Free Press Action Pledges to Fight on for Wisconsin Anti-SLAPP Bill After Legislation Fails to Pass in Current Session

MADISON — On Wednesday, Wisconsin’s state legislature failed to schedule a vote on important free-speech legislation that would protect people from strategic lawsuits against public participation (also known as SLAPP), often filed by powerful interests against those who speak out against official or corporate abuses and other matters of public concern. 

In late 2025, state lawmakers introduced new anti-SLAPP bills that adopt the Uniform Public Expression Protection Act to protect journalists and ordinary community members from these lawsuits. After passing through committee unanimously in both chambers, the Wisconsin State Assembly passed the legislation with bipartisan support in February, and it was due to be taken up by the state Senate during this month’s legislative session, which ends on March 19. 

Earlier this month, Free Press Action led a diverse coalition of free-speech advocates and local media calling on state lawmakers to pass the bill in the current session. The legislation is “a wise nonpartisan investment in protecting the speech and civic health of the commonwealth while laying the groundwork for a sustainable, community-rooted local news ecosystem,” they wrote in a letter to lawmakers. 

In 2021, Cory Tomczyk (who is now a Wisconsin state senator) filed a SLAPP suit against the Wausau Pilot and Review after the news site reported he was overheard using an anti-gay slur while in the audience of a Marathon County meeting. 

Arin Anderson, Free Press Action’s Wisconsin civic media campaign manager, said: 

“SLAPP suits can be used against individuals and organizations to intimidate and silence public critiques. Plaintiffs bring expensive legal proceedings against defendants, who are then forced to rack up exorbitant legal fees defending themselves against baseless charges. 

“SLAPP lawsuits are designed to punish and silence, not to win. Even when dismissed, they can cost defendants tens of thousands of dollars and years in court. When anti-SLAPP laws are enacted, targeted victims can defeat these speech-chilling attacks. That’s why Free Press Action convened a large coalition of Wisconsin press-freedom advocates and local press to call for its passage as soon as possible.

“Passing this broadly supported bill would send a clear message: Wisconsin stands up for free speech, open debate and the right of people to hold the powerful accountable. Free Press Action applauds the leadership that introduced this  important bill and looks forward to advocating for it and other important journalism bills when the state’s next legislative session begins in January.”

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