Legislative Report - October 2025

Steve Panten

Call your Legislators Now

We are in the home stretch for our bills, SB184/AB161. Last month, the Wisconsin State Assembly passed our bill that would prevent government restrictions based on the energy source of a vehicle or device, and now it is on to the governor. We are hoping that the governor will see that the residents of this state are responsible enough to make the best decision for themselves, based on their own research and budget, to decide what type of fuel source they want to power their next motorcycle, vehicle, lawn mower, or small engine equipment. We are reaching out to the Governor’s office in the hopes of getting a meeting to discuss this issue.

We know how difficult it is to get to where we are with these bills. Our members stepped up to help Senator Tomczyk and Representative Tucker get enough support in the Capitol to move these. We were prepared. We showed up on Lobby Day to explain why this is important, showed up at Public Hearings to testify in support, and we did the “Call to Action” when we needed to give this a push. It took ABATE members to get this done, and we did it. Now it is in the Governor’s hands. With the crazy environment that is in Madison right now, it is a huge success that we got this done, as they are not able to pass anything this session. I want to thank everyone who helped along the way. We did an amazing job.

Here are a couple of quotes from the Legislators to their constituents:

Representative Neylon - AB 161: “This bill protects consumer choice, ensures a consistent regulatory framework, and supports a balanced transition to future transportation technologies.”

Representative Green - “Wisconsin residents should have the freedom to choose what best fits their needs when it comes to everyday appliances, vehicles, and other devices. The bill ensures consumer freedom and economic stability, rather than top-down government mandates from unelected bureaucrats. The government should not control what people can buy.”

AB135/SB127 is our Right to Repair legislation. Representative Penterman’s office has put a lot of time into helping us with this piece of legislation, and I think we are finally ready for it to be scheduled for a Public Hearing. We met with different groups and tried to come to a compromise to get their support. In some cases, we were successful and in other cases, not so much, but we were able to have respectful discussions and both sides understood where we each stood on the issue.

Rep. Penterman’s staff requested a Public Hearing from the Assembly Committee on State Affairs, where Rep. Swearingen is the Chair and Rep. Green is Vice-Chair. Both are friends of ours, and we have other friends on that committee, so we may be reaching out to get the hearing scheduled. Getting this legislation passed may be a little difficult because I heard that leadership is not in favor of it, and we have some large groups that came out opposed to it. This is where we need to shine. We can get support from local, independent shops that will be affected by not being able to access the tools and technology to repair vehicles. Just look around at all the shops in your community. We need to reach out to them and ask them to call their State Assembly member and Senators and ask them to support AB135/SB127, the Right to Repair bills. We are hoping they will schedule the Public Hearing in October, so please, get your local shops fired up and ask them to show up, watch for ABATE alerts, and Call to Actions. Even if the shops cannot show up, we will have an opportunity for them to reach out to the committee and register in support through the committee chair’s office, but showing up is way more powerful; we need to fill the hearing room. Let them know that we will have people there to help them navigate the system.

Are you having trouble following all this legislative stuff, and don’t feel comfortable because it’s difficult to understand? Have no fear, John and I are looking to schedule Grassroots Lobby Training sessions across the state in November and December. We are going to hold a 3-hour session explaining the process and how legislation maneuvers through the system. It is basic training intended to make members feel more comfortable about the process, and also about talking to their elected official. If you have any questions, please reach out to your Regional Rep as they should be working with the District Directors to find a day to hold the training.

Final things…. The Annual Meeting is this month in Rothschild with details elsewhere in this newsletter. The weekend is about getting together for some great fall riding with friends from across the state and taking time to recognize members for going above and beyond in the past year. I enjoy the weekend because it is a relaxing weekend, no training, just time with friends, and I like to see who gets recognized for all their efforts. But for me, the highlight is Sunday when we hold the Legislative Committee meeting. This is where we are going to set the legislative agenda for 2026. Are we going to take on motorcyclist profiling, or lane spitting, or do we need to reintroduce what we did last year that did not get passed?

This is where you, as a member, get to offer input on what is important to motorcyclists in the State and how we need to address it. Please take the time to join us for the weekend, or just show up on Sunday and join in the discussion.

Well, I guess there is one more thing…. LOBBY DAY 2026 will be on Tuesday, February 17th. The hotel is booked, and we are working on scheduling the buses. We will have more information at the Annual Meeting on October 12th, and of course, we will have updates in the newsletter.

That’s it.

Steve