The Town Board of the Town of Fulton has, by adoption of this chapter,
confirmed the specific statutory authority, powers and duties of the Town
Board of the Town of Fulton established in Ch. 60, Wis. Stats., and has established,
pursuant to the above-noted chapter and this chapter, other statutory authority,
powers and duties of the Town Board of the Town of Fulton to manage and direct
the affairs of the Town of Fulton.
A legal quorum of the Town Board of the Town of Fulton is a majority
of the members of the Town Board of the Town of Fulton. The current Town Board
consists of three members of which two members shall be a legal quorum when
they are in attendance at any duly called and any duly authorized public meeting
of the Town Board of the Town of Fulton.
A meeting of the Town Board of the Town of Fulton may be held within
the Town of Fulton or in any town, city or village within or adjoining the
Town of Fulton, subject to the open meeting provisions of Subchapter V of
Ch. 19, Wis. Stats.
The Town Board of the Town of Fulton has the below-noted specific powers
and specific duties that are established in §§ 60.22 and 60.23,
Wis. Stats. These powers and duties are:
A. Village powers. The Town Board of the Town of Fulton
shall exercise powers relating to villages and conferred under Ch. 61, Wis.
Stats., except those powers which conflict with statutes relating to towns
and town boards.
B. Charge of Town officers. The Town Board of the Town of
Fulton has charge of all affairs of the Town of Fulton not committed by law
to another body or officer or to a Town employee of the Town of Fulton.
C. Chief of Police. The Town Board of the Town of Fulton
shall determine the jurisdiction and duties of the Town Chief of Police. The
Town Board may also require the Town Chief of Police to complete training
under § 165.85(4m), Wis. Stats.
D. Charge of actions. The Town Board of the Town of Fulton
has charge of any action or legal proceeding to which the Town of Fulton is
a party.
E. Pursue claims of Town. The Town Board of the Town of
Fulton shall demand payment of penalties and forfeitures recoverable by the
Town of Fulton and damages incurred by the Town of Fulton due to breach of
any official bond, any injury to property or other injury. If, following demand
by the Town Board of the Town of Fulton, payment is then not made, the Town
Board of the Town of Fulton shall pursue appropriate legal action to recover
the appropriate penalty, forfeiture or damages.
F. Joint participation agreements. The Town Board of the
Town of Fulton may cooperate with state, county or other units of government
in Wisconsin pursuant to § 66.0301, Wis. Stats., including cooperative
arrangements involving the acquisition, development, remodeling, construction,
equipping, operation and maintenance of land, building and facilities for
regional projects whether or not located in the Town of Fulton.
(1) The Town of Fulton maintains the following joint cooperative
arrangements:
(a) Edgerton Fire Protection District Commission.
(b) Consolidated Koshkonong Sanitary District.
(c) Rock River Safety Patrol.
(2) The Town of Fulton does not herein express an opinion
as to whether or not any or all of these entities are legally constituted
and functioning; the purpose of this section is to declare that the Town of
Fulton has in the past had a relationship with these entities.
G. Utility districts in Town. The Town Board of the Town
of Fulton may establish utility districts pursuant to § 66.0827,
Wis. Stats., and may provide that any convenience or public improvement in
the district be paid for under that section.
H. Appropriation for civic and other functions. The Town
Board of the Town of Fulton may, if authorized by the Town Meeting under § 60.10(3)(b),
Wis. Stats., appropriate reasonable amounts of money for gifts or donations
for those purposes specified in § 60.23(3), Wis. Stats.
I. Town industrial development agency. The Town Board of
the Town of Fulton, in order to promote and develop the resources in the Town
of Fulton, may appropriate money for and create a Town industrial development
agency or appoint an executive officer and provide staff and facilities for
a nonprofit organization organized to act under this subsection. A Town of
Fulton industrial development agency created under this subsection may:
(1) Develop data regarding the industrial needs of, advantages
of and sites in the Town of Fulton.
(2) Engage in promotional activities to acquaint prospective
purchasers with industrial products manufactured in the Town of Fulton.
(3) Coordinate its activities with the County Planning Commission,
the Department of Commerce and private credit development organizations.
(4) Engage in any other activity necessary for the continued
improvement of the industrial climate of the Town of Fulton.
J. Cooperation in county planning. The Town Board of the
Town of Fulton may cooperate with the county in rural planning under § 27.019,
Wis. Stats., § 59.54(4) and (4m), Wis. Stats., and § 59.69,
Wis. Stats.
K. Conservation of natural resources. The Town Board of
the Town of Fulton may, if authorized by the Town Meeting under § 60.10(3)(a),
Wis. Stats., appropriate money for the conservation of natural resources or
for payment to a bona fide nonprofit organization for the conservation of
natural resources within the Town of Fulton or beneficial to the Town of Fulton.
No payment may be made to a nonprofit organization unless the organization
submits and the Town Board of the Town of Fulton approves a detailed plan
of work to be done. The plan shall include the name of the owner of any property
on which work is to be performed.
L. Obstruction in nonnavigable waters. The Town Board of
the Town of Fulton may remove, at the expense of the Town of Fulton, any obstruction
located in the Town of Fulton which prevents the natural flow of water in
a nonnavigable stream. One or more Town Board Supervisors, or a designee of
the Town Board of the Town of Fulton, may enter upon any land if necessary
to remove the obstruction. Included in the definition of "obstruction" are
man-made or natural obstructions to culverts which prevent the flow of water
through such culverts.
