SB715: Bill Text

2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE

LRB-5486/1

MJW:cjs&cdc

2025 SENATE BILL 715

December 2, 2025 - Introduced by Senators Roys and Larson, cosponsored by Representatives Phelps, Madison, Hong, Arney, Clancy, Tenorio, Bare, Joers, Moore Omokunde, Sinicki, Stroud, Stubbs and Udell. Referred to Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety.

SB715,1,4 An Act to repeal 20.410 (1) (ac); to create 20.410 (1) (ac), 301.03 (16m), 302.075 and 302.076 of the statutes; relating to: climate control in state correctional institutions and county jails and houses of correction and making an appropriation.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill requires the warden or superintendent of a state correctional institution or the county sheriff or person in charge of a county jail or house of correction to ensure that the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning in the state correctional institution or county jail or house of correction are in working order and to ensure that the temperature in each housing unit is not less than 68 degrees Fahrenheit and not more than 76 degrees Fahrenheit at all times. The bill also requires the warden or superintendent of a state correctional institution or the county sheriff or person in charge of a county jail or house of correction to record the temperatures in all housing facility common areas and two random cells located in substantially different areas of each housing unit on any day that the outdoor temperature is below 10 degrees Fahrenheit or above 90 degrees Fahrenheit and requires the Department of Corrections to report that temperature data to the legislature on an annual basis.

The bill applies the temperature requirements in the bill to one-third of state correctional institutions on May 1, 2029; another one-third on May 1, 2031, and the final one-third of state correctional institutions and the county jails on May 1, 2035 and directs DOC to determine the order in which to install heating, ventilation, or air conditioning systems in the state correctional institutions to meet those deadlines and report that information to the legislature. This bill provides $500,000 to DOC in the 2025-26 fiscal year to complete the required report, $750,000 and 7.0 FTE positions to DOC in each year of the 2025-27 fiscal biennium to support updates to correctional institution heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, and provides a new $65,000,000 continuing appropriation beginning in the 2026-27 fiscal year to install and operate heating, ventilation, and air conditioning in state correctional institutions as required under the bill, which sunsets on May 1, 2031.

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:

SB715,1 Section 1. 20.005 (3) (schedule) of the statutes: at the appropriate place, insert the following amounts for the purposes indicated:

- See PDF for table

SB715,2 Section 2. 20.410 (1) (ac) of the statutes is created to read:

SB715,2,11 20.410 (1) (ac) Institutional heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. As a continuing appropriation, the amounts in the schedule to install and operate heating, ventilation, or air conditioning systems required under s. 302.075 (1).

SB715,3 Section 3. 20.410 (1) (ac) of the statutes, as affected by 2025 Wisconsin Act .... (this act), is repealed.

SB715,4 Section 4. 301.03 (16m) of the statutes is created to read:

SB715,3,4 301.03 (16m) (a) Submit to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the appropriate standing committees under s. 13.172 (3) an annual report containing state correctional institution and county jail and house of correction temperature data from the following sources:

SB715,3,6 1. The state correctional institution temperature data recorded under s. 302.075 (2).

SB715,3,8 2. The county jail and house of correction temperature data recorded under s. 302.076 (2).

SB715,3,15 (b) The department shall furnish each sheriff or person in charge of a county jail or house of correction with instructions that specify the information that is required to be reported under par. (a), a simple format in which to submit the information, the time it is to be forwarded, the process for submitting it, the method of classifying it, and any other matters that facilitate collection and compilation. The format provided under this paragraph shall, to the greatest extent feasible, minimize the time required by each person to submit the required information.

SB715,5 Section 5. 302.075 of the statutes is created to read:

SB715,3,21 302.075 Prison climate control. (1) The warden or superintendent shall ensure that the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning in the state correctional institution are in working order and shall ensure that the temperature in each housing unit of the state correctional institution is not less than 68 degrees Fahrenheit and not more than 76 degrees Fahrenheit at all times.

SB715,4,2 (2) On any day that the outdoor temperature is below 10 degrees Fahrenheit or above 90 degrees Fahrenheit, the warden or superintendent shall record the temperatures in all of the following areas of the state correctional institution:

SB715,4,3 (a) On each level, every housing facility common area.

