Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill establishes privacy protections for judicial officers and a procedure for
a judicial officer to complete a written request for protection of the personal
information of the judicial officer and the judicial officer's immediate family.
Under the bill, a government agency may not publicly post or display publicly
available content that includes a judicial officer's personal information, provided
that the government agency has received a written request from the officer that the
agency refrain from disclosing the personal information. Upon receipt of the written
request, the agency must remove the personal information within 10 business days
and may not publicly post or display the information. The personal information is
also exempt from public records requests unless the agency has received consent to
make the information available to the public.
The bill also provides that, upon receipt of a written request for privacy
protections from a judicial officer, all persons, businesses, and associations must
refrain from publicly posting or displaying on the Internet publicly available content

that includes the personal information of the judicial officer or the judicial officer's
immediate family. The prohibition does not apply to personal information that the
judicial officer or an immediate family member of the judicial officer voluntarily
publishes on the Internet after the bill goes into effect or personal information
lawfully received from a state or federal government source, including from an
employee or agent of the state or federal government.
After a person, business, or association has received a written request from a
judicial officer, the person, business, or association must, within 10 days of the
request, remove the personal information from the Internet; ensure that the judicial
officer's personal information is not made available on any website or subsidiary
website controlled by that person, business, or association; and identify any other
instances of the identified information that should also be removed. Under the bill,
once a written request is received, no person, business, or association may transfer
the judicial officer's personal information to any other person, business, or
association through any medium, except for personal information that the judicial
officer or an immediate family member of the judicial officer voluntarily publishes
on the Internet after the bill goes into effect, or if a transfer is made at the request
of the judicial officer or is necessary to effectuate a request to the person, business,
or association from the judicial officer. The bill also expressly prohibits a data broker,
as defined in the bill, from knowingly selling, licensing, trading, purchasing, or
otherwise making available for consideration the personal information of a judicial
officer or a judicial officer's immediate family.
The bill requires the register of deeds to establish a process for judicial officers
and immediate family members of judicial officers to opt out from the display and
search functions of their names on public-facing land records websites. The bill also
requires the register of deeds to shield from disclosure certain documents covered by
a judicial officer's written request for protection of personal information, if the
documents to be protected are specifically identified by the judicial officer.
Under the bill, a candidate for a judicial office may, instead of having his or her
name and residential address listed on nomination papers, file a certification of
residence with the Elections Commission before circulating nomination papers. A
judicial officer circulating nomination papers on behalf of a candidate for a
nonpartisan office, or signing nomination papers supporting a candidate for a
nonpartisan office, may similarly file a certification of residence with the Elections
Commission before circulating or signing nomination papers. The bill requires the
commission, by rule, to verify the address provided in the certification of residence.
Under current law, generally, a candidate for a state or local elective office must file
nomination papers with the commission or, for a local office, with the appropriate
municipal clerk. The top of each nomination paper must list the candidate's full
name, including any nickname or former surname, and his or her residential street
address. Under current law, a person circulating nomination papers on behalf of a

candidate for a judicial office must also provide a certification at the bottom of each
nomination paper stating his or her residential street address.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
AB966-ASA1,1 1Section 1 . 8.10 (7) of the statutes is created to read:
AB966-ASA1,3,142 8.10 (7) (a) Notwithstanding sub. (2) (b) and (c) and s. 8.21 (4) (b), a candidate
3for filling the office of a judicial officer, as defined in s. 757.07 (1) (e), who files a
4certification of residence with the commission before circulating nomination papers
5is not required to indicate his or her residential address on the nomination papers,
6including nomination papers circulated on behalf of the judicial officer, or on the
7declaration of candidacy. Notwithstanding sub. (3) (intro.), a judicial officer, as
8defined in s. 757.07 (1) (e), who intends to circulate nomination papers on behalf of
9a candidate for filling a nonpartisan office, or who intends to sign nomination papers
10to support such a candidate, is not required to indicate his or her residential address
11on the certification of a qualified circulator appended to the nomination papers or on
12the nomination papers as a signatory. The commission shall promulgate rules for the
13administration of this subsection and prescribe a certification of residence for a
14candidate or circulating judicial officer for use under this subsection.
AB966-ASA1,3,2015 (b) Certifications of residence submitted to the commission under par. (a) shall
16be kept confidential unless the judicial officer consents to disclosure under s. 757.07
17(4) (e), except that the commission shall provide such certifications to the appropriate
18filing officer for the office the candidate or judicial officer seeks. Filing officers shall
19also keep confidential the certifications received by the commission unless the
20judicial officer consents to disclosure.
AB966-ASA1,2 21Section 2. 19.36 (11) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB966-ASA1,4,12
119.36 (11) Records of an individual holding a local public office or a state
2public office.
Unless access is specifically authorized or required by statute, an
3authority shall not provide access under s. 19.35 (1) to records, except to an
4individual to the extent required under s. 103.13, containing information
5maintained, prepared, or provided by an employer concerning the home address,
6home electronic mail address, home telephone number, or social security number of
7an individual who holds a local public office or a state public office, unless the
8individual authorizes the authority to provide access to such information. This
9Except as provided in sub. (14), this subsection does not apply to the home address
10of an individual who holds an elective public office or to the home address of an
11individual who, as a condition of employment, is required to reside in a specified
12location.
AB966-ASA1,3 13Section 3. 19.36 (14) of the statutes is created to read:
AB966-ASA1,4,1814 19.36 (14) Privacy protections for judicial officers. If a judicial officer, as
15defined in s. 757.07 (1) (e), submits a written request under s. 757.07 (4), an authority
16shall not provide access under s. 19.35 (1) to a certification of residence under s. 8.10
17(7) or to the personal information, as defined in s. 757.07 (1) (g), of a judicial officer,
18except as provided under s. 8.10 (7) (b).
AB966-ASA1,4 19Section 4. 19.55 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB966-ASA1,5,520 19.55 (1) Except as provided in s. 19.36 (14) and subs. (2) to (4), all records
21under ch. 11, this subchapter, or subch. III of ch. 13 in the possession of the
22commission are open to public inspection at all reasonable times. The commission
23shall require an individual wishing to examine a statement of economic interests or
24the list of persons who inspect any statements which are in the commission's
25possession to provide his or her full name and address, and if the individual is

1representing another person, the full name and address of the person which he or she
2represents. Such identification may be provided in writing or in person. The
3commission shall record and retain for at least 3 years information obtained by it
4pursuant to this subsection. No individual may use a fictitious name or address or
5fail to identify a principal in making any request for inspection.
AB966-ASA1,5 6Section 5 . 19.55 (2) (cm) of the statutes is created to read:
AB966-ASA1,5,167 19.55 (2) (cm) If a judicial officer, as defined in s. 757.07 (1) (e), submits a
8written request under s. 757.07 (4), the personal information, as defined in s. 757.07
9(1) (g), of a judicial officer contained in statements of economic interests, reports of
10economic transactions, and campaign finance reports that are filed with the
11commission by judicial officers or the candidate committees of judicial officers. The
12commission shall quarterly review the electronic campaign finance information
13system for the personal information of judicial officers and remove such information
14from the system. In addition, before providing, upon a request, a statement of
15economic interests of a judicial officer, the commission shall remove the personal
16information of the judicial officer.
AB966-ASA1,6 17Section 6. 59.43 (1r) of the statutes is created to read:
AB966-ASA1,6,218 59.43 (1r) Personal information of judicial officers. (a) The register of
19deeds shall shield from disclosure and keep confidential documents containing
20information covered by a written request of a judicial officer under s. 757.07, if the
21judicial officer specifically identifies the document number of any document to be
22shielded under this subsection. This paragraph applies only to electronic images of
23documents specifically identified by a judicial officer as covered by a written request
24under s. 757.07. The register of deeds may allow access to a document subject to

1protection under this paragraph only if the judicial officer consents to the access or
2access is otherwise permitted as provided under s. 757.07 (4) (e).
AB966-ASA1,6,53 (b) The register of deeds shall establish a process for judicial officers and
4immediate family members of judicial officers to opt out from the display and search
5functions of their names on public-facing land records websites.
AB966-ASA1,7 6Section 7. 757.07 of the statutes is created to read:
AB966-ASA1,6,8 7757.07 Privacy protections for judicial officers. (1) Definitions. In this
8section:
AB966-ASA1,6,129 (a) “Data broker” means a commercial entity that collects, assembles, or
10maintains personal information concerning an individual who is not a customer or
11an employee of that entity in order to sell the information or provide 3rd-party access
12to the information. “Data broker” does not include any of the following:
AB966-ASA1,6,1613 1. A commercial entity using personal information internally, providing access
14to businesses under common ownership or affiliated by corporate control, or selling
15or providing data for a transaction or service requested by or concerning the
16individual whose personal information is being transferred.
AB966-ASA1,6,1817 2. A commercial entity providing publicly available information through
18real-time or near real-time alert services for health or safety purposes.
AB966-ASA1,6,2419 3. A commercial entity using information that is lawfully made available
20through federal, state, or local government records, or information that a business
21has a reasonable basis to believe is lawfully made available to the general public
22through widely distributed media, by the consumer, or by a person to whom the
23consumer has disclosed the information, unless the consumer has restricted the
24information to a specific audience.
AB966-ASA1,7,7
14. A commercial entity engaged in the collection, maintenance, disclosure, sale,
2communication, or use of any personal information bearing on a consumer's credit
3worthiness, credit standing, credit capacity, character, general reputation, personal
4characteristics, or mode of living by a consumer reporting agency, furnisher, or user
5that provides information for use in a consumer report, and by a user of a consumer
6report, but only to the extent that such activity is regulated by and authorized under
7the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 USC 1681, et seq.
AB966-ASA1,7,98 5. A consumer reporting agency subject to the federal Fair Credit Reporting
9Act, 15 USC 1681, et seq.
AB966-ASA1,7,1210 6. A commercial entity using personal information collected, processed, sold,
11or disclosed in compliance with the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994,
1218 USC 2721, et seq.
AB966-ASA1,7,1313 7. A commercial entity using personal information to do any of the following:
AB966-ASA1,7,1514 a. Prevent, detect, protect against, or respond to security incidents, identity
15theft, fraud, harassment, malicious or deceptive activities, or any illegal activity.
AB966-ASA1,7,1616 b. Preserve the integrity or security of systems.
AB966-ASA1,7,1817 c. Investigate, report, or prosecute any person responsible for an action
18described under subd. 7. a. or b.
AB966-ASA1,7,2019 8. A financial institution, affiliate of a financial institution, or data subject to
20title V of the federal Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, 15 USC 6801, et seq.
AB966-ASA1,7,2321 9. A covered entity for purposes of the federal privacy regulations promulgated
22under the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996,
23specifically 42 USC 1320d-2 note.
AB966-ASA1,8,3
110. A commercial entity engaging in the collection and sale or licensing of
2personal information incidental to conducting the activities described in subds. 1. to
39.
AB966-ASA1,8,44 11. Insurance and insurance support organizations.
AB966-ASA1,8,65 12. Law enforcement agencies or law enforcement support organizations and
6vendors.
AB966-ASA1,8,107 (b) “Government agency” includes any association, authority, board,
8department, commission, independent agency, institution, office, society, or other
9body corporate and politic in state or local government created or authorized to be
10created by the constitution or any law.
AB966-ASA1,8,1311 (c) “Home address” includes a judicial officer's permanent residence and any
12secondary residences affirmatively identified by the judicial officer. “ Home address”
13does not include a judicial officer's work address.
AB966-ASA1,8,1414 (d) “Immediate family” includes any of the following:
AB966-ASA1,8,1515 1. A judicial officer's spouse.
AB966-ASA1,8,1816 2. A minor child of the judicial officer or of the judicial officer's spouse, including
17a foster child, or an adult child of the judicial officer or of the judicial officer's spouse
18whose permanent residence is with the judicial officer.
AB966-ASA1,8,1919 3. A parent of the judicial officer or the judicial officer's spouse.
AB966-ASA1,8,2020 4. Any other person who resides at the judicial officer's residence.
