Wisconsin Senate Bill SB1116

Wisconsin 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 3/19/26
• Refer: 3/19/26
• Failed: 3/23/26

Caption

An Act to repeal 16.75 (10p) and 20.931; to amend 16.75 (1) (a) 1. and 781.10 (2) (c) 6. of the statutes; Relating to: repealing certain contracting and other restrictions on state and local government entities concerning prohibited boycotts of Israel.

Summary

SB1116 would repeal Wisconsin statutes that restrict state agencies and local governmental units from adopting policies or procedures that involve them in boycotts of Israel or in doing business in Israel or territories under Israeli jurisdiction. It would also remove the related state procurement requirement that certain contracts with nongovernmental entities include a certification that the contractor is not participating in such a boycott, except for smaller contracts under the current threshold. In addition, the bill makes conforming changes to the state purchasing statute and a judicial review provision by deleting references tied to the repealed anti-boycott law. The practical effect is to eliminate the state-level legal framework that currently bars government entities from participating in or contracting with entities engaged in boycotts of Israel.

Impact

The bill would repeal s. 16.75 (10p) and s. 20.931 and amend related cross-references in ss. 16.75 (1) (a) 1. and 781.10 (2) (c) 6. As a result, state agencies and local governments would no longer be prohibited by these statutes from adopting boycott-related policies, and state procurement contracts would no longer need to include the anti-boycott certification tied to Israel-related boycotts. The bill would therefore reduce statutory restrictions on public contracting and local policy-making in this area and remove a compliance condition for affected vendors and contractors.

Sentiment

The available record suggests the bill was introduced as a repeal of existing anti-boycott restrictions, but it did not advance and ultimately failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1. Because there are no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided, there is no documented floor or committee debate to indicate broad support or opposition in the available materials. The legislative outcome indicates the proposal did not secure enough backing to become law.

Contention

The central point of contention is the underlying policy choice between maintaining state restrictions on participation in boycotts of Israel and removing those restrictions to allow state and local entities greater discretion. Supporters of repeal would likely view the current law as an unnecessary limitation on government contracting and local policy autonomy, while opponents would likely argue that the restrictions serve an important anti-boycott and pro-Israel policy purpose. No specific stakeholder testimony or recorded vote breakdown is available here, so the disagreement can only be identified at the level of the bill’s subject matter.