Wisconsin’s statehouse transparency took a hit after WisconsinEye, the nonprofit network that had broadcast and archived legislative proceedings, went dark in mid-December, leaving lawmakers meeting without the usual public video access during the current legislative session.
The network, created as a private, independent nonprofit, had provided free coverage of state Senate and Assembly floor sessions since 2007 and also broadcast live court hearings, news conferences, legislative committee hearings and other government proceedings, according to the Associated Press. When WisconsinEye stopped its free live broadcasts, it also shut down its website that contained more than 30,000 hours of archived footage, the report said.
Open-government advocates said the loss is making it harder for residents to follow what happens in the Legislature. Bill Lueders, president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, said WisconsinEye had become “a vital part of our democracy in Wisconsin” and that “We’ve lost, at least temporarily, this precious resources for participating and understanding the workings of our democracy,” according to the AP.
Lueders said Republicans who control the Senate and Assembly began enforcing rules that predated WisconsinEye’s livestreaming restrictions against members of the public. The AP reported that one Democratic lawmaker tried to livestream committee meetings he was attending but was shut down by the Republican committee chair, and Lueders said the missing recordings are leaving some hearings with no documentation of what happened.
The AP said WisconsinEye had relied on private donations from individuals, foundations, businesses and other supporters to pay for its operations for the past 18 years, but it struggled as competition for donations increased and after years of losing money since the 2020 pandemic. Lawmakers responded by creating a $10 million endowment about three years ago, but WisconsinEye had to match all of it to access the funds, the report said.
According to the AP, WisconsinEye initially raised just $210,000, and the state provided it $250,000 and another year to meet the $10 million match. WisconsinEye then shut down after it failed to raise enough money to cover its $887,000 operating budget for 2026, the report said. Last week, the network launched a GoFundMe with a goal of raising $250,000 for three months of operations; as of Thursday, the campaign had raised around $49,000, the AP reported.
With WisconsinEye sidelined, state entities have adjusted their own coverage. The AP said the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which has had live audio available of oral arguments since 1997, announced this week that it would run its own livestream of arguments scheduled for mid-February. The report also said the state Senate livestreamed its floor session this week using one stationary camera, rather than the multi-angle approach WisconsinEye used, and identified speakers and the bill under discussion. The Assembly, meanwhile, did not broadcast any of its four floor sessions this month, the AP said.
On Thursday, Assembly Democrats and Republicans unveiled a proposal that could allow WisconsinEye cameras to return by letting the network access interest accrued from the $10 million endowment, with fundraising paying for the rest of the operating budget. The AP reported that the proposal must still pass the Senate, and it was unclear how much support there is for the plan.
Senate Republican Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said the Senate would not commit to the funding approach until Republicans could review details about WisconsinEye’s finances and operations. WisconsinEye CEO Jon Henkes said the network was an “open book” and welcomed scrutiny, and the AP reported that he was “real optimistic” the bill would become law and strengthen WisconsinEye going forward. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers said earlier this month that he would support a fundraising deal to revive the network as long as the state was not paying for all of WisconsinEye’s budget.