Wisconsin REALTORS® Association: Your RPAC Contribution, Your Legislative Success

Your RPAC Contribution, Your Legislative Success

 Nathan Conrad, WRA Director of Grassroots Political Advocacy and Engagement  |    March 31, 2025
RPAC

If you’ve attended a REALTOR® function in Wisconsin, you’ve likely heard about the importance of advocacy and how your contributions drive success for the industry.

Advocacy takes many forms. Some members testify at public hearings on key legislation or local ordinances. Others participate in REALTOR® & Government Day, meeting directly with elected officials to advance the priorities of the WRA. Many support candidates by attending fundraising events, while others serve on local board committees that endorse candidates in upcoming elections. Every one of these efforts makes a difference.

But there is one form of advocacy that every REALTOR® participates in: the REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC). Your contributions to RPAC help ensure that REALTOR® priorities are recognized and understood by decision-makers. These funds create an environment where our issues remain front and center — both during election season and beyond.

Recent industry wins

In the last legislative session, your RPAC contributions played a direct role in securing key wins for the industry. Here are some of the major successes from the 2023–24 session.

Historic investment in workforce and senior housing

Gov. Tony Evers signed into law five historic bipartisan bills that will increase workforce and senior housing inventory in Wisconsin. Additionally, the legislature approved and the governor signed a budget that funds $525 million for loan programs that will help strengthen Wisconsin’s housing inventory.

Laws passed and funded during the past legislative session are aimed at increasing the supply of workforce and senior housing: 

  • Residential development infrastructure loan program ($275 million in funding): 2023 Wisconsin Act 14 created a loan program at the state level to fund infrastructure for residential developments such as streets, water, sewage and sidewalks. 
  • Main street residential housing rehab loan program ($100 million in funding): 2023 Wisconsin Act 15 provides a loan program for the repair and rehabilitation of residential rental housing above an existing building with a commercial use on the main floor.
  • Rehabilitation and repair of older housing stock ($50 million in funding): 2023 Wisconsin Act 17 established a new grant program to help homeowners repair or rehabilitate homes more than 40 years old in Wisconsin
  • Vacant commercial to housing conversion loan program ($100 million in funding): 2023 Wisconsin Act 18 provides financing for the redevelopment of vacant commercial buildings into new workforce housing.
Addressing discriminatory covenants and deed restrictions

Discriminatory covenants that restrict property ownership or occupancy based on race and other protected classes remain embedded in deeds and subdivision covenants across Wisconsin. While these restrictions have been unenforceable since the 1968 Fair Housing Act and since the passage of Wisconsin’s Open Housing Law, their presence in title records and commitment reports continues to shock and frustrate buyers and property owners.

2023 Wisconsin Act 210 allows property owners to voluntarily record a statutory form to acknowledge and address discriminatory deed restrictions on their land records. This legislation preserves the historical context without erasing the original language, which was a top priority for the WRA. It passed with strong bipartisan support in both legislative houses.

Securing a sales tax exemption for multiple listing services

To ensure tax clarity, the WRA successfully advocated for Wisconsin Act 141, which establishes a statutory exemption from sales tax for certain Multiple Listing Service (MLS) transactions. MLSs facilitate cooperation among real estate brokers, and while the Wisconsin Department of Revenue had not been charging sales tax on these services, this new law provides formal clarity to protect the industry. This measure also passed with wide bipartisan support.

Enhancing professionalism, transparency and consumer protections

Raising the bar for professionalism is a top priority for the WRA. Thanks to legislation signed into law as Wisconsin Act 208, several key improvements were made to real estate practice

  • Reduced REALTOR® risk: Licensees now have a safe harbor when relying on government information as long as they provide proper attribution.
  • Increased consumer transparency: New disclosure requirements ensure that consumers are informed when contractual rights are assigned to another party.
  • Higher accountability for violations: The Real Estate Examining Board’s fine limits for license law violations increased from $1,000 to $5,000, reinforcing higher professional standards.

Once again, this bill passed and was signed into law with bipartisan support.

Looking ahead

With the 2025 legislative session underway, your continued support of RPAC will be crucial in securing future wins for REALTOR® priorities at every level of government. Advocacy is not just about one election cycle — it’s an ongoing effort to protect and strengthen Wisconsin’s real estate industry.

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