U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany who is running for governor, said he had not seen the video of the shooting at a Monday press conference, more than 48 hours after the shooting occurred and as video of the shooting has circulated on social media and in major news outlets. Tiffany at his campaign launch in September 2025. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Wisconsin politicians are responding to the shooting of Alex Pretti, the ICU nurse from Green Bay who was killed Saturday by U.S. Border Patrol agents. U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the frontrunner in the Republican gubernatorial primary, said Monday he hadn’t seen widely circulated video of the shooting.

Pretti’s death prompted protests across the country including in Green Bay, his  hometown. Gov. Tony Evers  joined a lawsuit challenging the presence of federal immigration agents in the Twin Cities. Other Wisconsin politicians issued a variety of statements reacting to the shooting.

U.S. Rep. Tony Wied, whose district includes Green Bay, called the shooting in Minneapolis a “tragedy” in a statement Monday. Pretti was a graduate of Green Bay’s Preble High School. 

“While we await a thorough investigation, I encourage my colleagues to tone down their rhetoric, which has put both law enforcement officers and the public at risk,” Wied said. “We can disagree on the issue but we must do so in a constructive and peaceful manner. Assaulting and impeding federal law enforcement is illegal and a recipe for disaster. As a country, we need to lower the temperature and allow law enforcement to do their jobs.” 

Video of the moments leading up to the shooting, which shows Pretti being pinned down by a group of immigration agents before being shot in the back, does not support Trump administration claims that he tried to assault or impede the agents.

Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who is running for governor, said he had not seen the video of the shooting at a Monday press conference, more than 48 hours after the shooting occurred and as video of the shooting has circulated on social media and in major news outlets. Tiffany also called for “full investigation” of the shooting by the state and federal government.

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Tiffany also said people have the right to carry legally registered concealed guns but should consider potential consequences. Pretti was a licensed gun owner, who according to a CNN analysis of bystander video had his gun removed from him before officers shot him. 

“The problem is not the Second Amendment. If I saw a quote accurately this morning… it sounds like (Pretti’s) father had some discussion with him recently, saying, ‘Be careful when you go to something like this, make sure that you don’t get caught up in the chaos,” he said. “And unfortunately, he did.” 

Democrats, including some who are running for governor, criticized Tiffany. 

Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Devin Remiker called Tiffany’s claim not to have seen the video “a pathetic excuse from a pathetic man.” 

“Tom Tiffany is, at best, a clueless coward and at worst a liar. Either way, he’s unfit to serve as governor of Wisconsin,” Remiker said.

“You haven’t watched the video yet? Let me sum it up for you,” former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes said in a social media post. “Trump’s ICE needlessly killed a US citizen without justification.”

Other Democratic candidates had a variety of responses including calling for immigration agents  to vacate Minnesota and calling for the elimination of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  . ICE is responsible for enforcing immigration laws in the United States’s interior, while Border Patrol is supposed to do so near the country’s border, though according to USA Today, the two agencies have become increasingly hard to tell apart under the Trump administration. 

State Sen. Kelda Roys (D-Madison) called for the abolishment of ICE after the shooting. 

“ICE under Trump is incompatible with a free society. The Trump regime is making every single one of us less safe and less free. They are destroying public safety. They refuse to respect our constitution, our law, or our rights,” Roys said in a statement. “The organized, violent actions of ICE have left us with no other choice but to disarm, dismantle, and prosecute ICE.”

State Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison), who joined protests according to social media posts, said “Wisconsin stands with everyone resisting ICE in Minnesota” and called ICE an “enforcer of fascism that must be abolished and those responsible for the executions prosecuted.” Last week at a candidate forum with all of the Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls Hong said that “abolishing ICE is a meaningful policy.” 

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said that the country needs to “stop pretending that large-scale immigration enforcement operations” in the Midwest are about public safety. 

“People — regardless of immigration status or how federal authorities choose to define them — are in danger when ICE operates this way in our neighborhoods,” Crowley said. “At the same time, I echo Gov. Walz and Minnesota officials in urging people not to respond to violence with violence.” 

Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, who previously had proposed banning ICE from certain sites in Wisconsin, said that “a government that puts its own citizens in harm’s way has failed its most basic responsibility. And I will never look away when the government gets this wrong. We have a choice about who we are and what we stand for: safety without cruelty, accountability without fear, and dignity for every human being.”

Missy Hughes, the former Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation CEO, said that “the lawless and deadly ICE invasion of Minneapolis is unAmerican — and Donald Trump is responsible for it.” 

Joel Brennan, the former Department of Administration secretary, said he “recoiled in horror” watching the video of the recent fatal shooting and mourns for Pretti. He called for the “occupation” to end in American cities. 

U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden has repeatedly claimed that the protests against ICE in Minneapolis are equivalent to an “insurrection.” He said on Monday in a Facebook post that he does not “celebrate the death of any American citizen” and the “deaths are tragic, and they never should have happened.” 

But Van Orden blamed Democrats for “fueling hostility toward federal law enforcement.”

“When elected leaders and their allies normalize interference with officers doing their jobs, the outcome is entirely predictable and tragic,” Van Orden said.

Van Orden went on to compare Democratic leaders who have demanded that ICE and Border Patrol agents leave Minneapolis to Civil War Confederates. 

“History has seen this before. In 1861, Confederates in the South demanded that federal troops abandon Fort Sumter. They framed it as de-escalation and local control. In reality, it was a rejection of federal authority and the rule of law. What began as political rhetoric and demands to remove federal presence quickly turned into open conflict, with deadly consequences for the nation,” Van Orden said. “As with any officer-involved shooting, this incident is under investigation. I fully support that process and will be closely following its findings. My support for federal law enforcement, and the rule of law they uphold, remains unwavering.”

CNN reported Monday that Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino, who has been at the center of the Trump administration immigration enforcement across the country, is leaving Minneapolis and DHS has suspended his access to his social media accounts. Trump is sending border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota to take charge of immigration enforcement  operations there.

Rebecca Cooke, who is challenging Van Orden in 2026, said in a social media post that Pretti’s  killing represents “a federal agency out of control. ICE needs to vacate Minnesota and leave our neighbors alone. This is not a policy disagreement, this is a moral imperative.”

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During debate on the floor, Rep. Dean Kaufert (R-Neenah) said that the GOP Knowles-Nelson bill isn’t perfect but is a compromise that will allow the program to continue into the future. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner).

A pared-back proposal that will continue the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship program, but without allowing for new land acquisition, passed the Assembly on Thursday, eliciting critical reactions from Democrats who said it won’t uphold the legacy of the program.

The Warren Knowles-Gaylord Nelson Stewardship Program was initially created during the 1989-1990 legislative session and signed into law by former Gov. Tommy Thompson. With the goal of preserving wildlife habitat and expanding outdoor recreation opportunities throughout the state, the program has authorized state borrowing and spending for state land acquisition and for grants to local governments and nonprofit conservation organizations. It has traditionally received bipartisan support in Wisconsin as it has been reauthorized several times over the years.

Two GOP bills, coauthored by Rep. Tony Kurtz (R-Wonewoc) and Sen. Patrick Testin (R-Stevens Point), passed the Assembly in a 53-44 vote along party lines. The bills would extend the program for an additional two years, but in a limited form.

Under the amended proposal, the Knowles-Nelson program would be reauthorized until 2028, but the money set aside would mostly be for maintaining land that has already been purchased under the program.

The program’s land acquisition provisions have been essentially stripped in the legislation. 

A previous version of the GOP bill would have authorized the program until fiscal year 2029–30. Gov. Tony Evers in his 2025-27 state budget proposal had called for investing over $1 billion and reauthorizing the program for another 10 years. Republicans rejected the proposal. 

Rep. Shae Sortwell (R-Two Rivers) blamed the Wisconsin Supreme Court for the state of the proposal.

Wisconsin lawmakers for years exercised control over what Knowles-Nelson projects received funding through the state’s powerful Joint Finance Committee. Members of the committee could anonymously object to a project and have it upheld for an indeterminate amount of time.

The program and the power of the committee became the focus of a fight over the balance of power between the governor and lawmakers, with the state Supreme Court ruling in 2025 that the Joint Finance Committee did not have the authority to hold up spending through anonymous objections. 

Sortwell said that the DNR should not be able to buy land without oversight from lawmakers.

“I don’t support their ideas to turn our authority of the Legislature over to unelected people,” Sortwell said. “We can build this up and do more things with it but let’s make sure we don’t lose what we have today. We can maintain the program. We can go ahead and make sure that we can keep the lands that we already have in good condition and continue moving forward.” 

Under the amended version of AB 315, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) would only be able to obligate $1 million for land acquisition — a cut from $16 million. The $1 million could only be used for the Ice Age Trail. The bill would also allow for DNR to obligate $9.25 million for property development and local assistance — a cut from $14.25 million. The program would also limit the amount that could be obligated for recreational boating aids to $3 million. 

The amended version of AB 612 reduces the amount that can be obligated each year to $13.25 million. It also includes $7.75 million for DNR property development and grants, $4 million for local assistance grants and $3 million for grants for wildlife habitat restoration. There would also be $250,000 set aside each year to be used for DNR land acquisitions, but acquisitions would be limited to parcels land that are 5 acres or less and meant to improve access to hunting, fishing, or trapping opportunities or is contiguous to state-owned land.

The bill would also require that large projects get approval from the full Legislature and limit grant or in-kind contributions for a project to 30%.

The DNR, under the bill, would also need to conduct a survey study of all of the land that has been acquired under the stewardship program including an inventory of all land acquired with money, proposed project boundaries and land acquisition priorities for the next two to five years, and proposed changes. The survey would need to be submitted to the Legislature in two years.

Recipients of a grant would also need to submit a report to the DNR on how the money was spent, and it would need to be publicly published. 

The program is set to expire on June 30, 2026, without a reauthorization from the Legislature and Gov. Tony Evers.

Ahead of the vote on Thursday, Team Knowles-Nelson, a coalition of Wisconsin environmental conservation organizations, fishing and hunting advocates, trail builders, bicycle enthusiasts and others, said in a letter urging lawmakers to vote against the bills on the Assembly floor that they don’t propose a “workable path forward.” 

“These bills include virtually no funding for land acquisition. Land trusts and local governments would have no dedicated ability to acquire land for either purpose — a fundamental departure from the program’s core mission,” Charles Carlin, the director of strategic initiatives at the nonprofit land trust organization Gathering Waters, said on behalf of the coalition. “While the bills provide habitat management grants to nonprofit conservation organizations, they impose an impractical framework. The grants are limited to habitat work on lands already owned by the state or local governments, excluding nonprofit-owned lands. This restriction undermines the collaborative conservation model that has made Knowles-Nelson successful for over three decades.” 

During debate on the two bills, Democratic lawmakers said the bills were inadequate and would not preserve the intent of the program. 

Rep. Vinnie Miresse (D-Stevens Point) declared that “every time Republicans amend the Knowles-Nelson proposal, it seems to get worse.” 

“Without land acquisition, Republicans have neutered this program and rendered it Knowles-Nelson in name only,” Miresse said. He added that lawmakers’ attitude of treating people with different opinions as a “threat” is how legislation that “ignores history, disregards broad public support and turns a shared legacy into just another talking point” gets a vote.

“They chose the extremes, and that choice will cost the state a program that Wisconsinites overwhelmingly support,” Miresse said. 

Rep. Angelito Tenorio (D-West Allis) said the bill is not a compromise, but is instead “table scraps.”

Rep. Supreme Moore Omokunde (D-Milwaukee) talked about being a “birder” — someone who watches and observes birds as a hobby.

“We had the option to do a cost to continue… and it was rejected, and that disheartens me because when I go to places like Horicon Marsh when the birds are coming in, are migrating in, and I get to see goldfinches — there’s nothing like watching a chimney swift swoop down and try to get some food, or when you’re out and just walking around and navigating a red-winged blackbird swoops down tries to peck you in the head because it thinks that you are a crane trying to steal its eggs,” Moore Omokunde said. “We need to provide these opportunities for so many people in the state of Wisconsin to enjoy this.”

Republican lawmakers argued that the proposal was better than the Knowles-Nelson program ceasing to exist.

Rep. Dean Kaufert (R-Neenah) said that the bill isn’t perfect but is a compromise that will allow the program to continue into the future. He added that it would “help preserve some of our beautiful natural areas” for future generations to enjoy.

“Sometimes we get caught up in partisan politics, but let’s not make this about partisan politics. This bill deserves strong, bipartisan support,” Kaufert said. 

“I would rather take half a cookie today, rather than no cookie today to make sure that we can continue the program,” Sortwell said. “You gotta vote yes today because if you vote no, you’re saying, you know, what? I’m not willing to compromise. It’s not good enough for me, and I’m going to vote no, because I’m going to be like a little kid and take my ball and go home.”

Evers told lawmakers in a letter earlier this month that he was “hopeful” they would be able to move forward on a reauthorization proposal for the Knowles-Nelson program.

“I would be glad to sign any reauthorization proposal that appropriately supports both land acquisition and property management of Wisconsin’s valuable natural resources and public lands to secure the future of this program that is so fundamental to Wisconsin’s proud and cherished tradition of conservation,” Evers said.

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Correction: This story has been updated to correctly state the amount of money the amended bills would dedicate to the program.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer announced the agreement on WisconsinEye during a joint press conference on Thursday. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) and Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer (D-Racine) announced a tentative agreement on providing state funding to WisconsinEye, the nonprofit that provides livestream coverage of state government. 

It’s been a little over a month since WisconsinEye, which launched in 2007, halted its coverage of legislative hearings, floor sessions and other state government business due to financial difficulties. Since WisEye shut down, the state Capitol has held dozens of committee hearings without any being livestreamed and archived, and members of the public have been prohibited from recording or livestreaming. Only credentialed media has been allowed to record activity. 

Vos and Neubauer announced the agreement during a joint press conference on Thursday. According to Neubauer, the agreement will include an endowment, funded with the $10 million that lawmakers first set aside for WisconsinEye in 2023, as well as requirements that WisconsinEye fundraise to cover some operational costs. 

“The interest will go to WisconsinEye each year so that they can fund the majority of their Capitol operations,” Neubauer said. “This is a really good start. It’s very important for the public to have access, and so we’re optimistic that we’re going to reach a bipartisan solution here soon.” 

Vos said legislators also want to sign a short-term contract with WisconsinEye so the organization can broadcast the February floor period. 

“We’ll hopefully turn that into a longer term contract where we provide them limited funding,” Vos said. “I think it’s a win-win for all.”

As of Thursday, the Assembly will have met four times on the floor without livestreamed or  archived coverage of the sessions. The Senate has met once with a livestream facilitated by the Legislative Technology Services Bureau. 

The Wisconsin Supreme Court has announced plans to livestream its upcoming oral arguments on the Wisconsin Court System’s website.

“The idea of having one network and one operation for the courts and another for the Legislature, another for the executive branch, certainly is going to cost more than any amount we would give WisconsinEye,” Vos said. “They’ve already done a pretty good job. We’re going to make sure that they’re financially stable, and hopefully they continue doing the work that they’ve already done.”

Vos said that under the tentative agreement, $10 million in state funds would go into a trust fund and the interest accrued from it would be given to a “revamped” board of directors. He said it would be “still transparent and private.”

The $10 million in state funds was initially set aside in the state budget for the organization to use to build a permanent endowment, but it came with a requirement that WisconsinEye raise equivalent matching funds. The organization hasn’t raised enough money to access the funds. In the weeks since shutting down, WisconsinEye launched a GoFundMe that has raised nearly $50,000 from more than 260 donations.

Neubauer said that the interest from the trust fund is not expected to cover the organization’s nearly $1 million annual budget, so there is an expectation that it would raise a few hundred thousand dollars each year.  

“They have said they are able to do [that] and are optimistic,” Neubauer said. 

Neubauer said there will also be a few other provisions related to additional transparency in the organization’s operations and reporting to the Legislature. 

The agreement would also need support from the state Senate. Vos said there was a good discussion on Thursday morning, that Assembly leaders “probably are more in sync” than their counterparts in the other house of the Legislature.

“I think they’re still working through some of the details of how they’d like to work, and that’s why we don’t have a finalized agreement,” Vos said. “We wanted to get the bill out there, start the idea. If they have a different concept, we’ll certainly go through to finalize it, but I think at least based on my discussions this morning, I feel like all four of us are in a similar place. I think our caucuses, we’d like to have some kind of access, it’s just what’s the best vehicle to do it.”

Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) told reporters on Wednesday that his caucus believes “that giving the public access to see what we’re doing is important, but… just blindly giving money to an organization that’s asking us for money, but not giving us any answers, is certainly not the solution at this time.” Lawmakers had sent questions to WisconsinEye requesting information on its operations and didn’t receive answers until about 12 days after the deadline. 

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“We obviously believe that giving the public access to see what we're doing is important, but… just blindly giving money to an organization that's asking us for money, but not giving us any answers, is certainly not the solution at this time,” LeMahieu said. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

The Wisconsin Senate passed three constitutional amendment proposals Wednesday, including one to eliminate DEI, one to limit the executive partial veto power and another to prohibit closures of places of worship during emergencies.

With WisconsinEye, the state government video streaming service, still offline, the first floor session of the year for the Senate was livestreamed with the help of the Legislative Technology Services Bureau. 

Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) told reporters ahead of the session that after WisconsinEye halted its coverage on Dec. 15, the co-chairs of the Legislative Joint Audit Committee sent a letter with questions to the nonprofit organization. The letter had a Jan. 9 deadline to reply, but the organization did not provide responses until Jan. 21.

“We obviously believe that giving the public access to see what we’re doing is important, but… just blindly giving money to an organization that’s asking us for money, but not giving us any answers, is certainly not the solution at this time,” LeMahieu said. 

LeMahieu said he had not yet reviewed the answers WisconsinEye sent on Wednesday morning. He said the livestream was not a way to explore replacing WisconsinEye.

The state Legislature set aside $10 million in 2023 to help the organization build an endowment. But that grant came with a requirement that WisconsinEye to raise enough money to match the funds in order to access the state dollars. As it ran out of funds, WisconsinEye asked  the state to make money available for its operating expenses without the match requirement. 

LeMahieu noted that the organization had three years to raise funds and request money from the Joint Finance Committee.

“We just want to figure out, really, what’s going on. It’s not proof that we don’t need WisconsinEye…,” LeMahieu said. “The point of today is just so that the general public can see us in action today.” 

During the floor session, the Senate also took up bills on tax exemptions and education.

Constitutional amendments on DEI, partial veto and places of worship

The Senate passed three constitutional amendment proposals, each of which is on its second consideration, during its Thursday floor session. Constitutional amendment proposals in Wisconsin must pass two consecutive sessions of the Legislature before they go to the voters for final approval.

Republicans have relied on constitutional amendment proposals in recent years to bypass Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. According to a Ballotopedia review, Wisconsin voters decided on 258 ballot measures between  the state’s founding in 1846 and April 2025. About 71% — or 185 — measures were approved and 28% — or 73 — were defeated.

In the last five years, Wisconsin voters will have decided on 10 constitutional amendment questions — a divergence from some points in state history when Wisconsin has gone years without a constitutional amendment going before voters. 

The Senate voted 18-15 to pass a constitutional amendment that seeks to target and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts throughout Wisconsin local and state governments, officially setting it to go before voters in November. 

If approved by voters, AJR 102 would amend the state constitution to “prohibit governmental entities in the state from discriminating against, or granting preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public employment, public education, public contracting, or public administration.”

Democratic lawmakers said the amendment would take the state backwards. They suggested amending the proposal to enshrine equality and same-sex marriage protections. Those proposals were voted down. 

State Sen. Dora Drake (D-Milwaukee), who chairs the Legislative Black Caucus and has been working to call attention to the proposal over the last few weeks, likened the amendment to lawmakers rolling back Reconstruction efforts after the Civil War. She said the abandonment of Reconstruction efforts to bring justice to those who were enslaved, are the reason why the U.S. lived with Jim Crow laws for so long.

“Lawmakers made a decision to not protect [Americans],” Drake said. “Anything that was built was destroyed. It took nearly 80 years for our country to rectify that mistake with the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act and landmark Supreme Court decisions to undo that harm.” 

Drake said the amendment would cause harm and eliminate measures that keep Wisconsinites safe. 

“Republicans will send us back to the pre-Civil Rights era, possibly further,” Drake said. 

Sen. Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) said the proposal is “long overdue” and would give Wisconsin voters the final say on “discrimination at all levels of government.” He said that programs including the Supplier Diversity Program, which was established in the 1980s and certifies minority-owned, service-disabled veteran-owned and woman-owned businesses to provide better opportunities for them to do business with the state of Wisconsin, and scholarships and loans within the state’s higher education system that consider race amount to discrimination.

“Past discrimination, however wrong, cannot be corrected with more discrimination,” Nass said, adding that merit, character and ability should be the only things considered when it comes to programs. 

The Senate also voted on voice vote to pass SB 652, which would amend several programs offered in the University of Wisconsin system to focus on “disadvantaged” students as opposed to considering race. Some of those programs include the minority teacher loan program and minority undergraduate grants. 

Bill coauthor Sen. Eric Wimberger (R-Oconto) said the proposal will make it so people are able to receive help based on their specific life experiences, rather than having their life experiences presumed.

“We’ll finally make eligibility based on need,” Wimberger said. 

Drake emphasized that several of the programs, including the Minority Teacher Loan Program that was signed into law by Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson, were bipartisan efforts at the time they were created. She said lawmakers were forgetting history and abandoning the previous work that was done to address the barriers that students face. She said that the only thing that has changed is the election of  President Donald Trump, who has targeted DEI initiatives, and launched a “war against Black and brown people.”

“Shifting the policy solely to disadvantaged students without acknowledging racial, ethnic disparities risks eroding the progress made to address educational inequities,” Drake said. “That doesn’t solve anything, it covers up the issue.”

Curtailing partial veto powers 

SJR 116, if approved by voters, would prohibit the governor from using the state’s partial veto power to create or increase a tax or fee. It passed the Senate 18-15 along party lines and still needs to pass the Assembly before it would be set to go to voters. 

The proposal was introduced in reaction to Gov. Tony Evers’ partial veto that he exercised on the state budget in 2023 that extended annual school revenue limits for 400 years. 

Sen. Melissa Ratcliff (D-Cottage Grove) spoke against the proposal, saying that the partial veto power is one of the only checks that can “correct harmful or irresponsible provisions that come from the Legislature” and will “weaken one of the few checks that protects the public.” 

AJR 10 would prohibit the state from ordering the closure of places of worship during a state of emergency. The Senate concurred in the bill in a 17-15 vote, meaning it will officially go to voters in November.

The proposal was introduced in response to actions taken during a state of emergency declared by Evers during the COVID-19 pandemic. There was no debate on the floor about the measure.

Tax exemptions

The Senate concurred in AB 38, which would mirror federal policy to exempt tips from state income taxes, in a 21-12 vote. Sen. Sarah Keyeski (D-Lodi), Sen. Brad Pfaff (D-Onalaska) and Jamie Wall (D-Green Bay) joined Republicans in favor of the bill. The Assembly passed the bill last week, so it will now head to Evers for consideration.

The bill would allow tipped employees to deduct up to $25,000 in tips annually from their federal taxable income. Those earning more than $150,000 would not be eligible for the deduction.

According to a Department of Revenue fiscal estimate, the bill would result in Wisconsin collecting $33.7 million less in revenue annually.

The Democratic lawmakers who opposed the bill said it didn’t do enough to ensure that employees make a stable wage. Tipped employees in Wisconsin can currently make a minimum wage of $2.33.

Sen. Kelda Roys (D-Madison) said that raising the minimum wage would ensure that a person’s wage doesn’t rely on “the mood that somebody is in” or “somebody’s willingness to be sexually harassed.” 

“We should not put working people through that,” Roys said.

“You don’t get everything you want in life,” Jacque said. “I think this is something that is going to make life a little bit easier for those who work in the service industry.” 

“We don’t make the employers pay these people fairly,” Sen. LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee) said. “These are the same people who have to rely on child care subsidies, who have to rely on Medicaid.”

Pfaff said in a statement that he voted for the bill because “hard working people continue to feel the pressure of rising costs every time they go to the grocery store, pay their rent and utility bills, and receive their new health insurance premium.” 

SB 69, which will allow teachers who spend money on classroom expenses to claim a subtraction on their state income taxes of up to $300, passed unanimously. 

Three education bills pass

The Senate voted 18-15 to concur in AB 602, a bill that instructs Evers to opt into the federal school choice tax credit program. It now goes to Evers. 

A provision in the federal law signed by President Trump will provide a dollar-for-dollar tax credit of up to $1,700 to people who donate to a qualifying “scholarship granting program” to support certain educational expenses including tuition and board at private schools, tutoring and books, but governors must decide whether to opt in and have until Jan. 1, 2027 to do so.

Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk) said during a press conference that the program would help provide additional funding to students without using state dollars. She emphasized that if the state doesn’t opt in, then Wisconsinites could still benefit from the credit by donating to programs in participating states, but those dollars would not go to Wisconsin students.  

“We want to see those dollars stay in Wisconsin,” Felzkowski said. 

Evers has previously said he wouldn’t opt the state into the program. He could veto the Republican bill instructing him to do so when it arrives at his desk. 

Sex ed legislation

SB 371 passed 18-15 along party lines. It would add requirements for school districts that provide human growth and development programs to show high definition video of the development of the brain, heart, sex organs and other organs, a rendering of the fertilization process and fetal development and a presentation on each trimester of pregnancy and the physical and emotional health of the mother. It now goes to the Assembly for consideration. 

Roys, the Madison Democrat, criticized the bill as being part of a “nationwide effort by some of the most extreme anti-abortion… to try to indoctrinate young children.” She noted that some of Wisconsin’s prominent anti-abortion organizations support the bill including the Wisconsin Catholic Conference, Pro-Life Wisconsin and Wisconsin Right to Life. 

Felzkowski, the GOP author of the bill, said young people deserve to know “what happens to them, what happens to their body, what happens to a fetus… What are you afraid of? Why would a child having knowledge scare you?”

The Senate concurred in AB 457 18-15 and will now go to Evers for consideration. The bill would require Wisconsin school districts to submit their financial reports to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) on time before they can ask voters for funding through a referendum. It was introduced in reaction to Milwaukee Public Schools approving a large referendum and a subsequent financial reporting scandal in 2024.

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the Senate Committee on Organization approved a livestream that will be facilitated by the Legislative Technology Services Bureau. The Wisconsin Senate votes on the state budget in July. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

With WisconsinEye, the state government video streaming service, still offline, the state Senate is planning to livestream its floor session Wednesday when it votes on constitutional amendment proposals as well as bills related to income tax breaks and education. 

According to a Friday memo from the office of Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg), the Senate Committee on Organization approved a livestream that will be facilitated by the Legislative Technology Services Bureau.

The memo states the goal of the stream is to enhance transparency and public availability, and that any use or distribution of the livestream is prohibited. Wednesday will be the first time since WisconsinEye went offline that the full Senate will meet to vote on legislation.

The absence of WisconsinEye, which halted coverage in December due to financial difficulties, means that for the first time since 2007 no organization is livestreaming and archiving meetings in the Legislature. Since Tuesday morning, WisconsinEye has raised more than $40,000 towards the $250,000 goal of  its GoFundMe campaign to cover three months of operating expenses. 

After WisconsinEye ceased coverage, Republicans began enforcing rules banning members of the public from recording committee proceedings. Democrats have criticized that move, saying the Legislature needs to be more transparent. One Republican committee chair told the Examiner that the enforcement of recording rules was in part due to concerns over the use of recordings for political purposes.

The state Assembly has met three times this year, including Tuesday, without sessions being livestreamed. It also has another floor session scheduled for Thursday. 

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) said during a press conference that the presence of journalists at the floor session is why the Assembly is not doing something similar to the Senate in the absence of WisconsinEye. He said he didn’t see the need to try to recreate the service.

“People are reporting on [the floor session]. We are still trying to figure out if there’s a way for us to get WisconsinEye — we’ve had good meetings,” Vos said, adding that he has met with Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) and Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer (D-Racine) on the issue. “I think, in the end, we’ll find some kind of an answer.”

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“This bill is not coming from left field… This is something we've been talking about," Rep. Shannon Zimmerman said about his data center regulation bill. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

The Assembly passed a Republican bill Tuesday to implement state regulations on data centers being built in Wisconsin. Democratic lawmakers said the measure wouldn’t effectively hold companies accountable, hold down electric rates for Wisconsinites or protect the environment.

