2025-2026 Legislative Bulletin | | |
In this edition of the League's Legislative Bulletin, you'll find:
1. Legislators Propose Housing, Elections Packages
2. Recap of the ReVITALize Wisconsin Rapids Event
3. League Legislative Agenda in Action
4. Annual Fall Conference Thanks and Reminders
5. Launch of the Innovation Grant Program
6. Recently Introduced Legislation of Municipal Importance
7. Government Affairs Team Receives Appointments
8. Agency Actions, including:
a. Comments on the Lead and Copper Rule
b. LRIP and ARIP Program Applications
c. 2025 Municipal Debt Limit Report
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Legislators Propose Housing, Elections Packages
The first half of the legislative session is traditionally dominated by the biennial budget, however, the second half always brings new initiatives from legislators, including several that are impactful to municipalities. Last week, groups of legislators proposed packages on housing and elections that, if passed, would have substantial impacts to municipalities. As with any package of bills, there are positives and negatives within each effort.
Housing
Representative Rob Brooks (R-Saukville) has been engaged with a group of his colleagues and stakeholders from the Wisconsin Builders Association and Wisconsin Realtors Association to prepare a series of efforts intended to address housing availability and affordability in our state. The League was invited into these discussions late but has been working tirelessly to remove the largest items of concern with some notable successes.
While this package of bills does pose some concerns, itâs important for members to keep in mind that reducing local control in pursuit of affordable workforce housing is a bipartisan initiative. While the ideas from Democrats and Republicans may differ, the League has seen proposals from both parties that diminish community-first decision-making. There is a bipartisan opinion that municipalities are part of the problem with housing costs and availability. We must educate, inform, and advocate on all of the issues impacting the availability and affordability of housing while keeping an open mind to all ideas presented.
This effort is on a fast track in the Assembly, with the package unveiled last Tuesday, introduced on Thursday, and noticed for a public hearing on Friday. This hearing in the Assembly Committee on Housing and Real Estate will take place this Tuesday, September 30th, beginning at 9:30am. The League will be testifying on the positives and negatives of these proposals and suggesting improvements for a smoother implementation of some of the intended policy outcomes.
The Leagueâs summary of the housing package is available here. In next weekâs edition of the Bulletin, we will also share the Leagueâs testimony on these efforts along with any updates on potential amendments to improve the package.
Elections
Representative Scott Krug (R-Rome) and Representative Lee Snodgrass (D-Appleton) held a joint press conference to discuss their shared interest in a civil dialogue on elections-related policy issues. While the two legislators have diverging views on election policies, each laid out their intended objectives for improving elections in Wisconsin with the hope that a compromise may be found throughout the legislative process. The League has been and continues to engage in these conversations, ensuring a municipal perspective is heard.
The Leagueâs summary of the elections package is available here. In future Legislative Bulletins, we will provide relevant updates on this package, including information on public hearings and other updates on legislation that is part of this package.
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ReVITALize Campaign Stops in Wisconsin Rapids
On Wednesday, September 24th, local leaders in Wisconsin Rapids highlighted their concerns with the state trunk highways running through the city. As part of the Re-VITAL-ize Wisconsin Community Highways campaign, Mayor Matt Zacher noted the great work of their Department of Public Works to maintain these aging highways, but also discussed how this band-aid approach isnât working for their vibrant community.
Mayor Zacher was joined by Staci Kivi of the Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce, Mark Mueller of Wisconsin Rapids Ford, Domonic Flammini of Ace Hardware, and Meredith Kleker of the Wisconsin Rapids Area Convention and Visitors Bureau to share an array of perspectives and experiences with how the condition of the cityâs multiple connecting highways are impacting residents, businesses, and visitors.
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Additional photos from the event may be found on the ReVITALize Wisconsin Community Highways Facebook page and a press release recapping the event may be found here. A short video highlighting the comments from the speakers will be shared in an upcoming edition of the Bulletin.
Wisconsin Rapids is the second stop in the ReVITALize Wisconsin Community Highways campaign. This effort, launched by the League and our partner, the Transportation Development Association, aims to call attention to long-overdue road improvements on state highways running through the heart of Wisconsin communities and the need for a long-term, sustainable plan to support transportation infrastructure.
This morning, the ReVITALize Wisconsin Community Highways campaign will again hit the road to join local leaders in the City of Oshkosh. The campaign will continue this fall and into next year. If your municipality is interested in sharing your story about the impact of deteriorating state trunk highways in your community, please contact Toni and Evan at the email addresses listed at the end of this Bulletin.
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League Legislative Agenda in Action
On Tuesday, September 23rd, the League testified in support of two bills in the Senate Committee on Transportation and Local Government. The committee took a bipartisan vote to recommend these bills for passage on Friday, meaning they are now available for a vote before the full Senate.
