For many years agent municipalities have been recognized in the State of Wisconsin. The municipalities recognized as certified were delegated the authority to perform limited plan examination, as well as inspection of either those structures they reviewed or inspection of all structures on behalf of the State of Wisconsin Department of Commerce. Following a change to the administrative rules, the Department of Commerce has restructured the options available to Wisconsin municipalities. First class cities, second class cities, certified municipalities, and authorized agents, as well as inspection delegation without plan review are options now available to our municipal partners.

First Class Cities
The City of Milwaukee is currently the only first class city in Wisconsin delegated the plan examination and inspection authority as prescribed by the administrative rules. The first class status of the municipality as defined by state statute is the basis for this delegation, which requires review and inspection of all buildings and structures within the city limits.

Second Class Cities
The delegation of second class cities, as is the case with the first class delegation, is based on a municipality accepting second class city status as prescribed by state statute. Under the delegation of second class city the municipality shall also accept plan review and inspection delegation of all buildings and structures located within the city limits. Proposed projects can be submitted to either the State of Wisconsin Department of Commerce or the delegated second class city for review.

Certified Municipalities
Certified municipalities remain essentially the same; new buildings not exceeding 50,000 cubic feet, additions to existing buildings which will result in the total building volume not exceeding 50,000 cubic feet, and alterations not exceeding 100,000 cubic feet. The new rules expand the delegation to include review of additions up to 2,500 square feet with maximum roof spans of 18' and maximum wall height of 12' to all buildings. Proposed projects can be submitted to either the State of Wisconsin Department of Commerce or the delegated second class city for review.

Authorized Agent
The delegation of authorized agent provides cities, towns, villages, or counties the flexibility to request desired responsibilities of plan review from the department. A municipality or county may request plan examination delegation based on construction classification, occupancy classification, or any combination of review parameters. Just like the aforementioned delegations of second class city and certified municipality, proposed projects can be submitted to either the State of Wisconsin Department of Commerce or the delegated second class city for review.

Inspection Only
The delegation of conducting only inspection of buildings and structures as a deputy of the Department of Commerce is also available to municipalities. A requirement associated with plan examination is the condition that the reviewing authority performs the inspection of those projects reviewed by the municipality.

The department is currently reviewing the options of providing this information based on the various delegations. When preparing a project for submittal please contact the specific municipality or Henry Kosarzycki at (608) 212-0138 regarding delegation authority information.

-- Henry Kosarzycki, AIA

The newsletter is issued electronically every other month.

Please send comments or questions to Barbro McGinn, editor.