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SB 805

Relating to: recess in public schools. (FE)

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Rachael Cabral-Guevara

Wisconsin SB 805 would require at least 60 minutes of daily recess for K–6, prohibit counting recess as punishment, and allow up to 60 minutes of recess to count toward instruction

Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1
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Bill Summary · SB 805

Summary of Wisconsin Senate Bill 805 (2025)

Jurisdiction: Wisconsin

Status: Introduced January 2, 2026; Referred to Education. As of the provided materials, the bill did not advance to passage (per action history noting a failed passage on 2026-03-23 in a later step).

Title: Relating to: recess in public schools.

Purpose and intent
- The bill aims to mandate daily recess for students in public schools (including charter schools) and to clarify how recess counts toward instructional time. It seeks to ensure structured, supervised, unstructured play and physical activity during the school day, with protections against using recess as a punishment.

Key provisions

1) Definition of recess
- Recess is defined as time during which pupils have supervised, unstructured time for:
- Physical activity
- Play
- Organized games
- Social engagement with other students

2) Recess requirements (starting in 2026-27)
- Each school board and each operator of a charter school must schedule at least 60 minutes of recess per school day for students in grades K–6.
- Time spent transferring to/from recess and any dressing/undressing for outdoor recess does not count toward the 60-minute requirement.
- Students must not use computers, tablets, phones, or other personal electronic devices during the portion of recess that counts toward the 60 minutes.

3) Withholding recess
- Recess may not be withheld as a disciplinary or punitive action, unless a student’s participation poses an immediate threat to their safety or others.
- Schools must make reasonable efforts to resolve threats and minimize exclusion from recess.

4) Department of Public Instruction (DPI) guidance
- The DPI must provide guidance and model professional development resources to help implement the recess requirements.

5) Interaction with instructional time (hours counting)
- For the hours-of-direct-instruction calculations (K–12), the bill changes the rule to allow up to 60 minutes of recess to count toward the required direct instruction hours.
- Previously, DPI rules allowed up to 30 minutes of recess to count toward instructional hours.
- The bill specifies: annually schedule at least 437 hours of direct pupil instruction for K ( kindergarten), 1,050 hours for grades 1–6, and 1,137 hours for grades 7–12. These hours may include recess and time to transfer between classes, but lunch is not counted. The department may count a maximum of 60 minutes per day of recess toward these requirements. Hours offered during interim sessions are not counted.

6) Legislative references
- The bill would amend:
- 118.077 (new): Recess (definition, requirements, prohibitions, DPI guidance)
- 119.04 (1) (as amended): Broad schedule of direct pupil instruction hours, with a 60-minute cap on recess counting toward those hours
- 121.02 (1) (f) (as amended): Annual direct instruction hour requirements, including the 60-minute recess allowance

What is affected

  • Students: K–6 students would be guaranteed at least 60 minutes of recess daily; they would be restricted from using personal devices during recess that counts toward the requirement.
  • School districts and charter schools: Required to schedule and supervise 60 minutes of recess daily; prohibited from using recess as punishment (except in safety-threat scenarios); must implement DPI guidance.
  • Department of Public Instruction: Tasked with providing guidance and professional development resources to support implementation.
  • Instructional time accounting: Recess could count toward annual direct instruction hour totals, with a 60-minute daily maximum count toward those hours.

Procedural and timeline aspects

  • Effective starting in the 2026-27 school year.
  • The bill creates a new statutory section (118.077) to govern recess.
  • It amends existing statutes to adjust how recess counts toward required instructional hours (up to 60 minutes per day).
  • Fiscal note: Indeterminate state and local fiscal effects; DPLA (Department of Public Instruction) would provide guidance and professional development resources, potentially with ongoing administrative costs.
  • Current status in the provided record: introduced and referred to Committee on Education; action history indicates later failure to pass in a Senate procedural step.

Bottom line
SB 805 would establish a statewide standard of at least 60 minutes of daily recess for K–6 students starting in 2026-27, prohibit recess suspension as a disciplinary tool (with safety exceptions), require DPI guidance, and allow up to 60 minutes of recess to count toward required direct-instruction hours. It emphasizes supervised, unstructured physical activity and social interaction, while prohibiting device use during counted recess.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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