Rep. Maureen McCarville

Maddy summaryAB 823 creates a program to provide electronic benefit transfer (EBT) and credit/debit card processing equipment and services to farmers' markets and farmers who sell directly to consumers. It allocates $367,500 biennially for this payment processing program and increases funding by $1 million annually for the healthy food incentive program. The bill requires participating vendors to process local purchasing incentives (even if funded by third parties) and adds 0.625 FTE positions to administer the program. This directly affects farmers' markets and farmers selling directly to consumers who participate in EBT or incentive programs.

Maddy summaryAB 825 creates a $2 million grant program to support parent and guardian volunteer programs in elementary and secondary schools. It authorizes the Department of Public Instruction to award grants to public school boards, charter schools, and private schools participating in specific state education programs. The grants, starting in the 2026-27 school year, aim to help schools create or expand opportunities for parents and guardians to volunteer. The bill also gives the department rule-making authority to implement the program.

Maddy summaryAB 826 amends Wisconsin statute 118.07(4)(bm)2 to require school districts to include specific procedures in their safety plans. The bill mandates schools establish clear guidelines for informing students and families when an incident triggers the safety plan, as well as procedures for debriefing students, staff, and families after such events. These requirements apply directly to all public school districts in Wisconsin, impacting how they communicate during and after safety incidents. The changes take effect on July 1, 2026, adding standardized communication and follow-up steps to existing school safety planning.

Maddy summaryAB 827 requires the Department of Justice to create and provide free prerecorded audio messages for school lockdown announcements to all public, private, and tribal schools. The bill mandates that schools include this specific audio message in their individualized safety plans when those plans require lockdown procedures. It directly affects school districts and administrators responsible for developing and implementing safety protocols. The law standardizes how lockdowns are communicated, replacing potentially inconsistent verbal announcements with a consistent, pre-approved audio message. This change applies to all school buildings regularly occupied by students.

Maddy summaryAB 828 creates a new program to provide grants to licensed school counselors in Wisconsin for mental and behavioral health training. Starting in the 2026-27 school year, the Department of Public Instruction will award these grants to cover costs related to continuing education in this field. The bill appropriates $2 million for the program in the 2026-27 fiscal year. It requires the department to develop rules to administer the grants, targeting counselors who hold a specific state license under Wisconsin Administrative Code § PI 34.059.

Maddy summaryAB 859 adjusts the state reimbursement rate for special education and school-age parent program costs. It sets the reimbursement rate at 42% of eligible costs for the 2025-26 school year, increasing to 45% for the 2026-27 school year and all subsequent years. The bill applies to costs covered under sections 115.88(1m)-(3), (6), (8), 115.93, and 118.255(4), which include services for students in hospitals, convalescent homes, and school programs. This change directly affects school districts and programs providing these services by altering the state's financial contribution toward their expenses. The bill amends statutes to ensure state funds are distributed according to these revised percentages.

Maddy summaryAB 844 allows cities, counties, villages, and towns to adopt stricter energy efficiency standards for new buildings than the state's baseline code, provided they follow a state-developed "stretch energy code." Local governments can choose to implement either residential or commercial components of this code, which must exceed current state minimums. The state must create the stretch energy code by December 2026 through a working group including energy experts, climate nonprofits, and municipalities with climate plans. This directly affects local building regulations without changing the state's baseline requirements.

Maddy summaryAB 855 prohibits creating and sharing synthetic digital representations (like AI-generated images, videos, or audio) that use someone's recognizable personal characteristic (face, voice, etc.) without their consent, appear authentic to a reasonable person, and are intended to coerce, harass, intimidate, or defraud for monetary gain. It classifies unauthorized use for coercion/harassment as a Class A misdemeanor and for financial gain as a Class I felony. Key exceptions include tech providers (protected under Section 230), newsworthy content, and clear disclaimers like "This content generated by AI" in the media itself. The law directly affects individuals whose likenesses are misused without consent and aims to prevent non-consensual deepfakes used for harm.

Maddy summaryAB 850 sets specific annual spending limits for Wisconsin's agricultural exports program, requiring the Center for International Agribusiness Marketing to allocate $2.5 million toward export promotion (sub. (2)(a)) and $1.25 million each toward two other export objectives (sub. (2)(b) and (c)), while capping total annual spending at $1 million. The bill increases funding by $1.07 million for fiscal year 2025-26 and $1.10 million for 2026-27 under the program's appropriation, and adds one full-time administrative position to manage the program. This legislation directly affects Wisconsin agricultural exporters benefiting from the program and the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection responsible for administering it.

Maddy summaryAB 846 increases state funding for two Wisconsin promotion programs. It adds $200,000 annually for fiscal years 2025-26 and 2026-27 to advertise the "Something Special from Wisconsin" brand and logo, and $300,000 annually for "Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin" grants. These funds, managed by the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, directly support Wisconsin businesses participating in the state's marketing campaigns and local purchasing initiatives. The bill makes no new policy changes but allocates additional state appropriations to existing programs.