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Waukesha council approves revised municipal court bond schedule; ordinance changes remain under review
Summary
The Common Council unanimously approved an updated municipal court bond schedule, including raising the minimum forfeiture for dogs in public parks; related ordinance amendments to enlarge penalty ranges received a second reading and drew debate over potential impacts on low-income residents.
The Waukesha City Common Council on June 17 unanimously approved an amended municipal court bond schedule that raises several citation bond amounts and increases the minimum forfeiture for “dog in public park” from $5 to $10 (a post-surcharge total of $73.60).
The bond schedule sets the base amounts that appear on municipal citations; defendants may pay the listed bond amount to settle a case or contest the citation in municipal court, where the judge can impose a different forfeiture. City Attorney Brian explained the schedule and the relationship between the schedule and later-discussed ordinance amendments, saying the judge sets the figures listed on citations but the council must approve the bond schedule.
The change for the dog-in-park forfeiture was presented as a technical coordination with proposed amendments to municipal code section 25.05; Council voted to modify the base from $5 to $10 and approved the bond schedule motion unanimously. “If you look through the bond schedule that you approved a little bit earlier, you’ll see that there are very, very few first offenses where the bond is $500,” Brian said in explaining how the schedule and court surcharges produce the total amount. He also described how the schedule combines base forfeitures with statutorily required surcharges and court costs.
The council also held a second reading of proposed changes to municipal code sections 11.01 and 25.05 that would widen the authorized ranges for forfeitures (proposed maximums of $2,500 for first offenses and $5,000 for subsequent offenses). That ordinance revision drew both support and concern. Several council members said the higher ceilings bring Waukesha in line with neighboring municipalities and give the municipal judge discretion to calibrate penalties. “This allows for the judge to make good decisions,” Alderperson Hemsley said, noting the bond schedule approved earlier still establishes the practical amounts typically used.
Opponents warned that higher maximum forfeitures could disproportionately affect low-income residents. One commenter during the ordinance discussion invoked Wisconsin statute 814.65 and warned that excessive penalties and potential enforcement actions (including tax warrants) could worsen financial hardship for struggling households. Council members debated an amendment proposed by Brian to set the minimum allowed under the ordinance at $10 (matching the bonded amount for the park dog violation) rather than $50. Some aldermen supported lowering the floor to $10 to ensure consistency with the newly approved bond schedule and to allow judges flexibility; others preferred to leave the lower-tier floor at $50.
Council did not adopt the ordinance changes at this meeting; they remain on the docket for further consideration. The bond schedule, including the $10 minimum for the dog-in-park base forfeiture, is effective as approved by vote.
Votes and next steps: the council approved the bond schedule (motion passed unanimously). The ordinance amendments to sections 11.01 and 25.05 received a second reading and will return for further action at a future meeting.