Data center development is booming in Wisconsin. Microsoft this week proposed adding 15 data centers to a project in Mount Pleasant. Some projects in development has triggered pushback from area residents. According to datacentermap.com, there are at least 40 data centers currently in the state and more in development. Local governments, including in Madison, where the city council became the first in the state to pass a one-year moratorium on approvals for data center projects, are considering their roles in regulating or pushing forward projects. 

AB 840, coauthored by Rep. Shannon Zimmerman (R-River Falls) and Sen. Romaine Quinn (R-Birchwood), establishing regulations of data centers, passed 53-44. Rep. Joy Goeben (R-Hobart) joined Democrats voting against the bill, while Rep. Steve Doyle and Jodi Emerson (D-Eau Claire) voted with Republicans in favor of the bill.

“This bill balances the strategic and economic benefits of AI and data centers to the state while balancing concerns that ratepayers may have over energy, and that some may have over environmental implications,” Zimmerman said at a press conference ahead of the floor session.

Democratic lawmakers were critical of the bill, saying it doesn’t go far enough to protect Wisconsinites. 

“We need to take action to regulate data centers, but we need to get it right. Unfortunately, the GOP bill that we’re voting on today will not do what it promises,” Minority Leader Greta Neubauer (D-Racine) told reporters ahead of the floor session, adding that the bill process was “rushed.” The GOP bill was introduced on Jan. 9, and received a public hearing on Jan. 14. 

“It will not hold corporations accountable in the way that we should, and it doesn’t protect our communities entirely from the higher energy costs that are being discussed,” Neubauer said.  She asserted that Republican lawmakers “don’t actually want to regulate data centers or large corporations.” 

Zimmerman said the bill is responsive to concerns from constituents.

“Hands down the concerns are concern over ratepayer protection, concern over water, concern over land, and protection of those sort of things,” Zimmerman said. “This bill is not coming from left field… This is something we’ve been talking about.”  

Whether the bill becomes law is up in the air. It must pass the Senate and be signed by Gov. Tony Evers, who has expressed some skepticism about it.

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Evers’ spokesperson Britt Cudaback said on Jan. 14 that “the one thing environmentalists, labor, utilities, and data center companies can all agree on right now is how bad Republican lawmakers’ data center bill is.” 

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) said he didn’t know why Evers “would ever consider vetoing this bill, especially considering the fact that it is really based on what the citizens have said.” 

“I don’t think being on the side of not wanting data center regulation is anywhere near the middle, so we have been very thoughtful in what we put forward,” Vos said. 

The Republican bill includes a number of requirements including having the Public Service Commission (PSC) ensure that no costs related to construction of electric infrastructure for data centers are allocated to other customers and requiring that any renewable energy facilities that are primarily serving a data center must be located within the data center site. Democratic lawmakers said the requirement would stifle the development of renewable energy in Wisconsin and expansion of the state’s energy portfolio. 

“Their limits on renewable energy would come at a significant cost to consumers and are clearly a continuation of the GOP’s ongoing allegiance with the fossil fuel industry,” Neubauer said. 

Zimmerman said, however, that requiring renewable sources on site would ensure that a local community is benefiting from jobs that are created. 

Under the bill, water used for cooling purposes in a data center is required to be contained in a “closed-loop cooling system,” or “or any other system that uses an amount of water equal to or less than the amount that a closed-loop cooling system would use.” A closed-loop cooling system uses a fixed amount of water to keep data centers cool.

An amendment to the bill states that the requirements will only apply to large data centers that begin operating or undergo construction after the bill takes effect.

Data center operators also will be required to submit annual reports to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on the total amount of water used in a year. An amendment to the bill also says that data center developers should as much as possible encourage hiring of Wisconsin residents. 

“This bill is not a reaction to any of those data centers acting in various ways. This is just smart legislation to make sure we have the rules of the road going forward,” Zimmerman said. 

The bill also says no one can  operate a large data center unless they file a bond in an amount sufficient to cover the estimated cost of fulfilling any required reclamation with the DNR.

An amendment to the bill also clarifies that if the permit granted for the construction of a large data center expires before the center is finished, then the owner must notify the DNR and local government. It requires that if it isn’t finished by the date then the owner must work to restore the land as much as possible. 

Zimmerman said the provision gives flexibility to local governments for recourse in the case  a project is abandoned. 

According to the Wisconsin Lobbying website, the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation and the Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin Inc. registered in favor of the bill. There are several more groups registered against the bill, including Wisconsin Conservation Voters and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Construction Electrician Local Unions. 

Democratic lawmakers, led by Rep. Angela Stroud (D-Ashland) and Sen. Jodi Habush Sinykin (D-Whitefish Bay), have proposed their own legislation to regulate data centers. That bill, AB 722, would place data centers in their own class of “very large customers” to ensure that everyday ratepayers don’t bear the costs of data centers’ energy demands. It would also take steps to regulate data centers and encourage renewable energy use. Lawmakers introduced the bill as an amendment during the floor session, but Republican lawmakers voted it down.

Stroud said the GOP bill is a “concept of an idea.” 

“There’s nothing in the bill that the PSC could actually implement to do the job it says it’s going to do,” Stroud said. 

Stroud said her proposal, while “not perfect,” would “get us as close as possible to the central goal of protecting the public by controlling costs, creating transparency and making sure that we’re keeping as much value in our communities as possible.”

Under the Democratic bill, data center companies would be required to pay an annual fee to the Department of Administration (DOA); revenue which would go towards renewable energy programs. It would also have companies submit quarterly reports to the PSC on the amount of energy being used by data centers as well as information on the source of the energy. Water utilities would also need to publicly report when a single customer will account for more than 25% of the total water usage in the district. 

The bill would require that companies pay workers at construction sites the prevailing wage rate or if the employee is a union member, then the rate in the worker’s collective bargaining agreement — whichever rate is higher. It also says that to qualify for sales tax exemptions available to data centers under current law, companies would need to meet labor requirements and source 70% of their energy from renewable sources.

Vos said that the Democratic bill will “have very little impact on the average person unless you’re a union activist or someone who wants renewable energy everywhere.”

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Wisconsin Republicans are pushing to eliminate diversity initiatives throughout the state with a constitutional amendment that will likely go to voters this fall and through a government efficiency effort that seeks to cut DEI training and programs. | Illustration by stellalevi/Getty Images Creative

Republican efforts to target diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs throughout Wisconsin are advancing this week with a constitutional amendment likely to appear on ballots this fall following a Wednesday Senate vote. 

For the last several years, Republican lawmakers have sought to limit DEI in Wisconsin including by introducing bills that were vetoed by Gov. Tony Evers, holding hostage pay raises for the University of Wisconsin system employees during negotiations to limit DEI, and now, placing a constitutional amendment before voters. The efforts come as the Trump administration has also targeted DEI in the federal government and throughout the country.

“It’s just a larger attack that we’re seeing in this country against anything that uplifts our most marginalized communities…,” Chair of the Legislative Black Caucus Sen. Dora Drake (D-Milwaukee) told the Wisconsin Examiner in an interview. “This started even before, you know, President Trump was elected. There’s just been a pushback with these programs and it’s because we’re starting to see some progress.” 

The Wisconsin State Senate will vote this week on a constitutional amendment that would prohibit local governments from “discriminating against, or granting preferential treatment to” anyone based on race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin. The proposal was first introduced and passed by the Republican-led Legislature in 2024. It is one of three constitutional amendment proposals that voters may have the final say on in November.

Drake has been seeking to increase awareness of the anti-DEI constitutional amendment over the last week.

Constitutional amendment proposals must pass two consecutive sessions of the state Legislature before they are  placed on ballots. In recent years, Republicans have, with mixed results, relied on constitutional amendment proposals to bypass Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

If AJR 102 passes on Wednesday, voters will see the following question on their ballots in November: “Shall section 27 of article I of the constitution be created to prohibit governmental entities in the state from discriminating against, or granting preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public employment, public education, public contracting, or public administration?”

Authors of the amendment, including Rep. Dave Murphy (R-Hortonville), have said the proposal will restore “merit, fairness and equality to government practices from the state Capitol, all the way down to our school boards and everything in between.” It passed the Assembly last week. 

Drake counters that Republican lawmakers are misleading Wisconsinites. 

“Legislative Republicans had the opportunity to expand economic and educational opportunities for all Wisconsinites. They’re the ones that have power, and yet they chose not to,” Drake said. “They are now trying to pin the reason why people are struggling on Black and brown people, women and other minority Wisconsinites for their failures by misleading people with what this ballot measure would do.”

Drake brought together Black leaders in Milwaukee including Mayor Cavalier Johnson and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, who is running for governor, to speak against the constitutional amendment proposal. 

Johnson said at the press conference that the city complies with state and federal law. 

“As mayor of a majority-minority city, I know firsthand that when every resident has the tools and every resident has the resources at their disposal to succeed, the entire community is strong,” he said. 

Drake has spoken about the risk of losing programs including the state’s Supplier Diversity Program, which was established in the 1980s and certifies minority-owned, service-disabled veteran-owned and woman-owned businesses to provide better opportunities for them to do business with the state of Wisconsin. She also says she thinks the proposal could have farther reaching consequences. For example, she said, she thinks the Holocaust education bill that lawmakers passed and Evers signed last session could be disallowed. That effort was approved in the same year that the state enacted legislation to require education on Hmong and Asian American history in schools.

“The reality is in the constitutional amendment resolution they’re putting forth, it applies for any type of public dollars, so… if our public schools and school boards put money towards that, in a way, you’re giving preferential treatment to teaching that specific history,” Drake said. “It’s so much more than just the programs… that Milwaukee county and the city have.”

“They’re saying that this constitutional amendment would prevent discrimination, but then it’s preventing the government from taking actions when discrimination actually happens, so essentially, you’re outlawing accountability when discrimination does occur,” Drake said. 

The Senate will vote on the proposal just days after Martin Luther King Day. Republican lawmakers have cited the civil rights leader’s teachings as justification for the amendment. 

“The principle of a colorblind equality and merit-based decision-making is again articulated by one of their greatest civil rights leaders, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr,” Sen. Steve Nass (R-Whitewater), the other lead author of the proposed amendment, said at a hearing in the Senate Licensing, Regulatory Reform, State and Federal Affairs Committee on Jan. 7. “Using immutable characteristics like race, sex, color, ethnicity, national origin and the like to discriminate against or grant any individual or group is wrong, no matter who it targets or what the reason, it creates distrust and injust division and represents resentments that divide people instead of uniting them. Past discrimination, however wrong, cannot be corrected with more discrimination.” 

Nass said the amendment would ensure people are hired, promoted, selected and admitted to school in the “same way we choose people for our Olympic team.” 

Drake said the lawmakers who are citing MLK misunderstand his legacy. 

“The reality is that he was someone that was a pioneer in his time and he wasn’t liked because he actually challenged and named the systematic structures that cause disparities throughout this country,” Drake said. “He actively called out his fellow white faith leaders on why they were silent in the face of injustice. He never advocated for a so-called colorblind society. What he was advocating for was that people have access to opportunity.”

GOAT report identifies recommendations to eliminate DEI

The goals of the amendment — and the broader desire to eliminate DEI — were on display during an informational hearing in the Assembly Government Operations, Accountability and Transparency (GOAT) committee on a recent report compiled by Rep. Shae Sortwell.

The Republican from Two Rivers used his authority on the GOAT committee, which was created to be the state’s version of the federal Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), in February 2025 to begin investigating DEI practices in local government. He submitted open records requests to Wisconsin’s 72 counties, the 50 largest municipalities throughout the state and all school districts.

The resulting report released on Jan. 9 was more than 80 pages long. Sortwell also listed thousands of pages of records from counties and municipalities on his website. 

During a Jan. 15 hearing on the report, Sortwell told the GOAT committee that he wanted it to be a “fact-finding” mission. The Wisconsin Counties Association helped guide counties in responding to the requests.

“This is what we found so that you can draw your own conclusions as to what you think,” Sortwell said.

Four counties Buffalo, Richland, Sawyer and Waupaca didn’t have relevant records to share. 

Pierce County did not provide any records to the committee and was identified as uncooperative, according to the report. Sortwell noted during the hearing that Pierce is small and it is possible that is the reason they didn’t reply. 

The following municipalities reported that they had no records: Ashwaubenon, Brookfield, Caledonia, Fond du Lac, Fox Crossing, Germantown, Howard, Marshfield, Menasha, Menominee Falls, Mequon, Mount Pleasant, New Berlin, Oak Creek, Oconomowoc, Pleasant Prairie, West Bend and Wisconsin Rapids. Janesville and Sheboygan failed to provide records to the committee. 

Sortwell discussed spending that some counties, including Rock, Milwaukee and Waukesha, did on DEI training and a “disproportionality” conference hosted by the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) in 2024.

He also highlighted the report’s finding that the Manitowoc mayor attended 24 DEI-related trainings between 2021 and 2023 for a cost of $4,000.

“I’m trying to understand what he didn’t get in the first 23… Is he so racist and homophobic or something that you couldn’t manage to figure out not to treat people badly because they’re different from him in the first 23?” Sortwell said. “Where’s the controls here?”

The report listed a number of recommendations for potential bills lawmakers could pass including one to remove DEI language from state grants, to “prohibit all levels of government from contracting with vendors within a discriminatory DEI lens,” to remove the term “health equity” from all state laws and administrative codes, to prohibit policies and practices relating to equity, prohibit the hiring of DEI staff and use of DEI terminology throughout government, the use of funds for DEI trainings and the requirement that employees participate in such trainings and to prohibit DPI from requiring that school districts “adhere to discriminatory and race-based policies and practices, including spending local tax dollars to fund such.”

Sortwell said he thought the constitutional amendment would take care of some of the recommendations, but that other measures could be needed.

Chair of the committee Rep. Amanda Nedweski (R-Pleasant Prairie) said at the hearing that she thought the report “presents a lot of high-level evidence, probably just scratching the surface really, for why we need this constitutional amendment.”

Sortwell said the recommendations included in the report were based on his judgment.

Democratic lawmakers on the committee, however, spoke to the value of DEI work and questioned the framing and findings of the report.

Rep. Angelina Cruz (D-Racine) told the Wisconsin Examiner that the report includes “gross mischaracterizations” of DEI and “reflects a deep misunderstanding of what DEI is,” and said she would frame the report as more of a “witch hunt” than an investigation.