M. Emergency pest and disease control. The Town Board of
the Town of Fulton may appropriate money for the control of insects, weeds
or plant or animal disease if:
(1) An emergency arises within the Town of Fulton due to
insects, weeds or plant or animal diseases; and
(2) The Town Board of the Town of Fulton determines that
any delay resulting from calling a Special Town Meeting to authorize the Town
Board of the Town of Fulton to appropriate money for this purpose under § 60.10(3)(c),
Wis. Stats., would result in serious harm to the general welfare of the Town
of Fulton.
N. Bowling alleys, pool tables and amusement devices. The
Town Board of the Town of Fulton may regulate, including the licensing of,
bowling alleys, billiard and pool tables and other amusement devices maintained
in commercial facilities. If a license is required, the Town Board of the
Town of Fulton shall establish the term of the license, not to exceed one
year, and the license fee. The Town Board of the Town of Fulton may suspend
or revoke, for cause, a license issued under this subsection. Any person violating
a regulation adopted under this subsection shall forfeit to the Town of Fulton
an amount established by the Town Board of the Town of Fulton.
O. Exchange tax credit for county land. The Town Board of
the Town of Fulton may authorize the Town Treasurer of the Town of Fulton
to exchange any credit the Town of Fulton has with the county, arising from
delinquent real estate taxes, for county-owned land.
P. Associations of towns. The Town Board of the Town of
Fulton may appropriate money to purchase membership in any association of
town boards for the protection of town interests and improvement of town government.
Q. Vacation of road, street, slip, pier, lane or alley.
The Town Board of the Town of Fulton may discontinue the whole or any part
of any road, street, slip, pier, lane or alley as provided for in § 66.1003.
R. Change of street names. The Town Board of the Town of
Fulton may, by ordinance, name or change the name of any street in the Town
of Fulton under § 82.03(7), Wis. Stats.
S. Use of firearms. The Town Board of the Town of Fulton
may regulate the careless use of firearms and impose forfeitures for violation
of the regulations.
T. Fences in subdivisions. The Town Board of the Town of
Fulton may, if authorized under § 60.10(2)(c), Wis. Stats., to exercise
village powers, by ordinance require a subdivider to construct a fence under
§ 90.02, Wis. Stats., as a condition of plat approval by the Town
of Fulton. The fence shall be maintained under § 90.05(2), Wis.
Stats., and required under §§ 90.10 and 90.11, Wis. Stats.
U. Disposition of dead animals. The Town Board of the Town
of Fulton may, notwithstanding § 59.54(21), Wis. Stats., and § 95.50(3),
Wis. Stats., dispose of any dead animal within the Town of Fulton or contract
for the removal and disposition with any private disposal facility.
Nothing contained in this chapter is intended to impair the authority
of the Town Board to act pursuant to other ordinances and codes of ordinances
that may now exist or exist in the future. The various powers of the Town
Board enumerated in this chapter are not intended to be all inclusive.
The Town Meeting of the Town of Fulton previously authorized, by adoption
of a resolution, that the Town Board of the Town of Fulton had and has the
specific authority, powers and duties noted above in Chs. 60 and 61, Wis.
Stats., and has established pursuant to these chapters and this Code the powers
and duties of the Town Board of the Town of Fulton to exercise village board
powers pursuant to §§ 60.22 and 61.34, Wis. Stats., and subject
to the conditions established in § 60.22, Wis. Stats.
Nothing contained in this chapter shall be deemed an election by the
Town Board of the Town of Fulton not to adopt any provision of the Town Parity
Act, 1993 Act 246. In the event there is a conflict between any Wisconsin
statute granting authority to a town to act using village powers and the authority
of the Town to act under the powers granted by the Town Parity Act, such conflict
will be resolved by the use of the Wisconsin law which affords the Town the
greatest power to act with regard to a particular matter.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meaning
indicated:
AMUSEMENT DEVICES
Devices provided for recreational and amusement activities, specifically
bowling alleys, billiards, pool tables, video games, jukeboxes and other similar
devices.
FIREARM
A weapon that acts by force of gunpowder.
HOLIDAY
The days designated by law and the Town of Fulton Board as exempt
from judicial proceedings, service of process or demand and protest of commercial
papers.
OPEN SESSION
A meeting which is held in a place reasonably accessible to members
of the public and open to all persons at all times. In the case of a state
governmental body, it means a meeting which is held in a building and room
thereof which enables access by persons with functional limitations, as defined
in § 101.13(1), Wis. Stats.
PRO TEM/PRO TEMPORE
Temporary. In connection with offices "pro tem" means temporary appointment.
PUBLIC DEPOSITORY
A federal or state credit union, federal or state savings and loan
association, state bank, savings and trust company, mutual savings bank, or
national bank in this state which receives or holds any public deposits or
the local government pooled investment fund.
QUORUM
A majority of the number of members of a public body fixed by law
or ordinance.
STATE OPEN MEETING LAW
The state statutes and interpretation by the court of those statutes
found in Ch. 19, Wis. Stats.