When your cabin is located out-of-state, getting that cozy “home away from home” feeling may take some additional effort. After all - you’re a tourist and an absentee landowner. But don’t forget you’re also a taxpaying seasonal resident and your concerns deserve to be heard. That’s why thousands of Wisconsin cabin owners have brought their issues and voices together through the Wisconsin Seasonal Residents Association (WiSRA) with impressive results.
The group has been around for 13 years. Founder Nick Kaufmann and his wife bought their Wisconsin lake place back in the early 70’s and understood the many challenges to seasonal residency. But Nick is quick to clarify that “we really didn’t have any specific axes to grind.” That philosophy has been part of the long-term strategy that has kept the association strong. “Single issue people may be able to rally a group on a short term basis, but then once the issue is resolved the group often disappears. We wanted to help people with the on-going issues of owning a cabin,” said Kaufmann.
And WiSRA has helped. One of the group’s first claims to fame goes back to 1996 when it successfully sued the State on its distribution system for State lottery proceeds. Wisconsin uses nearly 32% of its lottery profits to provide property tax relief, but hadn’t been including non-residents. “The state’s constitution mandates that taxing must be uniform; we challenged the State and won.” Although the outcome was nullified two years later by an amendment to the State’s constitution, it put policymakers on notice. Non-resident cabin owners were no longer a lone voice in the woods.
Members have long bristled over the State’s recreation fee system and reforming it is a work-in-progress for WiSRA. “There is a very large gap between resident and non-resident fees in Wisconsin,” says Kaufmann. “If you’re a resident of
“What we have done is work with lawmakers to create a new category for residency know as Non-resident Landowner (NRL). It falls between Resident and Non-resident.” Presently the new NRL distinction has only been applied to the turkey hunting permit program, but Kaufmann sees it as the first step to restructuring the system. Prior to the association’s work, seasonal residents were lumped into the same category as non-residents for last priority for turkey hunting permits, “but now that we’ve addressed our absence of recognition in the state statues, we intend to spread that success to other areas of recreation such as fishing and hunting fees.”
It seems that WiSRA members are a little like Rodney Dangerfield - just looking for a little respect. “Cabin owners experience prejudice simply because they’re non-residents. Through our work with the Wisconsin Township Association, we’ve seen a dramatic change in the attitude of many towns and we’re able to resolve most misunderstandings amiably.”
Kaufmann explains a typical misunderstanding this way. People on town councils are elected because they’re local and civic minded, but not necessarily attorneys who understand all the legalities that go into policy making. “They do what they think is fair and don’t always recognize that non-residents have a legal interest because they pay taxes.”
A good example is a situation that happened in Iowa County, Wisconsin. The township was distributing trash bags free to residents, but charging non-resident cabin owners. “We just had to point out they couldn’t do that. I’m sure it seemed fair to charge the non-resident, but we reminded them that they were buying those trash bags with tax money. And because non-residents pay taxes, they were charging cabin owners twice,” explained Kaufmann.
Other times WiSRA helps a cabin owner mediate a conflict with a township. “We’re doing more of that lately,” said Kaufmann who gives the example of a cabin owner who wants to repair his boathouse, but there is a moratorium on lakeshore improvements. The association will work with the cabin owner to find something the governing body would like, such as a promise not to cut any trees on the lake property to help protect water quality in the area. “The township sees this as making good ecological sense. It’s a reasonable trade for the cabin owner and ultimately a good deal for everyone involved.”
No doubt, part of WiRSA’s success can be attributed to its congenial manners. “We have an active legal group that is very good at writing nice, pleasant letters and making non-threatening calls.” And that’s important because while cabin owners want respect in their vacation community, they also want to feel welcomed.
Not all of WiSRA’s work involves legal intervention. Several years ago there was a sales tax rebate in Wisconsin that allotted $200 to every tax filer. This included non-residents, but the catch was they had only 30 days to file – if they even knew about it. “The likelihood that out-of-state cabin owners would hear about this nearly unpublicized rebate was extremely small,” said Kaufmann. In addition to contacting all their members, WiSRA put up $20,000 for a private media campaign including radio and newspaper ads in major markets outside of Wisconsin. “We were told that the response rate was unprecedented for non-residents taking advantage of the tax rebate,” said Kaufmann. “We’re very proud of that.”
Out of all the services that the advocacy group provides, the benefit members enjoy the most is a small laminated card. This wallet-size ID confirms the holder as a tax-paying seasonal resident, which can save pocket money on everything from parking fees to canoe rentals. Additional charges usually apply to folks who aren’t local taxpayers – not necessarily a seasonal resident who pays into the community kitty. The member card can provide clarification.
“Members love the card because it distinguishes them from tourists so you can get your kid a library card, rent a video or cash a check,” said Kaufmann. “It just makes life a little easier.”
Lucie Amundsen is a freelance writer based out of St. Anthony, MN.