Cruz said she thought the process of compiling the report was not transparent. She noted that Sortwell’s work on the report was not discussed with Democratic members of the committee before he started and that lawmakers did not have much time to review the thousands of pages before the hearing. 

“If you want to talk about waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer money, it is to waste public servants’ time and our taxpayer resources on generating the data that produce these conclusions that are not grounded in good research methodology,” Cruz said. 

Rep. Mike Bare (D-Verona), the ranking member of the committee, told Nedweski during the hearing that he found her comment troubling.

“I don’t want to make a partisan game here, but I think there’s one side who sees these as not valuable and one side that does see them as valuable,” Bare said. 

The report noted that local health departments have prioritized “health equity” — noting that the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) includes in its rules that local health departments work to help create it. The report called “health equity” a “phantom DEI term.” 

Republicans and Democrats then engaged in a back and forth about the meaning of the term health equity.

“I don’t think we should be treating people differently because they check some box… that’s equality and I support that, and equity says I want a certain outcome, so I’m going to rig the system,” Sortwell said. 

“I don’t think you have to rig the system — and I don’t think a lot of the things that you’ve pointed out are about rigging the system — services for moms or children support services,” Bare said. “We’re trying to allow for an outcome to be possible… You’ve got 50,000 pages. You didn’t do any analysis to tell us why this is bad. There is a lot more that goes into [the question] should we have health equity or not beyond ideology.”

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Nearly $800 million in funding for Wisconsin hospitals is in question due to potential rule changes under consideration by the Trump administration. (Photo by Thomas Barwick/Getty Images)

Nearly $800 million in funding for Wisconsin hospitals is in question due to potential rule changes under consideration by the Trump administration. 

Wisconsin lawmakers and Gov. Tony Evers rushed to finish the state budget in July, ahead of federal legislation making it to President Donald Trump’s desk, to ensure the state draw down additional federal funds. Whether the state will be able to benefit from that funding is now uncertain. 

The 2025-27 state budget included a provision to increase its Medicaid hospital assessment from 1.8% to 6% as a way to supplement the state’s Medicaid resources with matching contributions from the federal government. The change was meant to increase payments to hospitals and to offset the state’s funding for the Medical Assistance program. It was estimated to result in over $1 billion in additional revenue for Wisconsin hospitals. 

A Legislative Fiscal Bureau analysis this week found that “preliminary federal guidance from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has created some uncertainty about the allowability of changes to Wisconsin’s hospital assessment.”

29 Marklein Born Revenue Estimates

The analysis said that if the increase is disallowed then it would lead to a general purpose revenue shortfall of $396 million annually — or $792 million in the 2025-27 biennium.

“CMS indicated that this matter will be addressed through formal rule making procedures, and thus will be subject to provisions of notice and public comment. Pending additional information from the federal government, the allowability of the Act 15 changes is not currently known,” the LFB analysis stated. 

A group of eight Democratic state lawmakers, including state Rep. Steve Doyle and Sen. Brad Pfaff, both from Onalaska, sent a letter to U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden urging him to take action to help ensure Wisconsin receives the funds. Following the state budget, Van Orden claimed credit for helping secure the extra funds for the state.

“Our hospitals, and especially our rural hospitals were counting on that funding to keep their
doors open… At a time when our medical institutions are facing unprecedented financial challenges, we must do everything we can to ensure their ability to continue to operate. Our state budget was counting on it, and our constituents’ lives literally depend on it. We implore you to do everything in your power to reverse these catastrophic decisions,” the lawmakers wrote.

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There are about 11 months until the primary, which is scheduled for August 11. Gubernatorial candidates at a November forum. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

The first campaign finance reports of the year show that Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley is leading the Democratic primary field in fundraising, while U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany is ahead in  the Republican primary field. Tiffany has raised about $2 million, the most of any candidate. The reports cover the period from July 1 to Dec. 31, 2025.

There are about 11 months until the primary, which is scheduled for August 11. 

Crowley leads Democratic field

Crowley, who launched his campaign in September, has raised $800,949, including $789,281 in donations and $11,666 in in-kind contributions. About $138,000 was transferred to his governor’s campaign from his county executive campaign committee account. 

According to his campaign finance report, he spent $187,529 and finished the period with $602,181 cash on hand. Seven contributors gave the maximum $20,000 donation allowed in the governor’s race, including executive of the Milwaukee Bucks Alex Lasry. 

“People across Wisconsin are feeling the financial squeeze, and they want a governor who knows how to get things done,” Crowley said in a statement. He said the support is providing him “the resources to build a serious, statewide operation focused on delivering results for working families.”

Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, who launched her campaign in July becoming the first Democratic candidate in the race, raised $618,284 in donations and $2,034 in in-kind contributions. She spent $174,894 and ended the period with $603,075. 

The Democratic Lt. Governors Association pledged in October to invest $2 million in independent expenditures in 2026 to support Rodriguez’s campaign. She listed a $86,000 contribution from the PAC. 

Former Department of Administration Sec. Joel Brennan, the latest candidate to launch a campaign, reported raising $566,212 in donations and $1,610 in in-kind contributions. He spent $13,873 and reported having $552,339 on hand at the end of the period. 

Former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes raised $555,647 since launching his campaign on Dec. 2 from 3,790 donations. He spent $88,265 and ended the period with $471,471. Shortly after launching his campaign, Barnes said his fundraising goal is $50 million over the course of his campaign.

According to his campaign finance report, he received donations of the maximum $20,000 from megadonors George and Alexander Soros. 

Former Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation CEO Missy Hughes reported raising $465,403 and $13,681 in in-kind donations. She spent $63,059 and ended the period with $402,344 on hand. 

State Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison), a Democratic socialist, raised $368,685 in donations and $1,188 from in-kind contributions, though she also spent a majority of the funds during the period. According to her report, Hong spent $234,782 during the period and ended it with $134,588 on hand.

Hong’s fundraising came from over 7,300 donors. According to her campaign, the average donation was $49.96 and about 75% of the total dollars raised came from donors in Wisconsin.

State Sen. Kelda Roys (D-Madison) raised $355,455 in donations and $23,132 from in-kind contributions during the period. According to her report, she spent $84,930 and reported having $334,032 on hand.

Roys reported four donations of the maximum $20,000, including from her husband and Peter Gunder, a former executive at American Family Insurance, and his wife. 

In a statement, Roys’ campaign said that about 82% of the donations to her campaign came from Wisconsin residents and that she isn’t accepting corporate donations. 

“Kelda’s campaign is funded by grassroots donors from every corner of the state. With our disciplined financial management and a committed Wisconsin donor base that is growing every day, Kelda will have the resources necessary to win the primary on August 11,” Roys’ campaign manager Jasper Bernstein said in a statement. 

Tiffany leads Schoemann in fundraising

Tiffany, who launched his campaign in September, led the field of GOP candidates, reported over $2 million raised — raising the most of any candidate in the Democratic or Republican field. The Republican primary field is much smaller than the Democratic field with only two candidates.

According to his campaign finance report, Tiffany raised $2,122,489 in donations and also received $3,808 in in-kind contributions. He spent $438,160 and ended the period with $1,695,038 on-hand. 

Tiffany also received $20,000 each from Republican megadonors Diane Hendricks, Dick Uihlein and Liz Uihlein. 

The largest donation Tiffany reported was $86,000 from the Wisconsin Federation of College Republicans. Wisconsin state law allows for unlimited donations from political parties to candidates.The College Republicans, who boasted raising over $1 million, had received $500,000 from the Uihleins.

Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann, who launched his campaign in early May, reported raising nearly $1 million over the course of the year.

During the reporting period from July to December, he brought in $535,650 in donations and $3,649 in in-kind donations. He spent $381,394 during the period and ended it with $492,495 in-hand.

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Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) told reporters ahead of the session that his caucus was seeking to address affordability with the legislation. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner).

The Wisconsin Assembly — seeking to align state policy with Trump administration initiatives — passed bills Thursday to exempt overtime pay and tips from income tax. Lawmakers also passed bills to make English the official language of the state as well as school related bills.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) told reporters ahead of the session that his caucus was seeking to address affordability with the legislation, though Democratic lawmakers argued the bills would not help address the issue in an effective way.

AB 38 would implement an income tax exemption for cash tips paid to an employee that would sunset in 2028. President Donald Trump signed a law in July to allow workers to deduct up to $25,000 in tips annually from their federal taxable income. Those earning more than $150,000 aren’t eligible for the deduction. 

The Wisconsin bill would apply the same policy when it comes to the state income tax. The deduction would apply to tips whether paid by cash or credit. 

Bill coauthor Rep. Ron Tusler (R-Harrison) said the tips tax cut is for the working and middle class. The bill passed 61-33 with a handful of Democrats joining Republicans. Rep. Lee Snodgrass (D-Appleton) and Rep. Robyn Vining (D-Wauwatosa) abstained from the vote.

“Tips are primarily earned by the working class and the lower middle class and tips should never have been taxed. A tip is a gift, it’s not income,” Tusler said. “Tips are not mandatory; they are a way to say thank you to someone.”

Tusler told reporters that his legislation wasn’t permanent because legislators want to “watch and see how it works out.” 

“I think it would be a great idea for it to become permanent someday. I hope it does,” Tusler said.  

Tusler also called on the Department of Revenue (DOR) to “get to work right away” should the bill become law to ensure it has forms ready. 

“This bill is going to pass, and it’s going to get signed by the governor, but if the Department of Revenue doesn’t get ready for that, they will not have their forms ready for the tip earners come tax time. Those tip earners will wind up paying their taxes for 2025 and then they’ll have to refile their taxes to pay it to get their tip refund back. That’s not something we should be asking working-class and middle-class taxpayers to do.”

Evers told reporters Monday that he is open to looking at Republican proposals to eliminate taxes on overtime and tips but wants to consider more “universal” forms of tax relief. He has proposed property tax relief as well as exempting certain items from the sales tax including diapers and over-the-counter medications. 

Rep. Ryan Clancy (D-Milwaukee) tried to introduce an amendment to bring tipped employees, who can make a minimum wage of $2.33, up to the minimum wage of $7.25. He said it would’ve helped raise the standard of living for workers across the state. 

“Restaurant workers, hotel cleaners, bartenders, and too many other Wisconsin workers still rely on the inconsistent generosity of their customers just to survive. This is a terrible system that primarily benefits bosses and corporations – it’s also rife for abuse, leading to frequent unethical and sometimes illegal behavior like forced pooling of tips, assigning of non-tipped work assignments to tipped employees, and outright tip theft by bosses and managers,” Clancy said in a statement. 

His amendment was rejected by Republican lawmakers.

The Assembly also passed AB 461 in a 61-35 vote. It would create an income tax subtraction for certain overtime compensation. Single filers could claim up to $12,500 per year under the subtraction, while joint filers could claim up to $25,000. Unlike the “no tax on tips” bill, this policy change would be permanent.

Bill coauthor Rep. Paul Melotik (R-Grafton) noted that overtime work can be essential to communities and also take a toll on family life. He said the bill would help support the “hard-working people of Wisconsin, who put out extra effort… whether it’s nurses working double shifts, deputies filling in on weekends, line workers staying late to meet production goals or service employees keeping the doors open.  

Bill to make English the official language.

AB 377 would make English Wisconsin’s official language and allow state agencies to use artificial intelligence translation tools instead of providing an interpreter to people during court proceedings.

The bill passed 51-43. Rep. Jessie Rodriguez (R-Oak Creek) voted with Democratic lawmakers against the bill.

Rep. Priscilla Prado (D-Milwaukee), who chairs the Wisconsin Hispanic Legislative Caucus, delivered her opposition to the bill in Spanish — telling lawmakers that after that they could “use Google to translate that.” Prado stood again later to deliver her remarks in English, saying she would help lawmakers out.

“You want to make it legal to use AI as a translator, which might be useful for ordering lunch, but certainly not sufficient for legal hearings, official forms and civil rights — not to mention that this implementation of AI would, quite literally, take jobs away from Wisconsinites who work as translators,” Prado said. “If efficiency were the goal, we would be talking about improving language access, not political symbolism. Wisconsin does not lose its identity because Spanish or another language is spoken. What it does lose is credibility when it ignores a substantial part of its population.” 

Rep. Nate Gustafson (R-Ormo) said he didn’t think the bill was stripping people of their identity, but would instead give people a “tool in the toolbox.” 

“It allows our legal system to move efficiently and forward instead of waiting on, let’s say, a limited pool of resources that aren’t there again,” Gustafson said. “We have declining birth rate. Our absolute workforce  is obviously diminished at this point, but we’re still reliant on people at the end of the day. There is a point where we need to give the people who are doing these jobs the tools to be more efficient.”

Bill coauthor Rep. Dave Murphy (R-Hortonville), speaking after Prado, said the speech represented a failure to communicate as most people in the Assembly did not understand what she said.

“One of the important things about having an official language for society is language draws people together, and I think it’s really important to give a society cohesiveness with people that speak the same language. Now, that doesn’t mean that this bill in some way makes it illegal, or you know, somehow, impeaches your ability to to speak another language, however  I think we are making a mistake here that if you speak English in the society — it’s a huge advantage to you.” 

School revenue and lunches

AB 457, coauthored by Rep. Amanda Nedweski (R-Pleasant Prairie) and Sen. Rob Hutton (R-Brookfield), would require Wisconsin school districts’ financial reports to the Department of Public Instruction on time before they are able to go to referendum. It passed 52-44 with Republicans for and Democrats against. 

The bill was introduced in response to Milwaukee Public Schools’ financial scandal where the district was months late in submitting financial documents to the state. The news was unveiled just weeks after voters had approved a historic referendum for the state’s largest school district.

Rep. Christian Phelps (D-Eau Claire) said that the bill was a “distraction” from other issues that school districts and property taxpayers are facing. 

Wisconsin taxpayers’ December bills included the highest increase since 2018. The increase followed  a controversial line item veto by Gov. Tony Evers , which extended a one-time increases to school revenue limits for the next 400 years. State  lawmakers did not provide additional state aid to schools, pushing many districts to use their additional taxing authority and others to go to referendum to ask local residents to raise their own taxes.

