Merit Institute Merit

The Wisconsin Merit-Based Credentialing Act (WI-ACSA)

Wisconsin state companion to ACSA. Extends Wis. Stat. Ch. 440 (Department of Safety and Professional Services), Wisconsin Technical College System, and Wis. Stat. Ch. 71 income-tax credits.

THE WISCONSIN MERIT-BASED CREDENTIALING ACT (WI-ACSA)

Vehicle: State passage. Wisconsin Legislature, regular session. Primary referral to Assembly / Senate Labor / Ways and Means.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE

This Act may be cited as the “Wisconsin Merit-Based Credentialing Act (WI-ACSA).”

SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT

The Legislature finds that Wisconsin administers occupational licensing through the Department of Safety and Professional Services (“DSPS”) under Wis. Stat. Ch. 440; that Wisconsin enacted military-and-select-credential reciprocity under Wis. Stat. Sec. 440.13 and credential-review provisions under 2017 Wisconsin Act 278; that the Wisconsin Technical College System operates under Wis. Stat. Ch. 38; that the Department of Workforce Development operates under Wis. Stat. Ch. 106; that the Wisconsin Fast Forward program supports workforce training under Wis. Stat. Sec. 106.27; and that Wis. Stat. Ch. 71 provides income-tax credits. This Act extends these frameworks.

TITLE I — DEFINITIONS & COORDINATION WITH WISCONSIN LAW

Sec. 101. Definitions

  1. (a) “Wisconsin Recognized Merit Credential” or “WIRMC” means a competency-based credential designated by the Secretary of Workforce Development in coordination with the WTCS President under Sec. 201.
  2. (b) “Federal FRAC” means a Federally Recognized Alternative Credential under Section 202 of the federal ACSA.
  3. (c) “Covered State licensing authority” means an agency issuing an occupational license under Wis. Stat. Ch. 440.

Sec. 102. Coordination with Existing Wisconsin Law

  1. (a) Consistent with:
  • Wis. Stat. Ch. 440 (occupational licensing).
  • Wis. Stat. Ch. 38 (Wisconsin Technical College System).
  • Wis. Stat. Ch. 106 (Department of Workforce Development; Wisconsin Fast Forward).
  • Wis. Stat. Ch. 71 (income tax).

TITLE II — WISCONSIN RECOGNIZED MERIT CREDENTIALS

Sec. 201. Designation Authority

  1. (a) The Secretary of Workforce Development, in coordination with the WTCS President, shall maintain a Wisconsin Recognized Merit Credentials registry (“WIRMC Registry”) in machine-readable form, updated at least annually, crosswalked to Federal FRAC.

Sec. 202. Degree-Optional State Employment

  1. (a) Wis. Stat. Ch. 230 (State Employment) shall be applied so that a WIRMC-holder satisfies any position qualification stated in terms of a college degree, unless expressly required by Wisconsin statute.

TITLE III — TAX INCENTIVE FOR SKILLS-BASED HIRING

Sec. 301. Wisconsin Skills-Based Hiring Income-Tax Credit

  1. (a) A new credit is added to Wis. Stat. Ch. 71 equal to a percentage of qualified first-year wages paid to a Wisconsin-resident employee whose qualifying pathway is a WIRMC or Federal FRAC.
  2. (b) Coordinated with federal IRC Sec. 45AA; aggregate cap.
  3. (c) Wisconsin Department of Revenue administers.

TITLE IV — OCCUPATIONAL LICENSURE PORTABILITY

Sec. 401. Licensure by Demonstrated Competency

  1. (a) Demonstrated-competency pathway accepting WIRMC, Federal FRAC, or examination-plus-supervised-experience.

Sec. 402. Interstate Recognition for Federal-Fund Recipients

  1. (a) Recognition by federally-funded authorities, consistent with Section 401 of the federal ACSA.

TITLE V — IMPLEMENTATION & GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Severability

If any provision is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect the remainder.

Sec. 502. Effective Date

This Act shall take effect on the first day of the third month following enactment, except that Sec. 301 shall apply to tax years beginning on or after January 1 of the year following enactment.

Canonical federal version: ACSA. Other Wisconsin bills: WI-MEWRA, WI-GT&P, WI-AI-Workforce.