LRB-0176/2
GMM:wlj:pg
2007 - 2008 LEGISLATURE
April 23, 2007 - Introduced by Representative Nass, cosponsored by Senator
Vinehout, by request of the Educational Approval Board. Referred to
Committee on Colleges and Universities.
AB281,2,8 1An Act to repeal 37.60, 38.50 (1) (b), 38.50 (1) (e) 6., 38.50 (1) (e) 7., 38.50 (1) (e)
28., 38.50 (7) (b), 38.50 (8) (h), 38.50 (8) (i), 38.50 (10) (title), 38.50 (11) (a) 1. and
338.50 (11) (b) 2.; to renumber 38.50 (title), 38.50 (1) (d), 38.50 (7) (i), 38.50 (8)
4(c) 2., 38.50 (8) (c) 7., 38.50 (8) (d), 38.50 (8) (e), 38.50 (10) (c) (intro.), 38.50 (10)
5(c) 4. and 38.50 (11) (title); to renumber and amend 38.50 (1) (intro.), 38.50
6(1) (a), 38.50 (1) (c), 38.50 (1) (e) (intro.), 38.50 (1) (e) 1., 38.50 (1) (e) 2., 38.50
7(1) (e) 3., 38.50 (1) (e) 4., 38.50 (1) (e) 5., 38.50 (1) (f), 38.50 (1) (g), 38.50 (2), 38.50
8(3), 38.50 (5), 38.50 (7) (intro.), 38.50 (7) (a), 38.50 (7) (c), 38.50 (7) (d), 38.50 (7)
9(e), 38.50 (7) (f), 38.50 (7) (g), 38.50 (7) (h), 38.50 (8) (title), 38.50 (8) (a), 38.50
10(8) (b), 38.50 (8) (c) (intro.), 38.50 (8) (c) 1., 38.50 (8) (c) 3., 38.50 (8) (c) 4., 38.50
11(8) (c) 5., 38.50 (8) (c) 6., 38.50 (8) (f), 38.50 (8) (g), 38.50 (10) (a), 38.50 (10) (b),
1238.50 (10) (c) (title), 38.50 (10) (c) 1., 38.50 (10) (c) 2., 38.50 (10) (c) 3., 38.50 (10)
13(cm), 38.50 (10) (d), 38.50 (10) (e), 38.50 (10) (f), 38.50 (11) (a) (intro.), 38.50 (11)
14(a) 2., 38.50 (11) (a) 3., 38.50 (11) (b) 1., 38.50 (11) (c) and 38.50 (11) (d); to amend

120.292 (2) (g), 20.292 (2) (gm), 20.292 (2) (i), 29.506 (7m) (a), 45.20 (1) (d), 45.20
2(2) (a) 1., 45.20 (2) (a) 2. (intro.), 45.20 (2) (c) 1., 45.20 (2) (d) 1. (intro.), 45.21 (2)
3(a), 71.05 (6) (b) 28. (intro.), 182.028, 460.05 (1) (e) 1., 944.21 (8) (b) 3. a. and
4948.11 (4) (b) 3. a.; to repeal and recreate 20.292 (2) (g); and to create 37.01
5(2), 37.01 (6) (f), 37.10 (2) to (6), 37.15, 37.35 (2), 37.35 (3) (c), (d), (e) and (g),
637.35 (8), 37.40 (title), 37.45 and 37.50 of the statutes; relating to: the
7purposes, authority, and responsibilities of the Educational Approval Board
8and the regulation of schools by that board.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Under current law, the Educational Approval Board (EAB) is required to
protect the general public by inspecting and approving private trade,
correspondence, business, and technical schools, changes of ownership or control of
those schools, teaching locations used by those schools, and courses of instruction
offered by those schools and by regulating the soliciting of students for courses and
courses of instruction offered by those schools. In particular, the EAB is required to
perform certain actions to protect students, prevent fraud, and encourage generally
accepted educational standards at those schools. Those actions include requiring
schools offering courses and courses of instruction to residents of this state to furnish
information concerning their facilities, curricula, instructors, enrollment policies,
tuition and other charges and fees, refund policies, and policies concerning the
negotiability of promissory instruments received in payment of tuition and other
charges.
Current law also prohibits a solicitor representing any school from soliciting
students for a course or course of instruction for a consideration or remuneration,
except upon the actual business premises of the school, unless the solicitor first
secures a solicitor's permit from the EAB and includes provisions relating to
application and issuance of solicitor's permits, refusal or revocation of those permits,
and consequences for soliciting students without a permit. Moreover, current law
permits the EAB to indemnify a student, parent, or sponsor from an appropriation
commonly referred to as the student protection fund, if a school closure results in
losses to the student, parent, or sponsor. Finally, current law permits the EAB or the
Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (WAICU) to take
possession of the student records of a school that has discontinued its operations, is
proposing to discontinue its operations, or is in imminent danger of discontinuing its
operations, if the records are in danger of being destroyed, secreted, mislaid, or
otherwise being made unavailable to the person who is the subject of the record.