Senate Bill 216 raises the competitive bidding and public notice thresholds for certain public construction projects and indexes all thresholds to inflation. Senate Bill 337 provides financial assistance to local governments under 7,500 in population to obtain grant writing and compliance services.
Thank you to the chair, Senator Cory Tomczyk, and all committee members for listening to the Leagueâs comments and for support of these important efforts. Additional thanks goes out to the authors, Senators Tomczyk and Marklein and Representatives OâConnor and Kurtz, for bringing these bills forward. Finally, thank you to Andy Kurtz, Planning and Community Development Manager at Vierbicher, for testifying in-favor of SB 337 at the hearing.
More action has been noticed on legislation important to the League and our members. Senate Bills 127 and 128 will have a public hearing in the Senate Committee on Natural Resources, Veteran and Military Affairs on Tuesday, October 7th beginning at 10am in Room 411 South of the State Capitol.
These bills establish a PFAS municipal grant program and innocent landowner grant program which would be funded through the $125+ million PFAS Trust Fund established with the Leagueâs support in the 2023-2025 State Budget. Most notable, the bills would provide certain needed liability protections for municipalities from enforcement under the stateâs Spills Law.
If your municipality is concerned about liability for PFAS cleanup or is struggling to fund PFAS-related projects including brownfield remediations, weâre asking for you to share your story!
If youâre able to join the League on October 7th and testify on these bills, please email Toni and Evan (addresses listed below) and we can help to answer any questions. If youâre interested in having your PFAS story heard but are unable to testify, please email Toni and Evan your municipalityâs experience and concerns and we can submit them to committee members. Hearing from constituents is always impactful for legislators!
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Thank You for Making the Fall Conference Memorable!
Every attendee, speaker, and exhibitor were the key this year to making the Leagueâs Annual Fall Conference one to remember! With outstanding opportunities for education, information and idea sharing, and networking, attendees were able to leave with important takeaways to implement in their municipalities. Thank you to everyone who joined us in Milwaukee earlier this month!
The Government Affairs Team would like to give a special thank you to the speakers of two sessions we facilitated. On Thursday, September 18th, Baraboo Mayor Rob Nelson, Eau Claire Finance Director Kitzie Winters, and Fort Atkinson City Manager Rebecca Houseman shared their experiences with levy limit referenda in a session moderated by Toni Herkert, League Government Affairs Director. On Friday, September 19th, Fond du Lac City Manager Joe Moore, American Water Works Association-Wisconsin Section Chair and Kenosha Water Utility General Manager Curt Czarnecki, and Municipal Environmental Group-Wastewater Division Attorney Vanessa Wishart presented on the fundamentals of public water and wastewater utilities. Both sessions were very well attended and some great questions were asked by audience members.
If you attended the conference, please remember to fill out the post-event survey. While this yearâs event was excellent, weâre always looking to make next yearâs even better. Your feedback is crucial to make that happen! Also please remember to download any presentations youâd like to save from the link in the Whova app to ensure theyâre available for reference later.
Finally, everyone is encouraged to mark your calendars now! The League will be in Appleton from October 7th to the 9th for our 2026 Annual Fall Conference. We hope to see you there!
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Are You Prepared to Apply for an Innovation Grant?
In case you missed it, the Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR) officially launched the Innovation Grant Program application earlier this month! This program allows municipalities to receive grant funding to support the transfer of an allowable service or duty to another entity, public or private. The programâs eligible services or duties include:
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Emergency Services (receives priority in award distributions)
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Fire Protection (receives priority in award distributions)
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Law Enforcement (receives priority in award distributions)
- Administration, including staffing, payroll, and human resources
- Communications
- Courts
- Economic Development and Tourism
- Housing, Planning, and Zoning
- Information Technology
- Parks and Recreation
- Public Health
- Public Works
- Training
If one of the above services or duties were transferred to another entity with the agreement signed on or after November 13, 2024 for a minimum of three years, your municipality could be eligible. With significant changes in the most recent state budget, the cost of this transfer simply cannot exceed 115% of the total costs for that service or duty in the year prior to the agreement.
To take full advantage of the program, youâre encouraged to apply for this $300 million program now! First Round applications are due by March 31, 2026. DOR will distribute up to five annual payments through June 30, 2030, with each yearâs grant equal to 25% of the total costs of providing the service or duty in the year prior to the transfer.
More information may be found on DORâs website, including application instructions, a factsheet, answers to common questions, and project examples. If you missed the solution session on the Innovation Grant Program at the Leagueâs Fall Conference, the League will be hosting a webinar for members in the coming weeks. Details will be distributed soon.
