Senate Bill 535
The regulation of digital assets
Topics: Data processing, Financial institution, Municipality, Securities: Regulation, State agencies
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.
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Introduced, passed
Oct 17, 2025
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Committee, stopped here
Stopped here. No public hearing was held.
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Senate vote, not reached
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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 ”
It never got a hearing in the Senate Committee on Utilities, Technology and Tourism. The committee's chair at the time was Julian Bradley. 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 Assembly as AB 471. That version died when the session ended.
Terms on this page
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. 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
What it would have done
Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.
This bill limits the ability of state agencies and cities, villages, towns, and counties (political subdivisions) to regulate digital assets, including cryptocurrency, and specifies digital asset–related activities in which a person may engage.
Under the bill, neither a state agency nor a political subdivision may prohibit or restrict a person in accepting digital assets as a method of payment for legal goods and services or in taking custody of digital assets using a self-hosted wallet or hardware wallet. The bill also specifies that a person in this state may 1) operate a node for the purpose of connecting to a blockchain protocol and participating in the blockchain protocol’s operations; 2) develop software on a blockchain protocol; 3) transfer digital assets to another person utilizing a blockchain protocol; and 4) participate in staking on a blockchain protocol. The bill includes various definitions relating to these provisions.
Read the full summary Show less
Under current law, the Department of Financial Institutions regulates money transmitters. With exceptions, a person may not engage in the business of money transmission unless the person is licensed by DFI. “Money transmission” means selling or issuing payment instruments or stored value, such as checks, money orders, or prepaid cards, to a person located in this state or receiving money for transmission from a person located in this state. “Money” is not defined to include virtual currency such as cryptocurrency.
This bill creates an additional exception to the regulation of money transmitters to exclude a person engaged in 1) operating a node or a series of nodes on a blockchain; 2) effectuating the exchange of one digital asset for another digital asset if there is no exchange of digital assets for legal tender or bank deposits; 3) developing software on a blockchain, even if the software effectuates the exchange of one digital asset for another digital asset; or 4) digital asset mining or staking or engaging in a digital asset mining business.
Under current law, a person may not offer or sell any security in this state unless the security is registered with DFI, the security or transaction is exempt from registration, or the security is a federal covered security.
This bill creates an additional transaction exemption related to digital asset staking. The bill exempts a person from various securities-related requirements for providing technical solutions by third-party service providers to allow token owners to earn rewards through staking, not including returns other than rewards paid by the network.
Who's behind it
Patrick Testin, a Republican, is its .
9 more lawmakers .
See all 10 names Hide the names
Author (1)
- Patrick Testin · Republican, Senate
Signed on in support (9)
- Rachael Cabral-Guevara · Republican, Senate
- Rick Gundrum · Republican, Assembly
- Gus Gustafson · Republican, Assembly
- Dan Knodl · Republican, Assembly
- Rob Kreibich · Republican, Assembly
- Scott Krug · Republican, Assembly
- Adam Neylon · Republican, Assembly
- Travis Tranel · Republican, Assembly
- Bob Wittke · Republican, Assembly
Versions and amendments
Every text the Legislature printed for this bill, including proposed changes. Each opens on the Legislature's site.
What happened
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Mar 23, 2026
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Oct 23, 2025 to Nov 24, 2025
1 more representative and 1 senator signed on in support.
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Oct 17, 2025
Sent to the Senate Committee on Utilities, Technology and Tourism.
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Oct 17, 2025
Introduced in the Senate.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Oct 17, 2025 · Senate
Introduced by Senator Testin; cosponsored by Representatives Neylon, Gustafson, Gundrum, Knodl, Kreibich, Krug and Tranel
- Oct 17, 2025 · Senate
Read first time and referred to Committee on Utilities, Technology and Tourism
- Oct 23, 2025 · Senate
Senator Cabral-Guevara added as a coauthor
- Oct 30, 2025 · Senate
Senate Amendment 1 offered by Senator Testin
- Nov 24, 2025 · Senate
Representative Wittke added as a cosponsor
- 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.
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. 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
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor