Assembly Bill 539
Eliminating the right-to-work law. (FE)
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 18, 2023
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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, Apr 19, 2024: “Representative Bare added as a coauthor”
It never got a hearing in the Assembly Committee on Labor and Integrated Employment. 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.
The current right-to-work law prohibits a person from requiring, as a condition of obtaining or continuing employment, an individual to refrain or resign from membership in a labor organization, to become or remain a member of a labor organization, to pay dues or other charges to a labor organization, or to pay any other person an amount that is in place of dues or charges required of members of a labor organization. This bill repeals these prohibitions and the associated misdemeanor offense for violating the right-to-work law.
The bill explicitly provides that, when an all-union agreement is in effect, it is not an unfair labor practice to encourage or discourage membership in a labor organization or to deduct labor organization dues or assessments from an employee's earnings. The bill sets conditions under which an employer may enter into an all-union agreement. The bill also sets conditions for the continuation or termination of all-union agreements, including that, if the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission determines there is reasonable ground to believe employees in an all-union agreement have changed their attitude about the agreement, WERC is required to conduct a referendum to determine whether the employees wish to continue the agreement. WERC is required to terminate an all-union agreement if it finds the union unreasonably refused to admit an employee into the union.
Who's behind it
20 lawmakers are its . All 20 are Democrats.
11 more lawmakers .
See all 31 names Hide the names
Authors (20)
- Clint Anderson · Democrat, Assembly
- Marisabel Cabrera · Democrat, Assembly
- Sue Conley · Democrat, Assembly
- Dave Considine · Democrat, Assembly
- Dora Drake · Democrat, Senate
- Jodi Emerson · Democrat, Assembly
- Evan Goyke · Democrat, Assembly
- Francesca Hong · Democrat, Assembly
- Jimmy Anderson · Democrat, Assembly
- Alex Joers · Democrat, Assembly
- Greta Neubauer · Democrat, Assembly
- Tod Ohnstad · Democrat, Assembly
- Lori Palmeri · Democrat, Assembly
- Melissa Ratcliff · Democrat, Senate
- Katrina Shankland · Democrat, Assembly
- Kristina Shelton · Democrat, Assembly
- Christine Sinicki · Democrat, Assembly
- Lee Snodgrass · Democrat, Assembly
- Shelia Stubbs · Democrat, Assembly
- Lisa Subeck · Democrat, Assembly
Signed on in support (11)
- Melissa Agard · Democrat, Senate
- Mike Bare · Democrat, Assembly
- Jill Billings · Democrat, Assembly
- Tim Carpenter · Democrat, Senate
- Dianne Hesselbein · Democrat, Senate
- LaTonya Johnson · Democrat, Senate
- Chris Larson · Democrat, Senate
- Darrin Madison · Democrat, Assembly
- Brad Pfaff · Democrat, Senate
- Kelda Roys · Democrat, Senate
- Mark Spreitzer · Democrat, Senate
What it would cost
State agencies filed a . Each opens as a PDF from the Legislature.
What happened
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Apr 19, 2024
1 more representative signed on in support.
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Apr 15, 2024
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Nov 10, 2023
2 more representatives signed on in support.
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Oct 24, 2023
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Oct 18, 2023
Sent to the Assembly Committee on Labor and Integrated Employment.
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Oct 18, 2023
Introduced in the Assembly.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Oct 18, 2023 · Assembly
Introduced by Representatives Sinicki, Shankland, Ohnstad, Neubauer, Subeck, Conley, Hong, Joers, Emerson, Cabrera, Stubbs, Snodgrass, Shelton, Ratcliff, J. Anderson, Considine, C. Anderson, Goyke, Palmeri and Drake; cosponsored by Senators Spreitzer, L. Johnson, Agard, Larson, Hesselbein, Roys, Carpenter and Pfaff
- Oct 18, 2023 · Assembly
Read first time and referred to Committee on Labor and Integrated Employment
- Oct 24, 2023 · Assembly
Fiscal estimate received
- Nov 10, 2023 · Assembly
Representative Madison added as a coauthor
- Nov 10, 2023 · Assembly
Representative Billings added as a coauthor
- Apr 15, 2024 · Assembly
Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1
- Apr 19, 2024 · Assembly
Representative Bare added as a coauthor
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