Gov. Tony Evers speaks to FOX 11 during his visit to the Boys and Girls Club of Menasha July 19, 2023. PC: Fox 11 Online
(WTAQ-WLUK) — Governor Tony Evers continued a busy few days in April signing another 7 bills into law. The bills cover issues ranging from railroad maintenance, expanding penalties to 911 false reporting to include false text messages, and expanding the crime of disarming a peace officer.
A full list is below:
Assembly Bill 373, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 241:
- Creates a nonrefundable individual income tax credit for parents of a stillborn child equal to $2,000 for each birth that occurs in Wisconsin that results in a stillbirth, providing a small amount of financial relief to help parents of a stillborn child afford expenses associated with the stillbirth.
Assembly Bill 219, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 242:
- Ensures Wisconsin’s operating railroads, half of which are Class III railroads, are properly maintained and improved to meet industry standards by creating an income and franchise rail infrastructure modernization tax credit equal to 50 percent of the expenditures for certain railroad improvements, such as constructing new track;
- Creates a railroad maintenance tax credit equal to 50 percent of the expenditures for maintenance costs, such as improvements to switches or safety barriers, and the wages paid to employees or third-party labor for such activities;
- Specifies that both credits are available for taxable years beginning after Dec. 31, 2025, and before Jan. 1, 2031; and
- Specifies that Class II and Class III railroads and local governments may apply for the modernization tax credit and limits eligibility for the maintenance credit to just Class II and Class III railroads.
Senate Bill 575, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 243:
- Expands the healthcare provider costs that are eligible for reimbursement under the sexual assault forensic examination compensation program to include human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prophylaxis, supporting crime victims by removing a financial barrier to getting treatment that they may need and reducing the risk of HIV transmission.
Senate Bill 533, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 244:
- Expands the current crime of disarming a peace officer to include disarming a correctional officer;
- Defines a “correctional officer” as:
- A person employed by the state or local government as a guard or officer whose duties are supervising and disciplining inmates; and
- A juvenile correctional officer employed by certain parties whose principal duty is supervising juveniles held in a juvenile detention facility, juvenile correctional facility or secured residential care center for children and youth.
- Defines “equipment” as an item issued to or used by a correctional officer for their duties and is designed or intended to be used to cause bodily harm, restrain or incapacitate, or that could be used by the officer to communicate with others, seek assistance, or enter locked areas.
Senate Bill 782, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 245:
- Extends the penalty for dialing 911 to falsely report an emergency to also apply to falsely sending a text message to 911.
Senate Bill 884, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 246:
- Expands the admissibility of recorded statements from children into evidence by increasing the child’s age and adjusting the reference date for when the recording is made, aligning the evidentiary rules with more trauma-informed practices while preserving existing due process protections, and further, creates more consistency across statutes to recognize that 16- and 17-year-olds are children.
Governor Evers also took action on Assembly Bill 601, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 247. That bill legalizes online sports betting in Wisconsin. It makes Wisconsin the 33rd state in the U.S. to allow online sports betting. It requires the infrastructure to place online bets be placed on tribal lands. All 11 federally recognized tribes in Wisconsin are in negotiations over how to implement the new law.
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