Pray for Repose of the Soul of Bishop Banks, Retired Bishop of Green Bay
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| The Wisconsin Catholic Conference joins the Diocese of Green Bay and Catholics around the state in praying for the repose of the soul of the Most Reverend Robert J. Banks, retired Bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay and former member of the Wisconsin Catholic Conference Board of Directors. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. |
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| Bishop Banks passed away on January 25 at the age of 97. In his time as Bishop from 1990-2003, Bishop Banks led significant administrative restructuring and school policy reform for the Diocese of Green Bay. Read more about Bishop Banks here.
Reception of the Body and Solemn Vespers will be celebrated for family, priests, deacons and consecrated religious of the diocese on Thursday, February 5, 2026, at 6:00 PM, at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Green Bay. Visitation for all the faithful will be held at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral on Friday, February 6, 2026, beginning at 8:00 AM. The Mass of Christian Burial will begin at 11:00 AM, following visitation, with the Most Reverend David L. Ricken, Bishop of Green Bay, as celebrant and the Most Reverend Robert F. Morneau as homilist. |
USCCB President Urges Restraint and Respect for Human Life in Minneapolis
Echoing the message Pope Leo XIV delivered at the Sunday Angelus yesterday, Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops reminded the faithful: “Peace is built on respect for people.”
Today, Pope Leo XIV reminds us that ‘the Gospel must be proclaimed and lived in every setting, serving as a leaven of fraternity and peace among all individuals, cultures, religions and peoples.’
It is with this in mind that I prayerfully urge calm, restraint, and respect for human life in Minneapolis, and all those places where peace is threatened. Public authorities especially have a responsibility to safeguard the well-being of people in service to the common good.
As a nation we must come together in dialogue, turning away from dehumanizing rhetoric and acts which threaten human life. In this spirit, in unity with Pope Leo, it is important to proclaim, ‘Peace is built on respect for people!’
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Celebrating January 25-31 as Catholic Schools Week in Wisconsin
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| Governor Tony Evers has proclaimed January 25 through January 31, 2026, as Catholic Schools Week in Wisconsin. The proclamation coincides with the national observance of Catholic Schools Week and recognizes the over 275 Catholic schools in Wisconsin serving over 52,000 Wisconsin students.
Catholic schools across Wisconsin are hosting many events in observance of Catholic Schools Week, including Masses, open houses, and special activities for students. To find out the special ways in which this week is being celebrated, contact your local Catholic school or visit the school’s website.
Read the WCC’s full press release and the proclamation from Governor Evers below: |
WCC Action at the Capitol
Structured Camping Facilities for Homeless Individuals ▼ Testified in opposition
SB 621 (Cory Tomczyk, R-Mosinee) / AB 631 (Dave Maxey, R-New Berlin)
The bill classifies setting up a temporary residence on public property as a Class C misdemeanor. The bill also authorizes the Department of Administration and other political subdivisions to set up structured camping facilities for the homeless on public property. The WCC opposes the criminalization of homelessness, which will fail to help individuals out of homelessness.
Status: Since the public hearing, the Assembly committee has taken no further action. The Senate bill awaits a public hearing.
Occupational Credentials for DACA Recipients ▲ Testified in support
SB 745 (Jesse James, R-Thorp) / AB 759 (Joel Kitchens, R-Sturgeon Bay)
The bill allows recipients of deferred action under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program to obtain occupational licenses in Wisconsin. The Catholic Church has long advocated for the legal protection, full inclusion, and wellbeing of children brought to the U.S. DACA recipients are some of the most thoroughly vetted individuals in the state and this bill will allow recipients to enter into licensed careers benefiting them, employers, and the state of Wisconsin.
Status: The bill passed out of committee and awaits an Assembly vote. The Senate bill awaits a public hearing.
