October 31, 2023 - Introduced by Representatives Emerson, Moore Omokunde,
Bare, Considine, Goyke, Stubbs, Drake, Joers, Baldeh, Palmeri, Ratcliff,
Subeck, Jacobson, Ortiz-Velez, Myers, Haywood and Clancy, cosponsored
by Senators Taylor, Smith, Roys, Hesselbein, Larson and Spreitzer.
Referred to Committee on Campaigns and Elections.
AB596,1,8 1An Act to repeal 6.29 (2) (am), 6.36 (1) (a) 9., 6.55 (2) (cs), 6.55 (3) (b), 6.56 (3m),
26.79 (2) (dm), 6.88 (3) (c), 301.03 (20m), 302.117 and 973.09 (4m); to renumber
36.55 (3) (a); to renumber and amend 6.03 (1) (b) and 304.078 (3); to amend
46.33 (1), 6.33 (2) (a), 7.52 (6), 301.03 (3a) (intro.), 304.078 (2) and 973.176 (2);
5and to create 6.03 (1) (b) 1., 2., 3. and 4. of the statutes; relating to: restoring
6the right to vote to certain persons barred from voting as a result of a felony
7conviction, changing the information required on voter registration forms, and
8changing voting procedure for certain persons who are convicted of felonies.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill changes the circumstances under which a person may be barred from
voting as the result of a disqualifying offense and requires the Department of
Corrections, the Elections Commission, and the Director of State Courts to include
in their ongoing training programs a discussion of the changes in law made by this
bill and to offer the training to judges, attorneys, election officials, employees of DOC,
and the public.
Under current law, a person convicted of treason, bribery, or a felony may not
vote unless the person's right to vote is restored through a pardon or until the person
completes his or her sentence, including extended supervision or parole, or any term

of probation imposed. Under this bill, a person loses his or her right to vote based
on a disqualifying offense only while he or she is incarcerated for that offense. A
person released to extended supervision or parole may resume voting. In addition,
a person convicted of a disqualifying offense and on probation retains the right to
vote while on probation unless he or she is confined as a condition of probation. But
if a person who committed a disqualifying offense is incarcerated after the revocation
of extended supervision, parole, or probation, the person loses the right to vote until
he or she is released.
Currently, an applicant for voter registration must affirm 1) whether he or she
has been convicted of a felony for which he or she has not been pardoned and, if so,
whether the applicant is incarcerated or on parole, probation, or extended
supervision; and 2) whether the applicant is disqualified on any other ground from
voting. This bill deletes the requirement that an applicant provide any information
relating to a felony conviction but retains the requirement that an applicant affirm
that he or she is not disqualified on any ground from voting.
Currently, election officials must verify the eligibility of electors who vote at an
election or who register to vote at an election after the close of voter registration for
that election by checking each elector's name against a list provided by DOC that
contains the names of convicted felons who have not completed their sentences and
have not been pardoned. If a person's name appears on the list, the election officials
are directed to allow the person to vote if he or she is otherwise eligible, but to mark
and challenge the elector's ballot for possible later review. This bill deletes the
requirements for DOC to provide the list of convicted felons and for election officials
to review the names on the list.
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:
AB596,1 1Section 1 . 6.03 (1) (b) of the statutes is renumbered 6.03 (1) (b) (intro.) and
2amended to read:
AB596,2,53 6.03 (1) (b) (intro.) Any person convicted of treason, who, as a result of a felony
4or bribery, unless the person's right to vote is restored through a pardon or under s.
5304.078 (3).
conviction, is any of the following:
AB596,2 6Section 2 . 6.03 (1) (b) 1., 2., 3. and 4. of the statutes are created to read:
AB596,2,87 6.03 (1) (b) 1. Incarcerated while serving a sentence that was not imposed
8under s. 973.01.
AB596,3,2
12. Serving a term of confinement, or incarcerated after revocation of extended
2supervision, while serving a sentence that was imposed under s. 973.01.
AB596,3,33 3. Incarcerated following the revocation of probation.
AB596,3,44 4. Confined as a condition of probation under s. 973.09 (4) (a).
AB596,3 5Section 3 . 6.29 (2) (am) of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,4 6Section 4 . 6.33 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB596,4,217 6.33 (1) The commission shall prescribe the format, size, and shape of
8registration forms. All nonelectronic forms shall be printed and each item of
9information shall be of uniform font size, as prescribed by the commission. Except
10as otherwise provided in this subsection, electronic forms shall contain the same
11information as nonelectronic forms. The municipal clerk shall supply sufficient
12forms to meet voter registration needs. The commission shall design the form to
13obtain from each elector information as to name; date; residence location; location of
14previous residence immediately before moving to current residence location;
15citizenship; date of birth; age; the number of a current and valid operator's license
16issued to the elector under ch. 343 or the last 4 digits of the elector's social security
17account number; whether the elector has resided within the ward or election district
18for the number of consecutive days specified in s. 6.02 (1); whether the elector has
19been convicted of a felony for which he or she has not been pardoned, and if so,
20whether the elector is incarcerated, or on parole, probation, or extended supervision;

21whether the elector is disqualified on any other ground for any reason from voting;
22and whether the elector is currently registered to vote at any other location. The
23commission shall include on the nonelectronic form a space for the elector's signature
24and on the electronic form the authorization specified under s. 6.30 (5). Below the
25space for the signature or authorization, respectively, the commission shall include

1the following statement: “Falsification of information on this form is punishable
2under Wisconsin law as a Class I felony." The commission shall include on the form
3a space to enter the name of any inspector, municipal clerk, or deputy clerk under s.
46.55 (2) who obtains the form and a space for the inspector, clerk, or deputy clerk to
5sign his or her name, affirming that the inspector, clerk, or deputy clerk has accepted
6the form. The commission shall include on the form a space for entry of the ward and
7aldermanic district, if any, where the elector resides and any other information
8required to determine the offices and referenda for which the elector is certified to
9vote. The commission shall also include on the form a space where the clerk may
10record an indication of whether the form is received by mail or by electronic
11application, a space where the clerk shall record an indication of the type of
12identifying document submitted by the elector as proof of residence under s. 6.34 or
13an indication that the elector's information in lieu of proof of residence was verified
14under s. 6.34 (2m), the name of the entity or institution that issued the identifying
15document, and, if the identifying document includes a number that applies only to
16the individual holding that document, that number. The commission shall also
17include on the form a space where the clerk, for any elector who possesses a valid
18voting identification card issued to the person under s. 6.47 (3), may record the
19identification serial number appearing on the voting identification card. Each
20county clerk shall obtain sufficient registration forms for completion by an elector
21who desires to register to vote at the office of the county clerk under s. 6.28 (4).
AB596,5 22Section 5 . 6.33 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB596,5,923 6.33 (2) (a) All information may be recorded by any person, except that the clerk
24shall record the ward and aldermanic district, if any, other geographic information
25under sub. (1), the indication of whether the registration is received by mail, and the

1type of identifying document submitted by the elector as proof of residence under s.
26.34. An elector is not required to provide a copy of any certificate or notice issued
3to the applicant under s. 304.078.
Except as provided in s. 6.30 (5), each elector shall
4sign his or her own name unless the elector is unable to sign his or her name due to
5physical disability. In such case, the elector may authorize another elector to sign
6the form on his or her behalf. If the elector so authorizes, the elector signing the form
7shall attest to a statement that the application is made upon request and by
8authorization of a named elector who is unable to sign the form due to physical
9disability.
AB596,6 10Section 6 . 6.36 (1) (a) 9. of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,7 11Section 7 . 6.55 (2) (cs) of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,8 12Section 8 . 6.55 (3) (a) of the statutes is renumbered 6.55 (3).
AB596,9 13Section 9 . 6.55 (3) (b) of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,10 14Section 10 . 6.56 (3m) of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,11 15Section 11 . 6.79 (2) (dm) of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,12 16Section 12 . 6.88 (3) (c) of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,13 17Section 13 . 7.52 (6) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB596,6,218 7.52 (6) The board of absentee ballot canvassers shall review each certificate
19envelope to determine whether any absentee ballot is cast by an elector whose name
20appears on the poll list as ineligible to vote at the election, including ineligibility to
21vote by reason of a felony conviction
. If the board of absentee ballot canvassers
22receives an absentee ballot that has been cast by an elector whose name appears on
23the poll list as ineligible to vote, the inspectors shall challenge the ballot in the same
24manner as provided for inspectors making challenges under s. 6.92 and shall treat