“The Department of Public Instruction is already working through any financial issues that they need to work through with the Milwaukee Public Schools,” Phelps said. “Educators and property taxpayers just are not buying the Republican spin. They can see the impact of what this building has done on the services in our public schools and their property tax bills, so it is frankly a waste of taxpayer-funded time for us to debate this silly bill that isn’t going anywhere.” 

Referencing the acronym for the school district, Nedweski called her bill the MPS bill — saying it  stood for “maximizing public scrutiny.” Nedweski said her bill is “straightforward” and would ensure that school districts are transparent before seeking to raise property taxes. 

“Public trust was shattered,” Nedweski said of the Milwaukee schools financial reporting failure. She also asked whether the outcome of the Milwaukee referendum would have been different if voters had known about the absent financial reports. 

“As property taxes continue to rise thanks to that 400-year Democrat property tax increase, it’s imperative that voters have complete information about the financial outlook of their school district before voting to further raise their own taxes,” Nedweski said. “This bill does not ask school districts to do anything new. It is not one new hoop they have to jump through… They are already supposed to be completing and submitting their financial information on time in accordance with state law.” 

AB 226 would prohibit Wisconsin public schools, independent charter schools, and private schools participating in a parental choice program serving meals that contain certain ingredients. Some of the food additives that would be prohibited include brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propylparaben, azodicarbonamide and red dye No. 3, which can be found in candy, fruit juices and cookies.

The bill is another instance of GOP lawmakers seeking to align state policies with Trump administration efforts. The exclusion of the additives is meant to target “ultra processed foods,” which were one of the top concerns outlined by Health Sec. Robert F. Kennedy and a report the Trump administration commissioned. 

It passed 53-43. A handful of Democrats, including Reps. Deb Andraca (D-Whitefish Bay), Jill Billings (D-La Crosse), Brienne Brown (D-Whitewater) and Renuka Mayadev (D-Madison), voted for the bill, while a handful of Republicans voted against the bill including Reps. Lindee Brill (R-Sheboygan Falls), Joy Goeben (R-Hobart) and Chuck Wichgers (R-Muskego).

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The LFB projection is about $1.53 billion above the projected balance when the 2025-27 biennial budget was enacted last year. Wisconsin State Capitol. (Examiner file photo)

According to a Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) analysis released on Thursday, Wisconsin’s general fund balance at the end of the biennium, June 30, 2027, is projected to be $2.37 billion. The projection is about $1.53 billion above the projected balance when the 2025-27 biennial budget was enacted last year.

According to the LFB, the majority of the growth, $1.367 billion, is due to an increase in estimated tax collections. Other contributions to the growth include $104 million in departmental revenues, an increase of $49.9 million in sum sufficient appropriations and an increase of $107.8 million in the amounts that are estimated to lapse to the general fund.

Both Republicans and Democrats sought to take credit for the news.

Rep. Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam) and Sen. Howard Marklein (R- Spring Green) said in a statement that Republicans’ “long-standing commitment to responsible budgeting and fiscal discipline is working.” 

The lawmakers warned that the state should continue to exercise caution. 

“These increased revenue estimates are driven in part by strong stock market performance and resulting tax collections,” the lawmakers said. “We must be careful when committing to ongoing spending using one-time money. Our disciplined approach has delivered results and put Wisconsin in a strong fiscal position.”

Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) said that the numbers are “a tribute to Wisconsin Democrats, who have prioritized investments in the people of Wisconsin that have improved our state’s economy, provided middle class tax relief and helped make Wisconsin a state where businesses want to invest and families want to live.”

Gov. Tony Evers told reporters that the revenues were larger than expected on Monday and he wanted to use the funds for priorities including over $1 billion in property tax relief. Republican lawmakers have said that they want Evers’ 400-year veto, which gave school districts the ability to enact annual revenue limit increases, repealed in order to deal with rising tax cuts.

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Preschool children playing with colorful shapes and toys in a child care center. (Getty Images)

The Wisconsin Department of Children and Families Sec.-designee Jeff Pertl told reporters that he is confident in the state’s child care accountability measures and isn’t concerned about the state potentially losing federal funding. 

Last week, the Trump administration froze over $10 billion in federal child care funds designated for Minnesota and four other states amid fraud allegations. The funds cover child care subsidies, social services and cash support for low-income families. 

Pertl told reporters that “nothing can stop the president from politicizing an issue.” 

“I think we all see that playing out in a variety of ways all across the country right now, and I think that concerns everyone frankly,” Pertl said. 

Even with the politicization of the issue, Pertl expressed confidence in Wisconsin’s system. 

The Wisconsin Shares program is a subsidy program for low-income families where funds are paid to parents on an EBT card that is then used to pay a child care provider. According to the agency, this program is the main way that federal child care funding is utilized in Wisconsin. There is also some funding that goes towards quality improvement for programs, training and technical assistance.

Pertl said January payments have already gone out to families and he said he doesn’t expect any issues with February payments or other future payments. 

“People are using them. Folks should have confidence in the system,” Pertl said. “We’re likely to see an increase, maybe, in reporting requirements, but our system is well positioned to be able to meet those and continue to move forward. It may be administratively burdensome, and maybe more paperwork and things we’ve got to collect, but we’re confident that our system, particularly because of its unique history, is probably one of the best systems in the country for being able to navigate some of the questions that are coming in.” 

Wisconsin dealt with significant fraud involving improper payments a decade ago, which led to the state beefing up its accountability measures. 

A 2009 Pulitzer prize-winning investigation by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel uncovered fraud within the WisconsinShares program that led to criminal indictments and prompted the state to implement protections. 

An audit that year by the Legislative Audit Bureau found there was an estimated $16.7 to $18.5 million in improper subsidy payments made and child care providers were estimated to have received an additional $4 million in improper subsidy payments as a result of errors or fraudulent reporting.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester), who was in the Legislature at the time, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in December that he remembers the work that was undertaken to address the issue in 2009. 

“I want to definitely make sure it’s not happening again,” Vos said. He noted that he hasn’t heard of specific examples of fraud happening, but he doesn’t “want to assume that it’s not.”

Gov. Tony Evers also told reporters this week that Wisconsin is “in a good place.” 

“There’s lots of auditing going on… so I think we’re in a great place,” he said. 

Some of the reforms that the state has adopted relating to ensuring proper payments include expanding program integrity staff, improving attendance tracking and reporting, implementing fingerprint background checks, expanding the list of crimes that prohibit someone from running  a child care center, adopting YoungStar, which is the quality rating system in the state, and moving to using EBT cards. 

The state has also passed laws to allow DCF to collect money from providers if they go out of business and to suspend or revoke licenses and subsidy payments to people previously convicted of crimes relating to the operation of a business. 

Those measures can help ensure accountability.

“How do you know when it’s fraud? How do you know when a kid just stopped showing up?” Pertl asked. “When we do the licensing visit or get a tip or we’re checking the enrollment and attendance records, if there’s discrepancies… that’s going to trigger a review. It might trigger a claw-back and recovery of money.”

Wisconsin DCF also maintains a list on its website of child care centers that have been suspended or terminated from the WisconsinShares program. 

The federal government conducts monitoring checks every three years. In recent years, Wisconsin has had a low payment error rate. In 2023, the last time the check happened, Wisconsin’s error rate was 2.9%. In 2020, it was 1.81% and in 2017, it was 4.35%. In 2013, the error rate was 18.84%. 

Pertl noted that the changes made by the state were a bipartisan effort under the administrations of former Govs. Jim Doyle, a Democrat, and Scott Walker, a Republican. 

“There are certainly some very significant issues going on in Minnesota and there is no question that the president politicizes this for an agenda and targets folks for it,” Pertl said. “I think what you’ve seen [Gov. Evers] say and what you see Wisconsin leaders doing is showing that we have a strong system that has navigated these issues, that has high integrity, that addresses these things when they come, and so we’re confident about our ability to continue to run a robust and great child care system.”

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UW-Milwaukee. (Photo | Isiah Holmes)

The Joint Finance Committee unanimously approved the release of $53 million for the University of Wisconsin system to support campuses struggling with declining enrollment. 

The UW system will have $26.5 million in the 2025-26 fiscal year and $26.5 million in the 2026-27 fiscal year that can be used for grants to campuses. The funds were initially set aside for the system in the recent state budget. 

In each year, $15.25 million will be distributed to campuses with declining enrollment over the last two years and $11.25 million will be distributed through a formula dependent on the number of credit hours undergraduates complete.

In 2025, enrollment across the system’s 13 campuses remained stable with about 700 more students enrolled in the fall when compared to 2024. The slight increase represents the third consecutive year of increased enrollment. 

UW President Jay Rothman thanked lawmakers and Evers in a social media post and said the release of the funds “affirms our shared commitment to student success and Wisconsin’s workforce.” 

“Together, we’ll keep more talented graduates in Wisconsin and ensure our universities are delivering the education students deserve and parents expect,” Rothman said.

At the time of the budget process in June, committee co-chair Sen. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) said the funds would “put the thumb on the scale” to help campuses with declining enrollment over the last decade including UW Platteville, which is in his district.

Lawmakers did not debate the release of the funds, though Sen. Eric Wimberger (R-Oconto), who voted to release the money, noted that the system has had a growing number of staff members even as enrollment has declined.

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“This is not about vague feelings or misunderstandings," Rep. Amanda Nedweski (R-Pleasant Prairie) said of her bill to make child grooming a crime. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

The Wisconsin Assembly, which met for its first floor session of the year on Tuesday, passed two constitutional amendments that could be on ballots in November as well as bills to withhold pay from suspended judges and to make “grooming” to establish a sexual relationship with a child a felony crime.

For the first time in nearly two decades, the floor session occurred without livestream coverage from WisconsinEye, the nonprofit organization that produces live and archived videos of state government similar to C-Span.

Two constitutional amendments advance

The Assembly passed two constitutional amendment proposals. One would bar the closure of places of worship during a state of emergency and the other would  eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs throughout Wisconsin. 

Each proposed amendment is up for the second of two required votes in consecutive sessions of  the Legislature. If they pass the Senate, they will appear on voters’ ballots in November. A majority of voters must approve them before the state constitution can be amended.

AJR 10, which would prohibit the state from ordering the closure of places of worship during a state of emergency, passed 56-43. Rep. Sylvia Ortiz-Velez (D-Milwaukee) joined Republicans in favor of the proposal.

The proposal was first introduced during the 2023-25 session in response to actions taken by the Evers administration during the COVID-19 pandemic. A “Safer at Home” order issued by Evers in March 2020 designated religious entities as essential but said gatherings should include fewer than 10 people in a room at a time and said people needed to adhere to social distancing requirements as much as possible. The order also advised places of worship to have drive-in services.

Only Rep. Ron Tusler, the proposal’s author, spoke about it during the floor session. 

“No more than 10 people at a time, no matter how big the church structure was. What part of never infringe the right of every person to worship almighty God, according to the dictates of their conscience, did Gov. Evers not understand?” Tusler asked, referring to the Wisconsin State Constitution. “Evers was wrong to limit our churches to 10.”

Voters would be asked “Shall Section 18 of Article I of the Constitution, which deals with religious liberty, be amended to prohibit the state or a political subdivision of the state from ordering the closure of, or forbidding gatherings in, places of worship in response to a state of emergency, including a public health emergency?”

AJR 102, which seeks to target diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in state and local governments, passed 54-45 with only Republican support. 

Rep. Dave Murphy (R-Hortonville) said the proposal will restore “merit, fairness and equality to government practices from the state Capitol, all the way down to our school boards and everything in between” including when it comes to hiring, scholarships and contracting.

Rep. Supreme Moore Omokunde (D-Milwaukee), speaking against the proposal, said it represents an opportunity for Republicans “to rev up voters for November and an opportunity to give red meat to the base.” 

Voters across the state could find the constitutional amendment proposals alongside a slate of high stakes races on their ballots in November including a race for governor, congressional races and races for the state Senate and Assembly that will determine control of the chambers in 2027. 

Rep. Margaret Arney (D-Wauwatosa) said the anti-DEI proposal creates a roadblock to helping her community.

“We need to do more to have Black and brown kids succeed in Wisconsin,” Arney said. “This change doesn’t help improve well-being in the district. It gets in the way.”

“This is the kind of fairness that the people of Wisconsin are looking for,” Murphy responded.

The proposal now needs to pass the Senate before it can go to voters. If it passes there, voters will see the following question on their ballots in November: “Shall section 27 of article I of the constitution be created to prohibit governmental entities in the state from discriminating against, or granting preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public employment, public education, public contracting, or public administration?”

Withholding judge’s pay during temporary suspension

AB 380 would require that if the state Supreme Court temporarily suspends a judge from practicing in the state  pending final determination of proceedings or imposes a suspension as a disciplinary sanction in a case of misconduct then the suspension must be without pay.

The bill passed 57-42. Rep. Jenna Jacobson (D-Oregon), Rep. Steve Doyle (D-Onalaska) and Rep. Tara Johnson (D-Town of Shelby) joined Republicans in support of the bill.

The bill was introduced last year after the arrest and suspension of former Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan, who has since been found guilty of felony obstruction of federal immigration agents in December and submitted her resignation from her position in January.

Bill coauthor Rep. Shae Sortwell (R-Two Rivers) told reporters before the session that the bill will ensure that “when a judge is suspended for misconduct, they are not being continued to be paid by the people of Wisconsin.”

“Not only is it an extended vacation, which is what Judge Dugan ended up enjoying while she was not doing her job, but in addition to that, we had to have other judges fill the role and get the job done so that cases could continue to be adjudicated in Milwaukee County,” he added. “If another judge decides to do this, they shouldn’t be able to collect their pay, hundreds of thousands of dollars, while that case is pending.” 

Sortwell also said an amendment to the bill will ensure that should a judge be found not guilty  they would receive backpay. 

During floor debate, Rep. Andrew Hysell (D-Sun Prairie) called it a messaging bill given that it wouldn’t have applied to Dugan. He pointed out that the statute that the bill would change was not used by the state Supreme Court when it suspended Dugan. 

“It would have saved taxpayers zero dollars,” Hysell said. “I understand that certain bills are meant to convey certain messages to the public, but even a messaging bill should have some arguable connection to the underlying problem that it supposedly fixes.” 

Sortwell said that Hysell was right it wouldn’t have affected Dugan, but reiterated that his bill is looking towards the future.

“We do believe in innocence until proven guilty,” Sortwell said. “She was found to be guilty and good riddance to her.”

