Assembly Bill 405
Making fourth offense operating while intoxicated a felony and providing a penalty
Topics: Alcohol and other drug abuse, Crime and criminals: Felony, Drunken driving, Legislature: Criminal Penalties, Joint Review Committee on
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
Dec 7, 2011
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Committee, stopped here
Stopped here. No public hearing was held.
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Assembly vote, not reached
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Senate vote, not reached
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Governor, not reached
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Law, not reached
Latest entry in the official record, Mar 23, 2012: “Failed to pass pursuant to ”
It never got a hearing in the Assembly Committee on Transportation. 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
Roll call
A vote where each lawmaker's yes or no is recorded by name.
Official term: Roll call vote. More in the glossary
What it would have done
Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.
Under current law, a person who commits an offense relating to operating a vehicle while intoxicated or under the influence of a controlled substance (OWI) is subject to a forfeiture or fine and, for a second or subsequent offense, a period of imprisonment. Penalties increase with each subsequent conviction.
Currently, a person who commits a fourth OWI offense is guilty of a misdemeanor and may be fined between $600 and $2,000 and may be imprisoned for not less than 60 days nor more than one year unless the person committed an earlier OWI offense within five years prior to his or her fourth OWI offense. In that case, the person is guilty of a Class H felony and is subject to the same penalties as a person who commits a fifth or sixth OWI offense: a minimum fine of $600, a six-month minimum term of imprisonment, and a six-year maximum term of imprisonment.
Read the full summary Show less
Current law also allows, if the sentencing court is in a county that provides a treatment-based sentencing option, a person who commits a second, third, or fourth OWI offense to receive a reduced minimum period of imprisonment if the person completes a probation period that includes alcohol and other drug treatment.
Under this bill, a person who commits a fourth OWI offense, regardless of the time elapsed since his or her last prior offense, is guilty of a Class H felony and subject to the same penalties as a person who commits a fifth or sixth OWI offense: a minimum fine of $600, a six-month minimum term of imprisonment, and a six-year maximum term of imprisonment. The bill eliminates, for a person who commits a fourth OWI offense, the option for a reduced period of imprisonment based on completing a period of probation that includes alcohol and other drug treatment.
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.
Who's behind it
9 lawmakers are its . 6 are Democrats and 3 are Republicans.
2 more lawmakers .
See all 11 names Hide the names
Authors (9)
- Terese Berceau · Democrat, Assembly
- Penny Bernard Schaber · Democrat, Assembly
- Jim Ott · Republican, Assembly
- André Jacque · Republican, Senate
- Samantha Kerkman · Republican, Assembly
- Jon Richards · Democrat, Assembly
- Tony Staskunas · Democrat, Assembly
- John Steinbrink · Democrat, Assembly
- Josh Zepnick · Democrat, Assembly
Signed on in support (2)
- Tim Carpenter · Democrat, Senate
- Spencer Coggs · Democrat, Senate
What it would cost
State agencies filed a . Each opens as a PDF from the Legislature.
How lawmakers voted
There was one vote on this bill. Taking a bill up right away needs two-thirds of the members, a higher bar than passing it, so that vote can draw more yeses than the final one.
Assembly vote to take it up right away
Failed, 39 to 58 · Mar 13, 2012
No member-by-member record exists for this vote. Committee votes and some older sessions record totals only.
Official motion: “Refused to suspend rules to withdraw from committee on Transportation and take up, Ayes 39, Noes 58”. Official record · This vote on its own page
What happened
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Mar 23, 2012
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Jan 4, 2012
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Dec 27, 2011
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Dec 19, 2011
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Dec 16, 2011
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Dec 7, 2011
Sent to the Assembly Committee on Transportation.
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Dec 7, 2011
Introduced in the Assembly.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Dec 7, 2011 · Assembly
Introduced by Representatives Staskunas, J. Ott, Jacque, Kerkman, Zepnick, Berceau, Bernard Schaber, Steinbrink and Richards;Cosponsored by Senators Carpenter and S. Coggs
- Dec 7, 2011 · Assembly
Read first time and referred to committee on Transportation
- Dec 16, 2011 · Assembly
Fiscal estimate received
- Dec 19, 2011 · Assembly
Fiscal estimate received
- Dec 27, 2011 · Assembly
Fiscal estimate received
- Jan 4, 2012 · Assembly
Fiscal estimate received
- Mar 13, 2012 · Assembly
Refused to suspend rules to withdraw from committee on Transportation and take up, Ayes 39, Noes 58
- Mar 23, 2012 · Assembly
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
Roll call
A vote where each lawmaker's yes or no is recorded by name.
Official term: Roll call vote. 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
Roll call
A vote where each lawmaker's yes or no is recorded by name.
Official term: Roll call vote