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Bills from the 2021–22 session

Assembly Bill 179

Absentee voting in certain residential care facilities and retirement homes and providing a penalty

Stopped before the full Assembly voted

The recommended passing it, but the full Assembly never voted on it. To try again, a lawmaker would have to start a new bill.

  1. Introduced, passed

    Mar 23, 2021

  2. Committee, passed

    Approved

  3. Assembly vote, stopped here

    Stopped here. The full Assembly never voted on it.

  4. Senate vote, not reached

  5. Governor, not reached

  6. Law, not reached

Latest entry in the official record, Mar 15, 2022: “Failed to pass pursuant to ⁠”

Read the bill

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What it would have done

Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.

Under current law, a municipal clerk is required, under certain circumstances, to dispatch special voting deputies to a residential care facility or qualified retirement home so that the occupants of the facility or home may cast an absentee ballot in person with the special voting deputies rather than vote in person at the appropriate polling place or request and complete an absentee ballot by mail. Under current law, a retirement home is a facility occupied as a primary residence by 10 or more unrelated individuals. A qualified retirement home is a retirement home that has a significant number of occupants who lack adequate transportation to the polling place, need assistance in voting, are aged 60 or over, or are indefinitely confined.

Under current law, the special voting deputies must arrange with the administrator of the qualified retirement home or residential care facility one or more convenient times to visit the home or facility. The administrator of the home or facility may, upon the request of a relative of an occupant of the home or facility notify the relative of the time or times at which special voting deputies will conduct absentee voting at the home or facility.

Read the full summary

This bill requires the administrator to provide notice of the dates and times when the deputies will be visiting the home or facility to the relatives for whom the home or facility has contact information for each occupant who intends to vote by absentee ballot with the special voting deputies.

The bill also provides that an employee of a qualified retirement home or residential care facility who influences an occupant of the home or facility to apply for or not apply for an absentee ballot or cast or refrain from casting a ballot or influences an occupant's decision for whom to cast a ballot is guilty of the Class I felony.

Who's behind it

14 representatives are its ⁠. All 14 are Republicans.

8 more lawmakers ⁠.

See all 22 names

Authors (14)

Signed on in support (8)

Versions and amendments

Every text the Legislature printed for this bill, including proposed changes. Each opens on the Legislature's site.

How lawmakers voted

There were 2 votes on this bill.

Assembly Committee on Campaigns and Elections vote on an amendment

Passed, 6 to 3 · Jun 16, 2021

No member-by-member record exists for this vote. Committee votes and some older sessions record totals only.

Official motion: “Report Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 adoption recommended by Committee on Campaigns and Elections, Ayes 6, Noes 3”. Official record · This vote on its own page

Assembly Committee on Campaigns and Elections vote to recommend it

Passed, 6 to 3 · Jun 16, 2021

No member-by-member record exists for this vote. Committee votes and some older sessions record totals only.

Official motion: “Report passage as amended recommended by Committee on Campaigns and Elections, Ayes 6, Noes 3”. Official record · This vote on its own page

What happened

  1. Mar 15, 2022

    The session ended, and the bill died with it.

  2. Jun 16, 2021

    Sent to the Assembly Committee on Rules.

  3. Jun 16, 2021

    The committee voted to recommend passing it, 6 to 3.

  4. Apr 27, 2021

    The committee held a public hearing.

  5. Mar 23, 2021

    Sent to the Assembly Committee on Campaigns and Elections.

  6. Mar 23, 2021

    Introduced in the Assembly.

See the official record, word for word
  1. Mar 23, 2021 · Assembly

    Introduced by Representatives Duchow, Skowronski, Magnafici, Edming, Steffen, Kerkman, Spiros, Krug, Brooks, Loudenbeck, Gundrum, Murphy, Knodl and Wichgers; cosponsored by Senators Stroebel, Darling, Roth, Marklein, Wanggaard, Nass, Ballweg and Felzkowski

  2. Mar 23, 2021 · Assembly

    Read first time and referred to Committee on Campaigns and Elections

  3. Apr 27, 2021 · Assembly

    Public hearing held

  4. Jun 9, 2021 · Assembly

    Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 offered by Representative Duchow

  5. Jun 16, 2021 · Assembly

    Executive action taken

  6. Jun 16, 2021 · Assembly

    Report Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 adoption recommended by Committee on Campaigns and Elections, Ayes 6, Noes 3

  7. Jun 16, 2021 · Assembly

    Report passage as amended recommended by Committee on Campaigns and Elections, Ayes 6, Noes 3

  8. Jun 16, 2021 · Assembly

    Referred to committee on Rules

  9. Jun 16, 2021 · Assembly

    Placed on calendar 6-22-2021 by Committee on Rules

  10. Jun 22, 2021 · Assembly

    Laid on the table

  11. Mar 15, 2022 · 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.

More in the glossary

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

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.

More in the glossary

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

Roll call

A vote where each lawmaker's yes or no is recorded by name.

Official term: Roll call vote

More in the glossary