Welcome to the Universities of Wisconsin Government Relations Newsletter. The Office of Government Relations provides legislative and political updates that impact the Universities of Wisconsin at the state and federal level.
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Universities of Wisconsin Updates
State Relations
leadership elections
Leadership elections for the State Assembly Republicans and the State Senate Democrats were held last Tuesday, November 12. Results of these elections are below.
Assembly Republican Leadership
- Speaker – Robin Vos
- Majority Leader – Tyler August
- Assistant Majority Leader – Scott Krug
- Speaker Pro Tempore – Kevin Petersen
- Caucus Chair – Rob Summerfield
- Caucus Vice-Chair – Cindi Duchow
- Caucus Sgt-at-Arms – Treig Pronschinske
- Caucus Secretary – Nancy VanderMeer
Senate Democrat Leadership
- Minority Leader – Dianne Hesselbein
- Assistant Minority Leader – Jeff Smith
- Caucus Chair – Mark Spreitzer
- Caucus Vice-Chair – Dora Drake
assembly democrat leadership elections
Assembly Democrats are expected to meet to elect leadership on Tuesday, November 19.
inauguration day
The State of Wisconsin’s Inauguration Day for state office will be on Monday, January 6, 2025.
Federal Relations
2025-26 fafsa form updates
Last week, the Department of Education announced the final beta testing period for the 2025-26 FAFSA form. As noted in the linked release, the “Department has successfully processed the forms and sent over 81,000 records to more than 1,850 schools and 43 states. The Department has not found any critical bugs during the beta testing period, and the FAFSA system is working end-to-end.”
Further, Under Secretary of Education Jame Kvaal confirmed the form will launch no later than December 1st saying, “More than 14,000 students have already submitted 2025–26 FAFSA forms, and we have successfully processed them and sent them to colleges, universities, and state agencies across the country. Allowing more students to access the FAFSA form is the final state of beta testing as we prepare to officially launch the form no later than Dec. 1.”
Finally, last week, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 8932, the FAFSA Deadline Act via a vote of 381-1. All members of the Wisconsin Congressional delegation voted in support of the legislation, which among several provisions, looks to codify that the FAFSA be available by October 1st each year.
senate help committee
Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), who currently serves as the Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) will serve as chairman next session.
At the time of the announcement, Senator Cassidy said, “It is an honor to lead my fellow Republicans as chair of the HELP Committee. I am excited to work closely with President Trump and my Republican colleagues to implement a Pro-America agenda and deliver real solutions for Louisiana and American families.”
The Senate HELP Committee is charged with oversight of education issues in the United States Senate. For more, you can read about the committee’s jurisdiction here.
house/senate floor schedules
The House of Representatives and Senate are both scheduled to be in session and voting this week. A full list of votes can be found on the respective websites for the House of Representatives and the Senate as they are released.
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