Wisconsin Bills

failed · Wisconsin · Assembly Mar 23, 2026

AB 979: Relating to: cross-country ski permits, granting rule-making authority, and making an appropriation. (FE)

AB 979 requires cross-country skiers to purchase a permit when skiing on state-owned land (excluding vehicle admission areas), with fees set at $40 for adults, $20 for youth 12+, and free for children under 12. Temporary receipts allow immediate access pending full permit issuance, and a 75-cent issuing fee applies to all permits for those 12+. The bill exempts organized events and existing trail pass holders from the permit requirement. It grants the state department rule-making authority to manage permit issuance and includes a funding appropriation for administration.

Topics ✓ Budget & Taxes

failed · Wisconsin · Assembly Mar 23, 2026

AB 981: Relating to: foraging permits, granting rule-making authority, and making an appropriation. (FE)

AB 981 requires foraging permits for collecting plants or fungi from state-owned land (excluding vehicle admission areas) for food, medicine, or other uses. It sets fees of $40 for adults, $20 for teens 12+ (with $0 for children under 12) and mandates that permit holders carry proof while foraging or possessing collected items. The bill authorizes the department to issue permits directly, through appointed agents, or via contracted third-party systems, and establishes rules for fee collection and permit verification. These changes apply directly to individuals who forage on state lands, creating a regulated system for recreational and personal use.

Topics ✓ Budget & Taxes

failed · Wisconsin · Assembly Mar 23, 2026

AB 976: Relating to: changes to the low-income housing tax credit. (FE)

AB 976 clarifies how tax credits for low-income housing projects are claimed by business entities. It modifies rules so partnerships, limited liability companies, and tax-option corporations cannot claim the credit directly; instead, their members or shareholders (including insurers who are part of such entities) may claim it based on the entity's eligible costs. The bill requires entities to calculate and distribute credit amounts to members/shareholders, with specific allocation rules for ownership interests or written agreements. It directly affects housing developers, investors, and insurers involved in low-income housing projects financed through tax-exempt bonds in the state. The changes standardize credit allocation across multiple tax code sections without altering eligibility or credit amounts.

Topics ✓ Budget & Taxes ✓ Housing

failed · Wisconsin · Assembly Mar 23, 2026

AB 988: Relating to: video recording of surgical procedures, providing an exemption from emergency rule procedures, granting rule-making authority, and providing a penalty. (FE)

AB 988 requires surgical facilities (like hospitals and ambulatory centers) to offer patients the option to have their surgical procedure recorded on video. The video must be continuous, include audio, show the time/date, cover the entire surgical suite from preparation through cleanup, and include preoperative discussions and discharge instructions if requested. Facilities must inform patients (or parents/guardians for minors, or authorized representatives for incapacitated patients) about this option, associated fees, and procedures before surgery. The bill does not mandate recording but gives patients a choice, with facilities required to comply if a surgical practitioner requests it and the patient consents.

Topics ✓ Healthcare

failed · Wisconsin · Assembly Mar 23, 2026

AB 817: Relating to: reimbursement for the provision of military funeral honors. (FE)

AB 817 increases the state reimbursement for certified veteran organizations providing military funeral honors from $50 to $100 per funeral. It directly affects local veteran groups certified by the department to perform these honors. The bill amends statute 45.60(2) to allow this higher reimbursement amount from a specific state fund, covering costs incurred by these organizations. The change applies to all military funerals in the state where honors are provided.

Topics ✓ Veterans

failed · Wisconsin · Assembly Mar 23, 2026

AB 993: Relating to: the expiration of administrative rules. (FE)

AB 993 establishes a process for automatically removing expired state rules from Wisconsin's official rulebook. It requires agencies to conduct economic impact analyses for new rules that could cost businesses, local governments, or individuals over $10 million in implementation and compliance costs over two years, potentially halting rulemaking. The bill includes special provisions for "readopting" existing rules (renewing without changes), requiring agencies to analyze costs and benefits of the original rules instead of new rule costs. This affects state agencies creating rules and businesses, local governments, and individuals impacted by regulatory changes.

failed · Wisconsin · Assembly Mar 23, 2026

AB 960: Relating to: requiring social media platforms to provide mental health warnings and providing a penalty.