SB715,4,5 (b) In each housing unit, two random cells that are located in substantially different areas of the housing unit.

SB715,6 Section 6. 302.076 of the statutes is created to read:

SB715,4,12 302.076 Climate control in a county jail or house of correction. (1) The sheriff or person in charge of a county jail or house of correction shall ensure that the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning in the county jail or house of correction are in working order and shall ensure that the temperature in each housing unit of the county jail or house of correction is not less than 68 degrees Fahrenheit and not more than 76 degrees Fahrenheit at all times.

SB715,4,16 (2) On any day that the outdoor temperature is below 10 degrees Fahrenheit or above 90 degrees Fahrenheit, the sheriff or person in charge of the county jail or house of correction shall record the temperatures in all of the following areas of the county jail or house of correction:

SB715,4,17 (a) On each level, every housing facility common area.

SB715,4,19 (b) In each housing unit, two random cells that are located in substantially different areas of the housing unit.

SB715,7 Section 7. Nonstatutory provisions.

SB715,4,23 (1) The department of corrections shall determine the order in which to install heating, ventilation, or air conditioning in the state correctional institutions to meet the requirements under s. 302.075 (1), as follows:

SB715,5,3 (a) The department of corrections shall identify one-third of the state correctional institutions in which to install heating, ventilation, or air conditioning by May 1, 2029.

SB715,5,6 (b) The department of corrections shall identify one-third of the state correctional institutions in which to install heating, ventilation, or air conditioning by May 1, 2031.

SB715,5,9 (c) The department of corrections shall identify one-third of the state correctional institutions in which to install heating, ventilation, or air conditioning by May 1, 2035.

SB715,5,18 (2) No later than the first day of the 13th month following the effective date of this subsection, the department of corrections shall submit to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the appropriate standing committees in the manner provided under s. 13.172 (3), a report describing how the department will prioritize modification of the state correctional facilities as required under sub. (1) to meet the temperature requirements under s. 302.075 (1) and identifying strategies to meet the heating and cooling needs of inmates prior to the deadlines under sub. (1), including using mobile water misters, issuing weather appropriate garments, and providing ice.

SB715,8 Section 8. Fiscal changes.

SB715,6,2 (1) Report on modifications to heating, ventilation, and air conditioning in state correctional institutions. In the schedule under s. 20.005 (3) for the appropriation to the department of corrections under s. 20.410 (1) (a), the dollar amount for fiscal year 2025-26 is increased by $500,000 to complete the report required under Section 7 (2) of this act.

SB715,6,13 (2) Additional positions relating to heating, ventilation, and air conditioning in state correctional institutions. In the schedule under s. 20.005 (3) for the appropriation to the department of corrections under s. 20.410 (1) (a), the dollar amount for fiscal year 2025-26 is increased by $750,000 to increase the authorized FTE positions for the department by 7.0 GPR positions, which shall include 2.0 engineer positions, 4.0 project manager positions, and 1.0 budget analyst position to support updates to correctional institution heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. In the schedule under s. 20.005 (3) for the appropriation to the department of corrections under s. 20.410 (1) (a), the dollar amount for fiscal year 2026-27 is increased by $750,000 to provide funding for the positions authorized under this subsection.

SB715,9 Section 9. Initial applicability.

SB715,6,17 (1) The treatment of s. 302.075 (1) first applies to the state correctional institutions identified by the department of corrections under Section 7 (1) (a) of this act on May 1, 2029.

SB715,6,20 (2) The treatment of s. 302.075 (1) first applies to the state correctional institutions identified by the department of corrections under Section 7 (1) (b) of this act on May 1, 2031.

SB715,6,23 (3) The treatment of s. 302.075 (1) first applies to the state correctional institutions identified by the department of corrections under Section 7 (1) (c) of this act on May 1, 2035.

SB715,10 Section 10. Effective dates. This act takes effect on the day after publication, except as follows:

SB715,7,3 (1) The treatment of s. 302.076 (1) takes effect on May 1, 2035.

SB715,7,4 (2) The repeal of s. 20.410 (1) (ac) takes effect on May 1, 2031.

SB715,7,5 (end)