AB966-ASA1,8,2421 (e) “Judicial officer” means a person who currently is or who formerly was a
22supreme court justice, court of appeals judge, circuit court judge, municipal judge,
23tribal judge, temporary or permanent reserve judge, or circuit, supplemental, or
24municipal court commissioner.
AB966-ASA1,9,3
1(f) “Permanent residence” means the place where a person's habitation is fixed,
2without any present intent to move, and to which, when absent, the person intends
3to return.
AB966-ASA1,9,64 (g) “Personal information” means any of the following with regard to a judicial
5officer or any immediate family member of a judicial officer, but does not include
6information regarding employment with a government agency:
AB966-ASA1,9,77 1. A home address.
AB966-ASA1,9,88 2. A home or personal mobile telephone number.
AB966-ASA1,9,99 3. A personal email address.
AB966-ASA1,9,1110 4. A social security number, driver's license number, federal tax identification
11number, or state tax identification number.
AB966-ASA1,9,1312 5. Except as required under ch. 11, a bank account or credit or debit card
13information.
AB966-ASA1,9,1614 6. A license plate number or other unique identifiers of a vehicle owned, leased,
15or regularly used by a judicial officer or an immediate family member of a judicial
16officer.
AB966-ASA1,9,1817 7. The identification of children under the age of 18 of a judicial officer or an
18immediate family member of a judicial officer.
AB966-ASA1,9,1919 8. The full date of birth.
AB966-ASA1,9,2020 9. Marital status.
AB966-ASA1,9,2421 (h) “Publicly available content” means any written, printed, or electronic
22document or record that provides information or that serves as a document or record
23maintained, controlled, or in the possession of a government agency that may be
24obtained by any person or entity, from the Internet, from the government agency

1upon request either free of charge or for a fee, or in response to a public records
2request under ch. 19.
AB966-ASA1,10,43 (i) “Publicly post or display” means to intentionally communicate or otherwise
4make available to the general public.
AB966-ASA1,10,75 (j) “Transfer” means to sell, license, trade, or exchange for consideration the
6personal information of a judicial officer or a judicial officer's immediate family
7member.
AB966-ASA1,10,128 (k) “Written request” means written notice signed by a judicial officer or a
9representative of the judicial officer's employer requesting a government agency,
10business, association, or other person to refrain from publicly posting or displaying
11publicly available content that includes the personal information of the judicial
12officer or judicial officer's immediate family.
AB966-ASA1,10,25 13(2) Publicly posting or displaying a judicial officer's personal information
14by a government agency.
(a) A government agency may not publicly post or display
15publicly available content that includes a judicial officer's personal information,
16provided that the government agency has received a written request in accordance
17with sub. (4) that it refrain from disclosing the judicial officer's personal information.
18After a government agency has received a written request, that agency shall remove
19the judicial officer's personal information from publicly available content within 10
20business days. After the government agency has removed the judicial officer's
21personal information from publicly available content, the agency may not publicly
22post or display the information, and the judicial officer's personal information shall
23be exempt from inspection and copying under s. 19.35 unless the government agency
24has received consent as provided under sub. (4) (e) to make the personal information
25available to the public.
AB966-ASA1,11,3
1(b) Nothing in this subsection prohibits a government agency from providing
2access to records containing the personal information of a judicial officer to a 3rd
3party if the 3rd party meets any of the following criteria:
AB966-ASA1,11,44 1. Possesses a signed consent document, as provided under sub. (4) (e).
AB966-ASA1,11,552. Is subject to the requirements of 15 USC 6801, et seq.
AB966-ASA1,11,66 3. Executes a confidentiality agreement with the government agency.
AB966-ASA1,11,10 7(3) Data brokers and other persons and businesses. (a) No data broker may
8knowingly sell, license, trade, purchase, or otherwise make available for
9consideration the personal information of a judicial officer or a judicial officer's
10immediate family.
AB966-ASA1,11,1511 (b) 1. No person, business, or association may publicly post or display on the
12Internet publicly available content that includes the personal information of a
13judicial officer or the judicial officer's immediate family, provided that the judicial
14officer has made a written request to the person, business, or association that it
15refrain from disclosing or acquiring the personal information.
