Senate Bill 807
Grants to WisconsinEye for the establishment of an endowment fund, creating the Office of the Public Affairs Network to administer a public affairs network in Wisconsin, and making an appropriation. (FE)
Topics: Administration, Department of: Boards and other subdivisions, Administration, Department of: Budget and fiscal issues, Data processing, Organization, Miscellaneous, Public employee
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
Jan 2, 2026
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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 Government Operations, Labor and Economic Development. The committee's chair at the time was Dan Feyen. 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 816. 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.
Subject to approval by the the Joint Committee on Finance, current law requires the Department of Administration to make one or more payments in the form of a grant to the WisconsinEye Public Affairs Network, Inc., not to exceed a total of $10,000,000, for the establishment of an endowment fund. DOA may not award any such grant unless WisconsinEye raises funding for the endowment fund from nonstate sources in an amount that at least equals the amount of that grant. The grant authorization sunsets on June 30, 2026. WisconsinEye currently operates a public affairs network in Wisconsin that broadcasts live state government proceedings, news conferences, and civic events and maintains digital archives of its broadcasts.
This bill eliminates that current-law provision for one or more grants to WisconsinEye totaling up to $10,000,000. Instead, the bill establishes the Office of the Public Affairs Network, which is attached to DOA, for the administration of a public affairs network in Wisconsin. The bill also creates the Public Affairs Network Board to appoint the office’s director and oversee its activities. The board consists of the governor, two public members appointed by the governor, and four members of the legislature.
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Under the bill, the public affairs network must satisfy all of the following requirements and prohibitions:
1. The public affairs network must provide unedited live video and audio coverage, including online, of state government proceedings. State government proceedings include floor sessions of the senate and assembly, meetings of legislative committees, meetings of executive branch agencies, supreme court and other judicial proceedings, news conferences by legislators or other state government officials, and related civic events.
2. The public affairs network must provide coverage by live stream online of all legislative proceedings that are open to the public.
3. The public affairs network must permanently maintain and provide online access to unedited digital archives of its coverage of all such state government proceedings.
4. The public affairs network may not impose restrictions, such as a requirement to register, on the public’s access to any of the content.
5. The public affairs network must be operated in a manner that is strictly nonpartisan.
The bill appropriates $2,000,000 per fiscal year to fund the office’s general program operations. The bill also directs DOA and the Public Affairs Network Board to consult with the Educational Communications Board in establishing the public affairs network.
Finally, the bill requires DOA to attempt to obtain the complete digital archives of WisconsinEye and authorizes DOA to contract with WisconsinEye in order to do so and appropriates funds for the contract. If DOA obtains the digital archives, DOA must permanently maintain and provide unrestricted online public access to the complete digital archives. The bill also authorizes seven FTE positions for the public affairs network, in addition to the director, and allows DOA to waive competitive hiring procedures for former WisconsinEye employees to fill those positions.
Who's behind it
5 senators are its . All 5 are Democrats.
21 more lawmakers .
See all 26 names Hide the names
Authors (5)
- Chris Larson · Democrat, Senate
- Melissa Ratcliff · Democrat, Senate
- Kelda Roys · Democrat, Senate
- Mark Spreitzer · Democrat, Senate
- Bob Wirch · Democrat, Senate
Signed on in support (21)
- Margaret Arney · Democrat, Assembly
- Mike Bare · Democrat, Assembly
- Jill Billings · Democrat, Assembly
- Brienne Brown · Democrat, Assembly
- Ryan Clancy · Democrat, Assembly
- Karen DeSanto · Democrat, Assembly
- Ben DeSmidt · Democrat, Assembly
- Tara Johnson · Democrat, Assembly
- Sarah Keyeski · Democrat, Senate
- Karen Kirsch · Democrat, Assembly
- Darrin Madison · Democrat, Assembly
- Renuka Mayadev · Democrat, Assembly
- Vinnie Miresse · Democrat, Assembly
- Lori Palmeri · Democrat, Assembly
- Christian Phelps · Democrat, Assembly
- Priscilla Prado · Democrat, Assembly
- Amaad Rivera-Wagner · Democrat, Assembly
- Ann Roe · Democrat, Assembly
- Lee Snodgrass · Democrat, Assembly
- Angelito Tenorio · 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 3, 2026
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Jan 8, 2026 to Jan 16, 2026
1 more representative and 1 senator signed on in support.
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Jan 2, 2026
Sent to the Senate Committee on Government Operations, Labor and Economic Development.
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Jan 2, 2026
Introduced in the Senate.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Jan 2, 2026 · Senate
Introduced by Senators Spreitzer, Roys, Larson, Ratcliff and Wirch; cosponsored by Representatives Brown, Miresse, Arney, Bare, Billings, Clancy, DeSanto, DeSmidt, Johnson, Kirsch, Madison, Palmeri, Phelps, Prado, Rivera-Wagner, Roe, Snodgrass, Tenorio and Mayadev
- Jan 2, 2026 · Senate
Read first time and referred to Committee on Government Operations, Labor and Economic Development
- Jan 8, 2026 · Senate
Representative Udell added as a cosponsor
- Jan 16, 2026 · Senate
Senator Keyeski added as a coauthor
- Feb 3, 2026 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- 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