Senate Bill 618
Allowing renters to claim the veterans and surviving spouses property tax credit. (FE)
Topics: Landlord and tenant, Property tax: Exemption, Veteran
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
Nov 6, 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 Agriculture and Revenue. The committee's chair at the time was Patrick Testin. 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 628. 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
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate. 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, an eligible veteran or surviving spouse may claim a refundable income tax credit equal to the amount of property taxes the claimant paid during the year on his or her principal dwelling in Wisconsin. Current law does not expressly address the treatment of renters. The Department of Revenue allows an eligible veteran or surviving spouse who is a renter to claim the credit if the claimant is required to pay the property taxes under the rental agreement or other written agreement with the landlord and pays the property taxes directly to the municipality.
Under this bill, an eligible veteran or surviving spouse may claim the credit in an amount equal to his or her rent constituting property taxes. The bill defines “rent constituting property taxes” to mean a specified percentage of the rent paid by the claimant during the year for the use of a principal dwelling as housing. The specified percentage is 20 percent if heat is included in the rent and 25 percent if heat is not included.
Who's behind it
6 senators are its . All 6 are Democrats.
18 more lawmakers .
See all 24 names Hide the names
Authors (6)
- Kristin Dassler-Alfheim · Democrat, Senate
- Dianne Hesselbein · Democrat, Senate
- Brad Pfaff · Democrat, Senate
- Melissa Ratcliff · Democrat, Senate
- Mark Spreitzer · Democrat, Senate
- Bob Wirch · Democrat, Senate
Signed on in support (18)
- Clint Anderson · Democrat, Assembly
- Mike Bare · Democrat, Assembly
- Ben DeSmidt · Democrat, Assembly
- Steve Doyle · Democrat, Assembly
- Joan Fitzgerald · Democrat, Assembly
- Jenna Jacobson · Democrat, Assembly
- Alex Joers · Democrat, Assembly
- Vinnie Miresse · Democrat, Assembly
- Greta Neubauer · Democrat, Assembly
- Sylvia Ortiz-Velez · Democrat, Assembly
- Lori Palmeri · Democrat, Assembly
- Joe Sheehan · Democrat, Assembly
- Christine Sinicki · Democrat, Assembly
- Lee Snodgrass · Democrat, Assembly
- Ryan Spaude · Democrat, Assembly
- Angela Stroud · Democrat, Assembly
- Lisa Subeck · Democrat, Assembly
- Randy Udell · Democrat, Assembly
What it would cost
State agencies filed a . Each opens as a PDF from the Legislature.
What happened
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Mar 23, 2026
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Feb 9, 2026 to Feb 20, 2026
2 more representatives signed on in support.
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Nov 25, 2025
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Nov 12, 2025 to Nov 14, 2025
2 more representatives signed on in support.
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Nov 6, 2025
Sent to the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Revenue.
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Nov 6, 2025
Introduced in the Senate.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Nov 6, 2025 · Senate
Introduced by Senators Pfaff, Wirch, Ratcliff, Dassler-Alfheim, Spreitzer and Hesselbein; cosponsored by Representatives Doyle, Miresse, Spaude, Ortiz-Velez, Neubauer, Fitzgerald, Snodgrass, Udell, Bare, Subeck, DeSmidt, Stroud, Anderson and Joers
- Nov 6, 2025 · Senate
Read first time and referred to Committee on Agriculture and Revenue
- Nov 12, 2025 · Senate
Representative Sinicki added as a cosponsor
- Nov 14, 2025 · Senate
Representative Palmeri added as a cosponsor
- Nov 25, 2025 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- Feb 9, 2026 · Senate
Representative J. Jacobson added as a cosponsor
- Feb 20, 2026 · Senate
Representative Sheehan 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
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate. 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
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate