Dane County Lakes & Watershed Commission to hold public hearing on its 2013 budget recommendations

August 10, 2012
Supervisor Chuck Erickson (608-212-8753), Melissa Malott (608-220-0167)
Land & Water Resources

Hearing set for August 14, 2012, 5:30 p.m. in City-County Building

(Madison, WI) The Dane County Lakes and Watershed Commission will hold a public hearing on its draft 2013 budget recommendations on Tuesday August 14, 2012, in Room 354 of the City County Building, 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd in downtown Madison.

State law requires the Dane County Lakes and Watershed Commission to review county departments’ water-resource-related budgets. The budget review process was designed to give the Commission and public a chance to advocate for water resource-related budget initiatives.

The draft recommendations can be viewed at www.danewaters.com. Besides commenting at the public hearing, citizens may also submit written comments to the Lakes and Watershed Commission by sending a message tolakes@co.dane.wi.us.The deadline for electronic comments is 5:00 pm on Monday August 27.

Commission Chair Melissa Malott said, “To protect and restore our waterways for future generations, Dane County must continue to invest in the lakes, rivers, streams, and wetlands that define our region and contribute to its economic vitality and quality of life.”

"We invite the public to comment before we finalize our recommendations and send them to the County Executive and County Board,” said Supervisor Chuck Erickson, chair of the Lakes and Watershed Commission’s Budget Subcommittee. “Please review our recommendations for water quality improvement initiatives, navigational improvements and safety, stormwater outfall improvements, aquatic plant harvesting, and other projects and share your comments with us.”

The Commission’s 2013 budget recommendations reflect its four goals: 1) protect and restore water quality; 2) address fluctuations of lake levels; 3) ensure safety as our citizens and visitors interact with the waterways; and 4) educate our citizens so they can become self-sustaining stewards of our lakes and watersheds thus reducing future costs of protecting our waters.

After the public hearing, the Commission will refine its recommendations and forward them to County Executive Joe Parisi by September 1 for consideration in his budget. Commission recommendations are also provided to the County Board for their use in budget deliberations. The County Executive’s budget is delivered to the County Board on or before October 1. The County Board and County Executive hold public hearings on the budget during September and October (final dates to be determined). The County Board acts on the budget after receiving the County Executive’s budget, typically adopting a final budget before Thanksgiving.

# # #