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Recently Introduced Legislation of Municipal Importance
The following bills have been recently introduced in the Wisconsin State Legislature and have been added to the list of those being monitored by the League. Unless otherwise indicated, no formal position has been taken on these proposals to date.
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ï»żAssembly Bill (AB) 443: Municipal Court Fee Increases - Rep. Kaufert (R-Neenah) and Sen. Wanggaard (R-Racine) - Under current law, municipalities collect a fee of between $15 and $38 for municipal court actions. The range of allowable fees has not been raised for a decade. This legislation increases the maximum fees to $48.
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AB 442: Nomination Paper Circulation for Spring Elections - Rep. Ortiz-Velez (D-Milwaukee) and Sen. Carpenter (D-Milwaukee) - Currently, candidates for an office elected in the spring election may begin circulating nomination papers on December 1st. This legislation allows papers to begin circulating on November 16th.
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AB 439: Eligibility for the ARIP Program - Rep. Tranel (R-Cuba City) and Sen. Marklein (R-Spring Green) - The Agricultural Roads Improvement Program (ARIP), created last session, was reauthorized in this budget with $120 million for grants to improve local roads with agricultural traffic. Eligibility requirements limit access to roads with posted weight limits. This legislation expands eligibility to roads where an engineering analysis determines the road is unable to accommodate heavy agricultural traffic. The League worked with the Farm Bureau on this modification to the ARIP program to support more city and village roads that have processors or other entities integral to the agricultural supply chain.
| | âIf you would like to contact your legislators on any bills mentioned in the Legislative Bulletin, you can find contact information for all legislators here. To find out which legislators represent your community, use the "Find Your Legislator" function on the right side of the page. | | |
Government Affairs Team Receives Appointments
Your League Government Affairs Team represents municipalities throughout state government. This includes working with state agencies to promote the interests of cities and villages. To ensure we are able to proactively raise suggestions and address the concerns of municipalities, the League has recently sought and received appointments to three agency working groups.
Toni Herkert, League Government Affairs Director, has earned a gubernatorial appointment to serve as the municipal interests representative on the Department of Natural Resourcesâ (DNR) Wetland Study Council. Filling the vacancy recently created by the retirement of Paul Kent, partner at Stafford Rosenbaum, Toni will bring the city and village perspective on wetlands to this council, including their interplay with development, importance in flood prevention, and interaction with stormwater regulations.
Evan Miller, the League Government Affairs Specialist, has also received secretariesâ appointments for two working groups. This includes a spot on the DNRâs Urban Forestry Council and Wisconsin Department of Transportationâs Freight Advisory Committee.
Both Toni and Evan look forward to continuing to build professional relationships with agency staff and other stakeholders and promoting the communication necessary to best serve the interests of cities and villages of all sizes throughout Wisconsin.
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Agency Actions
League Comments on Lead and Copper Rule
Last week, the League submitted written comments to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on their proposed permanent administrative rule to update lead and copper requirements for public drinking water systems.
Cities and villages throughout the state have been proactive and made great strides in removing lead water infrastructure from their systems. Still, logistical and financial challenges have slowed the progress municipalities would like to see. While a hard deadline of 2037 for lead lateral removals is an admirable goal, these challenges will still exist, which is why federal regulators have announced they will be developing âpractical implementation flexibilities.â
While Wisconsin does not have the ability to adopt standards any less stringent than the federal government, it does have the capacity to adopt stricter standards. Once stricter standards are in place, they cannot be tempered. Toni Herkert, League Government Affairs Director, encouraged the DNR to ensure that any tools and flexibility granted federally are adopted in Wisconsin and that language is added to this proposed rule that affirms this commitment from the DNR.
The Leagueâs comments on the DNRâs proposed updates to the Lead and Copper Rule may be read here. It is expected that the DNR will propose adoption of the final rule before the Natural Resources Board in December or January.
LRIP and ARIP Program Applications
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) has announced two funding opportunities for municipal governments to complete local road projects.
The Local Roads Improvement Program (LRIP) reimburses local governments for the cost of reconstructing deteriorating roads. The Entitlement and Discretionary Programs fund up to 50% of eligible costs and have roughly $70 million available this biennium, while the Supplemental Program funds up to 90% of eligible costs and has $100 million available this biennium.
Applications for LRIP are due to County Highway Commissioners by November 1st with their submissions to WisDOT due by January 15th. All projects for reimbursement must be completed by June 30, 2031. Information on this competitive but important funding opportunity, including a recent program webinar and slides, are available on WisDOTâs website.
The Agricultural Roads Improvement Program (ARIP) funds local road projects that provide access to lands or facilities used to produce agricultural goods. $50 million is available in the first round, with the solicitation opening on October 6th and applications due by December 15th. More information on the program eligibility is available on WisDOTâs website.
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