SB752: Bill Text

2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE

LRB-5193/1

ARG:cdc

2025 SENATE BILL 752

December 12, 2025 - Introduced by Senators Cabral-Guevara, Hesselbein, Carpenter, Keyeski, Larson, Ratcliff, Roys, Spreitzer and L. Johnson, cosponsored by Representatives Behnke, Joers, Anderson, DeSmidt, Goodwin, Gundrum, Kaufert, Knodl, Kreibich, McCarville, Piwowarczyk, Snodgrass, Stroud, Subeck and Udell. Referred to Committee on Financial Institutions and Sporting Heritage.

SB752,1,3 An Act to amend 224.50 (2) (a) and 224.50 (3) (bm); to create 69.20 (3) (b) 6. and 224.50 (3m) of the statutes; relating to: creating a WisKids savings account program within the college savings program.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill creates a WisKids savings account program under which the Department of Financial Institutions establishes one or more holding accounts from which money may be distributed to pay for qualified higher education expenses of children born or adopted in this state. The bill also requires the Department of Health Services to provide information to DFI related to the WisKids savings account program.

Under current law, the College Savings Program Board (board), which is attached to DFI, administers the state’s college savings program, commonly referred to by its two program options “Edvest” and “Tomorrow’s Scholar.” The state’s college savings program is a qualified tuition program authorized under federal law, more generally known as a 529 plan. Under the program, a person may establish a college savings account to cover certain expenses specified under federal law, including a beneficiary’s tuition, fees, room and board, and other costs required to attend an eligible educational institution; tuition expenses at an elementary or secondary school; certain apprenticeship expenses and expenses related to postsecondary credential programs; and qualified education loan payments.

Current law requires DFI to select a vendor for the college savings program through a competitive bidding process, based on factors determined by DFI. The contract between DFI and the vendor must contain certain requirements, including that the vendor reimburse the state for administrative program costs.

The bill creates, if funding is available, a WisKids savings account program under which DFI must establish in the college savings program a master holding account, and may establish interim holding accounts or additional accounts, for money that may be distributed to pay for qualified higher education expenses of children born or adopted in this state. Under the bill, DHS is granted an exception to existing disclosure prohibitions allowing the state registrar of vital records to provide to DFI, subject to specified limitations, information related to the birth of a child in this state and requiring that the state registrar provide DFI with at least the name of the child, the child’s date of birth, the birth record state file number, and the name and address of the child’s birth parent.

Under the bill, if DFI receives a child’s birth information from DHS or proof from a child’s parent that the child was born or adopted in this state and resides in this state and if funds are available, DFI must deposit at least $25 on behalf of the child into the master holding account, interim holding account, or other account established by DFI upon receiving notice that the child has been designated as a beneficiary of a Wisconsin college savings account before the child has reached 10 years of age. However, if DFI’s action is based on birth information received from DHS, DFI must first provide a notice to the child’s birthing parent and allow the child to opt out of the program. The bill also allows a child who resides in this state but who does not meet the requirements described above to participate in the program but the child does not receive the deposit of at least $25. However, DFI may make other deposits into accounts established under the program in accordance with policies established by the board. DFI may not make total deposits of more than $2,000,000 annually. If DFI makes a deposit on behalf of or establishes an account for a child, DFI must maintain an accounting that includes the name of the child (the “program participant”), the names of the child’s parents, and the principal and earnings in the account established for the child.

Under the bill, DFI makes distributions to third parties, or to the Wisconsin college savings account for which a child is designated as a beneficiary, to pay the program participants’ qualified higher education expenses, but these expenses may not include elementary or secondary school tuition. The bill allows DFI to remove a program participant from the program and make the funds that had been attributable to the program participant available for use by other program participants if 1) DFI has not made any distribution for the program participant before the program participant reaches 21 years of age; 2) DFI has not distributed all funds attributable to the program participant within two years of the first distribution to the program participant; 3) the program participant dies; or 4) the program participant withdraws from the program.

