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Bills · 2025-2026 Regular Session

AB 459

Became law Official bill text Atom feed

Relating to: county public works notice and competitive bidding thresholds. (FE)

Mobile home Public works Purchasing government Sex crimes

  1. Introduced, completed
  2. Passes Assembly, completed
  3. Passes Senate, completed
  4. Governor signs, completed
  5. Law, completed

Unfamiliar terms? Glossary

What this bill does

Plain-language analysis by the nonpartisan Legislative Reference Bureau

Under current law, if the estimated cost of a county public works project is between $5,000 and $25,000, the county must generally provide a notice before it contracts. If the estimated cost exceeds $25,000, a county must solicit bids and award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder.

This bill increases the notice threshold to $10,000 and the bidding threshold to $50,000 and adjusts these amounts quinquennially for inflation. The bill also provides exceptions to these bidding requirements for 1) public work for the purpose of providing housing for persons placed on supervised release as sexually violent persons and 2) improvements that are constructed by a private person and donated to a county after the completion of construction. With regard to the latter, a similar exception for donated improvements currently exists for improvements donated to a city or village.

What it would cost

Fiscal estimates filed by state agencies, as official PDFs

Sponsors

Introduced by: Novak (R) , O'Connor (R)

1 cosponsors

Tomczyk (R)

Registered lobbying interests · 6

Organizations that registered lobbying activity on this bill with the Wisconsin Ethics Commission. Registration means interest, not a position for or against. Official record

Votes

Assembly: Report Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 adoption recommended by Committee on Local Government, Ayes 6, Noes 3

Passed 6–3 Nov 7, 2025 official source full page

No individual roll call was recorded for this vote. Committee votes and some older sessions record totals only.

Assembly: Report passage as amended recommended by Committee on Local Government, Ayes 6, Noes 3

Passed 6–3 Nov 7, 2025 official source full page

No individual roll call was recorded for this vote. Committee votes and some older sessions record totals only.

Assembly: PASSAGE

Passed 83–14 Jan 22, 2026 official source full page

Aye · 83

Not voting · 2

Senate: Public hearing requirement waived by committee on Senate Organization, pursuant to Senate Rule 18 (1m), Ayes 3, Noes 2

Passed 3–2 Feb 9, 2026 official source full page

No individual roll call was recorded for this vote. Committee votes and some older sessions record totals only.

Full history

  1. Sep 26, 2025 · Assembly

    Introduced by Representatives O'Connor and Novak; cosponsored by Senator Tomczyk

  2. Sep 26, 2025 · Assembly

    Read first time and referred to Committee on Local Government

  3. Oct 2, 2025 · Assembly

    Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 offered by Representative O'Connor

  4. Oct 8, 2025 · Assembly

    Public hearing held

  5. Oct 10, 2025 · Assembly

    Fiscal estimate received

  6. Oct 29, 2025 · Assembly

    Executive action taken

  7. Nov 7, 2025 · Assembly

    Report Assembly Substitute Amendment 1 adoption recommended by Committee on Local Government, Ayes 6, Noes 3

  8. Nov 7, 2025 · Assembly

    Report passage as amended recommended by Committee on Local Government, Ayes 6, Noes 3

  9. Nov 7, 2025 · Assembly

    Referred to committee on Rules

  10. Jan 16, 2026 · Assembly

    Assembly Substitute Amendment 2 offered by Representative O'Connor

  11. Jan 20, 2026 · Assembly

    Placed on calendar 1-22-2026 by Committee on Rules

  12. Jan 22, 2026 · Assembly

    Read a second time

  13. Jan 22, 2026 · Assembly

    Assembly Substitute Amendment 2 adopted

  14. Jan 22, 2026 · Assembly

    Ordered to a third reading

  15. Jan 22, 2026 · Assembly

    Rules suspended

  16. Jan 22, 2026 · Assembly

    Read a third time and passed, Ayes 83, Noes 14

  17. Jan 22, 2026 · Assembly

    Ordered immediately messaged

  18. Jan 22, 2026 · Senate

    Received from Assembly

  19. Jan 26, 2026 · Senate

    Read first time and referred to committee on Senate Organization

  20. Jan 26, 2026 · Senate

    Available for scheduling

  21. Feb 9, 2026 · Senate

    Public hearing requirement waived by committee on Senate Organization, pursuant to Senate Rule 18 (1m), Ayes 3, Noes 2

  22. Feb 9, 2026 · Senate

    Placed on calendar 2-11-2026 pursuant to Senate Rule 18(1)

  23. Feb 11, 2026 · Senate

    Read a second time

  24. Feb 11, 2026 · Senate

    Ordered to a third reading

  25. Feb 11, 2026 · Senate

    Rules suspended to give bill its third reading

  26. Feb 11, 2026 · Senate

    Read a third time and concurred in

  27. Feb 11, 2026 · Senate

    Ordered immediately messaged

  28. Feb 12, 2026 · Assembly

    Received from Senate concurred in

  29. Feb 13, 2026 · Assembly

    Report correctly enrolled on 2-13-2026

  30. Mar 26, 2026 · Assembly

    Presented to the Governor on 3-26-2026

  31. Mar 27, 2026 · Assembly

    Report approved by the Governor on 3-27-2026. 2025 Wisconsin Act 119

  32. Mar 27, 2026 · Assembly

    Published 3-28-2026