1the ballot in the same manner as provided for treatment of challenged ballots by
2inspectors under s. 6.95.
AB596,14 3Section 14 . 301.03 (3a) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB596,6,64 301.03 (3a) (intro.) Subject to all of the following, design a form to provide
5notice under ss. 302.117, 973.09 (4m), and s. 973.176 (2) of ineligibility to vote under
6s. 6.03 (1) (b):
AB596,15 7Section 15 . 301.03 (20m) of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,16 8Section 16 . 302.117 of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,17 9Section 17 . 304.078 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB596,6,2010 304.078 (2) Except for the right to vote, which is restored as provided in sub.
11(3), every person who is convicted of a crime obtains a restoration of his or her civil
12rights by serving out his or her term of imprisonment or otherwise satisfying his or
13her sentence. The certificate of the department or other responsible supervising
14agency that a convicted person has served his or her sentence term of imprisonment
15or otherwise satisfied the judgment sentence against him or her is evidence of that
16fact and that the person is restored to his or her civil rights. The department or other
17agency shall list in the person's certificate rights which have been restored and which
18have not been restored. Persons who served out their terms of imprisonment or
19otherwise satisfied their sentences prior to August 14, 1947, are likewise restored to
20their civil rights from and after September 25, 1959.
AB596,18 21Section 18 . 304.078 (3) of the statutes is renumbered 304.078 (3) (a) and
22amended to read:
AB596,7,223 304.078 (3) (a) If a person is disqualified from voting under s. 6.03 (1) (b) from
24voting
, his or her right to vote is restored when he or she completes the term of
25imprisonment or probation for the crime that led to the disqualification. The
the

1factor under s. 6.03 (1) (b) that disqualified him or her from voting no longer applies
2to him or her.
AB596,7,9 3(b) When a person is placed on parole or extended supervision or when a person
4is discharged from an incarceration sentence or a confinement period that
5disqualified him or her under s. 6.03 (1) (b) from voting, the
department or, if the
6person is sentenced to a county jail or house of correction, the jailer shall inform the
7person in writing at the time his or her
provide the person written notice of the right
8to vote is restored under this subsection and, if the person resided in this state at the
9time of conviction, a voter registration form
.
AB596,19 10Section 19 . 973.09 (4m) of the statutes is repealed.
AB596,20 11Section 20 . 973.176 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB596,7,1912 973.176 (2) Voting. Whenever a court imposes a sentence or places a defendant
13on probation for a conviction
a condition of probation that disqualifies the defendant
14from voting under s. 6.03 (1) (b), the court shall inform the defendant in writing that
15he or she may not vote in any election until his or her civil rights are restored the
16factor under s. 6.03 (1) (b) that disqualified him or her from voting no longer applies
17to him or her
. The court shall use the form designed by the department of corrections
18under s. 301.03 (3a) to inform the defendant, and the defendant and a witness shall
19sign the form.
AB596,21 20Section 21 . Nonstatutory provisions.
AB596,8,221 (1) Training. The department of corrections, the elections commission, and the
22director of state courts shall include in their ongoing training programs a discussion
23of the changes to voting rights that this act creates and shall offer the training to
24judges, attorneys, election officials, employees of the department of corrections, and
25the public, as appropriate. If this subsection takes effect at least 60 days before the

1first election that follows that effective date, the department, the commission, and
2the director shall endeavor to provide the training before election day.
AB596,8,73 (2) Notice. The department of corrections shall, as soon as reasonably possible
4but no later than 6 months after the effective date of this subsection, mail to each
5person on parole, extended supervision, or probation, who was released to parole or
6extended supervision, or placed on probation, before the effective date of this
7subsection, notice that the person's right to vote is restored.
AB596,22 8Section 22 . Initial applicability.
AB596,8,129 (1) The renumbering and amendment of s. 6.03 (1) (b) and the creation of s. 6.03
10(1) (b) 1., 2., 3., and 4. first apply to persons who are on or released to parole or
11extended supervision on the effective date of this subsection and to persons who are
12on or placed on probation on the effective date of this subsection.
AB596,8,1313 (End)
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