Section 59.05. County seat; change.

 

(1)  The county seat shall be fixed and designated by the board at the first regular meeting after the organization of any county; and no county seat shall be changed except as provided in this section.

(2)  If a petition conforming to the requirements of s. 8.40 is filed with the board by at least two-fifths of the legal voters of any county, to be determined by the registration list for the last previous general election held in the county at the time of filing, the names of which voters shall appear on the registration list for such election, asking for a change of the county seat to some other place designated in the petition, the board shall submit the question of removal of the county seat to a vote of the qualified voters of the county. The board shall file the question as provided in s. 8.37 . The election shall be held only on the day of the general election, notice of the election shall be given and the election shall be conducted as in the case of the election of officers on that day, and the votes shall be canvassed, certified and returned in the same manner as other votes at that election. The question to be submitted shall be “Shall the county seat of .... county be removed to ....?".

(3)  If a majority of the votes cast at the election are in favor of the proposed change, the chairperson of the board shall certify the same, with the attestation of the county clerk, to the governor, who shall issue a proclamation to that effect and publish it in the official state paper. From the date of publication the place designated shall be the county seat. The board may not again submit the question of removal within 5 years.

(4)  Notwithstanding subs. (2) and (3) , no election to change a county seat may be held for a period of 5 years after the year in which a courthouse or other county building costing $3,000 or more was built at the county seat and occupied for county purposes.

1977 c. 427 ; 1983 a. 192 , 484 ; 1989 a. 192 ; 1995 a. 201 s. 247 ; Stats. 1995 s. 59.05; 1997 a. 35 ; 1999 a. 182 ; 2003 a. 265 . When 40 percent of registered voters were denied ballots in an election to remove a county seat, the election was set aside even though the outcome probably was not affected. McNally v. Tollander, 100 Wis. 2d 490 , 302 N.W.2d 440 (1981).