Senate Bill 498
Deceptive election practices and providing a criminal penalty
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 27, 2017
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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, Mar 28, 2018: “Failed to pass pursuant to ”
It never got a hearing in the Senate Committee on Elections and Utilities. 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
What it would have done
Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.
This bill prohibits any person from knowingly providing false election-related information to an individual with the intent to induce an individual to refrain from registering to vote or from voting at an election. The bill defines election-related information as information concerning any of the following: 1) the date, time, place, or manner of conducting an election; and 2) any qualification for or restriction on the eligibility of an elector voting at an election, including any criminal penalty associated with voting in an election or a voter's registration status or eligibility. A person who violates this provision is guilty of a Class I felony and may be subject to a fine not to exceed $10,000 or imprisonment not to exceed three years and six months, or both.
Under current law, with certain exceptions, no person may post or distribute any written material that describes the rights or responsibilities of individuals voting or registering to vote at a polling place or absentee voting site during any of the following times: 1) during polling hours at a polling place; 2) while voting is underway at an absentee voting site; or 3) on public property within 100 feet of an entrance to a building containing a polling place or an absentee voting site during polling hours or while absentee voting is underway. A person who violates any of these prohibitions may be required to pay a forfeiture (civil penalty) of not more than $100 for each violation. Also under current law, no person may knowingly make or publish or cause to be made or published a false representation pertaining to a candidate or referendum that is intended to affect voting at an election. A person who violates this prohibition may be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned for not more than six months, or both.
Read the full summary Show less
The bill exempts from liability the owner, publisher, printer, agent, or employee of a newspaper or other publication, including an Internet publication, or of a radio or television station, including an Internet radio or television station, who in good faith and without knowledge of its falsity, publishes false election-related information.
The bill permits a person who believes a violation has occurred to file a verified complaint with the Elections Commission. The commission must review the complaint to determine whether the alleged facts would constitute a violation. If the commission determines that the facts, if true, would constitute a violation, the commission must investigate the complaint and, if appropriate, forward the complaint to the attorney general for prosecution. The commission must also take any action necessary to provide correct election-related information to those persons who might have received false election-related information. In lieu of prosecuting the action, the bill permits the attorney general to forward the prosecution to the district attorney for the county in which the violation is alleged to have occurred.
Who's behind it
Lena Taylor, a Democrat, is its .
5 more lawmakers .
See all 6 names Hide the names
Author (1)
- Lena Taylor · Democrat, Senate
Signed on in support (5)
- Jimmy Anderson · Democrat, Assembly
- Terese Berceau · Democrat, Assembly
- Dave Considine · Democrat, Assembly
- Gary Hebl · Democrat, Assembly
- Leon Young · Democrat, Assembly
What happened
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Mar 28, 2018
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Oct 27, 2017
Sent to the Senate Committee on Elections and Utilities.
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Oct 27, 2017
Introduced in the Senate.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
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
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