Milwaukee City Wire

A bill authored by State Sen. Julian Bradley in the Wisconsin Senate seeks to ensure health care providers apply consistent care to children born alive after abortion attempts and mandates immediate hospital transfer, according to the Wisconsin State Senate.

According to the Wisconsin State Legislature's official website, the bill was described as follows: "requirements for children born alive following abortion or attempted abortion and providing a penalty".

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill mandates that health care providers attending a child born alive following an abortion or attempted abortion must apply the same level of care and skill as they would for any child born at the same gestational age. Moreover, they are required to ensure the child is immediately taken to a hospital. Failure to comply with these provisions is classified as a felony, punishable by up to six years in prison, a fine up to $10,000, or both, though the mother cannot be prosecuted under this bill. It allows women affected by non-compliance to seek damages, including emotional distress, and requires violations to be reported to law enforcement. The bill also criminalizes causing the death of such a child, equating it to first-degree intentional homicide, with the same life imprisonment penalty, exempting the mother from prosecution. Effective measures for confidentiality in proceedings are included, but it does not create or recognize a right to abortion.

The bill was co-authored by Rep. Joy L. Goeben (Republican-5th District), Sen. Mary Felzkowski (Republican-12th District), Sen. John Jagler (Republican-13th District), Sen. Chris Kapenga (Republican-33rd District), and Sen. Steve L. Nass (Republican-11th District). It was co-sponsored by Rep. Elijah R. Behnke (Republican-6th District), Rep. Lindee Rae Brill (Republican-27th District), and Rep. Calvin T. Callahan (Republican-35th District), along with 17 other co-sponsors.

Julian Bradley has authored or co-authored another 55 bills since the beginning of the 2025 session, with two of them being enacted.

Bradley graduated from the University of Wisconsin at La Crosse in 2014 with a BS.

Bradley, a Republican, was elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 2021 to represent the state's 28th Senate district, replacing previous state senator Dave Craig.

In Wisconsin, the legislative process starts when a senator, constituent, group, or agency proposes an idea for a bill. After drafting, the bill is introduced, numbered, and referred to a committee for review and public input. If approved, it moves through three readings and votes in both the Senate and Assembly. Once both chambers pass the same version, the bill goes to the governor, who can sign it, veto it, or let it become law without a signature. Only a small share of bills introduced each session ultimately become law. You can learn more about the Wisconsin legislative process here.

Bill Number	Date Introduced	Short Description
SB384	08/11/2025	Requirements for children born alive following abortion or attempted abortion and providing a penalty
SB383	08/11/2025	Price transparency in hospitals, restricting certain debt collection actions against patients, and providing a penalty. (FE)
SB371	07/09/2025	Explaining pregnancy, prenatal development, and childbirth as part of a human growth and development instructional program. (FE)
SB338	06/19/2025	Enforcement of the federal Help America Vote Act
SB333	06/19/2025	Increasing certain court fees and surcharges and indexing those amounts for inflation. (FE)
SB295	05/30/2025	The use of artificial intelligence or other machine assisted translation in court proceedings and of telephone or live audiovisual interpretation in criminal trials. (FE)
SB289	05/30/2025	Requirements for proposed administrative rules that impose any costs
SB288	05/30/2025	Authorized lights for funeral procession vehicles
SB280	05/23/2025	Interest earned on coronavirus state and local fiscal recovery funds. (FE)
SB279	05/22/2025	Grants to law enforcement agencies for data-sharing platforms
SB277	05/21/2025	The expiration of administrative rules. (FE)
SB276	05/21/2025	Challenges to the validity of administrative rules and making an appropriation. (FE)
SB275	05/21/2025	Statements of scope for administrative rules. (FE)
SB267	05/20/2025	The fee for filing limited liability company articles of organization with the Department of Financial Institutions. (FE)
SB256	05/15/2025	Delivery network couriers and transportation network drivers, Department of Financial Institutions’ approval to offer portable benefit accounts, providing for insurance coverage, modifying administrative rules related to accident and sickness insurance, and granting rule-making authority. (FE)
SB254	05/09/2025	Funding for the War Memorial Center and making an appropriation. (FE)
SB249	05/09/2025	Vacancies in appointive state offices
SB244	05/09/2025	Modifying the sales and use tax exemption for qualified data centers. (FE)
SB240	05/09/2025	Workforce literacy grant program. (FE)