The bill allows DFI to accept contributions to the program from any person on behalf of program participants. As part of DFI’s administration of the program, DFI may collect data and conduct research related to the program’s operation and results. Any person may share data with DFI to assist in this research or in program fundraising.

The bill requires DFI to implement the provisions of the bill as soon as feasible but no later than two years after the bill’s effective date. However, DFI must implement the provisions of the bill only if funding is available for the program.

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:

SB752,1 Section 1. 69.20 (3) (b) 6. of the statutes is created to read:

SB752,2,12 69.20 (3) (b) 6. The information is from a birth record of a registrant born in this state whose birthing parent resided in this state at the time of birth and is submitted to the department of financial institutions for the purpose of administering s. 224.50 (3m). At a minimum, the state registrar shall disclose to the department of financial institutions for non-impounded records of newly registered births, at least every 6 months, the name of the child, the child’s date of birth, the birth record state file number, and the name and address of the parent who gave birth to the child, if the record is not flagged as a safe haven, surrogate birth, or intended or completed adoption, if the record is not flagged for “do not contact,” and if the child who is the subject of the record is not known to be deceased.

SB752,2 Section 2. 224.50 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB752,3,2 224.50 (2) (a) Except as provided in s. 224.51, and subject to sub. (3m), establish and administer a college savings program that allows an individual, trust, legal guardian, or entity described under 26 USC 529 (e) (1) (C) to establish a college savings account for the purposes set forth in 26 USC 529.

SB752,3 Section 3. 224.50 (3) (bm) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB752,3,11 224.50 (3) (bm) Beginning on August 1, 2015, no contribution may be made to an account if the contribution would cause the account balance of a beneficiary’s account, or the combined balance of all accounts of a beneficiary, to exceed $425,000. This contribution limitation applies to all accounts that are established on and after that date, and to all accounts that are in existence on that date that have not yet reached the balance limit specified in this paragraph, subject to the annual increase described in sub. (2) (i), except that this paragraph does not apply to an account established under sub. (3m) (b).

SB752,4 Section 4. 224.50 (3m) of the statutes is created to read:

SB752,3,13 224.50 (3m) WisKids Savings Account Program. (a) In this subsection:

SB752,3,14 1. “Parent” means any of the following:

SB752,3,18 a. A child’s parent as identified or updated in the child’s record of birth or a court’s adoption order relating to the child or as subsequently updated in the records of the department or in the system of vital records, as defined in s. 69.01 (25) (a).

SB752,3,20 b. A child’s parent as identified in a notice provided to the department under par. (c) 2. or 3.

SB752,3,23 2. “Program participant” means a child for whom the department has made a deposit under par. (c) 1. or 2. or established an account under par. (c) 3. and for whom the department maintains an accounting under par. (d).

SB752,4,3 3. “Qualified higher education expenses” has the meaning given in 26 USC 529 (e) (3) and includes the meaning under 26 USC 529 (c) (8) and (9) but excludes the meaning under 26 USC 529 (c) (7).

SB752,4,10 (b) The department shall establish a master holding account, and may establish interim holding accounts or additional accounts, under this section. The department may make transfers to the master holding account or an interim holding account for the purpose of meeting current and anticipated future obligations to make deposits under this subsection. The department may enter an agreement with the program vendor under s. 224.51 or one or more other financial institutions to maintain such accounts.

SB752,4,15 (c) 1. Subject to subd. 5. and pars. (e), (f), and (m) 2., upon receiving notice that a child identified in a birth record provided under s. 69.20 (3) (b) 6. has been designated as a beneficiary of a college savings account established under sub. (2) (a) before the child has reached 10 years of age, the department shall deposit at least $25 into an account established under par. (b) for the child.

