Assembly Bill 659
Operation of animal-drawn vehicles on highways and granting rule-making authority
Topics: Animal, County: Ordinance, Horses, Motor vehicle: Equipment, Road
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
Mar 5, 2012
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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
What it would have done
Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.
Under current law, any person operating an animal-drawn vehicle on a roadway is generally granted all the rights and is subject to all the duties applicable to operators of other vehicles. Animal-drawn vehicles operated on a highway are also subject to certain vehicle equipment requirements. No animal-drawn vehicle may be operated on a highway during hours of darkness unless the vehicle is equipped with at least one lighted lamp or lantern exhibiting a white light visible from a distance of 500 feet ahead and two lighted lamps or lanterns exhibiting red light visible from a distance of 500 feet to the rear and mounted in such a manner as to indicate the extreme width of the vehicle. Unless an animal-drawn vehicle has attached to the left rear a yellow or amber flashing light at least four inches in diameter, in order to operate on a highway in the day or at night, the vehicle must have displayed on the most practicable visible rear area of the vehicle a slow moving vehicle (SMV) emblem.
This bill requires animal-drawn vehicles operated on a highway during hours of darkness to be equipped with a white front lamp and two rear red lamps that are visible for a distance of 1,000 feet, rather than 500 feet. In addition, animal-drawn vehicles operated on a highway must be equipped with strips of reflective tape, at least one inch wide, affixed in a specified manner on the vehicle and two flashing yellow or amber lights mounted on or near each top rear corner of the vehicle. When an SMV emblem is required on an animal-drawn vehicle, the SMV emblem must be made of or incorporate reflective material.
Read the full summary Show less
The bill also authorizes counties to, by ordinance, require registration of animal-drawn vehicles that are customarily kept within the county and operated, at any time, on any highway within the county. The amount of the registration fee for animal-drawn vehicles registered by the county is determined by the county, but may not exceed the fee for registering an automobile with the Department of Transportation, which is currently $75. All revenues received by a county from these registration fees may be used only for any of the following: 1) safety programs relating to animal-drawn vehicles operating on highways, including public education programs and traffic enforcement programs; 2) erecting highway signs relating to animal-drawn vehicles operating on highways; and 3) highway improvements and repairs, including improvements and repairs to highway shoulders and other areas within the highway right-of-way, that promote safety where animal-drawn vehicles are operated on highways.
Who's behind it
7 lawmakers are its . 6 are Republicans and 1 is a Democrat.
1 more lawmaker .
See all 8 names Hide the names
Authors (7)
- Alvin Ott · Republican, Assembly
- Joan Ballweg · Republican, Senate
- Edward Brooks · Republican, Assembly
- Howard Marklein · Republican, Senate
- Richard Spanbauer · Republican, Assembly
- Travis Tranel · Republican, Assembly
- Amy Sue Vruwink · Democrat, Assembly
Signed on in support (1)
- Dale Schultz · Republican, Senate
What it would cost
State agencies filed a . Each opens as a PDF from the Legislature.
What happened
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Mar 23, 2012
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Mar 21, 2012
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Mar 5, 2012
Sent to the Assembly Committee on Transportation.
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Mar 5, 2012
Introduced in the Assembly.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Mar 5, 2012 · Assembly
Introduced by Representatives Tranel, Brooks, Marklein, A. Ott, Spanbauer, Ballweg and Vruwink;Cosponsored by Senator Schultz
- Mar 5, 2012 · Assembly
Read first time and referred to committee on Transportation
- Mar 21, 2012 · Assembly
Fiscal estimate received
- 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
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