Prohibiting Gender Transition for Minors ▲ Testified in support
SB 157 (Cory Tomczyk, R-Mosinee) / AB 104 (Scott Allen, R-Waukesha)
The bill prohibits gender transition medical intervention for individuals under 18 years of age. The Catholic Church teaches that every human being is made in the image and likeness of God and is deserving of dignity, respect, and compassion. The Church recognizes the anguish of children as they wrestle with severe gender dysphoria, as well as their parents. All people should be treated with love and respect and accompanied with compassion and truth. The WCC supports this bill because gender transitioning of children upends the natural development of the human person and sends the message that some bodies are mistakes that can be manipulated at will.
Status: The bill passed the Assembly and awaits a Senate floor vote.
Designating School Sports Teams by Sex ▲ Testified in support
SB 116 (Rob Hutton, R-Brookfield) / AB 102 (Barbara Dittrich, R-Oconomowoc) and
SB 117 (Rob Hutton, R-Brookfield) / AB 100 (Barbara Dittrich, R-Oconomowoc)
Consistent with the Catholic Church’s clear teaching on the equality of men and women, the WCC affirms that education and sports policies must uphold human dignity. This includes equal treatment between women and men and affirmation of the goodness of a person’s body, which is genetically and biologically female or male. Male competition in activities designated for women and girls can be both unfair and unsafe. When male participation takes an athletic opportunity away from a female, it is a loss for basic fairness and the spirit of Title IX. Students who experience gender dysphoria bear the full measure of human dignity, and they therefore must be treated with kindness and respect.
Status: The bills passed the Assembly and await a Senate floor vote.
Grants to Nonprofit Religious Organizations ▲ Registered in support
SB 789 (Jodi Habush Sinykin, D – Whitefish Bay) / AB 796 (Ron Tusler, R-Harrison)
This bill provides safety and security grants to religious nonprofit organizations that show credible risks or threats posed against them. The bill allows religious nonprofits to apply for up to $500,000 per biennium to increase physical security, train or hire individuals, or enhance emergency protocols and systems.
Status: The bill is scheduled for a public hearing in the Assembly on Wednesday, January 28. The bill awaits a public hearing in the Senate.
Child Victims of Human Trafficking ▲ Registered in support
SB 864 (Jesse James, R-Thorp) / AB 834 (Jerry O’Connor, R-Fond du Lac)
This bill provides that child victims or child witnesses of human trafficking crimes must be provided any courtroom supports that the court finds necessary to support the health, safety, or liberty of the child and determines are in the interest of justice. The bill also provides for sealing the identifying information of child victims or child witnesses in human trafficking cases, unless the court orders the disclosure to be made after a hearing in which the court takes into consideration the health, safety, and liberty of the child and determines that the disclosure is in the interest of justice. This bill is one of the recommendations of the Speaker Task Force on Human Trafficking from the 2023-2024 Legislative Session.
Status: Since its public hearing, the Assembly committee has taken no further action. The bill awaits a public hearing in the Senate.
Human Trafficking Hotline Poster ▲ Registered in support
AB 824 (Sheila Stubbs, D-Madison)
Under current law, the Department of Justice must provide on its website a poster that provides information regarding a human trafficking resource center hotline and encourage the poster to be displayed at various places. This bill adds the following to the list of places: lodging establishments, premises that serve alcoholic beverages, tattoo establishments, job recruitment centers, community-based residential facilities, and public and private elementary and secondary schools. This bill is one of the recommendations of the Speaker’s Task Force on Human Trafficking from the 2023-2024 Legislative Session.
Status: Since the public hearing, the Assembly committee has taken no further action. The bill awaits a public hearing in the Senate. |
Legislative Action on Previously Reported Bills
Federal Tax Credits to Scholarship Granting Organizations ▲ Testified in support
SB 600 (Mary Felzkowski, R-Tomahawk) / AB 602 (Jessie Rodriguez, R-Oak Creek)
The bill requires the state to take appropriate steps to facilitate and ensure participation in the newly created federal tax credit scholarship program. The federal program allows individuals to receive a $1,700 dollar for dollar tax credit for donations made to qualifying K-12 scholarship granting organizations. Such organizations can only qualify for the tax credit program if the state opts in to the program.