SB752,4,22 2. Subject to subd. 5. and pars. (e), (f), and (m) 2., if no deposit has been made for a child under subd. 1. and a parent of the child notifies the department and provides proof satisfactory to the department that the child was born or adopted in this state and resides in this state and has been designated as a beneficiary of a college savings account established under sub. (2) (a) before the child has reached 10 years of age, the department shall deposit at least $25 into an account established under par. (b) for the child.

SB752,5,3 3. If no deposit has been made for a child under subd. 1. or 2. and a parent of the child notifies the department and provides proof satisfactory to the department that the child resides in this state, the department shall establish an account under par. (b) for the child.

SB752,5,6 4. In addition to any deposit under subd. 1. or 2., and subject to subd. 5., the department may make deposits into accounts established under par. (b) in accordance with policies established by the board.

SB752,5,9 5. The department shall make a deposit under subd. 1. or 2. only if funds are available. The department may not make deposits under subds. 1., 2., and 4. that, in total, exceed $2,000,000 in any calendar year.

SB752,5,11 (d) For each account established under par. (b), the department shall maintain an accounting that includes the following information:

SB752,5,13 1. The name of each child for whom the department made a deposit under par. (c) 1. or 2. or established an account under par. (c) 3.

SB752,5,14 2. The name of each parent of the child under subd. 1.

SB752,5,16 3. The principal and earnings in the account established for the child under subd. 1.

SB752,5,20 (e) 1. Before depositing money into an account established under par. (b) on behalf of a child described in par. (c) 1., the department shall provide written notice to the child’s parent identified in a birth record provided under s. 69.20 (3) (b) 6. The notice shall contain all of the following information:

SB752,5,22 a. A description of the program under this subsection, including the amount the department will deposit into the account for the child.

SB752,6,2 b. That the parent may elect on behalf of the child not to participate in the program under this subsection and forgo the department’s deposit of money into the account.

SB752,6,5 c. That the department will consider the child to participate in the program under this subsection unless a parent of the child notifies the department within 30 days of the date of the notice that the child opts out of the program.

SB752,6,8 2. If a parent informs the department within 30 days of the date of the notice under subd. 1. that the child opts out of the program, the department may not include the child in the program under this subsection.

SB752,6,12 (f) If the department determines, based on available information, that a child described in par. (c) 1. or 2. and the child's parents were not residents of this state at the time of the child's birth or adoption, the department may not make the deposit under par. (c) 1. or 2. for the child.

SB752,6,17 (g) If the department receives adoption information regarding a child for whom the department has already deposited money under par. (c) 1., the department shall update its records to designate each adoptive parent, and to remove each parent identified in the birth records, as the child’s parent for purposes of this subsection.

SB752,6,22 (h) Upon request of a program participant, the department shall direct that a distribution from an account established under par. (b) be made on behalf of the program participant to a 3rd party, or to the college savings account established under sub. (2) (a) for which the program participant is designated as a beneficiary, if all of the following apply:

SB752,7,2 1. The distribution is made to pay, in whole or in part, the program participant’s qualified higher education expenses.

SB752,7,4 2. There are funds in the account established for the program participant available to pay the distribution under subd. 1.

SB752,7,8 (i) 1. The department may remove a program participant from the program and make the funds that had been deposited into an account established for the program participant available for use by other program participants if any of the following applies:

SB752,7,13 a. The department has not made any distribution under par. (h) for the program participant before the program participant attains 21 years of age or has not distributed all funds deposited into the account established for the program participant within 2 years of the department’s first distribution for the program participant.

SB752,7,14 b. The program participant dies.

SB752,7,17 c. The program participant, or a parent of the program participant, notifies the department in writing that the program participant is discontinuing participation in the program.

SB752,7,22 (j) The department may accept contributions to the program from any person on behalf of program participants. These contributions to the program are subject to par. (L) and are not amounts paid into a college savings account for purposes of s. 71.05 (6) (b) 32. These contributions are irrevocable after the department deposits the contributed funds into an account established under par. (b).