DANE COUNTY LAKES AND WATERSHED COMMISSION TO HOLD PUBLIC HEARING ON ITS 2017 BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS

August 12, 2016
Rebecca Power (608-234-2433), Sue Jones (608-224-3764)
Land & Water Resources

(Madison, WI) The Dane County Lakes and Watershed Commission will hold a public hearing on its draft 2017 budget recommendations on Wednesday, August 17, 2016, 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 to lakes@countyofdane.com. The deadline for electronic comments is noon on Wednesday, August 17.

 

Commission chair Rebecca Power said, "Dane County’s waters are our waters. Smart, planned investment in them is an investment in our quality of life and our economy.”

 

The Commission’s 2017 budget recommendations reflect its goals to: 1) reduce excess phosphorus, nitrogen, chlorides, and dissolved solids in our lakes, rivers, streams, and groundwater; 2) prevent the introduction of new invasive species into our lakes, rivers, and streams and prevent the spread of current invasive species; 3) meet all regulatory responsibilities including county ordinances and state and federally mandated water quality guidelines; 4) engage citizens to address the use, quality, and safety issues associated with Dane County waters; 5) encourage sound scientific studies of water quality and use issues; and 5) provide the required resources for safety on and near surface water.

 

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.