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Administration Committee 09/03/26 ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE Douglas County Board of Supervisors Thursday, September 3, 2026, 10:00 a.m., Government Center Boardroom 201 1316 N. 14th Street, Superior, Wisconsin Meeting called to order by Chair Alan Jaques. 1. ROLL CALL Present – Alan Jaques, Rosemary Lear, Randy Skowlund, Mark Liebaert, Nick Baker , Kelly Peterson, Bill Fennessey. Absent – Charlie Glazman, Anders Hultstrom. Others present – Carolyn Pierce, Dave Sletten, Natasha Schmid, Bill Whiteside, Darcie Burbul, Dan Lindberg, Amy Tyson, Matt Izzard, Jeremy Moe, Andy Johnson, Michele Wick, Sharon Dembroski, Dennis Cummings (virtual), Kaci Lundgren, Melissa Jarzomski (Committee Clerk). 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion by Lear, second Peterson, to approve August 6, 2026, minutes. Motion carried. 3. DEPARTMENTAL FINANCIAL REPORTS AND GOALS/ OBJECTIVES The following departments reported on departmental activities: Administration, Human Resources, Buildings and Grounds, Corporation Counsel, County Clerk, Finance, Information Technology, Register of Deeds, and Treasurer. 4. ACTION ITEMS a. 2027 Proposed Budgets: Included in agenda. 1. Administration / Human Resources: Administration reflects a 4.52% increase primarily due to step progressions and health insurance adjustments. Human Resources reflects a 4.26% increase related to personnel costs and employee benefits. 2. Buildings and Grounds: Reflects a 44.82% decrease from 2026. The reduction is primarily attributed to decreased contractual services costs, energy savings initiatives, and adjustments to facility lease expenses 3. Corporation Counsel: Increase of 27.99% due primarily to employee step progression increases and adjustments to departmental revenue allocations. 4. County Board: Decrease 4.44 % due to reductions in office supplies, repair and maintenance costs, promotional expenses, and grant-related expenditures. Matt Izzard spoke regarding costs not included in attachments; to be distributed. 5. County Clerk / Central Supply: Increase 7.8 2% largely due to employee benefit adjustments. Cost savings were realized through reduced ballot printing and office supply expenses anticipated in a non -election year. Central Supply expenses remain allocated across county departments. 6. Finance: Increase 2.87% resulting from personnel-related costs and health insurance adjustments. Budget discussions also included implementation of the Tyler Enterprise system and associated operational efficiencies. 7. Information Technology: Discussion focused on anticipated savings from implementation of the Tyler Enterprise system, reductions in software and service costs, Administration Committee 09/03/26 and continued technology infrastructure improvements. 8. Register of Deeds: The proposed budget reflects an increase of $32,290, resulting in a levy impact increase of 172.94% from 2026, primarily due to personnel and benefit costs. Revenue generation within the department continues to offset a substantial portion of operating expenses. 9. Treasurer: Decrease of 0.55% from 2026; changes include increased parcel -related revenue, software licensing costs, and personnel benefit adjustments. 10. Debt Service: Decrease of 0.55% from 2026 and remains fully levied with no net impact to the General Fund. 11. Worker’s Compensation: The proposed Workers’ Compensation budget assumes departmental contributions will continue to fully fund anticipated claims and program expenses for 2027. 12. Health Insurance: Increase of 11.28% in projected revenue and a corresponding increase of 18.76% in anticipated claims expenditures. The County will continue to pay approximately 85% of employee health insurance costs, with employees contributing 15%. 13. Recycling: Increase of 8.18% from 2026 due to program cost adjustments established through Northwest Regional Planning. ACTION (REFERRAL): Motion by Baker, second Peterson, to approve all 2027 proposed budgets as listed and refer to budget session. Motion carried. b. Personnel Policies Amendment : Provided as a handout in response to a formal complaint received regarding hiring processes. Amendments clarified coordination requirements between departments, Human Resources, and Administration during recruitment efforts and further clarified that nothing in the policy limits the statutory authority of elected officials. ACTION ( RESOLUTION): Motion by Baker, second Fennessey, to approve the Personnel Policies Amendment, including the statutory spelling correction, and refer to County Board. Motion carried unanimously. c. Budgetary Transfers: Included in agenda. Updated report provided as a handout. ACTION (RESOLUTION): Motion by Lear, second Peterson, to approve budgetary transfers and refer to County Board. Motion carried unanimously. d. Public Safety Ordinances : Committee members were advised that several Public Safety Ordinance amendments reviewed at a second Public Safety Committee meeting were inadvertently omitted from the Administration Committee agenda. To ensure all ordinance amendments are considered together and numbered correctly, staff recommended postponing action until the next Administration Committee meeting. ACTION: Motion by Lear, second Peterson, to refer all Public Safety ordinance amendments to the next Administration Committee meeting. Motion carried. 5. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS a. Wetland Mitigation : Liebaert reported that efforts continue to identify wetland mitigation opportunities necessary for future highway projects. Discussions with the Wisconsin Administration Committee 09/03/26 Department of Natural Resources are ongoing, and potential mitigation options are being explored to support future road reconstruction projects b. American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Funding: Included in agenda. 6. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Public Safety Ordinances Amendments 7. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Skowlund, second Lear, to adjourn. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 10:18 a.m. Submitted by, Melissa Jarzomski Committee Clerk