Assembly Bill 214
Town clerk and treasurer appointments, publication requirements for proposed budget summary and notice of public hearing, and discontinuance of highways. (FE)
Topics: Road, Town: Finance, Town: Officers
Stopped before the full Assembly voted
The recommended passing it, but the full Assembly never voted on it. The last day for votes this session was Mar 19, 2026. To try again, a lawmaker would have to start a new bill.
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Introduced, passed
Apr 23, 2025
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Committee, passed
Approved
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Assembly vote, stopped here
Stopped here. The full Assembly never voted on it.
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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, 2026: “Failed to pass pursuant to ”
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The same bill was also filed in the Senate as SB 215. That version became law.
Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
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.
This bill makes changes to various town procedures. Current law provides that a town may combine certain positions, such as the town clerk and the town treasurer, and provides that the combination takes effect on the latest date that any current term of an office to be combined expires. The bill retains that deadline, but allows the town board to provide that the combination of offices takes effect immediately as both positions become vacant or, if the person appointed to the combined office holds one of the offices to be combined, immediately upon a vacancy in the other office to be combined.
Current law also provides that a town with a population of 2,500 or more may move from an elected clerk, treasurer, or combined office of clerk and treasurer to an appointed clerk, treasurer, or combined clerk and treasurer by a vote of the electors at a town meeting. Under current law, a town with a population of under 2,500 may only move from an elected clerk, treasurer, or combined clerk and treasurer to an appointed position through a referendum. The bill allows a town of any size to move from an elected position to an appointed one by a vote of the electors at a town meeting. Current law also prohibits a town’s change from an elected to an appointed clerk, treasurer, or combined clerk and treasurer from taking effect until the end of the current elected term. Under the bill, a town may move to an appointed clerk, treasurer, or combined clerk and treasurer position during an elected term when there is a vacancy in the position.
Read the full summary Show less
Under current law, a town treasurer is permitted to appoint a deputy treasurer, while a town clerk may appoint one or more deputies. The bill provides that a town treasurer may appoint one or more deputies. The bill also provides that deputy town clerks and deputy town treasurers need not be residents of the town.
The bill also changes the publication and notice requirements for towns with respect to the public hearing regarding the town’s proposed budget. Current law requires that towns, cities, and villages conduct a public hearing on a proposed budget. Under current law, cities and villages must provide a summary of the proposed budget and notice of the budget public hearing and may do so by publishing the summary and notice in a newspaper, posting it in three locations, or posting it in one location and on a website maintained by the municipality. Current law also requires towns to provide a summary of the proposed budget and notice of the budget public hearing, but towns must post the summary and notice in three locations. This bill eliminates the limitation on how towns must provide the summary and notice, instead allowing towns the same options as cities and villages.
Finally, under current law, every highway ceases to be a public highway four years from the date on which it was laid out, except the parts of the highway that have been opened, traveled, or worked within that time. The bill eliminates the travel exception from consideration by a town board in determining whether a highway has ceased to be a public highway.
Who's behind it
17 representatives are its . 15 are Republicans and 2 are Democrats.
15 more lawmakers .
See all 32 names Hide the names
Authors (17)
- Clint Anderson · Democrat, Assembly
- Dave Armstrong · Republican, Assembly
- Calvin Callahan · Republican, Assembly
- Alex Dallman · Republican, Assembly
- Barbara Dittrich · Republican, Assembly
- Cindi Duchow · Republican, Assembly
- Gus Gustafson · Republican, Assembly
- Tara Johnson · Democrat, Assembly
- Dan Knodl · Republican, Assembly
- Rob Kreibich · Republican, Assembly
- Tony Kurtz · Republican, Assembly
- Jeff Mursau · Republican, Assembly
- Jerry O'Connor · Republican, Assembly
- Rob Swearingen · Republican, Assembly
- Nancy VanderMeer · Republican, Assembly
- Chuck Wichgers · Republican, Assembly
- Bob Wittke · Republican, Assembly
Signed on in support (15)
- Bare and Doyle
- Rachael Cabral-Guevara · Republican, Senate
- Dan Feyen · Republican, Senate
- Fitzgerald and Miresse
- Jenna Jacobson · Democrat, Assembly
- André Jacque · Republican, Senate
- Jesse James · Republican, Senate
- Howard Marklein · Republican, Senate
- Brad Pfaff · Democrat, Senate
- Romaine Quinn · Republican, Senate
- Melissa Ratcliff · Democrat, Senate
- Ann Roe · Democrat, Assembly
- Mark Spreitzer · Democrat, Senate
- David Steffen · Republican, Assembly
- Shelia Stubbs · Democrat, Assembly
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.
Assembly Committee on Local Government vote to recommend it
Passed, 9 to 0 · Sep 15, 2025
No member-by-member record exists for this vote. Committee votes and some older sessions record totals only.
Official motion: “Report passage recommended by Committee on Local Government, Ayes 9, Noes 0”. Official record · This vote on its own page
What happened
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Mar 23, 2026
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Oct 6, 2025 to Oct 7, 2025
3 more representatives signed on in support.
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Sep 15, 2025
Sent to the Assembly Committee on Rules.
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Sep 15, 2025
The committee voted to recommend passing it, 9 to 0.
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Jul 30, 2025
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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May 28, 2025 to Jun 2, 2025
2 more representatives signed on in support.
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May 28, 2025
The committee held a public hearing.
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May 15, 2025
1 more senator signed on in support.
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May 13, 2025
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Apr 30, 2025 to May 6, 2025
3 more representatives signed on in support.
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Apr 23, 2025
Sent to the Assembly Committee on Local Government.
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Apr 23, 2025
Introduced in the Assembly.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Apr 23, 2025 · Assembly
Introduced by Representatives Dallman, O'Connor, Anderson, Armstrong, Callahan, Dittrich, Duchow, Gustafson, Johnson, Knodl, Kreibich, Kurtz, Mursau, Swearingen, VanderMeer, Wichgers and Wittke; cosponsored by Senators Quinn, Pfaff, Cabral-Guevara, Feyen, Jacque, James, Marklein and Spreitzer
- Apr 23, 2025 · Assembly
Read first time and referred to Committee on Local Government
- Apr 30, 2025 · Assembly
- May 6, 2025 · Assembly
Representative Roe added as a coauthor
- May 13, 2025 · Assembly
Fiscal estimate received
- May 15, 2025 · Assembly
Senator Ratcliff added as a cosponsor
- May 28, 2025 · Assembly
Public hearing held
- May 28, 2025 · Assembly
Representative J. Jacobson added as a coauthor
- Jun 2, 2025 · Assembly
Representative Steffen added as a coauthor
- Jul 30, 2025 · Assembly
Fiscal estimate received
- Sep 10, 2025 · Assembly
Executive action taken
- Sep 15, 2025 · Assembly
Report passage recommended by Committee on Local Government, Ayes 9, Noes 0
- Sep 15, 2025 · Assembly
Referred to committee on Rules
- Oct 3, 2025 · Assembly
Withdrawn from Committee on Rules and referred to calendar of 10-7-2025
- Oct 6, 2025 · Assembly
Representatives Fitzgerald and Miresse added as coauthors
- Oct 7, 2025 · Assembly
Representative Stubbs added as a coauthor
- Oct 7, 2025 · Assembly
Laid on the table
- Mar 23, 2026 · 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.
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.
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