Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that requires school boards to adopt policies to firm up when or how a student may change their name or pronouns at school in Wisconsin.

Highlights:

• Requires that beginning July 1, 2026 school boards adopt (Sec. 1):

• A policy related to the conditions under which a school board will change a pupil's legal name or legal name and pronouns in official school records (legal name and pronoun records policy); and 

• A policy related to the conditions under which a school board will allow school staff to regularly use or refer to a minor pupil by a name other than the pupil's legal name or by pronouns other than the pronouns provided at the time the pupil first enrolled in the school district (name and pronoun usage policy).

• Requires that a school board include certain provisions in its legal name and pronoun records policy, including (Sec. 1).

• The initial determination is made by the principal of the school the pupil attends;

• The principal may only approve the change if the documentation of a legal name change is provided or if such documentation is not provided, an affidavit is provided stating, among other things, that the pupil legally changed the pupil's name and that it was not for a fraudulent purpose or to interfere with the rights of others;

• For a minor pupil, a requirement that the school board make a reasonable attempt to provide each of the minor pupil’s parents and legal guardians with an opportunity to provide information in favor of or against approving the requested change; and

• A process to appeal a principal's decision to deny a request to the school board.

• Specifies provisions that a school board must include in its name and pronoun usage policy, including (Sec. 1):

• State that a minor pupil's parent or legal guardian determines the names and pronouns school staff are allowed to use to refer to the minor pupil during school hours; and

• Prohibit school staff from referring to a minor pupil by a name or pronoun that does not align with the pupil's biological sex without written authorization from the pupil's parent or guardian.

• Specifies that a name and pronoun usage policy does not need to require written authorization for school staff to use a shortened version of a minor pupil's legal first or middle name to refer to the pupil (Sec. 1).

• Specifies that nothing in the bill may be construed to limit the rights of pupils, parents, or guardians under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, the federal law that protects pupil records (Sec. 1).

Full Bill Text