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AB994: Bill Text
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2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE
LRB-5745/1
MED:cjs
2025 ASSEMBLY BILL 994
January 30, 2026 - Introduced by Representatives
Hurd
,
B. Jacobson
,
Armstrong
,
Behnke
,
Brooks
,
Gundrum
,
Knodl
,
Kreibich
,
Moses
,
Murphy
,
Neylon
,
O'Connor
,
Spiros
,
Tucker
,
Tusler
and
Wichgers
, cosponsored by Senator
Jacque
. Referred to Committee on Government Operations, Accountability, and Transparency.
AB994,1,9
1
An Act
to repeal
227.26 (4) (title) and 227.26 (4) (a);
to renumber
227.29 (1)
2
(b) to (e);
to renumber and amend
227.111 (1), 227.111 (2), 227.26 (4) (b),
3
227.26 (4) (c), 227.29 (1) (intro.), 227.29 (1) (a), 227.29 (2) and 227.29 (3);
to
4
amend
35.93 (2) (b) 3. gm., 227.135 (2) and 227.29 (4) (c) 2.;
to create
35.93 (2)
5
(b) 7., 227.111 (1) (a), 227.111 (2) (a), 227.263 (title), 227.29 (1c) (intro.), 227.29
6
(1g) (b) and 227.29 (1g) (d) of the statutes;
relating to:
review by state
7
agencies of administrative rules and enactments; an expedited process for
8
repealing rules an agency no longer has the authority to promulgate; and the
9
rule-making authority of certain agencies.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill modifies biennial reporting requirements for agencies on administrative rules, restricts agencies from promulgating rules if they are delinquent in complying with the reporting requirement, and expands the availability of an expedited, alternative rule-making process that can be used to repeal certain rules.
Current law requires each agency with any rules published in the code to biennially submit a report to the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules (JCRAR) listing all of the following rules promulgated or otherwise administered by that agency:
1. “Unauthorized rules,” which are defined as rules that an agency lacks the authority to promulgate due to the repeal or amendment of the law that previously authorized their promulgation.
2. Rules for which the authority to promulgate has been restricted.
3. Rules that are obsolete or that have been rendered unnecessary.
4. Rules that are duplicative of, superseded by, or in conflict with another rule, a state statute, a federal statute or regulation, or a court ruling.
5. Economically burdensome rules.
Current law also allows for the use of an expedited repeal process for unauthorized rules, as defined above, whereby an agency can repeal an unauthorized rule without needing to use the full rule-making process. Under the expedited repeal process, an agency can petition JCRAR to repeal the unauthorized rule, and, if JCRAR approves the petition, the agency may then repeal the rule by filing the final rule with the Legislative Reference Bureau.
This bill makes a number of changes to these and related provisions, including the following:
1. The bill provides that an agency that is delinquent with its biennial reporting requirement is restricted from taking any action with respect to the promulgation of any rules until the agency submits its delinquent report.
2. The bill requires an agency, before preparing its biennial rules report, to hold a public hearing and solicit public comment from the public on rules promulgated or otherwise administered by that agency that may satisfy any of the above criteria. The agency must then take that feedback into account before finalizing its biennial rules report.
3. The bill allows an agency to use the expedited repeal process to repeal any rule listed in its biennial rules report, subject to approval by JCRAR.
For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
AB994,1
1
Section
1
.
35.93 (2) (b) 3. gm. of the statutes is amended to read:
AB994,2,3
2
35.93
(2)
(b) 3. gm. Petitions and proposed rules submitted under s.
227.26 (4)
3
(b) 1.
227.263 (1) (a).
AB994,2
4
Section
2
.
35.93 (2) (b) 7. of the statutes is created to read:
AB994,2,5
5
35.93
(2)
(b) 7. Reports from agencies under s. 227.29 (1g) (d).
AB994,3
1
Section
3
.
