WILL:

There is nothing in Wisconsin state law which authorizes municipalities to charge a road use fee. Instead, roads are meant to be financed primarily through property taxes which have strict levy limits and uniformity requirements.  

The Town of Buchanan was one of the Wisconsin municipalities using a TUF to illegally get around their property tax limitations.  

In September 2021, WILL initiated legal action in Outagamie County Circuit Court, seeking a ruling that the Town of Buchanan’s transportation utility fee was unlawful and requesting an injunction to halt its imposition, enforcement, or collection. Judge Mark McGinnis of the Outagamie County Circuit Court ruled during a summary judgment hearing on June 6, 2022, that the transportation utility fee breached the state’s tax limits.  

Despite the Town’s appeal, the Wisconsin Supreme Court unanimously struck down the fee as an unlawful tax. 

This case has already made big waves as it was used by the Court of Appeals to overrule a TUF in the Village of Pewaukee and demonstrates how our work continuously defends taxpayers around the state.