Relating to: the definition of “veteran” for purposes of certain state veterans benefits.
SB 983 clarifies the definition of "veteran" for Wisconsin state veterans benefits. It creates a new statutory definition (45.01(12)(jm)) specifically including National Guard members who completed their initial service obligation and received an honorable or general discharge under honorable conditions. This change ensures these individuals qualify for state benefits under the new category, while removing them from the general "veteran" definition in 45.51(2)(a)1. The bill directly affects eligible National Guard members seeking state-level veterans' benefits.
Bill status
failed
1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Feb 6, 2026
Last action Mar 23, 2026
Floor votes
How they voted
No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
7
Key actions
0
Committee
0
Feb 6, 2026
Introduced
Introduced by Senators Testin, Marklein, Carpenter and Dassler-Alfheim;
cosponsored by Representatives Maxey, Kurtz, Franklin, Tucker, Behnke, Brown, Dittrich, Goeben, Green, Gundrum, Hurd, Kaufert, Knodl, Murphy, Novak, Sinicki, Stubbs and Wichgers
upper
4 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Howard Marklein
RRepublican
P
Kristin Dassler-Alfheim
DDemocratic
P
Patrick Testin
RRepublican
P
Tim Carpenter
DDemocratic
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