Wisconsin SB 715: Relating to: climate control in state correctional institutions and county jails and houses of correction and making an appropriation. (FE)

Bill Text

2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE LRB-5486/1
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2025 SENATE BILL 715
December 2, 2025 - Introduced by Senators ROYS and LARSON, cosponsored by
Representatives PHELPS, MADISON, HONG, ARNEY, CLANCY, TENORIO, BARE,
JOERS, MOORE OMOKUNDE, SINICKI, STROUD, STUBBS and UDELL. Referred to
Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety.
AN ACT to repeal 20.410 (1) (ac); to create 20.410 (1) (ac), 301.03 (16m),
302.075 and 302.076 of the statutes; relating to: climate control in state
correctional institutions and county jails and houses of correction and making
an appropriation.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill requires the warden or superintendent of a state correctional
institution or the county sheriff or person in charge of a county jail or house of
correction to ensure that the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning in the state
correctional institution or county jail or house of correction are in working order
and to ensure that the temperature in each housing unit is not less than 68 degrees
Fahrenheit and not more than 76 degrees Fahrenheit at all times. The bill also
requires the warden or superintendent of a state correctional institution or the
county sheriff or person in charge of a county jail or house of correction to record the
temperatures in all housing facility common areas and two random cells located in
substantially different areas of each housing unit on any day that the outdoor
temperature is below 10 degrees Fahrenheit or above 90 degrees Fahrenheit and
requires the Department of Corrections to report that temperature data to the
legislature on an annual basis.
The bill applies the temperature requirements in the bill to one-third of state
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SECTION 1.
correctional institutions on May 1, 2029; another one-third on May 1, 2031, and the
final one-third of state correctional institutions and the county jails on May 1, 2035
and directs DOC to determine the order in which to install heating, ventilation, or
air conditioning systems in the state correctional institutions to meet those
deadlines and report that information to the legislature. This bill provides $500,000
to DOC in the 2025-26 fiscal year to complete the required report, $750,000 and 7.0
FTE positions to DOC in each year of the 2025-27 fiscal biennium to support
updates to correctional institution heating, ventilation, and air conditioning
systems, and provides a new $65,000,000 continuing appropriation beginning in the
2026-27 fiscal year to install and operate heating, ventilation, and air conditioning
in state correctional institutions as required under the bill, which sunsets on May 1,
2031.
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:
SECTION 1. 20.005 (3) (schedule) of the statutes: at the appropriate place,
insert the following amounts for the purposes indicated:
2025-26 2026-27
20.410 Corrections, department of
(1) ADULT CORRECTIONAL SERVICES
(ac) Institutional heating, ventilation,
and air conditioning systems GPR C -0- 65,000,000
SECTION 2. 20.410 (1) (ac) of the statutes is created to read:
20.410 (1) (ac) Institutional heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems.
As a continuing appropriation, the amounts in the schedule to install and operate
heating, ventilation, or air conditioning systems required under s. 302.075 (1).
SECTION 3. 20.410 (1) (ac) of the statutes, as affected by 2025 Wisconsin Act
.... (this act), is repealed.
SECTION 4. 301.03 (16m) of the statutes is created to read:
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SECTION 4
301.03 (16m) (a) Submit to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for
distribution to the appropriate standing committees under s. 13.172 (3) an annual
report containing state correctional institution and county jail and house of
correction temperature data from the following sources:
1. The state correctional institution temperature data recorded under s.
302.075 (2).
2. The county jail and house of correction temperature data recorded under s.
302.076 (2).
(b) The department shall furnish each sheriff or person in charge of a county
jail or house of correction with instructions that specify the information that is
required to be reported under par. (a), a simple format in which to submit the
information, the time it is to be forwarded, the process for submitting it, the method
of classifying it, and any other matters that facilitate collection and compilation.
The format provided under this paragraph shall, to the greatest extent feasible,
minimize the time required by each person to submit the required information.
SECTION 5. 302.075 of the statutes is created to read:
302.075 Prison climate control. (1) The warden or superintendent shall
ensure that the heating