Grooming a crime

The Assembly also passed AB 677, which would make grooming a felony crime in Wisconsin, in a 93-6 vote. Reps. Ryan Clancy (D-Milwaukee), Angelina Cruz (D-Racine), Francesca Hong (D-Madison), Christian Phelps (D-Eau Claire) and Angelito Tenorio (D-West Allis) voted against the proposal.

Bill author Rep. Amanda Nedweski (R-Pleasant Prairie) said the bill will help protect children and noted that she started working on the bill about 18 months ago due to the case of Christian Enwright, a former Kenosha teacher who pleaded guilty last year to over a dozen misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct after he had an inappropriate relationship with a 14-year-old student.

“Anyone who followed that case and saw the messages that Enright sent would know that his behavior is far more than disorderly. Because of the lack of a criminal definition of grooming, that was all he could be charged with,” Nedweski said. 

Under the bill, grooming in Wisconsin would be defined as “a course of conduct, pattern of behavior, or series of acts with the intention to condition, seduce, solicit, lure, or entice a child for the purpose of producing distributing or possessing depictions of the child engaged in sexually explicit conduct.”  

A person convicted of a grooming charge, under the bill, would be guilty of a Class G felony. The charge would increase to a Class F felony if the person is in a position of trust or authority, and to a Class E felony if the child has a disability and to a Class D felony if the violation involves two or more children. A convicted person would need to register as a sex offender.

An amendment to the bill would change the crime to a Class I felony if the person convicted of the crime is a school staff member or volunteer. 

“This is not about vague feelings or misunderstandings. There needs to be a pattern of predatory behavior with the intent to have sexual contact with the victim,” Nedweski said. “This bill came as a result of months of conversations with law enforcement prosecutors, district attorneys, educators and victim advocates.”

Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer (D-Racine) said in a statement that she appreciated the bipartisan effort on the bill.

“We all share a commitment to protecting kids in school and ensuring they can safely learn and grow,” Neubauer said. “This is a critical issue, and I hope we will continue working together to support and protect our kids.”

Phelps told the Examiner in a statement that he voted against the bill because it didn’t seem like a “good-faith effort” to make children safer. He said the behaviors covered in the bill are already illegal.

“Creating redundant crimes to advance a political agenda doesn’t make anyone safer; it just pads the statute books, locks more people in our failed carceral system, and ignores real solutions like prevention and survivor services,” Phelps said.

Assembly’s first time on the floor without WisconsinEye livestream

Ahead of the Assembly floor session, Neubauer called the absence of WisconsinEye as lawmakers continue their business this month an “unsustainable situation.” The nonprofit organization ceased coverage and pulled its archive offline on Dec. 15 due to financial difficulties.

“It is not a good day for accountability to the people who elected us to serve them,” Neubauer said. “Transparency is an essential part of a functioning democracy. Without it, mistrust thrives and multiplies at a time when we need to be building trust in state government. We need to be demonstrating that government can and must be a force for good. This is a step in the wrong direction, and it erodes the public’s trust in this institution.” 

Neubauer said she is open to negotiating with her Republican colleagues to find a solution. She said that lawmakers did not set the organization up for success with the match requirements placed on the $10 million that the state set aside for an endowment. 

“Not sure that a $10 million requirement was ever really realistic for WisconsinEye. We would of course like to see more fundraising,” Neubauer said.

Neubauer and Democrats also questioned why Republican lawmakers were not working more quickly towards a solution as well as why they began enforcing a ban against members of the public who try to record committee proceedings.

“I would ask that you ask yourself what kind of politician doesn’t want for a camera to film what we are doing. What kind of intentions does that politician have? What kind of motivations do they have? What do they have to hide? Why are they doing that?” Rep. Mike Bare (D-Verona) told reporters. “We’re doing important work. People ought to be able to see what we’re doing.”

Gov. Tony Evers told reporters on Monday that he is open to exploring options for getting WisconsinEye back online, but isn’t supportive of just giving the nonprofit state funds without a match requirement.

“I think there has to be some skin in the game,” Evers said of WisEye. 

Republican leaders have also said that they support improving transparency but expressed some concerns about  giving the organization state funds. 

In November, before WisconsinEye went dark, the organization’s president Jon Henkes told the Examiner that the board hadn’t raised any money. He said then that the organization had been reaching out to potential donors about providing large-sum contributions 

“We’re not asking for $5,000 gifts right now. We’re asking for gifts in the $50,000 [to] $500,000 range and that’s a limited amount of people out there,” Henkes said in November.

The organization started seeing more small-dollar donations in December. 

“Small gift fundraising… through online and small checks that have been arriving in the mail are helpful. They don’t get us where we need to be, but it’s a statement that it’s not just the lobbyists and elected officials around the state in the news media who are supporting us there,” Henkes said in December. “There are a lot of people who are citizen viewers who recognize the value of WisconsinEye and are taking the time to go online to make a small gift or send a check, and we’re very grateful for that. That’s a huge encouragement to us.”

WisconsinEye has increased its attempts to raise money from small-sum donations, including by launching a GoFundMe campaign on Monday. As of Tuesday, the campaign had raised more than $8,000 from over 100 donations. The goal is $250,000, which would help support three months of the organization’s operational costs.

Update: This story was updated on Thursday Jan. 15 to add comment from Rep. Christian Phelps about his vote against AB 677. 

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Gov. Tony Evers said he is focusing on what can be accomplished in the final year of his term rather than what he and his wife may do once he retires from office. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Gov. Tony Evers, who is entering his final year in office, is calling on lawmakers to help him accomplish some of his priorities in 2026 including providing property tax relief and taking action to blunt the effect of cost-shifting from the federal government to states by the Trump administration.

Evers decided to not run for a third term last year, leading to the first open race for governor since 2010. During a press briefing Monday, he told reporters “nope” when asked if he had thoughts on who in the crowded Democratic primary field could best build on his work.

While he wouldn’t comment on the field, Evers said that working on affordability in Wisconsin would be one of his top priorities — and likely one of the top issues in the 2026 campaign cycle. 

Evers said he is focusing on what can be accomplished in the final year of his term rather than what he and his wife may do once he retires from office. 

“We’ve worked hard for seven years and… we have a year left and it’s not all about me. All of the things that need to be addressed, many of them can be. I feel very strongly that legacy is just doing the right thing for the people of Wisconsin,” Evers said, adding he wants to leave Wisconsin in “a better place.” 

The Wisconsin Legislature has work days scheduled through March, though Evers said work may need to go into April to get the state’s business accomplished. He said lawmakers could run for office and work at the same time. 

“I think it will help no matter who is running for reelection, both the Republicans and Democrats, actually spending some time not getting out of town as early as possible and let’s do some things for the people of Wisconsin,” Evers said. “It’s bad politics to say we’re done in February, we’re done in March and we’ll see you at the polls.” 

Evers said 2026 is starting after a year of “historic and bipartisan wins” for Wisconsinites. He highlighted actions taken in the state budget including providing state funding directly to child care centers, increasing school funding and investing in the University of Wisconsin system, and said he wants to build on that work in the rest of his term. “Our budget was a win for Wisconsin kids, families and our state’s future, but there’s no denying the final budget looked different from what I proposed,” he said. 

Evers noted that the state ended the fiscal year with nearly $4 billion in reserves and $2 billion in a rainy day fund. He said projections from the Department of Revenue that will be released soon show that the state could also bring in as much as $1 billion more than this year. 

Tax relief, school funding

Evers said one of his top priorities is taking action to soften the impact of property tax increases. He called on lawmakers, again, to pass a slate of policies he has proposed that could result in $1.3 billion in tax relief. 

Wisconsin taxpayers’ December bills included the highest increase since 2018 — the result, in part, of Evers’ controversial 400-year line-item veto, which extended a two-year increase in the amount of money districts can raise from local property taxpayers for centuries into the future, as well as lawmakers’ decision to not provide additional state aid to schools, pushing many districts to use their additional taxing authority and others to go to referendum, asking local residents to pay more.

“Look, I get it: Republicans love to blame my 400-year veto for property taxes going up,” Evers said. “The problem with that is Wiscosinites were going to referendum before increasing the number of years — long before. The question would be why? Because of a decade of Republicans consistently failing to meaningfully invest in our kids and K-12 schools. That has consequences including forcing Wisconsinites to raise their own property taxes.” 

Evers said that he wasn’t saying relief needs to be accomplished in one particular way, but that the state will be in a “world of hurt” if nothing is done about property taxes.

Proposals on the issue that he has suggested include a state program to encourage local governments to freeze property taxes, increasing state aid to public schools to help reduce tax levies and increasing the school levy tax credit. 

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) has also named lowering property taxes as one of his top priorities for the year, though he and other Republicans have focused on the school revenue limit increases that are in place due to the partial veto Evers issued on the 2023 state budget. Evers brushed off the criticism, saying school districts were seeking property tax increases through referendum way before his veto.

“Before that 400-year veto, we were going to referendum all the time, so they can use that as an excuse if they want but let’s just get this done,” Evers said. 

Vos rejected the suggestion in a statement Tuesday morning, saying  that Evers was asking lawmakers to “backfill his mistake.”

“We will pass a repeal of his 400-year veto and we ask him to urge Democrats in the legislature to join that effort,” Vos said. “Recent property tax increases fall primarily on his shoulders and unless he’s willing to fix that, taxpayers in Wisconsin will be driven out of their homes due to these unaffordable increases.”

Evers also called on lawmakers to provide additional funding for special education. He and lawmakers put funding in the budget they calculated would bring the state’s share of special ed costs to 42% of districts’ expenses in the first year of the budget and 45% in the second year, but the Department of Public Instruction has issued revised numbers showing that the funding allocated in the budget likely won’t be enough to meet those rates.

“This has to be fixed before the Legislature goes home this year. I’m calling on the Legislature to invest the necessary funding to ensure the agreed upon percentages… are met — or better yet, make the appropriation sum sufficient,” Evers said. Sum-sufficient appropriations are not fixed amounts of money but cover costs for programs even if they fluctuate.

Evers also said lawmakers should take action to exclude certain items including diapers, toothpaste and over-the-counter medications from the state’s sales tax. 

Evers said he is also open to looking at Republican proposals to eliminate taxes on overtime and tips but wants to consider more “universal” forms of tax relief. Republican lawmakers have been working to advance proposals that would align state tax policies with the new federal policies that were adopted last year.

Dealing with the Trump administration  

In his letter to lawmakers, Evers told them they may need to take action to blunt the effects of Trump administration policies. 

“With more chaos being created every day in Washington, new challenges continue to emerge and evolve that deserve our immediate focus and attention,” Evers wrote to lawmakers. “This includes responding to President Donald Trump’s and Republicans in Congress’ ongoing efforts to shift hundreds of millions of dollars in federal program costs to Wisconsin taxpayers and our state’s future budgets.” 

A recent change to federal law means that the state could be at risk of losing more than $200 million annually in federal funds for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program if the benefit payment error rate climbs above a certain level.

Evers told reporters that he is in conversations with lawmakers about a potential investment to ensure that the error rate for the state’s Foodshare program remains low. The state Department of Health Services has said that $69 million would help implement quality-control measures and cover the cuts the federal government has made to administrative costs.

The Trump administration has also recently frozen funds to five Democratic-run states, including Minnesota, due to child care fraud while also increasing reporting requirements for states receiving child care funds to cover services for low-income kids. 

Evers said Wisconsin, not one of the five, is in a good position to ensure accountability in the system as the state already made significant changes after a fraud scandal like Minnesota’s was uncovered in Wisconsin more than 15 years ago.

A 2009 Pulitzer prize-winning investigation by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel uncovered significant fraud within the state’s WisconsinShares program that led to criminal indictments and prompted the state to implement protections. 

“We’re making sure we’re doing everything and we are in a good place,” Evers said. “There’s lots of auditing going on… so I think we’re in a great place.”

ICE shooting in Minneapolis

Evers told reporters that it is a “huge mistake” by President Donald Trump to exclude Minnesota from the investigation into the death of Renee Good at the hands of an ICE agent last week.

“Should the people of Minnesota or Minneapolis be a part of that investigation? Hell yes,” Evers said. “When the federal government comes in and talks about things in terms of you’re going to do this or that… you want to be part of the conversation and there’s none of that going on.” 

Evers said in response to a question about whether ICE was welcome in Wisconsin, “We can handle ourselves, frankly. I don’t see the need for the federal government to be coming into our state and making decisions that we can make at the state level.” 

However, Evers stopped short of endorsing a proposal from Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez that would bar ICE from certain areas.

Rodriguez, who is running in the Democratic primary for governor, proposed on Monday that the state ban ICE from courthouses, hospitals and health clinics, licensed child-care centers and daycares, schools and institutions of higher education, domestic violence shelters and places of worship unless there is a warrant or an imminent threat to public safety.

Evers said when asked about the proposal that he would look at it, but that “banning things will absolutely ramp up the actions of the folks in Washington D.C.”

Evers on what else might get accomplished in 2026

Evers said he is “confident” there will soon be a proposal to release $125 million in state funds to fight PFAS contamination that members from both sides of the aisle can support. He said his administration has spent the last several months in conversation with Republican lawmakers on the issue to try to reach a compromise.

Evers said that he hopes they will be able to do the same for the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship program, which is set to expire this year. 

Evers said he is open to exploring options for getting WisconsinEye, the nonprofit that provided livestream coverage of state government similar to C-Span until it went dark last month, back online, but said he isn’t supportive of just giving the nonprofit state funds without a match requirement.

WisEye  went offline  Dec. 15 due to financial difficulties. There is $10 million in state funding for the organization that was set aside by lawmakers and Evers for an endowment, but the organization has to raise matching funds to access it.

“I think there has to be some skin in the game,” Evers said of WisEye. 

The organization launched a GoFundMe on Monday to help raise $250,000, which would cover its expenses for three months. By the end of the day, the organization had raised more than  $4,000.

Evers also called on lawmakers to pass legislation that would extend Medicaid coverage for new mothers from 60 days to a year. Vos has opposed the bill and stopped it from receiving a vote in the Assembly, even as it passed the Senate with only one opposing vote and has more than 70 Assembly cosponsors.

“I’m hoping 2026 will be the year that the Speaker finally decides that bill will make it to my desk,” Evers said.