227.111 (1) of the statutes is renumbered 227.111 (1) (intro.) and
2
amended to read:
AB994,3,4
3
227.111
(1)
(intro.) In this section, “restricted agency” means
an
all of the
4
following:
AB994,3,8
5
(b) An
affiliated credentialing board, as defined in s. 15.01 (1g), a board, as
6
defined in s. 15.01 (1r), a commission, as defined in s. 15.01 (2), or an examining
7
board, as defined in s. 15.01 (7), that has not taken any action under this
8
subchapter with respect to the promulgation of a rule in 10 years or more.
AB994,4
9
Section
4
.
227.111 (1) (a) of the statutes is created to read:
AB994,3,11
10
227.111
(1)
(a) An agency that is delinquent in complying with the
11
requirements under s. 227.29 (1g).
AB994,5
12
Section
5
.
227.111 (2) of the statutes is renumbered 227.111 (2) (b) and
13
amended to read:
AB994,3,18
14
227.111
(2)
(b) Notwithstanding ss. 227.10 and 227.11 and any other
15
provision authorizing or requiring a restricted agency to promulgate rules
,
16
including par. (a)
, a restricted agency
described in sub. (1) (b)
may not take any
17
action with respect to the promulgation of a rule unless a subsequent law
18
specifically authorizes such action.
AB994,6
19
Section
6
.
227.111 (2) (a) of the statutes is created to read:
AB994,3,24
20
227.111
(2)
(a) Notwithstanding ss. 227.10 and 227.11 and any other
21
provision authorizing or requiring a restricted agency to promulgate rules, a
22
restricted agency described in sub. (1) (a) may not take any action with respect to
23
the promulgation of a rule until the agency submits its delinquent report under s.
24
227.29 (1g).
AB994,7
1
Section
7
.
227.135 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB994,4,22
2
227.135
(2)
An agency that has prepared a statement of the scope of the
3
proposed rule shall present the statement to the department of administration,
4
which shall make a determination as to whether the agency has the explicit
5
authority to promulgate the rule as proposed in the statement of scope and shall
6
report the statement of scope and its determination to the governor who, in his or
7
her discretion, may approve or reject the statement of scope. The agency may not
8
send the statement to the legislative reference bureau for publication under sub. (3)
9
until the governor issues a written notice of approval of the statement. The agency
10
shall also present the statement to the individual or body with policy-making
11
powers over the subject matter of the proposed rule for approval. The individual or
12
body with policy-making powers may not approve the statement until at least 10
13
days after publication of the statement under sub. (3) and, if a preliminary public
14
hearing and comment period are held by the agency under s. 227.136, until the
15
individual or body has received and reviewed any public comments and feedback
16
received from the agency under s. 227.136 (5). No state employee or official may
17
perform any activity in connection with the drafting of a proposed rule, except for
18
an activity necessary to prepare the statement of the scope of the proposed rule
19
until the governor and the individual or body with policy-making powers over the
20
subject matter of the proposed rule approve the statement. This subsection does
21
not prohibit an agency from performing an activity necessary to prepare a petition
22
and proposed rule for submission under s.
227.26 (4)
227.263
.
AB994,8
23
Section
8
.
227.26 (4) (title) of the statutes is repealed.
AB994,9
24
Section
9
.
227.26 (4) (a) of the statutes is repealed.
AB994,10
1
Section
10
.
