Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
Chapter 895 - Damages, liability, and miscellaneous provisions regarding actions in courts.
895.51 - Civil liability exemption: food or emergency household products; emergency medical supplies; donation, sale, or distribution.

895.51 Civil liability exemption: food or emergency household products; emergency medical supplies; donation, sale, or distribution.
(1) In this section:
(b) “Charitable organization" means an organization the contributions to which are deductible by corporations in computing net income under s. 71.26 (2).
(bd) “Cost of production” means the cost of inputs, wages, operating the manufacturing facility, and transporting the product.
(bg) “Emergency medical supplies" means any medical equipment or supplies necessary to limit the spread of, or provide treatment for, a disease associated with the public health emergency related to the 2019 novel coronavirus pandemic, including life support devices, personal protective equipment, cleaning supplies, and any other items determined to be necessary by the secretary of health services.
(c) “Food distribution service" means a program of a private nonprofit organization that provides food products directly to individuals with low incomes or that collects food products for and distributes food products to persons who provide the food products directly to individuals with low incomes.
(d) “Food products" has the meaning specified in s. 93.01 (6).
(dm) “Governmental unit" means the United States; the state; any county, city, village, or town; any political subdivision, department, division, board, or agency of the United States, the state, or any county, city, village, or town; or any federally recognized American Indian tribe or band in this state or an agency of the tribe or band.
(dp) “Public health emergency related to the 2019 novel coronavirus pandemic” means the period covered by the public health emergency declared under 42 USC 247d by the secretary of the federal department of health and human services on January 31, 2020, in response to the 2019 novel coronavirus or the national emergency declared by the U.S. president under 50 USC 1621 on March 13, 2020, in response to the 2019 novel coronavirus.
(dr) “Qualified emergency household products" includes flashlights, generators, blankets, personal care products, household cleaning products, and emergency supplies that meet the standards for safety and quality established by federal or state law, regulation, or rule, that are not defective, and that have not been recalled by the consumer products safety commission.
(e) “Qualified food" means food products that meet the standards of quality established by state law or rule or federal law or regulations, including food products that are not readily marketable due to appearance, age, freshness, grade, size, surplusage or other condition, except that “qualified food" does not include canned food products that are leaking, swollen, dented on a seam or not airtight.
(2) Any person engaged in the processing, distribution, or sale of food products, for profit or not for profit, who donates or sells, at a price not to exceed overhead and transportation costs, qualified food to a charitable organization, food distribution service, or governmental unit is immune from civil liability for the death of or injury to an individual caused by the qualified food donated or sold by the person.
(2m) Any person engaged in the manufacturing, distribution, or sale of qualified emergency household products, for profit or not for profit, who donates or sells, at a price not to exceed overhead and transportation costs, qualified emergency household products to a charitable organization or governmental unit in response to a state of emergency declared under s. 323.10 or 323.11 is immune from civil liability for the death of or injury to an individual caused by the qualified emergency household product donated or sold by the person.
(2r) Any person engaged in the manufacturing, distribution, or sale of emergency medical supplies, who donates or sells, at a price not to exceed the cost of production, emergency medical supplies to a charitable organization or governmental unit to respond to the public health emergency related to the 2019 novel coronavirus pandemic is immune from civil liability for the death of or injury to an individual caused by the emergency medical supplies donated or sold by the person.
(3) Any charitable organization or food distribution service which distributes free of charge qualified food to any person is immune from civil liability for the death of or injury to an individual caused by the qualified food distributed by the charitable organization or food distribution service.
(3m) Any charitable organization that distributes free of charge qualified emergency household products received under sub. (2m) is immune from civil liability for the death of or injury to an individual caused by the qualified emergency household product distributed by the charitable organization.
(3r) Any charitable organization that distributes free of charge emergency medical supplies received under sub. (2r) is immune from civil liability for the death of or injury to an individual caused by the emergency medical supplies distributed by the charitable organization.
(4) This section does not apply if the death or injury was caused by willful or wanton acts or omissions.
History: 1981 c. 219; 1983 a. 189 s. 329 (20); 1987 a. 27; 1987 a. 312 s. 17; 1989 a. 108; 1991 a. 39; 2005 a. 155; 2007 a. 79; 2009 a. 42, 180; 2019 a. 185.

Structure Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations