Wisconsin Statutes

Wis. Stat. § 299.95 (2026)

Enforcement; duty of department of justice; expenses

✓ current as of July 2026

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299.95299.95 Enforcement; duty of department of justice; expenses. The attorney general shall enforce chs. 281 to 285 and 289 to 295 and this chapter, except ss. 285.57, 285.59, and 299.64, and all rules, special orders, licenses, plan approvals, permits, and water quality certifications of the department, except those promulgated or issued under ss. 285.57, 285.59, and 299.64 and except as provided in ss. 281.36 (14) (f), 285.86 and 299.85 (7) (am). Except as provided in s. 295.79 (1), the circuit court for Dane county or for any other county where a violation occurred in whole or in part has jurisdiction to enforce chs. 281 to 285 and 289 to 295 or this chapter or the rule, special order, license, plan approval, permit, or certification by injunctional and other relief appropriate for enforcement. For purposes of this proceeding where chs. 281 to 285 and 289 to 295 or this chapter or the rule, special order, license, plan approval, permit or certification prohibits in whole or in part any pollution, a violation is considered a public nuisance. The department of natural resources may enter into agreements with the department of justice to assist with the administration of chs. 281 to 285 and 289 to 295 and this chapter. Any funds paid to the department of justice under these agreements shall be credited to the appropriation account under s. 20.455 (1) (k).

299.95 HistoryHistory: 1975 c. 39 s. 734; 1979 c. 34 s. 985g; 1979 c. 221; Stats. 1979 s. 144.98; 1981 c. 374; 1989 a. 284; 1993 a. 243; 1995 a. 27; 1995 a. 227 s. 829; Stats. 1995 s. 299.95; 1995 a. 290 s. 12; 1997 a. 35; 1999 a. 9; 2001 a. 6; 2003 a. 276; 2005 a. 347; 2013 a. 1, 69.

299.95 NoteNote: 2005 Wis. Act 347, which affected this section, contains extensive explanatory notes.

299.95 AnnotationThat the violation of an order prohibiting pollution constitutes a public nuisance does not mean that there is no nuisance until an order is issued. State v. Dairyland Power Coop. 52 Wis. 2d 45, 187 N.W.2d 878 (1971).

299.95 AnnotationThe state need not show irreparable harm to obtain an injunction under this section. State v. C. Spielvogel & Sons, 193 Wis. 2d 464, 535 N.W.2d 28 (Ct. App. 1995).

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 4 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 2007–2025 · leading case: State v. Schweda, 2007 WI 100 (Wis. 2007).

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State v. Schweda, 2007 WI 100 (Wis. 2007). · cites it 6× “" Wis. Stat. § 299.95 (emphasis added). ¶ 113 This authority supports the conclusion that, on a general level, the common law of nuisance is a "forerunner" to modern environmental statutory law.”

Josh Kaul v. Wisconsin State Legislature, 2025 WI 23 (Wis. 2025). “§§ 299.95 (saying the “attorney general shall enforce chs.”

State v. T. J. McQuay, Inc., 2008 WI App 177 (Wis. Ct. App. 2008). · cites it 5× “11 In a further effort to support its position that the causes of action asserted against it should be treated as public nuisance claims that existed at common law, SCS cites Wis. Stat. § 299.95 as reflecting that "the statutes authorizing this action are rooted in the concept…”

State v. Schnepf, 923 N.W.2d 168 (Wis. Ct. App. 2018). · cites it 3× “The complaint also charged Schnepf with maintaining a public nuisance in violation of Wis. Stat. § 299.95 . For simplicity's sake, we refer to Schnepf's violations as solely pertaining to Wis.”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.