Dunn County Board of Supervisors discusses immigration, courts, libraries

COUNTY OF DUNN MENOMONIE, WISCONSIN NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING

In accordance with the provisions of Section 19.84, Wisconsin Statutes, notice is hereby given that a public meeting of the DUNN COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS will be held on Wednesday, February 19, 2025 at 7:00 p.m. in Room 54 of the Dunn County Government Center, 3001 US Highway 12 East in Menomonie, Wisconsin. The building entrance for public meetings is on the lower level of the Government Center and will be open 30 minutes ahead of the meeting start time.

A video recording of the meeting will be available for subsequent viewing on the Dunn County YouTube channel at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/@dunncounty1854.

Persons wishing to provide public comment may do so at the meeting or may submit written comments by sending an email beforehand to [email protected]

Items of business to be discussed or acted upon at this meeting are listed below:
AGENDA - COUNTY BOARD – revised to add 9.A.
   1. Call to Order

   2. Pledge of Allegiance

   3. Call of the roll

   4. Approval of the Minutes from January 15, 2025 Meeting

The motion passes. The chairman says that the proceedings will henceforth get more formal, and thus the approval of minutes goes to a vote.

   5. Presentations of Petitions, Memorials, and Other Communications

   6. Public Hearing: None

   7. Public Comment

Mike Cooper comes to the stand to make a public comment. He noticed immigration on the packet, advising that since changes in Washington means cuts to immigration budget, the county ought to put their plans in the area on the back burner until it is clear what changes will come down from Washington. He worries that budget cuts may cause the county to foot the bill.

   8. Appointments

   9. Report of County Manager

       A. Chippewa Valley Rail Update – Scott Rogers

Scott Rogers is invited to the stand by the County Manager to give an update on the Chippewa Valley Rail. He is part of the Chippewa-St. Croix  Rail commission, and he explains its mission– to provide rail service to the Chippewa and St/ Croix valleys. A number of entities are in this coalition, like Union Pacific and the three UWs.

A few powerful and far-sighted people saw the economic growth of the west Wisconsin area and formed the coalition to bring rail service to the area. Six corridors in the midwest have been approved to be sponsored by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, one of which would pass between Eau Claire and the Twin Cities, cutting through Menomonie.

Rogers goes through the system for figuring out if a rail plan is financially feasible. He says we should know more numbers soon, but the governor supports feasibility studies. The Union Pacific railroad also is encouraging and says that their rails could support more cars.

Rogers discusses a few examples of other rails and areas that have pulled in significant revenue that outweighed cost. There is demand for rail transportation, he says. He expresses the inconvenience of wondering what traffic will be between the twin cities and Menomonie, and gives a vision for the future of a Menomonie railway aided by images from other railways in college towns, as well as images of Stout students returning home on the train in the 40s.

Supervisor Vandermeulen brought up that he thought St Croix county was opposed to the plan, but Rogers says he would not describe their attitude as opposed.

       B. Priority Based Budgeting Overview

The county manager introduces a presentation on Priority Based Budgeting to see, after the county previously said the offer from the PBB software provider (Tyler Technologies) was too expensive, if the supervisors would be interested in implementing it.

Dan Dunbar continues the presentation, explaining that this system, unlike department budgeting, is based on priorities. The system would more accurately define what constitutes a “service” across departments, so the county can compare “apples to apples.” A scoring system would categorize programs so they could be more accurately compared in terms of priority and effect to cost ratio. The system would present options to the board in terms of repurposing potentially inefficiently-used funds.

Dunbar reviews the pros and cons of evaluating priorities using the PBB software versus having staff do it.

The chairperson makes the comment that the board would have much better data to make decisions on budgeting if the software was purchased.

Supervisor Vandermeulen says it would be difficult to assess program impacts, such as an art therapy program. Dunbar reiterates that the software is for data gathering, and it is better to know what funds are being used for, and that use of the software does not demand cutting programs even if it highlights them as expensive and low-impact. Human decision making would still play a part. Supervisor Thomas asks about maintaining human decision making again, and the chairman and Dunbar agree that it would remain.

A question is asked if this software would come in time for 2026 budgeting, and Dunbar says this is the plan. He also clarifies that the data collection is a one-time thing, but he believes that the data would have use beyond one single-year evaluation by Tyler Technologies.

Supervisor Vandermeulen asks what department heads think of this budgeting plan, but the information is not known.

Supervisor Hagen asks what other places’ financial impact has been. The chairman says Tyler Technologies said that they could find about 17% of the county’s budget that could be spent in a better way. The chairman doubts this optimism, but he says even if they find even 10% of that it could be 1.7 to 2.5 million to be spent in better ways.

The chairman provides one more point of context, which is that the software could provide clarity on what has been done budget-wise to future boards and to the taxpayer.

       C. Purchase Orders over $40,000

None were put forward.

       D. ERP Procurement Update

The county is in contact with one vendor for a possible new ERP timekeeping system.

       E. Succession Planning

The County Manager talks about a lot of high-level positions turning over when she assumed her position. She reviews what has been accomplished since she assumed the position, and announces her retirement.

