The Weekly Update

Board of Regents

The Board of Regents of the Universities of Wisconsin will be meeting in-person at UW-Madison this Thursday and Friday, February 5-6, beginning at 8:45am.

You can find the agenda, meeting materials, and videoconference information on the website here.

A summary will also be available on the Board of Regents news site following the meeting which can be found here.

Senate Committee on Licensing, Regulatory Reform, State and Federal Affairs

The Senate Committee on Licensing, Regulatory Reform, State and Federal Affairs held a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27, at 10AM. The following bills were included on the agenda.

• Senate Bill 653, Relating to: imposing certain prohibitions on foreign influence at University of Wisconsin System institutions.
• Senate Bill 649, Relating to: banning the use of genetic software from foreign adversaries in medical and research facilities, the storage of any human genome sequencing data within the borders of a foreign adversary, and providing a penalty.

Senate Committee on Government Operations, Labor and Economic Development

The Senate Committee held a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27, at 11:31AM. SB 562, Relating to: reporting requirements for recipients of economic development grants and loans, was included on the agenda.

Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities

The Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities held a public hearing on Wednesday, January 28 at 2PM on the following bills:

• Assembly Bill 818, Relating to: demonstration charter school operators.
• Assembly Bill 757, Relating to: the appointment of certain employees of the University of Wisconsin System and faculty governance.

Assembly Committee on Consumer Protection

The Assembly Committee on Consumer Protection held a public hearing at 11AM on Thursday, January 29. Among other bills, AB 406, relating to: University of Wisconsin System resident undergraduate tuition and fees, was discussed.

Assembly Committee on Consumer Protection

The Assembly Committee on Consumer Protection will be holding an executive session on AB 406, relating to: University of Wisconsin System resident undergraduate tuition and fees, on Tuesday, February 3 at 1PM.

State Building Commission

The State Building Commission will meet Wednesday, February 4. Included on the agenda is the authority to construct Polk Library at UW-Oshkosh which was enumerated in the 25-27 biennial budget.

• Administrative Affairs Subcommittee – 10AM
• Higher Education Subcommittee – 11AM
• Full Commission – 2PM

Joint Committee on Finance

The Joint Committee on Finance will be holding a Section 13.10 meeting and an executive session on Tuesday, February 3, at 1PM.

You will be able to watch on WisconsinEye.

Assembly Committee on State Affairs

The Assembly Committee on State Affairs will be holding a public hearing and an executive session on AB 974, relating to: a public affairs network trust fund, grants to the WisconsinEye Public Affairs Network, and making an appropriation.

You will be able to watch the hearing and executive session on WisconsinEye.

FY26 Appropriations Update

Late last week, the Senate advanced a modified version of H.R.7148 - the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026. However, due to Senate changes to the bill text, the bill now needs further consideration in the House of Representatives before it can become law. The House of Representatives is expected to consider the legislation the week of February 2^nd.  

With the lapse in appropriations for those agencies funded in H.R. 7148, the federal government partially shutdown at the expiration of the Continuing Resolution on January 30, 2026. Additional details on the shutdown can be found in OMB’s shutdown order here.

The situation remains fluid and updates will be shared as appropriate.

Reimagining and Improving Student Education Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

The Department of Education’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) following the Reimagining and Improving Student Education Negotiated Rulemaking Committee was published on January 30, 2026.

If interested, you can review the NPRM and information from the Department of Education at the links below.

• Department of Education: S. Department of Education Issues Proposed Rule to Make Higher Education More Affordable and Simplify Student Loan Repayment
• Federal Register: Reimagining and Improving Student Education

House Education and Workforce Committee Hearings

This week, the House Education and Workforce Committee will hold two hearings of interest.

On February 3, the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions will hold a hearing titled "Building an AI-Ready America: Adopting AI at Work.” The hearing will begin at 9:15AM Central Time. Announced witnesses include:

• Mr. Bradford Kelley, Shareholder, Littler Mendelson, P.C.
• Ms. Revana Sharfuddin, Research Fellow, Mercatus Center at George Mason University 
• Ms. Tanya Goldman, Fellow, Workshop 
• Mr. David Walton, Partner, Founder and Co-Chair of AI, Data, and Analytics Group, Fisher Phillips

On February 4, the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development will hold a hearing titled "Runaway College Spending Meets the Working Families Tax Cut.” The hearing will begin at 9:15AM Central Time. Announced witnesses include:

• Dr. Beth Akers, Senior Fellow, American Enterprise Institute
• Mr. Geoffrey Landward, Commissioner, Utah System of Higher Education
• Dr. Julie Margetta Morgan, President, The Century Foundation
• Mr. Raymond Rodrigues, Chancellor, State University System of Florida 

Both hearings can be watched on the Committee Website: https://edworkforce.house.gov/.

Senate HELP Committee Hearing

On February 3, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pension (HELP) Committee will hold a hearing titled “Modernizing the National Institutes of Health: Faster Discoveries, More Cures.” The hearing will begin at 9:00AM Central Time. Announced witnesses include:

• Hon. Jayanta Bhattacharya, M.D., Ph.D., Director, National Institutes of Health

If interested, you can watch live on the Committee's Website.

Full House and Senate Hearing Schedule

If interested, you can see a full list of upcoming hearings on the Senate Hearings & Meetings Page. A review of the committee hearings in the House of Representatives is available via the Committee Schedule within the House of Representatives Legislative Activity section on the Chamber’s main page.  

House and Senate Floor Schedules

When the House of Representatives and Senate return to Washington, a full list of votes will be found on the respective websites for the House of Representatives and the Senate.