Evers also outlined his hopes that lawmakers will take action to help lower the cost of health care and prescription drug prices including by capping the price of insulin at $35, passing legislation to audit insurance companies when their denial rates are high and creating new standards to increase the number of services health insurance companies must cover. 

Evers also called on lawmakers to provide funding for two sites that closed last year, one in Green Bay and the other in Chippewa Falls, that housed homeless veterans. He said ideally the Veterans Housing and Recovery Program would receive the nearly $2 million  as he proposed last year.  

Evers said he hadn’t seen the GOP-authored bills that passed the Assembly unanimously that would create a new state grant program that would go to organizations that serve homeless veterans. 

“Whatever we can do to solve that issue,” Evers said. “Any of the things I’ve talked about today, if something happens individually, great. We have to get that done, so if they come up with a plan that I feel confident it’s going to work… then I’d sign it.”

Update: This story was updated Tuesday Jan. 13 to include a statement from Assembly Speaker Robin Vos. 

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The Republican Party of Wisconsin mixed up former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes (left) and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley (right) in a post to X on Monday. (Wisconsin Examiner photos)

The Republican Party of Wisconsin mixed up the two Black Democratic candidates for governor in a social media post on Monday before deleting and reposting it.

Wisconsin’s open race for governor has led to a crowded Democratic field in the primary, and the state’s Republican party sought on Monday to call out two of those candidates by name in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

“[State Rep.] Francesca Hong, [former Lt. Gov.] Mandela Barnes, and other radical progressives are trying to destroy our state. From wanting to defund police, raise property taxes, and bring socialism to Wisconsin, it is clear that they are out of touch with the needs of Wisconsin families,” the post states. 

However, the initial post made by the party included a graphic of Hong and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, not Barnes. A screenshot of the original post was posted by Civic Media Political Editor Dan Shafer on X.

Crowley is the first Black person to serve as Milwaukee County executive and Barnes, a former candidate for the U.S. Senate, served as the first Black lieutenant governor in the state of Wisconsin. The two Democrats are the only Black candidates in Wisconsin’s race for governor. There are no Black candidates in the Republican field, which includes U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany and Washington County Exec. Josh Schoemann. 

That’s not Mandela Barnes… pic.twitter.com/Rqxj1NBvZE

— Dan Shafer (@DanRShafer) January 12, 2026

The post was pulled down and reposted with a photo of Barnes in the graphic alongside Hong, who is the only Asian American in the race. 

The Wisconsin GOP and Crowley campaign did not respond to a request for comment from the Examiner. The Barnes campaign declined to comment at the time of publication. 

A Barnes spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday that Barnes “is beating Trump’s lapdog Tom Tiffany in the polls, so it would be a good idea for Tiffany’s allies to Google who they’d lose to in the general.”

Update: This story was updated Tuesday Jan. 13 to include comment from the Barnes campaign. 

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Wisconsin lawmakers, journalists and members of the public returned to the Capitol last week for a packed slate of committee hearings and executive sessions but for the first time in nearly 20 years, WisconsinEye was not broadcasting daily legislative proceedings. Wisconsin State Capitol on a snowy day. (Baylor Spears | Wisconsin Examiner)

After WisconsinEye, the state’s version of C-Span, went off the air in December, Republican lawmakers rediscovered rules that bar members of the public from making video and audio recordings of committee hearings and decided to start enforcing them.

Wisconsin lawmakers, journalists and members of the public returned to the Capitol last week for a packed slate of committee hearings and executive sessions but for the first time in nearly 20 years, WisconsinEye was not broadcasting daily legislative proceedings.

A notice passed around Assembly committees listed two rules. Assembly rule 11, related to committee procedures, states that “insofar as applicable, the rules of the Assembly apply to the procedures of standing committees and special committees.”

Assembly rule 26, which relates to members of the public observing from visitor galleries in the Assembly chambers, states that they “may not use any audio or video device to record, photograph, film, videotape, or in any way depict the proceedings on or about the Assembly floor.” 

Senate rule 11 also states that “no persons other than members of the chief clerk’s staff, members of the staff of the sergeant at arms, members of a senator’s staff, and accredited correspondents of the news media may engage in any audio or video recording of the proceedings of the Senate or any committee without permission of the committee on Senate organization.” According to the Senate Chief Clerk Cyrus Anderson, the rule was first adopted in 2005. 

Wisconsin’s open meetings law expressly states that governmental bodies “shall make a reasonable effort to accommodate any person desiring to record, film or photograph the meeting,” but the law includes a provision that says that “no provision of this subchapter which conflicts with a rule of the senate or assembly or joint rule of the legislature shall apply to a meeting conducted in compliance with such rule.”

Rep. Jerry O’Connor (R-Fond Du Lac) told the Wisconsin Examiner that the rules were reviewed in caucus at the start of the year.

“Many of [the members], like me, I didn’t know there was a rule,” O’Connor said. “So it was a reminder.” 

Rep. David Steffen (R-Howard), who has served in the Assembly since 2015, said he couldn’t remember looking at the rule in the last decade. 

“How many times have I just kind of breezed past it? I guess I never really thought of it, primarily because I’ve always had WisconsinEye to rely on to assist with that coverage, as well as present media and in-person public,” Steffen said. 

Steffen said lawmakers, seeking to understand their options in the absences of WisconsinEye, looked over the Assembly rules.

“One of the things that immediately became apparent is that under our Assembly rules, we already have some things that are readily available — for example, credentialed media — but we also have things that have always been prohibited,” Steffen said. “It remains the rule of the day, so this isn’t a new rule… In terms of the enforcement, I think it’s more of an awareness campaign than anything.”

The rule enforcement caused some confusion throughout last week.

Notices related to the rules were passed around and posted outside committee rooms. Committee chairs issued directions at the start of meetings. Reporters in committees were asked to show their credentials as they set up cameras and stood to take photos, and others, including staff members and members of the public without credentials, were stopped from doing so.

Rep. Clinton Anderson (D-Beloit), seeking to help fill the gap left by the absence of WisconsinEye, livestreamed on Facebook the meeting of the Assembly Local Government Committee on Wednesday, writing that “we have to step up and do what we can.” Anderson said on Thursday that he sought to do the same in the Assembly Agriculture Committee but was stopped from doing so as Rep. Travis Tranel (R-Cuba City) reminded the room of the rules related to recording.

“We’re now hearing that this will become standard practice across committees. If that’s the direction Republican leadership is heading, it represents a clear move to restrict public access,” Anderson said in a statement. “After WisconsinEye went dark, the response should have been to expand transparency, not quietly close another door on the public. I am disappointed to see the Assembly GOP go after the public’s First Amendment rights.”

Testimony from two Republican lawmakers on a bill to exempt overtime from income taxes was interrupted during an Assembly Ways and Means committee meeting on Thursday afternoon by  a point of order relating to video recording.

“I don’t have a problem, video all you want,” said Rep. Mike Bare (D-Verona), the committee’s ranking member, to someone who was holding up a cellphone “You’ve got nothing to hide. These guys have nothing to hide, but if we’re going to have a rule…”

“I know that there was staff taking a photo, yes, and I gotta challenge that if you’re videoing… if you’re doing a video that you’re not allowed in the committee area,” O’Connor said. 

O’Connor told the Examiner after the meeting that he is fine with photos being taken in his committee and he believes committee chairs can use their discretion on whether to allow photos. He said video is different because of  its potential use for political purposes.

“If it’s staff taking photos of their rep, I don’t have a big problem of it,” O’Connor said. “You could have somebody, an outsider, come and testify, and their best friend is sitting in this seat and wants to take a picture, that’s not the issue.”

“Trying to capture video, quite frankly, it gets down to it can be used politically,” he added. “So WisconsinEye tapes this, you cannot use a WisconsinEye clip in political campaigns. That’s why the rules originated, and I get that… I don’t want either side to violate that or benefit from it adversely.”

Bare said he wanted to ensure that the rules were being applied evenly if they were going to be enforced. 

“We have a long, rich tradition in Wisconsin of open government, open access to government, and we shouldn’t have be limiting that access to members of the public to staff to members and to the media in any way,” Bare said, adding that the enforcement of the rules is “clearly a response to WisconsinEye being offline, being dark, which seems like a preventable problem.”

“There’s plenty of states in the country who provide funding for broadcasting… We shouldn’t be in the situation where we members or our staff have to livestream onto social media,” Bare said. “We’ve got decades now of precedent of these things being broadcast out to the public.”

WisconsinEye halted its coverage in December due to a lack of funding after failing to raise sufficient funds to meet a matching requirement for the release of $10 million in state funds.  WisconsinEye leadership has been in discussions with lawmakers about a potential solution, including releasing part of the  $10 million that is intended to build an endowment.

“We’re only going to be in session for maybe eight to 10 more weeks, and if we’re unable to get WisconsinEye back up and running in that timeframe, I’m hopeful the public isn’t going to be impacted any more than they already have been,” Steffen said. 

Bill Lueders, president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, told the Examiner that the enforcement of the rule is a bad idea.

“Regardless of the law, denying the public the ability to record and film legislative meetings, especially in the absence of a functioning WisconsinEye, is deeply undemocratic and, in my opinion, foolhardy. Nothing that goes on in these meetings is anywhere near as insidious as what people will assume is happening if the ability to film and record it is being curtailed,” Lueders said.

Lueders said the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council (WFIC) doesn’t support anything that treats the media differently from ordinary citizens.

“Although they may legally be able to pass their own rule and enforce their own rule to deny people an opportunity, it doesn’t make it any less of a good idea,” Lueders said.  

Steffen said he would be open to having options for the public to record and photograph meetings as long as they are not obstructing the activity of a committee. “I think that this situation, this hopefully short-term downtime, has created an opportunity to discuss some of those rules that have been on the books for some time, and perhaps there’s some that need to be modified.”

In the meantime, Steffen said lawmakers are focused on finding a solution to make up for the loss of  WisconsinEye and options for the public are limited to attending in person and consuming coverage by journalists in the Capitol.

Steffen called on local reporters to “fill the gap” in a press release on Friday.

“All of them have the ability to record, maybe sometimes just audio, but they all have the ability to record a proceeding and put that on their website,” Steffen said. “That at least would provide some opportunity for transparency during this interim.”

Lueders said local media “absolutely does not have the resources to film as many legislative hearings and sessions as WisconsinEye was doing; it just doesn’t have that capacity. Cameras can come and show up for part of a hearing, but they’re not there filming entire meetings on a daily basis, and that’s not a function that can be replicated… It’s more important than ever that ordinary citizens who attend these meetings are able to film and record it.”

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Deputy State Superintendent Tom McCarthy speaks to Rep. Amanda Nedweski (R-Pleasant Prairie) after delivering testimony on AB 678. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Wisconsin school districts would be required to establish policies on appropriate communication between students and staff members before the next school year, under a bill that received a public hearing Thursday. 

The bill comes in reaction to a report from the Capital Times in November that found over 200 investigations into teacher licenses due to allegations of sexual misconduct or grooming from 2018 to 2023. Another bill coauthored by Nedweski, AB 677, making grooming a felony crime in Wisconsin received a public hearing earlier this week.

“Many of these cases begin with the erosion of professional boundaries when a school employee starts communicating with the students inappropriately often outside of school hours and without parent knowledge usually through the use of text messaging and social media,”  Nedweski told the Assembly Education Committee. “While the vast majority of school staff use these tools responsibly, a small number have exploited that access — sometimes leading to devastating consequences.”

AB 678 would require Wisconsin school boards to adopt a policy on appropriate communications between students and employees or volunteers in the school district.

“This bill preserves local control. It does not mandate a one-size-fits-all policy; instead it allows each school district to determine what communication policies work best for its own community,” Nedweski said.

The policies would need to include specific consequences for staff who violate the policy and specify that it applies to communications during and outside of school hours. The policy would need to include standards for appropriate content and methods of communication.

An amendment to the bill, which Nedweski said came at the request of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) and other stakeholders, would require annual training for employees on identifying, preventing and reporting grooming and professional boundary violations. 

The Department of Public Instruction has worked with Nedweski on the legislation and supports it. 

“We think this is a good effort to get the conversation started,” Deputy State Superintendent Tom McCarthy said, noting the agency has been working on policy related to appropriate communication for over eight years. He said there are a lot of districts that are using technology for software that allows them to track communications. 

“There’s a bit of a dichotomy with this issue. We know that in order to educate kids we need to foster and build relationships with students and families, and so we do encourage appropriate communication in every school district,” McCarthy said, adding that the policy and training would be critical. “You will find some circumstances where you’re going to want communication and it might not be as neat and tidy as you’d expect it to be. There are always emergency circumstances where a teacher might need to call a student directly… so we want some policies to be flexible to address those areas.” 

Chris Kulow, director of government relations for the Wisconsin Association of School Boards (WASB), said the organization had some concerns about the language in the bill related to consequences. He testified for information only, noting the issue of communication between staff and students is not new to school districts. 

“Although recent news coverage and increased interest from state policymakers may make this appear to be a new issue, it is not new to schools. School boards have long recognized the need for policies addressing appropriate communication and professional boundaries between pupils and staff. Many districts have already adopted such policies,” Kulow said. “This bill may require some districts to update existing policies to reflect its specific language and to the extent it prompts boards to review and strengthen policies is beneficial.” 

Kulow said complying with the provision related to consequences as currently written would be challenging as violations can vary widely and require a wide range of responses. The organization wanted the provision removed, but said Nedweski wanted something related to be included in the bill. 

“Attempting to predetermine specific consequences for every specific scenario may be impractical and could complicate the disciplinary process,” Kulow said. “We suggested revising the language in the bill to read that ‘the school board shall include in the policy a range of consequences up to and including termination.’”

The bill currently only covers Wisconsin public schools, though Nedweski told Democratic lawmakers, who expressed concerns about the bill not including the state’s private voucher schools, that she is working on an amendment. 

“We need to protect all kids. This is such a growing problem. We’ve seen just an increase in inappropriate communication,” Nedweski said.

Democratic lawmakers, including Rep. Francesca Hong (D-Madison), also asked whether lawmakers would be open to including funding for school districts to support the implementation of the bill. 

Nedweski said she hasn’t had any requests for funding from schools or the DPI throughout the development of the bill.

“I think it’s a serious enough issue, a weighty enough issue, that all schools can find the resources to craft a policy and do some training to make sure they are protecting children,” Nedweski said, adding that DPI already has modules related to this type of training.

