Senate Bill 350
An optional identification requirement for voting in elections
Topics: Elections: Ballots, Elections: Registration, Identification cards, Voting
Stopped in committee
It never got a , so it never came up for a vote. To try again, a lawmaker would have to start a new bill.
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Introduced, passed
Oct 14, 2009
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Committee, stopped here
Stopped here. No public hearing was held.
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Senate vote, not reached
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Assembly vote, not reached
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Governor, not reached
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Law, not reached
Latest entry in the official record, Apr 28, 2010: “Failed to pass pursuant to ”
It never got a hearing in the Senate Committee on Labor, Elections and Urban Affairs. See every bill that never got a hearing this session.
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Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary
Author
A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate. More in the glossary
What it would have done
Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.
With certain limited exceptions, before being permitted to vote at any polling place, an elector currently must provide his or her name and address. If the elector is not registered, the elector must provide a specified form of proof of residence in order to register. If an elector is not able to present any required proof of residence, as an alternative, current law permits another qualified elector who resides in the same municipality to corroborate the elector's registration information. In addition, an elector other than a military elector or an overseas elector, as defined by federal law, who registers by mail and who has not voted in an election in this state must provide one of the forms of identification specified by federal law, or a copy thereof if voting by absentee ballot, in order to be permitted to vote. Corroboration may not be substituted for this identification requirement, but an elector who cannot provide the required identification may cast a provisional ballot. The municipal clerk or board of election commissioners must determine whether electors casting provisional ballots are qualified to vote by 4 p.m. on the day after an election.
With certain limited exceptions, this bill permits any elector, at the time of registration, to elect to be required to provide identification in order to vote in an election. The bill also permits a registered elector to elect to be required to provide identification in order to vote by appearing in person at the office of the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners of the municipality where the elector resides. The elector must sign a statement making the election and provide identification.
Read the full summary Show less
Under the bill, the permissible types of identification are: 1) a valid Wisconsin driver's license issued by the Department of Transportation (DOT); 2) a valid, current identification card issued by a U.S. uniformed service; or 3) a valid Wisconsin identification card issued by DOT. With certain limited exceptions, if an elector decides to be subject to an identification requirement, the bill requires the elector to enclose a copy of his or her identification when voting an absentee ballot by mail.
Under the bill, if an elector who votes at a polling place has elected to be subject to the identification requirement and fails to provide identification, the elector may vote provisionally. If an elector who votes by absentee ballot has elected to be subject to the identification requirement and fails to enclose a copy of the identification with his or her ballot, the ballot is treated as a provisional ballot. A provisional ballot is marked by the poll workers, who immediately contact the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners. The elector may then provide the required identification either at the polling place before the closing hour or at the office of the clerk or board.
If the elector does not provide the required identification to the clerk or board by 4 p.m. on the day following the election, the person's vote is not counted.
The bill provides that an elector who elects to be subject to an identification requirement may revoke the election by appearing at the office of the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners of the municipality where he or she resides and filing a written revocation request. Under the bill, an election to be subject to an identification requirement or a revocation of an election must be filed at least 31 days before the election at which it initially applies.
Who's behind it
7 senators are its . 6 are Republicans and 1 is a Democrat.
11 more lawmakers .
See all 18 names Hide the names
Authors (7)
- Tim Carpenter · Democrat, Senate
- Alberta Darling · Republican, Senate
- Randy Hopper · Republican, Senate
- Theodore Kanavas · Republican, Senate
- Mary Lazich · Republican, Senate
- Joe Leibham · Republican, Senate
- Dale Schultz · Republican, Senate
Signed on in support (11)
- Brett Davis · Republican, Assembly
- Scott Gunderson · Republican, Assembly
- Michael Huebsch · Republican, Assembly
- Jim Ott · Republican, Assembly
- Dan Knodl · Republican, Assembly
- Bill Kramer · Republican, Assembly
- Kevin Petersen · Republican, Assembly
- Pat Strachota · Republican, Assembly
- John Townsend · Republican, Assembly
- Robin Vos · Republican, Assembly
- Rich Zipperer · Republican, Senate
What it would cost
State agencies filed a . Each opens as a PDF from the Legislature.
What happened
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Apr 28, 2010
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Nov 9, 2009
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Oct 14, 2009
Sent to the Senate Committee on Labor, Elections and Urban Affairs.
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Oct 14, 2009
Introduced in the Senate.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Oct 14, 2009 · Senate
Introduced by Senators Kanavas, Carpenter, Lazich, Hopper, Darling, Leibham and Schultz;Cosponsored by Representatives Kramer, Petersen, Davis, Knodl, Vos, Zipperer, Huebsch, Townsend, Strachota, Gunderson and J. Ott
- Oct 14, 2009 · Senate
Read first time and referred to committee on Labor, Elections and Urban Affairs
- Nov 9, 2009 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- Apr 28, 2010 · Senate
Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1
Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary
Author
A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate. More in the glossary
From the Wisconsin Legislature's official record, checked Sep 15, 2026. See the source
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate