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Bills from the 2025–26 session

Assembly Bill 496

Verification of a pupil’s family income for participation in a parental choice program

Topics: Family, School: Attendance

Stopped in committee

It never got a ⁠, so it never came up for a vote. The last day for votes this session was Mar 19, 2026. To try again, a lawmaker would have to start a new bill.

  1. Introduced, passed

    Oct 9, 2025

  2. Committee, stopped here

    Stopped here. No public hearing was held.

  3. Assembly vote, not reached

  4. Senate vote, not reached

  5. Governor, not reached

  6. Law, not reached

Latest entry in the official record, Mar 23, 2026: “Failed to pass pursuant to ⁠”

It never got a hearing in the Assembly Committee on Education. The committee's chair at the time was Joel Kitchens. Chairs decide which bills get a hearing. See every bill that never got a hearing this session.

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The same bill was also filed in the Senate as SB 496. That version died when the session ended.

What it would have done

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

Under current law, to be eligible to participate in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program or the Racine Parental Choice Program, a pupil’s family income may not be more than 300 percent of the federal poverty level. Similarly, to be eligible to participate in the Wisconsin Parental Choice Program, a pupil’s family income may not be more than 220 percent of the federal poverty level. Each parental choice program allows a pupil to continue participating in the parental choice program if the pupil’s family income increases. Under this bill, a pupil attending a private school under a parental choice program may not continue to participate in the parental choice program if the pupil’s family income increases and exceeds the maximum family income for the parental choice program.

Under current law, each parental choice program requires that a pupil’s family income be verified through the Department of Revenue, but verification is not required if the pupil attended a private school under a parental choice program in the previous school year. The bill requires that, to participate in a parental choice program, a pupil’s family income must be verified through DOR each year, regardless of whether the pupil attended a private school under a parental choice program in the previous school year.

Who's behind it

17 representatives are its ⁠. All 17 are Democrats.

9 more lawmakers ⁠.

See all 26 names

Authors (17)

Signed on in support (9)

What happened

  1. Mar 23, 2026

    The session ended, and the bill died with it.

  2. Oct 10, 2025

    1 more representative signed on in support.

  3. Oct 9, 2025

    Sent to the Assembly Committee on Education.

  4. Oct 9, 2025

    Introduced in the Assembly.

See the official record, word for word
  1. Oct 9, 2025 · Assembly

    Introduced by Representatives Phelps, Sheehan, Hong, Arney, Bare, Clancy, Cruz, Fitzgerald, Joers, Madison, Palmeri, Sinicki, Snodgrass, Spaude, Stroud, Tenorio and Johnson; cosponsored by Senators Larson, Carpenter, Dassler-Alfheim, Keyeski, Pfaff, Ratcliff, Roys and Spreitzer

  2. Oct 9, 2025 · Assembly

    Read first time and referred to Committee on Education

  3. Oct 10, 2025 · Assembly

    Representative Subeck added as a coauthor

  4. 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.

More in the glossary

Public hearing

A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.

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

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

Author

A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.

Official term: Author, coauthor

Signed on in support

Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.

Official term: Cosponsor