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Bills Signed into Law, and a Bill to Watch

BILLS SIGNED INTO LAW

Senate Bill 373, now Wisconsin Act 89, which relates to making school-district and school financial information available to the public. The law requires the Department of Public Instruction to create an online portal, available beginning in the 2023-24 school year, that displays financial data collected from all school districts, county children with disabilities education boards, and independent charter schools. 

The law also creates an 11-person advisory committee to develop a report of recommendations to the department by Feb. 1, 2023, that includes recommendations about the categories of information that will be accessible to the public through the portal and the resources necessary to implement and maintain the portal.  

Nine other bills were signed into law: Assembly Bill 132, now Wisconsin Act 81, relates to immunization-related mail; Assembly Bill 190, now Wisconsin Act 82, relates to the Law Enforcement Standards Board and disclosure of employment files when recruiting former or current officers; Assembly Bill 220, now Wisconsin Act 83, relates to providing information about educational options offered in a school district; Assembly Bill 270, now Wisconsin Act 84, relates to marriage and marriage-document requirements; Assembly Bill 300, now Wisconsin Act 85, relates to deadlines for certain Public Service Commission actions; Assembly Bill 302, now Wisconsin Act 86, relates to water-utility meter installation or replacement projects; Assembly Bill 325, now Wisconsin Act 87, adopts the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act as approved by the Uniform Law Commission; Senate Bill 103, now Wisconsin Act 88, relates to Medicaid reimbursement for certain complex rehabilitation technology prescribed to residents in nursing homes; Senate Bill 555, now Wisconsin Act 90, adds required content regarding the Safe Haven law to school-district curricula on human growth and development if a school board provides such an instructional program. 

BILL TO WATCH

Senate Bill 462/Assembly Bill 439: Currently, the Wisconsin Motor Vehicle Dealer Law generally prohibits the direct sale of a motor vehicle by a manufacturer to a consumer. Another prohibition that the Dealer Law places upon a manufacturer of a motor vehicle is that such manufacturers may not perform warranty service or delivery and preparation work on a motor vehicle they do not own.

This bill would enable Wisconsin consumers to purchase electric vehicles (EVs) directly from the manufacturer, as is the case in approximately 34 other states. Additionally, the bill would put Wisconsin in a much stronger position to attract a major EV manufacturing operation, according to the bill’s author, Sen. Dale Kooyenga (R-Brookfield). 

The bill also creates an exception to the Dealer Law to allow a manufacturer of electric vehicles to perform warranty service as well as delivery and preparation work on any EV it produced. The bill spells out certain criteria that a manufacturer of an EV must satisfy in order to sell its electric vehicles, or perform warranty service, delivery and preparation work on the EVs it produced. The manufacturer must only manufacture EVs, cannot be a subsidiary and must be engaged in the business of distributing EVs in the United States.