Status: The bill passed the Senate and Assembly and awaits action by the Governor.
Crime of Grooming a Child ▲ Registered in support
SB 671 (Jesse James, R-Thorp) / AB 677 (Amanda Nedweski, R-Pleasant Prairie)
The bill creates a crime of grooming a child for sexual activity. That crime prohibits any person from engaging in a course of conduct, pattern of behavior, or series of acts with the intention to condition, seduce, solicit, lure, or entice a child for the purpose of doing either of the following: (1) engaging in sexual intercourse or sexual contact; or (2) producing, distributing, or possessing depictions of the child engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The Church supports efforts to advance the protection of children from all forms of abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
Status: The bill passed the Assembly and is scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate on Wednesday, January 28.
State Income Tax Subtraction for School Teachers ▲ Registered in support
SB 69 (Dan Feyen, R-Fond du Lac) / AB 64 (David Armstrong, R-Rice Lake)
This bill provides a tax deduction for teachers who purchase classroom supplies or books out of pocket. The deduction mirrors the federal deduction for teachers, allowing them to deduct up to $300 on their state taxes.
Status: The bill passed the Senate and awaits a floor vote in the Assembly.
Substitute Teaching ▲ Registered in support
SB 526 (John Jagler, R-Watertown) / AB 518 (William Penterman, R-Hustisford)
The bill allows individuals who hold a substitute teaching permit to substitute teach at private schools participating in a parental choice program. Public schools already permit this so the bill aligns parental choice program schools with public schools.
Status: The bill passed the Senate and Assembly and awaits action by the Governor.
Human Growth & Development Curriculum ▲ Registered in support
SB 371 (Mary Felzkowski, R-Tomahawk) / AB 405 (Amanda Nedweski, R-Pleasant Prairie)
This bill requires that a school board which opts to provide a human growth and development instructional program on the topics of pregnancy, prenatal development, and childbirth include when age appropriate: 1) a high-definition ultrasound video that shows the development of the brain, heart, sex organs, and other vital organs in early fetal development; 2) a high-quality, computer-generated rendering or animation that shows the process of fertilization and every stage of fetal development inside the uterus and that notes significant markers in cell growth and organ development for every week of pregnancy until birth; and 3) a presentation on each trimester of pregnancy as it relates to the physical and emotional health of the mother. The bill also requires that a school board include in the instruction in parental responsibility an explanation of the importance of secure interpersonal relationships for infant mental health and the value of reading to young children for mental development.
Status: The bill passed the Senate. Since the public hearing, the Assembly committee has taken no further action.
Long-Term Care Visits ▲ Registered in support
SB 417 (André Jacque, R-New Franken) / AB 418 (Chuck Wichgers, R-Muskego)
The bill ensures in-person visitation rights for patients and residents in health care facilities during an outbreak or epidemic of a communicable disease. With certain limitations, the bill ensures that patients and residents have the ability to visit with clergy members and other essential visitors.
Status: The bill passed the Senate and awaits a public hearing in the Assembly.
Freedom to Gather in Places of Worship (Second Consideration) No position
SJR 4 (Cory Tomczyk, R-Mosinee) / AJR 10 (Ron Tusler, R-Harrrison)
The joint resolution is a proposed constitutional amendment that prohibits the government from closing places of worship or forbidding gatherings in them in response to a state of emergency. As the joint resolution has now passed the Legislature in two successive sessions, the question concerning ratification of the foregoing proposed amendment to the State Constitution will be stated on the ballot as follows: “Question 1: “Freedom to gather in places of worship during an emergency. Shall section 18 of article I of the constitution, which deals with religious liberty, be amended to prohibit the state or a political subdivision of the state from ordering the closure of, or forbidding gatherings in, places of worship in response to a state of emergency, including a public health emergency?”
Status: The joint resolution passed the Senate and Assembly and will appear on the November 2026 ballot. |
More Updates from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
To take action on the USCCB’s current federal action alerts, click here. |
Legislative Resources
Find the WCC’s session priorities, legislative committees, contact info for your legislators, and more.
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