DATE: July 26, 2007
A special meeting of the Sauk County Law Enforcement & Judiciary Committee was held on Thursday, July 26, 2007, in Room D102A of the Sauk County Law Enforcement Center, 1300 Lange Court, Baraboo, Wisconsin.
The meeting was properly posted and all interested parties were notified.
Members Present: D. Stevens, P. Tollaksen, C. Montgomery, J. Wheeler,
Members Absent:
Members Excused: R. Sinklair
Others Present: R. Stammen, M. Hafemann, R. Meister, K. Fults, K. Schauf, M. Krueger, L. Haugen, B. Manning, Media
1. Call To Order and Certification of Open Meeting Law : The meeting was called to order and compliance with the Open Meeting Law was certified by Chair Donald Stevens at 9:00 AM.
2. Agenda : Motion by Montgomery, seconded by Tollaksen, to adopt the agenda. Motion carried.
Chair Stevens said he had received a phone call from Robert Sinklair who asked him to state that he (Sinklair) would not be attending the meeting because he believed special meetings should be called only for emergencies and he didn't think the meeting was necessary.
3 . Consideration and Possible Approval of Form I :
Motion by Montgomery, seconded by Tollaksen, to approve Form I as written.
Comments by Wheeler followed on the content of Form I. Wheeler said it was better than the one last year.
Motion carried unanimously
4 . Review of Draft of 2008 Budget Proposal (Review Will Include Those Items in the Budget for Which Necessary Information is Available and Will Not be a Complete Draft) :
The budget items presented were the costs of wages and benefits and the Capital Outlay requests. The 2007/2008 contract with the labor union has been ratified so the labor costs for 2008 can be projected. The cost of the health insurance for 2008 was estimated at a 15% increase which is a worst case scenario. It may be lower than that and the actual figure should be available by July 31.
Sheriff Stammen noted that the increase in labor costs and benefits alone put the 2008 budget increase at $605,634. Administrative Coordinator Schauf noted that this will be the case with every department's budget although the negotiators have done a good job.
Wheeler questioned the number of dispatchers employed by the Sheriff's Department, which is 14. Page 2 Law Enforcement Committee July 26, 2007
The shift relief factor for 24 hours, 7 days a week, 365 days a year coverage was explained. This is based on a mathematical formula which comes to 5.3 employees to cover a shift 24/7/365 and the Sheriff's Department employs no part time employees.
County Board Chair Marty Krueger spoke to the committee and voiced his support for including the opening of A Unit in the 2008 budget. All expenses will be tracked separately as a part of a one-year project. Wheeler questioned how medical expenses and costs could be tracked if some of the state prisoners are in A Unit and some are in B Unit. Despite the assurance of Administrative Coordinator Schauf and Security Captain Hafemann that this would not be a problem, Wheeler continued to question the process.
Wheeler asked why the committee would only be allowed to review the budget request once, which is at the August oversight committee meeting. Sheriff Stammen and Coordinator Schauf both said there are several reviews and revisions of all the budgets built into the total budget process and that the final budget isn't done until it comes before the full board for a public hearing and a vote.
4. Adjourn to Date Specified : Motion by Tollaksen, seconded by Montgomery, to adjourn the special meeting. Motion carried.
_________________________
Robert Sinklair, Secretary
(Minutes taken by B. Manning)