This bill moves the powers and duties of the EAB from a chapter of the statutes
relating to the technical college system to its own newly created chapter, reorganizes
those powers and duties, and makes various substantive changes with respect to
those powers and duties. Specifically, the bill does the following:
1. Purposes. Specifies that the purposes of the EAB are to protect the general
public and to support quality educational options and requires the EAB to
accomplish those purposes by doing all of the following:
a. Evaluating and approving schools, which the bill redefines to mean, subject
to certain exceptions, any individual, partnership, association, corporation, or
limited liability company, whether located within or outside this state, that offers,
maintains, provides, or conducts for a fee a course of study that provides practical
or academic instruction, education, or training leading to a diploma, certificate, or
other indicia that a student has acquired knowledge or skills (program), including
any private trade, technical, career, distance learning, or degree-granting school.
b. Collecting and disseminating outcome and satisfaction information for the
students of schools.
c. Performing annual reviews of schools.
d. Conducting regular on-site evaluations of schools.
e. Holding schools accountable for improving their performance and
effectiveness.
f. Supporting options for innovative and quality programs offered by schools.
2. Accountability. Requires the EAB to develop, periodically review, and, if
appropriate, revise a strategic plan that includes specific goals, objectives, and
measurable results and to use the strategic plan to evaluate annually its
performance and effectiveness.
3. Authority. Requires the EAB to approve schools, programs, changes of
ownership or control of schools, teaching locations used by schools, and school
representatives who, in places other than a school, attempt to secure the enrollment
of students in the school that meet the requirements and standards established by
the EAB and that comply with rules promulgated by the EAB.
4. Responsibility. Requires the EAB to perform certain actions to hold schools
accountable for achieving satisfactory student outcomes and to ensure that
programs meet generally accepted educational, occupational, and industry
standards, including establishing standards and criteria for approving schools
offering programs that are delivered primarily by distance learning and requiring
a school, prior to enrolling a student who is a resident of this state, to provide the
student with a catalog that includes information about the following:
a. The school's mission, facilities, programs, and instructors.
b. The school's policies concerning enrollment and admissions, academic
progress, and student conduct.
c. Student services, including employment assistance services, the school
provides.
d. The school's complaint procedures.
e. Student outcome and satisfaction information.

f. The school's fees, refund policies, and policies concerning the negotiability of
promissory instruments received in payment of fees.
g. Any other information the EAB considers necessary to hold schools
accountable for achieving satisfactory student outcomes and to ensure that
programs meet generally accepted educational, occupational, and industry
standards.
5. Reporting. Requires an approved school to submit annually to the EAB all
of the following:
a. Information about the school as prescribed by the EAB, including a current
school catalog, an enrollment contract, if one is used, copies of advertising used by
the school, and financial information as the EAB considers necessary.
b. Student satisfaction and outcome information, including information on the
number of students from the prior year who are continuing in the current year, the
number of new students starting in the current year, the number of students who
have dropped out or withdrawn since the prior year, the number of students who are
anticipated to continue next year, the number of students completing a program, the
number of completers successfully employed, and such other information as the EAB
considers necessary.
c. A report on the school's progress in achieving the goals of its institutional
plan.
6. Recruiting. Deletes, effective 24 months after the date of publication of the
bill, the statutory provisions relating to solicitor's permits, but retains among the
responsibilities of EAB regulation of the recruiting of students and the issuing of
permits to school representatives.
7. Student protection fund. Permits the EAB to pursue any legal action it
considers necessary to recover any losses paid from the student protection fund.
8. Student records. Eliminates the authority of WAICU to take possession
of the student records of a school that has discontinued its operations, is proposing
to discontinue its operations, or is in imminent danger of discontinuing its
operations.
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:
AB281, s. 1 1Section 1. 20.292 (2) (g) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB281,5,22 20.292 (2) (g) Proprietary Approval of school programs. The amounts in the
3schedule for the examination and approval of proprietary school programs under ch.
437
. Ninety percent of all moneys received from the issuance of solicitor's

1representative's permits under s. 38.50 (8) 37.60 and from the fees under s. 38.50 (10)
237.40 (3) (c) shall be credited to this appropriation account.
AB281, s. 2 3Section 2. 20.292 (2) (g) of the statutes, as affected by 2007 Wisconsin Act ....
4(this act), is repealed and recreated to read:
AB281,5,85 20.292 (2) (g) Approval of school programs. The amounts in the schedule for
6the examination and approval of school programs under ch. 37. Ninety percent of all
7moneys received from the fees under s. 37.40 (3) (c) shall be credited to this
8appropriation account.
AB281, s. 3 9Section 3. 20.292 (2) (gm) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB281,5,1510 20.292 (2) (gm) Student protection. All moneys received from fees received
11under s. 38.50 (10) (c) 4. 37.40 (3) (d) and from amounts recovered under s. 37.50 (1),
12for the purpose of indemnifying students, parents, or sponsors under s. 38.50 (10) (a)
1337.50 (1) and for the purpose of preserving under s. 38.50 (11) 37.55 the students
14records of schools, as defined in s. 38.50 (11) (a) 2. 37.55 (1) (a), that have discontinued
15their operations.
AB281, s. 4 16Section 4. 20.292 (2) (i) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB281,5,2117 20.292 (2) (i) Closed schools; preservation of student records. All moneys
18received from fees collected under s. 38.50 (11) (d) 37.55 (4) to be used for the
19administrative costs of taking possession of, preserving, and providing copies of
20student records of schools, as defined in s. 38.50 (11) (a) 2. 37.55 (1) (a), that have
21discontinued their operations.
AB281, s. 5 22Section 5. 29.506 (7m) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB281,6,223 29.506 (7m) (a) The department shall issue a taxidermy school permit to a
24person who applies for the permit; who, on August 15, 1991, holds held a valid
25taxidermist permit issued under this section; and who, on August 15, 1991, operates

1operated a taxidermy school approved by the educational approval board under s.
238.50 38.51, 1991 stats.
AB281, s. 6 3Section 6. 37.01 (2) of the statutes is created to read:
AB281,6,54 37.01 (2) "Fee" means an application fee, a fee charged for tuition, books, or
5materials, or any other fee charged to attend a school.
AB281, s. 7 6Section 7. 37.01 (6) (f) of the statutes is created to read:
AB281,6,87 37.01 (6) (f) A school that another state agency or board is expressly authorized
8by statute to approve and supervise.
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