227.26 (4) (b) of the statutes is renumbered 227.263 (1), and
2
227.263 (1) (intro.), (a), (b) and (c) (intro.), 1. and 3. as renumbered, are amended to
3
read:
AB994,5,9
4
227.263
(1)
(intro.) Notwithstanding ss. 227.114 to 227.117 and 227.135 to
5
227.19, an agency
that promulgated or that otherwise administers a rule that the
6
agency determines is an unauthorized rule shall
may
petition the joint committee
7
for review of administrative rules for authorization to repeal
that
a
rule
that the
8
agency has determined in its report submitted under s. 227.19 (1g) (d) to be a
9
qualifying rule, as defined under s. 227.29 (1c),
by using the following process:
AB994,5,19
10
(a) The agency shall submit a petition with a proposed rule that repeals the
11
rule
the agency has determined is an unauthorized rule
to the legislative council
12
staff for review. The proposed rule shall be in the form required under s. 227.14 (1)
13
and shall include the material required under s. 227.14 (2) (a) 1., 2., and 7. and a
14
statement that the agency is petitioning the joint committee for review of
15
administrative rules to use the process under this
subsection
section
to repeal a
16
rule
that
the agency has determined to be
an unauthorized rule
a qualifying rule,
17
as defined under s. 227.29 (1c)
. The agency shall also send an electronic copy of the
18
petition and the proposed rule to the legislative reference bureau, in a format
19
approved by the legislative reference bureau, for publication in the register.
AB994,6,3
20
(b) The legislative council staff shall review the petition and proposed rule in
21
accordance with s. 227.15 (2) and submit to the joint committee for review of
22
administrative rules the petition and proposed rule with a written report including
23
a statement of its determination as to whether the
proposed rule proposes to repeal
24
an unauthorized
rule
to be repealed is a qualifying rule, as defined under s. 227.29
1
(1c)
. The legislative council staff shall send the agency a copy of its report with an
2
indication of the date on which the petition and proposed rule were submitted to the
3
committee.
AB994,6,7
4
(c) (intro.) Following receipt of the petition and proposed rule submitted by
5
the legislative council staff under
subd. 2.
par. (b)
, the joint committee for review of
6
administrative rules shall review the petition and proposed rule and may do any of
7
the following:
AB994,6,10
8
1. Approve the agency’s petition if the committee determines that the
9
proposed rule would repeal
an unauthorized
a qualifying
rule
, as defined under s.
10
227.29 (1c)
.
AB994,6,12
11
3. Request that the agency make changes to the proposed rule and resubmit
12
the petition and proposed rule under
subd. 1
par. (a)
.
AB994,11
13
Section
11
.
227.26 (4) (c) of the statutes is renumbered 227.263 (2) and
14
amended to read:
AB994,6,19
15
227.263
(2)
If the joint committee for review of administrative rules approves
16
a petition to repeal
an unauthorized
a
rule
as provided in par. (b) 3. a.
under sub. (1)
17
(c) 1.
, the agency shall promulgate the proposed rule by filing a certified copy of the
18
rule with the legislative reference bureau under s. 227.20, together with a copy of
19
the committee’s decision.
AB994,12
20
Section
12
.
227.263 (title) of the statutes is created to read:
AB994,6,21
21
227.263
(title)
Expedited rule-making process.
AB994,13
22
Section
13
.
227.29 (1) (intro.) of the statutes is renumbered 227.29 (1g)
23
(intro.) and amended to read:
AB994,7,2
24
227.29
(1g)
(intro.) By March 31 of each odd-numbered year, each agency with
1
any rules published in the code shall
submit a report to the joint committee for
2
review of administrative rules listing all of the following
do all of the following:
AB994,7,4
3
(a) Review those
rules promulgated or otherwise administered by that agency
:
4
and identify those rules that the agency determines may be qualifying rules.
AB994,14
5
Section
14
.
227.29 (1) (a) of the statutes is renumbered 227.29 (1c) (a) and
6
amended to read:
AB994,7,10
7
227.29
(1c)
(a)
Unauthorized rules, as defined in s. 227.26 (4) (a)
Rules that
8
the agency lacks the authority to promulgate due to the repeal or amendment of the
9
laws that previously authorized their promulgation
, together with a description of
10
the legislation that eliminated the agency’s authority to promulgate any such rule.
AB994,15
11
Section
15
.
227.29 (1) (b) to (e) of the statutes are renumbered 227.29 (1c) (b)
12
to (e).
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