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Bills · 2025-2026 Regular Session

SB 445

Died at session end Official bill text Atom feed

Relating to: consideration of a certain definition of antisemitism for purposes of laws, ordinances, policies, or criminal penalty enhancers concerning discrimination based on race, religion, color, or national origin.

Discrimination Municipality State agencies

  1. Introduced, stopped here
  2. Passes Senate, not reached
  3. Passes Assembly, not reached
  4. Governor signs, not reached
  5. Law, not reached

Unfamiliar terms? Glossary

What this bill does

Plain-language analysis by the nonpartisan Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill provides that each state agency or other body in state government, each local governmental unit, and each employee or official of the state or a local governmental unit must consider the definition of antisemitism adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance on May 26, 2016, including its examples, when evaluating evidence of discriminatory intent for any law, ordinance, or policy in Wisconsin that prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, color, or national origin or that provides for enhanced criminal penalties for criminal offenses when the defendant intentionally selects the victim or group of victims or selects the property that is damaged or otherwise affected by the crime because of the victim's or group of victims' actual or perceived race, religion, color, or national origin. The bill specifies that nothing in the bill may be construed to diminish or infringe upon any right protected under the first amendment to the U.S. Constitution or to conflict with federal or state antidiscrimination laws.

Sponsors

Introduced by: Cabral-Guevara (R) , Hesselbein (D) , Hutton (R) , James (R) , Pfaff (D) , Testin (R) , Wall (D) , Wanggaard (R)

14 cosponsors

Dallman (R) , Dittrich (R) , Donovan (R) , Emerson (D) , Goodwin (D) , Gundrum (R) , Knodl (R) , Kreibich (R) , Murphy (R) , O'Connor (R) , Ortiz-Velez (D) , Subeck (D) , Tusler (R) , Wichgers (R)

Registered lobbying interests · 12

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

Senate: Report passage recommended by Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety, Ayes 5, Noes 3

Passed 5–3 Feb 2, 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 29, 2025 · Senate

    Introduced by Senators Hutton, Cabral-Guevara, Hesselbein, James, Pfaff, Testin, Wall, Wanggaard and Wirch; cosponsored by Representatives Tusler, Dallman, Dittrich, Donovan, Emerson, Gundrum, Knodl, Kreibich, Murphy, O'Connor, Ortiz-Velez, Sinicki, Subeck and Wichgers

  2. Sep 29, 2025 · Senate

    Read first time and referred to Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety

  3. Sep 29, 2025 · Senate

    Representative Sinicki withdrawn as a cosponsor

  4. Nov 20, 2025 · Senate

    Representative Goodwin added as a cosponsor

  5. Jan 28, 2026 · Senate

    Public hearing held

  6. Feb 2, 2026 · Senate

    Executive action taken

  7. Feb 2, 2026 · Senate

    Report passage recommended by Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety, Ayes 5, Noes 3

  8. Feb 2, 2026 · Senate

    Available for scheduling

  9. Feb 17, 2026 · Senate

    LRB correction

  10. Feb 18, 2026 · Senate

    Senate Substitute Amendment 1 offered by Senator Hutton

  11. Mar 17, 2026 · Senate

    Senator Wirch withdrawn as a coauthor

  12. Mar 23, 2026 · Senate

    Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1