   10. Reports of Departments: Circuit Court, Libraries, Finance

Katie Schalley, a circuit court judge comes to the stand to provide a report for the circuit courts. She describes the year as busy. 2024 was a good year for revenue, 13% more than the previous year. Also, there were a significant number of cases compared to previous years. Schalley says that progress to reduce jury trials is still being made, so fewer people are bothered for jury duty.

Interpreters, apparently, account for a large cost for the courts, as they are required to be present, but there is no statute that caps the amount of money that they can charge. The most common languages needed were Spanish and Russian in 2024. The interpreters, 95% of the time, appear online, and while it cuts down on travel costs, they still can charge anything for their hourly rates.

Representatives from the public libraries come to the stand to provide their report. The Boyceville library had close to 10000 visits, and hosted 83 programs in 2024. There was even a surprise donation of 25000 dollars.

The Colfax library had an almost 50% increase in program attendance. A representative mentions the continuing triumph of physical books, as the preference for E-books has reduced. An automatic door was added to the Colfax library, and a little free pantry was also added. Stepping Stones has offered to stock it, but they have not been necessary, as locals are continually stocking the pantry. The representatives passed around personal anecdotes from constituents about why libraries are important. The representatives mention the continued importance of conversation and discourse in community spaces for the leaders of the future.

The Sand Creek library also went through their report, and brought awareness to their small (840 sq. ft.) library and activities for children, like the game ‘spoons’ with stories, Ride with Santa (where the grinch crashed the party this year), and a sourdough-making experience, which was a full event.

A representative gives some closing comments, mentioning that with a changing national scene, local government officials have the ability to ensure a structured community where everyone can feel alright.

Supervisor Lauffer asks about liability waivers, and wonders if it may be a good idea to implement them across the libraries. The response he gets is that that sort of thing is underway.

Beata Haug comes forward to give the county financial report. The financial department has 21 members, including several new members. Haug describes the central hierarchy, and mentions that there are offices with other branches, like the highway or Neighbors of Dunn County, which report to those branches’ hierarchies.

The financial department has a number of functions including budget planning, payroll, and grant management. The financial planning as of now consists of looking at the debt, partly using 3rd party resources, as well as managing county investments. The department also is responsible for investigating if the taxpayer money is being used well. They also team up with HR for payroll and reporting to federal and state levels. Vendor management and ensuring vendors get paid are also functions of the department, as is fraud prevention. Financial transparency is important to the department. Any historical budget information is available on the county website.

The financial department has a number of goals for 2025, including p-card training, the ERP system adoption, teambuilding for their team, and collaboration with other departments.

Supervisor Stori requested percentages of federal and state funding by department, which Haug says can be given.

Supervisor Larry Bjork asks about the amount of contact between the public and financial department, and about the department’s policy on working from home. The financial department requires staff to be in the office two days per week, leading to a hybrid environment. Haug’s response is that measures worker engagement based on outcomes from specific individuals.

   11. Items Placed at the Request of the Chair: Report from Health & Human Services Regarding Refugee Resettlement

Supervisor Morehouse says that about seventy refugees will be resettled in Eau Claire. World Relief is the non-governmental organization taking care of the refugees. Dunn County apparently has no authority on the question of refugees; only the federal government can install refugees, which is a constitutional separation of powers issue. Efforts in other states to give local veto power on where refugees are settled have been struck down as unconstitutional.

Supervisor Hagen says that federal limitations on funding for refugee resettlement may push back any possibility of local decisions having any weight.

   11. [sic] Consideration of Reports, Resolutions, and Ordinances to the County Board from the Executive Committee:

       A. 2025 Budget Adjustments - Health Dept & CJC

The motion passes unanimously.

       B. 2025 Budget Adjustment – Administration - Contract with Tyler Technologies for Performance Based Budgeting Tool.

The previously discussed Tyler Technologies contract is brought to the floor. The question of other possible vendors is brought up, but the chairman states that their technology is on the cutting edge of AI, so no other possible vendors with comparable databases exist. The chairman also clarifies that there are no current plans for purchasing the service in subsequent years.

The debate stage begins. Supervisor Vandermeulen states he would like to know what the department heads think before voting. The motion is voted on and passes, but not unanimously.

   12. Consideration of Reports, Resolutions and Ordinances coming to the County Board from the Standing Committees : Committee on Administration - Resolution Revising Inventory of Job Classifications

No discussion occurs, and this motion passes unanimously.

   13. Announcements: Next Meeting, March 19, 2025

The chairman asks the supervisors to check mailboxes frequently, and the county clerk mentions the upcoming Red Cedar Watershed Conference, which supervisors have gone to in the past and found informative.

   14. Adjournment

Kelly McCullough, Chairperson

By: Kristin Korpela County Manager

Upon reasonable notice, the County will make efforts to accommodate the needs of disabled individuals through sign language, interpreters or other auxiliary aids. For additional information or to request the service, contact the County Human Resources Manager at 715-232-2429 (Office), 715-232-1324 (FAX) or 715-231-6406 (TDD) or by writing to the Human Resources Manager, Human Resources Department, 3001 US Hwy 12 E, Suite 225, Menomonie, Wisconsin 54751.