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Bill > SB604

WI SB604

WI SB604
Teacher and administrator licensure in parental choice programs and in the Special Needs Scholarship Program and granting rule-making authority. (FE)

summary

Introduced
10/30/2025
In Committee
10/30/2025
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead
03/23/2026

Introduced Session

2025-2026 Regular Session

Bill Summary

With certain exceptions, this bill requires that, beginning on July 1, 2027, teachers and administrators at private schools participating in a parental choice program or in the Special Needs Scholarship Program must hold a license or permit issued by the Department of Public Instruction. Under current law, teachers and administrators at choice schools must have at least a bachelor[s degree from a nationally or regionally accredited institution of higher education, but they are not LRB-4237/1 FFK:cdc 2025 - 2026 Legislature SENATE BILL 604 required to be licensed by DPI. There are no current law requirements regarding who may teach or be employed as an administrator at SNSP schools. The bill provides an exception for a teacher who teaches only courses in rabbinical studies and for an administrator at a private school that prepares and trains pupils attending the private school in rabbinical studies. In addition, the bill provides a grace period for a teacher or administrator who has been teaching or employed as an administrator for at least the five consecutive years immediately preceding July 1, 2027, which allows the teacher or administrator to apply for a temporary, nonrenewable waiver of the licensure requirement. An applicant for a waiver must submit a plan for becoming licensed as required under the bill. For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

AI Summary

This bill requires teachers and administrators in private schools participating in parental choice programs and the Special Needs Scholarship Program (SNSP) to obtain licenses from the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), with the new requirement taking effect on July 1, 2027. Currently, these private schools are only required to have teachers with at least a bachelor's degree, but not necessarily a state-issued license. The bill provides a grace period for educators who have been teaching or administering for at least five consecutive years before July 1, 2027, allowing them to apply for a temporary, non-renewable waiver. To obtain the waiver, applicants must submit a plan for becoming licensed, and no waiver will be valid after July 1, 2032. The bill includes specific exceptions for teachers who exclusively teach rabbinical studies and administrators in schools focused on rabbinical education. Additionally, the legislation modifies various statutes related to teacher licensure, expanding the requirements to include private schools in parental choice and special needs scholarship programs, and ensuring that background investigations and professional training standards are applied consistently across different types of educational institutions.

Committee Categories

Education

Sponsors (23)

Last Action

Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1 (on 03/23/2026)
(1 Companion Bills)

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