MADISON, Wis. — As the 2025-26 legislative session nears its end, State Representative Shannon Zimmerman (R-River Falls) has had an abysmal attendance record.
The Wisconsin Assembly met a mere 24 times over the two year 2025-26 session before the GOP majority adjourned in February for the rest of the year. Of those 24 days, Rep. Zimmerman was missing for 6 of them, leaving the Wisconsinites of his district without representation on more than 225 important votes.
“The nearly sixty-thousand people of the 30th District Rep. Zimmerman is paid to represent deserve to know why they were left without a voice on hundreds of important votes over this session,” said Lucy Ripp, communications director at A Better Wisconsin Together.
Rep. Zimmerman’s absences have also extended to the powerful Joint Finance Committee (JFC), which is his sole committee assignment. Floor sessions and JFC meetings missed by Rep. Zimmerman this legislative cycle include March 18, 2025; March 20, 2025; June 17, 2025; June 18, 2025; Aug. 21, 2025; Sept. 11, 2025; Feb. 3, 2026; Feb. 10, 2026; and Feb. 12, 2026.
Social media posts suggest Zimmerman’s most recent absence conveniently lines up with a tropical trip to the Bahamas. However, as of Feb. 27, Rep. Zimmerman’s office has not fulfilled an open records request A Better Wisconsin Together submitted for his calendar.
“While Rep. Zimmerman is avoiding work by supposedly jetting off and soaking up the sun, the taxpayers covering his salary are here in Wisconsin working hard,” Ripp said. “If that’s how Rep. Zimmerman thinks a representative government works, he’s due for a harsh reality check.”
Despite his failure to show up to do his job, Zimmerman is paid an annual salary of over $60,000 plus benefits that include a generous pension, heavily subsidized health care for himself and his family, and reimbursements for mileage and other expenses.
You can read more about Rep. Zimmerman’s absences this session, including citations and specific legislation he avoided voting on, in this memo from A Better Wisconsin Together.