AB 960 requires most social media platforms operating in the state to display a clear, prominent mental health warning each time a user in the state accesses the platform. The warning must inform users about potential negative mental health effects and provide access to crisis resources like the 988 suicide hotline. It applies to platforms defined as user-generated content services (excluding search engines, email, business communication tools, and streaming services), and prohibits hiding warnings in terms of service or allowing users to disable them without specific conditions. Violations may result in fines up to $5,000 per incident, enforced by state departments.

Topics ✓ Healthcare ✓ Technology

failed · Wisconsin · Senate Mar 23, 2026

SB 813: Relating to: recording and taxation of real property containing a building, improvement, or fixture and consisting of no land. (FE)

SB 813 creates new rules for taxing and recording property that consists *only* of a building, improvement, or fixture (like a structure on leased land) without any underlying land. It requires counties to record ownership declarations for these properties and establish separate tax parcels for the structures when owned by someone other than the landowner. This directly affects owners of such structures (e.g., tenants in commercial buildings) and county assessors who must now handle these separate tax records. The bill amends several tax and recording statutes to implement this system, ensuring these "landless" properties are assessed and taxed appropriately.

passed · Wisconsin · Assembly Mar 23, 2026

AB 701: Relating to: adopting the Uniform Public Expression Protection Act.

AB 701 adopts the Uniform Public Expression Protection Act to shield individuals and organizations from lawsuits targeting their speech on matters of public concern. It creates a "special motion" allowing defendants to quickly dismiss such cases within 60 days of being sued, with the court requiring the plaintiff to prove their claim has merit. The law specifically protects speech in government proceedings, political expression, or press freedoms, but excludes lawsuits by/against government entities or commercial speech related to sales. This applies to civil suits where the core issue involves public discourse, not private business disputes.

failed · Wisconsin · Senate Mar 23, 2026

SB 695: Relating to: additional local sales and use taxes and making an appropriation. (FE)

SB 695 amends statutes to establish new administrative processes for local sales and use taxes collected by counties and municipalities. It creates specific funding accounts (20.566(1)(gj) and 20.835(4)(gj)) to manage revenue from municipal sales taxes under new Section 77.702. The bill requires 0.75% of tax revenues collected under these local ordinances to be allocated to these new administrative accounts. This directly affects counties and municipalities that impose local sales taxes for their own purposes, clarifying how these funds are distributed and administered.

Topics ✓ Budget & Taxes

failed · Wisconsin · Senate Mar 23, 2026

SB 688: Relating to: service award program. (FE)

SB 688 amends Wisconsin's service award program to require 20 years of service (up from 15) and age 53 (down from 60) for full payment eligibility for volunteer firefighters, emergency medical responders, and emergency medical services practitioners. Those with 10-20 years of service who reach age 53 but are under 60 would receive a reduced payment, calculated by the department but less than the full award. The bill specifies that payments cover all municipal and state contributions plus earnings, minus investment expenses, and allows for lump-sum or rule-defined payment structures. The department must create implementing rules for these changes.

failed · Wisconsin · Senate Mar 23, 2026

SB 722: Relating to: weight limits for vehicles transporting grain, feed, or commercial fertilizer. (FE)

SB 722 creates a permit system allowing trucks with 6 or more axles to transport grain, feed, or commercial fertilizer at weights exceeding standard limits, capped at 91,000 pounds total. It requires a $325 permit from the Department of Transportation for such transport on state trunk highways, with routes specified by the department and no approval for interstate highways without federal compliance. Permits are suspended during spring thaw periods and cannot cover non-trunk highways without additional route approval from other highway authorities. This directly affects agricultural haulers and trucking companies moving these specific commodities, adding a regulated pathway for heavier loads within defined limits.

Topics ✓ Transportation

Bill results