Senate Bill 446 aims to enhance access to civil legal services for individuals and families in Wisconsin, particularly in immigration-related matters. The bill mandates the Department of Administration (DOA) to award grants to community-based organizations and other entities, regardless of their profit status, for providing these legal services. It also requires the DOA to create an equitable application process for grant awards and to ensure that applicants have a proven track record of offering such services without regard to clients' immigration status. Additionally, the bill allows counties to allocate funds to these organizations for civil legal services beyond immigration issues.

The bill includes several key provisions, such as the creation of a new statute (16.195) specifically for immigration-related civil legal services grants and the establishment of a continuing appropriation under 20.505 (1) (ek) to support these grants. Furthermore, it renumbers and amends existing law under 59.53 (3) to broaden the purposes for which counties can appropriate funds, including making payments to community-based organizations for civil legal services. A new subsection (c) is also added to explicitly allow counties to fund these organizations, enhancing the support for legal assistance in the community.