Senate Bill 18
Changes to the educational assessment program and the school and school district accountability report. (FE)
Topics: Public Instruction, Department of, School: Evaluation and testing
Stopped before the full Senate voted
The recommended passing it, but the full Senate 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
Feb 5, 2025
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Committee, passed
Approved
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Senate vote, stopped here
Stopped here. The full Senate never voted on it.
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Assembly 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 Assembly as AB 1. That version was vetoed.
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.
Under current law, the Department of Public Instruction is required to annually publish a school and school district accountability report, commonly known as school and school district report cards, for the previous school year. To measure school performance and school district improvement for purposes of the report cards, particularly measures related to pupil achievement in reading and math, DPI uses data derived from pupil performance on assessments administered in the previous school year, including assessments commonly referred to as the Wisconsin Student Assessment System, which includes the Wisconsin Forward Exam, PreACT, the ACT with Writing, and Dynamic Learning Maps.
Under the bill, beginning with report cards published for the school year in which the bill becomes law, for the index system to identify school and school district performance and improvement, also known as the accountability rating categories, DPI must use the same cut scores, score ranges, and corresponding qualitative descriptions that DPI used for report cards published in the 2019-20 school year. In addition, beginning with the WSAS administered in the school year in which the bill becomes law, DPI must do the following:
Read the full summary Show less
1. For the Wisconsin Forward exam in English Language Arts and Mathematics, align cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance categories to the cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance categories set by the National Assessment of Educational Progress.
2. For the PreACT and ACT with Writing in English, Reading, and Mathematics, use the same cut scores, score ranges, and pupil performance categories that DPI used for the same assessments administered in the 2021-22 school year. The bill specifically requires DPI to use the terms “below basic,” “basic,” “proficient,” and “advanced” for pupil performance categories on these assessments.
Who's behind it
14 senators are its . All 14 are Republicans.
31 more lawmakers .
See all 45 names Hide the names
Authors (14)
- Julian Bradley · Republican, Senate
- Rachael Cabral-Guevara · Republican, Senate
- Dan Feyen · Republican, Senate
- André Jacque · Republican, Senate
- John Jagler · Republican, Senate
- Jesse James · Republican, Senate
- Chris Kapenga · Republican, Senate
- Howard Marklein · Republican, Senate
- Steve Nass · Republican, Senate
- Romaine Quinn · Republican, Senate
- Patrick Testin · Republican, Senate
- Cory Tomczyk · Republican, Senate
- Van Wanggaard · Republican, Senate
- Eric Wimberger · Republican, Senate
Signed on in support (31)
- Scott Allen · Republican, Assembly
- Brent Jacobson · Republican, Assembly
- Elijah Behnke · Republican, Assembly
- Mark Born · Republican, Assembly
- Lindee Brill · Republican, Assembly
- Alex Dallman · Republican, Assembly
- Barbara Dittrich · Republican, Assembly
- Bob Donovan · Republican, Assembly
- Cindi Duchow · Republican, Assembly
- Chanz Green · Republican, Assembly
- Rick Gundrum · Republican, Assembly
- Gus Gustafson · Republican, Assembly
- Rob Hutton · Republican, Senate
- Dean Kaufert · Republican, Assembly
- Dan Knodl · Republican, Assembly
- Rob Kreibich · Republican, Assembly
- Dave Maxey · Republican, Assembly
- Paul Melotik · Republican, Assembly
- Clint Moses · Republican, Assembly
- Dave Murphy · Republican, Assembly
- Jeff Mursau · Republican, Assembly
- Amanda Nedweski · Republican, Assembly
- Todd Novak · Republican, Assembly
- Jerry O'Connor · Republican, Assembly
- Will Penterman · Republican, Assembly
- Jim Piwowarczyk · Republican, Assembly
- Jessie Rodriguez · Republican, Assembly
- Shae Sortwell · Republican, Assembly
- John Spiros · Republican, Assembly
- Ron Tusler · Republican, Assembly
- Bob Wittke · Republican, 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.
Senate Committee on Education vote to recommend it
Passed, 3 to 2 · Mar 14, 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 Education, Ayes 3, Noes 2”. 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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Mar 14, 2025
The committee voted to recommend passing it, 3 to 2.
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Mar 13, 2025
The committee held a public hearing.
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Mar 6, 2025
1 more senator signed on in support.
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Feb 17, 2025
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Feb 5, 2025
Sent to the Senate Committee on Education.
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Feb 5, 2025
Introduced in the Senate.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Feb 5, 2025 · Senate
Introduced by Senators Jagler, Quinn, Feyen, Wanggaard, Tomczyk, Nass, Bradley, Wimberger, Kapenga, Marklein, James, Jacque, Testin and Cabral-Guevara; cosponsored by Representatives Wittke, Novak, O'Connor, Kreibich, Tusler, Gundrum, Duchow, Penterman, Murphy, Sortwell, Born, Maxey, Behnke, Melotik, Mursau, Piwowarczyk, Nedweski, Gustafson, Donovan, Green, Dittrich, Dallman, Brill, B. Jacobson, Rodriguez, Spiros, Allen, Knodl, Kaufert and Moses
- Feb 5, 2025 · Senate
Read first time and referred to Committee on Education
- Feb 17, 2025 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- Mar 6, 2025 · Senate
Senator Hutton added as a coauthor
- Mar 13, 2025 · Senate
Public hearing held
- Mar 14, 2025 · Senate
Executive action taken
- Mar 14, 2025 · Senate
Report passage recommended by Committee on Education, Ayes 3, Noes 2
- Mar 14, 2025 · Senate
Available for scheduling
- Mar 23, 2026 · Senate
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