McCarthy said additional funding, including the release of $1 million set aside for the agency in the state budget, could help speed along the process. Those funds, which sit in a supplemental fund, can only be released by the Joint Finance Committee. He said without the funds the agency could potentially have to cut down on staff and other areas of its operations, which could affect how quickly work is done.

Under the bill in its current form, school boards would need to adopt a policy by July 1, 2026. 

McCarthy said DPI would like to see an amendment that would move the deadline for policy adoption to a later date, saying DPI may need a longer “runway” to ensure the agency has time to change and update policies and training if needed. He told the Wisconsin Examiner that some of the changes could be necessary if Nedweski’s grooming bill becomes law. 

Rich Judge, assistant state superintendent for the division of government and public affairs, also noted that school boards would need to have time to meet, develop and approve policies. 

Nedweski said in a written statement to the Examiner that she is taking the agency’s suggestion under consideration and is discussing potential dates. One potential date could be Sept. 1, 2026, she said. 

“If AB 678 is signed into law, the goal is for school districts to have these policies in place for the 2026–27 school year,” Nedweski said. She noted that some of the agency’s concerns are tied to her other bill. “This only underscores the importance of passing AB 677 and getting it signed into law promptly to ensure that districts across Wisconsin can take the necessary steps to better protect students in school.”

Colbey Decker, a WILL client who alleges her white son who struggles with dyslexia faced racial discrimination in the Green Bay Area School District, testified in favor of a proposed amendment to the state constitution outlawing government programs that promote diversity, equity and inclusion. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

Two constitutional amendment proposals that could be on Wisconsinites’ ballots in November received public hearings on Tuesday, including one to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs from state and local governments and one to bar the governor from issuing partial vetoes that increase taxes. 

Constitutional amendment proposals in Wisconsin must pass the state Legislature in two consecutive sessions and receive majority approval from voters to become law. Each proposal is on its second consideration, meaning if they pass the Senate and Assembly, each would appear on voters’ ballots in November alongside a slate of consequential races including for governor, Congress and the state Legislature.

One of the proposed constitutional amendments, SJR 94, takes aim at DEI programs throughout state and local government in Wisconsin. Republicans have been targeting DEI programs for years and have at times found success, including when they elicited concessions from the University of Wisconsin system in 2023. 

If the proposal passed the Senate and Assembly, voters will see on their ballots the question “Shall section 27 of article I of the constitution be created to prohibit governmental entities in the state from discriminating against, or granting preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public employment, public education, public contracting, or public administration?”

Sen. Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) told the Senate Licensing, Regulatory Reform, State and Federal Affairs Committee that the proposal would “ensure that we hire, promote, select, and admit people to our unit, public universities, schools and government agencies the same way we choose people for our Olympic team, military and sports teams — through merit, character, ability and hard work without regard to race, sex color, ethnicity or other immutable characteristics.” 

Sen. Dora Drake (D-Milwaukee) asked the authors of the proposal how they define “preferential treatment” and whether they know about the types of programs the amendment would eliminate.

“I don’t know how deep it is in hiring, contracting… I would say if the criteria for making your choice deals with race or sex, then that’s not appropriate,” Rep. Dave Murphy (R-Hortonville) said.

Drake brought up the state’s Supplier Diversity Program, which was established in the 1980s and certifies minority-owned, service-disabled veteran-owned and woman-owned businesses to provide better opportunities for them to do business with the state of Wisconsin. 

“Everyone should have access to opportunity. The reality is that our state historically has not shown that. That [program] was created because we have minority-owned businesses that were seeking opportunities for state contracting and they weren’t getting them, and that was based on relationships, it was based on race… and so this was implemented as a protective measure to ensure that people weren’t being discriminated against,” Drake said. “We’re pushing this forward when we still haven’t addressed what’s happening. If we’re doing this based on merit, then I would argue that there’s plenty of different minority-owned businesses that would be more than qualified, but they don’t get them, and you have to ask why.”

“They may be qualified, but are they the most qualified?” asked Sen. Chris Kapenga (R-Delafield). “And what this does is it takes away… the sex, the gender all of those items that the U.S. Constitution lays out as this is something that you can’t discriminate against. If you discriminate against a male because he’s a male, that’s still discrimination.” 

Dan Lennington, the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty’s managing vice president and deputy counsel, said the bill would help to ensure that Wisconsin is “color blind.”

Lennington leads the conservative legal organization “Equality Under the Law Program,” and spoke to the number of lawsuits they’ve engaged in on the issue.

“We sued [former President] Joe Biden 12 times. We have five lawsuits pending against President [Donald] Trump right now based on race discrimination. We have a lot of things in the pipeline against the state of Wisconsin… We’d love to sue over the Minority Supplier Program. We haven’t gotten to it yet” Lennington said. “A constitutional amendment would, especially a new attorney general, would wipe all this clean and enforce the law as it’s already written, and would really help bring this to an abrupt end. Otherwise, there’s going to be decades more of this litigation.” 

Colbey Decker, a WILL client who alleges her white son who struggles with dyslexia faced racial discrimination in the Green Bay Area School District, testified in favor of the proposed amendment. The Trump administration launched an investigation into the school district over the allegations last year. 

Decker told the committee that her son wasn’t able to receive reading services because he is white, saying that she found that the school’s “success plan” included a policy related to “prioritizing resources to First Nations, Black and Hispanic students.”

“When an educational system’s moral compass is calibrated by a child’s skin color, the system has fundamentally failed. Our family’s story has forever changed after witnessing firsthand the casual callousness of sorting my son, color-coding him and then deprioritizing him based on his race,” Decker said. “The brutal reality of DEI is that it robs all children of the dignity and respect of individuality.” 

Curtailing executive partial veto power

SJR 116 would limit the governor’s partial veto power by prohibiting any vetoes from “creating or increasing or authorizing the creation or increase of any tax or fee.”

Lawmakers introduced the proposal last session in response to Gov. Tony Evers’ partial veto on the last state budget that extended school revenue increases for an additional 400 years. He did so by striking two digits and a dash from the years to extend the annual increases through 2425. The action was upheld by the state Supreme Court in April 2025. 

Rep. Amanda Nedweski (R-Pleasant Prairie) said the school revenue increases that are resulting from the partial veto are “unaffordable” and “unsustainable” for Wisconsinites.

“No governor, Republican or Democrat, should be able to single-handedly raise taxes on Wisconsin families with the stroke of his pen. The governor is not a king,” Nedweski said. “This constitutional amendment reigns in that power, restores the proper balance between the branches of government and ensures taxpayers are protected from runaway tax increases in the future.”

A recent Wisconsin Policy Forum report found that Wisconsin property taxpayers’ December bills included the highest increase since 2018 and warned property taxpayers could see similar increases to their property taxes in the future.

“We did all get a kick in the pants with property taxes this year… we’re gonna get another wack in 2026 in December,” Nass said during the hearing. 

Drake said the bill appeared to be a “grab for power.” 

Kapenga, one of the proposal authors, pushed back on the comment, saying if he were governor, he would sign a bill from Drake eliminating the governor’s ability to levy such a veto. 

“I do not like the power that the governor has in this state, regardless of who it is,” Kapenga said. “The power of the people should be vested in the Legislature, not in the executive branch.”

The question voters would see is: “Shall section 10 (1) (c) of article V of the constitution be amended to prohibit the governor, in exercising his or her partial veto authority, from creating or increasing or authorizing the creation or increase of any tax or fee?”

Constitutional amendments have been used to limit the partial veto power in a couple other scenarios, including in 1990 when voters approved the prohibition of the “Vanna White” veto, or eliminating single letters within words, and in 2008, when voters approved, eliminating the “Frankenstein veto” — or the ability for governors to create new sentences by combining parts of two or more sentences.

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"What major purchase does anyone in this room make without knowing the cost before you make the purchase? It is inconceivable to me that we do not know what something is going to cost of that magnitude before we actually consent to the cost,” Sen. Mary Felzkowski said. (Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner)

A bill to implement state-level enforcement of federal hospital price transparency requirements in Wisconsin, with the goal of bringing down the cost of health care, received pushback from hospital representatives and support from employers on Wednesday.

Sen. Julian Bradley (R-New Berlin) told the Senate Licensing, Regulatory Reform, State and Federal Affairs Committee that ensuring that the cost of services provided would help with health care affordability.  

“When hospitals clearly share pricing information, patients can make informed decisions. Trust in the system grows and costs come down naturally,” Bradley said, adding that the bill would ensure Wisconsin “reaps the benefits” of changes made by the Trump administration. 

During his first term, President Donald Trump’s administration implemented rules to require hospitals to post pricing information online. The effects of the changes on patients’ costs have been mixed. At the start of his second term, Trump signed an executive order intended to bolster the effort and in December, the administration proposed a new rule that aims to simplify how price data is organized and shared with people. 

SB 383 would instruct the Wisconsin Department of Health Services to enforce federal price transparency requirements for hospitals. 

Bradley and Rep. Robert Wittke (R-Caledonia), the bill coauthors, said it is needed to help ensure that federal policies are being followed.

“Sometimes we need to take action to make sure that it goes all the way through the state and all of our residents have access to the things that are expected through federal law,” Wittke said. 

Bradley said the lawmakers aren’t trying to penalize hospitals, just ensure people have access to information. 

If a hospital is found to be out of compliance under the bill, Wisconsin DHS would be able to take several actions including providing a written notice to the hospital, requesting a corrective action plan or imposing a financial penalty. DHS would also need to keep a public list of any hospitals that have violated the requirements.

Hospitals would also need to be certified as being in compliance with the requirements when seeking judgment from a court against a patient who owes a debt for services.

Lawmakers introduced a similar bill in 2023, but it failed to receive a floor vote in the Senate and advance in the Assembly.

The current version of the bill includes a provision that says that if federal laws change and are eliminated, then provisions in the bill that establish state level requirements for publishing prices will take effect.

Under those provisions, each hospital would need to make a list of “shoppable services” — ones that can be scheduled in advance such as a knee replacement — available with the standard charge for each item that would be publicly available. A hospital’s list would need to include at least 300 “shoppable services,” and if a hospital doesn’t provide that many, it must list all of its shoppable services.

The change is meant to avoid overlapping and varying requirements, though hospital representatives expressed concerns that would happen anyway.

The Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA) opposes the bill. Christian Moran, the WHA vice president of Medicaid and payer reimbursement policy, said during the hearing that the organization’s opposition to the bill is not opposition to price transparency.

“Our opposition is to the added regulatory complexity that is created by layering on state level enforcement and state level regulations and unlimited fines on Wisconsin hospitals when robust federal regulation and enforcement already exists,” Moran said.

Moran said no Wisconsin hospitals have been fined for noncompliance since the first federal regulations went into effect. 

“Personal experience, it’s somewhat inevitable: if you pass legislation on the state level that mirrors the federal level it will eventually not match up,” John Russell, president and CEO of Prairie Ridge Health, said. 

Hospital representatives also expressed concerns that not enough attention was being given to the role of health insurance companies. 

“The solution proposed to you in [SB] 383 is to double up on existing enforcement for hospitals while ignoring the state’s current responsibility to enforce and monitor insurance compliance,” Moran said.

Brian Stephens, CEO of the Door County Medical Center, said the state should be more focused on the “middlemen” including insurance providers, saying that bolstering the transparency of hospital costs has its limitations. He spoke to the work that his medical center has done over many years to improve transparency of prices.

“There’s a disconnect in this country between the concerted efforts of health care providers to provide reasonable and transparent prices and the costs that people are paying for health insurance. Unfortunately, hospital price transparency efforts have not put a dent in that dichotomy,” Stephens said. “Perhaps we need to be asking for more transparency from health insurance companies and other middlemen to understand the real drivers of health care costs in our country. Perhaps hospitals have just become a good punching bag for folks who need an effective sound bite. The reality is that, despite our wholehearted commitment to providing reasonable upfront prices, transparency has its limitations. What are the odds that a person waking up with pain will take the time to bring out his or her phone and search the most affordable hospital or clinic prior to seeking treatment.”

Sen. Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) said the testimony focused on the insurance companies’ role sounded like “a lot of finger-pointing.” 

Several other states have adopted laws or are in the process of advancing bills to bolster price transparency including Colorado, Washington State and Ohio. 

Patrick Neville, a former Republican state representative in Colorado who helped pass a similar law in his state, testified on the Wisconsin bill, saying provisions in his home state have already helped. He told the story of one patient who was charged nearly $80,000 for a hysterectomy, but didn’t have to pay the cost.

“Because we had the consumer protections in this bill in Colorado, and they weren’t compliant with price transparency. They couldn’t actually collect that $80,000,” Neville said. “That was really important and powerful for the actual consumer in this case, and so it’s actually working in Colorado.” 

Neville added that the Colorado legislation did not codify the federal rules, but he wishes it had. 

“Any president could get rid of those rules at any point and I think the way this bill is crafted… It’s hugely important,” Neville said. “That’s a clever way to craft it.” 

Several employers testified in favor of the legislation. 

Erik Sonju, president of Fitchburg-based Power System Engineering, described the unpredictable jumps in health care costs that his company has grappled with since 2018 when he started in his position. He said that 2023 was the year the “straw broke” as they dealt with a 20% increase in insurance rates and he wasn’t able to get clear answers about the rising cost. 

Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk) told the committee that the cost of health care is too high. 

“This is common sense. What major purchase does anyone in this room make without knowing the cost before you make the purchase? It is inconceivable to me that we do not know what something is going to cost of that magnitude before we actually consent to the cost,” Felzkowski said.  

Felzkowski is the lead coauthor on two of the other bills the committee took up. SB 796 would require insurers to submit information about claims to the Wisconsin Health Information Organization (WHIO), a nonprofit organization that collects health care claims data, and SB 797 would provide a $600,000 grant for the WHIO to establish an online dashboard of health care claims information and to add new payer data.

The committee also took testimony on SB 703, coauthored by Wittke and Sen. Rob Hutton (R-Brookfield), which would establish that employers who sponsor group health insurance plans have a right to data relating to the employees and dependents covered under those plans, including claims data, utilization reports and other information necessary to understand and manage health care costs.

Wittke said the bill will maintain privacy protections by requiring employers to designate a HIPAA compliance privacy officer and ensure that the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance maintains oversight. The bill also includes a provision prohibiting data from being sold to any party without the permission of the plan sponsor and the person to whom the claims data relates.

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