AB966-ASA1,11,1616 2. Subdivision 1. does not apply to any of the following:
AB966-ASA1,11,1917 a. Personal information that the judicial officer or an immediate family
18member of the judicial officer voluntarily publishes on the Internet after the effective
19date of this subd. 2. a. .... [LRB inserts date].
AB966-ASA1,11,2120 b. Personal information lawfully received from a state or federal government
21source, including from an employee or agent of the state or federal government.
AB966-ASA1,12,422 (c) 1. After a person, business, or association has received a written request
23from a judicial officer to protect the privacy of the personal information of the judicial
24officer and the judicial officer's immediate family, the person, business, or
25association shall remove from the Internet, within 10 days, the personal information

1identified in the request; ensure that the information is not made available on any
2website or subsidiary website controlled by that person, business, or association; and
3identify any other instances of the identified information that should also be
4removed.
AB966-ASA1,12,75 2. After receiving a judicial officer's written request, no person, business, or
6association may transfer the judicial officer's personal information to any other
7person, business, or association through any medium, except as follows:
AB966-ASA1,12,118 a. The person, business, or association may transfer personal information that
9the judicial officer or an immediate family member of the judicial officer voluntarily
10publishes on the Internet after the effective date of this subd. 2. a. .... [LRB inserts
11date].
AB966-ASA1,12,1412 b. The person, business, or association may transfer the judicial officer's
13personal information at the request of the judicial officer if the transfer is necessary
14to effectuate a request to the person, business, or association from the judicial officer.
AB966-ASA1,12,19 15(4) Procedure for completing a written request for protection of personal
16information.
(a) No government agency, person, business, or association may be
17found to have violated any provision of this section if the judicial officer fails to
18submit a written request calling for the protection of the personal information of the
19judicial officer or the judicial officer's immediate family.
AB966-ASA1,12,2120 (b) 1. A written request under this subsection is valid if the request meets the
21requirements of par. (d) and if the judicial officer does any of the following:
AB966-ASA1,12,2322 a. Sends the written request directly to a government agency, person, business,
23or association.
AB966-ASA1,13,3
1b. If the director of state courts has a policy and procedure for a judicial officer
2to file the written request with the director of state court's office to notify government
3agencies, the judicial officer sends the written request to the director of state courts.
AB966-ASA1,13,104 2. In each quarter of a calendar year, the director of state courts shall provide
5to the appropriate officer with ultimate supervisory authority for a government
6agency a list of all judicial officers who have submitted a written request under subd.
71. b. The officer shall promptly provide a copy of the list to the government agencies
8under his or her supervision. Receipt of the written request list compiled by the
9director of state courts office by a government agency shall constitute a written
10request to that agency for purposes of this subsection.
AB966-ASA1,13,1511 (c) A representative from the judicial officer's employer may submit a written
12request on the judicial officer's behalf, provided that the judicial officer has given
13written consent to the representative and provided that the representative agrees
14to furnish a copy of that consent when the written request is made. The
15representative shall submit the written request as provided under par. (b).
AB966-ASA1,13,2516 (d) A judicial officer's written request shall be made on a form prescribed by the
17director of state courts and shall specify what personal information shall be
18maintained as private. If a judicial officer wishes to identify a secondary residence
19as a home address, the designation shall be made in the written request. A judicial
20officer's written request shall disclose the identity of the officer's immediate family
21and indicate that the personal information of these family members shall also be
22excluded to the extent that it could reasonably be expected to reveal personal
23information of the judicial officer. Any person receiving a written request form
24submitted by or on behalf of a judicial officer under this paragraph shall treat the
25submission as confidential.
AB966-ASA1,14,2
1(e) 1. A judicial officer's written request is valid for 10 years or until the judicial
2officer's death, whichever occurs first.
AB966-ASA1,14,53 2. Notwithstanding a judicial officer's written request, a government agency,
4person, business, or association may release personal information otherwise subject
5to the written request under any of the following circumstances:
AB966-ASA1,14,66 a. As required in response to a court order.
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