and is under the same ownership.
  4. Conversion. A parcel of land is eligible for a conversion from the FCL program to the MFL program if all of the owner’s FCL land in the municipality or municipalities on the petition is converted to MFL.

On November 1, 2007, changes to Chapter NR 46 Wisconsin Administrative Code were made to reflect the 2005 Wisconsin Act 299 statutory changes. The petition fee was changed to $20 for each county on the MFL petition. This $20 fee is provided to cover the cost of recording the documents associated with a Managed Forest Law entry in each county.  

More information:
Wisconsin’s Managed Forest Law – Petition Instructions and Guidance [PDF, 374KB]
Managed Forest Law Petition for Designation/Conversion [PDF, 160KB]
Forest Tax & Stewardship News, Fall 2007, Page 11 [PDF, 2MB]

2005

On July 25, 2005, Governor Doyle signed into law 2005 Wisconsin Act 25, the 2005/07 Budget Bill. This act made some changes to the Managed Forest Law (MFL) related to the application fee, who is responsible for preparing management plans required for enrollment, and the cost for the development of the management plan. Please read this fact sheet [PDF, 35K] to learn more.

2004

Governor Doyle signed the 2003 Wisconsin Act 228 - Managed Forest Law Revisions into law on April 13, 2004.

2003 Wisconsin Act 228 incorporates the recommendations of the 2002 review of the Managed Forest Law (MFL) program by a task force commissioned by the former Governor's Council on Forestry.

This revision includes changes that will affect current and future enrollees in the program as well as townships and counties.

The objectives of the review were to:

  1. Review the Managed Forest Law (MFL) in the context of the Forestry Division's ability to meet the burgeoning workload, Forestry Account Legislative Audit concerns, and concerns expressed about the program's impact on local tax revenue.
  2. Recommend changes in the MFL to improve efficiency in application processing, enforcement and compliance as well as perceived inequities in the distribution of taxes, fees and aids.

The result was a detailed report published in December 2002 outlining the recommendations agreed upon by the task force. The full Governor's Council on Forestry approved the report unanimously at its December 5, 2002, meeting. 2003 Wisconsin Act 228 addresses most of those recommendations and was drafted to facilitate practical and efficient implementation.

A summary of the changes is in the 2003 Wisconsin Act 228 Fact Sheet - Revision date August 2. 2004 (PDF, 171K). Additional information on the statute is available on the state Legislature web site and also the Wisconsin State Assembly's Committee on Forestry page.

More information (in PDF format):

Last Revised: Tuesday November 27 2007