Annotated Wisconsin Constitution

  1.   Rule of taxation uniform; income, privilege and occupation taxes.

  2.   Appropriation; limitation.

  3.   Credit of state.

  4.   Contracting state debts.

  5.   Annual tax levy to equal expenses.

  6.   Public debt for extraordinary expense; taxation.

  7.   Public debt for public defense; bonding for public purposes.

  8.   Vote on fiscal bills; quorum.

  9.   Evidences of public debt.

  10.   Internal improvements.

  11.   Transportation fund.

ARTICLE IX.

EMINENT DOMAIN AND PROPERTY OF THE STATE.

Section

  1.   Jurisdiction on rivers and lakes; navigable waters.

  2.   Territorial property.

  3.   Ultimate property in lands; escheats.

ARTICLE X.

EDUCATION.

Section

  1.   Superintendent of public instruction.

  2.   School fund created; income applied.

  3.   District schools; tuition; sectarian instruction; released time.

  4.   Annual school tax

  5.   Income of school fund.

  6.   State university; support.

  7.   Commissioners of public lands.

  8.   Sale of public lands.

ARTICLE XI.

CORPORATIONS.

Section

  1.   Corporations; how formed.

  2.   Property taken by municipality.

  3.   Municipal home rule; debt limit; tax to pay debt.

   3a.   Acquisition of lands by state and subdivisions; sale of excess.

  4.   General banking law.

  5.   Repealed.

ARTICLE XII.

AMENDMENTS.

Section

  1.   Constitutional amendments.

  2.   Constitutional conventions.

ARTICLE XIII.

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.

Section

  1.   Political year; elections.

  2.   Repealed.

  3.   Eligibility to office.

  4.   Great seal.

  5.   Repealed.

  6.   Legislative officers.

  7.   Division of counties.

  8.   Removal of county seats.

  9.   Election or appointment of statutory officers.

  10.   Vacancies in office.

  11.   Passes, franks and privileges.

  12.   Recall of elective officers.

  13.   Marriage.

ARTICLE XIV.

SCHEDULE.

Section

  1.   Effect of change from territory to state.

  2.   Territorial laws continued.

  3.   Repealed.

  4.   Repealed.

  5.   Repealed.

  6.   Repealed.

  7.   Repealed.

  8.   Repealed.

  9.   Repealed.

  10.   Repealed.

  11.   Repealed.

  12.   Repealed.

  13.   Common law continued in force.

  14.   Repealed.

  15.   Repealed.

  16.   Implementing revised structure of judicial branch.

NOTE: An index to the Wisconsin Constitution follows. The general index contains references to the Wisconsin Constitution under the head “Constitution, Wisconsin.”

PREAMBLE

We, the people of Wisconsin, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, in order to secure its blessings, form a more perfect government, insure domestic tranquility and promote the general welfare, do establish this constitution.

Interpreting the Wisconsin Constitution. Suhr. 97 MLR 93 (2013).

The Making of the Wisconsin Constitution. Ranney. Wis. Law. Sept. 1992.

A Jurist’s Language of Interpretation. Diedrich. Wis. Law. July/Aug. 2020.

I ARTICLE I.

DECLARATION OF RIGHTS

I,1 Equality; inherent rights. Section 1. [As amended Nov. 1982 and April 1986] All people are born equally free and independent, and have certain inherent rights; among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; to secure these rights, governments are instituted, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. [1979 J.R. 36, 1981 J.R. 29, vote Nov. 1982; 1983 J.R. 40, 1985 J.R. 21, vote April 1986]

equal protection

The fact that there is no mandatory release date for persons convicted of first degree murder as there is for other crimes does not amount to denial of equal protection. Bies v. State, 53 Wis. 2d 322, 193 N.W.2d 46 (1972).