The use of the terms college, university, state, and Wisconsin in the name of a school; the issuing, manufacture, or use of a false academic credential; the false use of a legitimate academic credential; making an appropriation; and providing a penalty

The bill also prohibits all of the following:

1. Knowingly issuing or manufacturing a false academic credential, as defined in the bill. A person who violates this prohibition is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, which is punishable by a fine not to exceed $10,000 or imprisonment not to exceed nine months, or both.

2. Knowingly using a false academic credential or falsely claiming to have a legitimate academic credential as follows: 1) in any communication to a client or to the general public, in connection with any business, trade, profession, or occupation;

2) for the purpose of obtaining a license or other approval required to practice a trade, profession, or occupation; 3) for the purpose of obtaining admission to an authorized institution of higher education, as defined in the bill; or 4) for the purpose of obtaining an employment position with a state agency or with a political subdivision of the state, including an elective or appointive position, whether compensated or not, a promotion, transfer, or reassignment from such a position, or an increase in compensation or benefits for such a position. A person who violates any of these prohibitions may be required to forfeit not more than $1,000.

For purposes of those prohibitions:

1. "Academic credential" means a degree, transcript, certificate, or other similar document that indicates the completion of a program, course, or course of instruction leading to, or the earning of academic credit toward, the granting of an associate, baccalaureate, or graduate degree.

2. "False academic credential" means an academic credential issued or manufactured by a person that is not an authorized institution of higher education.

3. "Legitimate academic credential" means an academic credential issued by an authorized institution of higher education.

4. "Authorized institution of higher education" means an educational institution that has accreditation recognized by the U.S. secretary of education, has the foreign equivalent of that accreditation, as determined by the EAB, or has accreditation recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation; is approved by the EAB to operate as a proprietary school in this state; operates in this state and is a school exempt from EAB approval; does not operate in this state, but is licensed or otherwise approved by the appropriate state agency of another state and is an active applicant for accreditation by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. secretary of education or by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation; or has been found by the EAB to meet standards of academic quality comparable to those of an educational institution located in the United States that has accreditation recognized by the U.S. secretary of education or by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation to offer credentials of the type and level claimed.

Finally, the bill provides that it is not employment discrimination because of conviction record to refuse to employ or license, or to bar or terminate from employment or licensure, any individual who has been convicted of knowingly using a false academic credential, or of falsely using or claiming to have a legitimate academic credential in violation of the bill.

Because this bill creates a new crime or revises a penalty for an existing crime, the Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties may be requested to prepare a report concerning the proposed penalty and the costs or savings that are likely to result if the bill is enacted.