Brought on behalf of WMC and a group of businesses in the Villages of Dousman and Pewaukee, this lawsuit challenged the imposition of special charges for fire protection and emergency medical services (EMS) in both villages. These charges were imposed village-wide as special charges on all real property—even tax-exempt property—and can cost businesses upwards of $100,000 per year. Although under state law special charges for fire protection must be calculated on a per-call basis, these charges were not, making them unlawful.
Additionally, this lawsuit argued that if the fire/EMS charges are not special charges, they are unlawfully imposed taxes. Not only did the Villages lack any statutory basis to impose these charges as taxes; the charges, when treated as taxes, are preempted by state statutes governing the imposition of taxes.
In September 2026, the Waukesha County Circuit Court struck down these “fees” as being either invalid special charges or unlawful property taxes.