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1 Minutes of the Bayfield County Executive Committee Meeting 4:00pm, July 9, 2026 Meeting was held Remotely through Microsoft Teams and in person in the Bayfield County Board Room, Washburn, WI Members Present: Dennis Pocernich, Fred Strand, Jan Lee, Larry Fickbohm, Jim Crandall, Marty Milanowski Excused: Others Present: Mark Abeles-Allison-County Administrator, Kelly Westlund-Deputy Administrator, Russ Rydin-CheqBUILT Called to order at 4:00p.m. by Strand May 14 Minutes: Motion to approve the minutes of May 14th Executive Committee meeting. Motion Carried (6-0) Public Comment: None Bayfield County Resolution 2026-69: Public Private Partnership with Norvado Resolution Background and Grant Application: Novato expressed interest in applying for a broadband expansion grant, covering approximately 84 parcels west of Bayfield, and requested a public private partnership to strengthen their application. The resolution commits $5,000 in cash if the grant is awarded and up to $10,000 in easements at no cost, demonstrating county support for broadband expansion. The committee reviewed maps and discussed the targeted service area. Motion Strand, Ray to approve Resolution 2026-69 to support Novato's broadband expansion grant application, committing $5,000 in cash and up to $10,000 in easements. Motion Carried (5-0-1 abstain due to conflict of interest) CheqBUILT Activity Report: Russ Rydin, newly hired executive director of CheqBUILT, provided an update on organizational progress, foundational work, and future initiatives, with Kellie Pederson and Abeles-Allison acknowledged for their support. Russ mentioned the Buyer Choice initiative and emphasized CheqBUILT's role as a solution to the county's housing challenges, while acknowledging ongoing support from the board and county staff. Budget 2027 Presentations: County Clerk: Emma Grove, Clerk of Court, presented a comprehensive overview of the department's operations, workload, and budget, detailing record management, staff and customer education, financial management, and proposed budget changes. • Grove described the three main pillars of the Clerk of Court department: maintaining accurate court records, providing education to staff and customers, and managing finances, emphasizing the 2 complexity and volume of work, including processing 700 documents and serving 72 in-person customers weekly. • Emma explained the department's limited access to AI tools due to reliance on state-provided hardware and software, noting that the state court program (CCAP) is behind in adopting new technologies, and current office software is outdated. • She discussed areas of the budget under their control, such as implementing cost-effective steps like contacting individuals directly instead of using the Sheriff's Department for minor issues, and leveraging grants for attorney fee reimbursement in child protection cases. highlighted Act 179, which updates statutory fees charged by the office, increasing them by about 80% and establishing a review every three years, addressing long-standing stagnation in fee schedules. • Emma advocated for increased training budget, noting the value of clerk conferences and the need for staff cross-training, especially for jury trials, to ensure operational continuity and knowledge sharing. • Emma responded to questions about proposed budget increases, including judicial law subscriptions, wireless microphones for jury trials, and additional staff support during trials, explaining the rationale and operational benefits. • Emma clarified that statutory fees are set by Wisconsin State statutes, with some fees going to the county and others to the state, and provided details on how forfeiture case fees are split and tracked. Maintenance: Craig Parks presented the regular and capital improvement budget, including requests for a halftime position, prioritization of projects such as parking lot chip seal, sidewalk repairs, water table stone repairs, boiler replacements, and lawnmower upgrades, with committee members discussing project costs, priorities, and funding sources. • Craig outlined expected increases in contractual services and requested approval for a halftime position to support maintenance operations, noting the impact on the regular budget. • Craig detailed capital improvement priorities, including parking lot chip seal and striping, sidewalk repairs to address tripping hazards, and water table stone repairs in the 1997 courthouse addition, with cost estimates pending. • Craig explained the need to replace aging boilers in the courthouse and jail, noting their reduced efficiency and the plan to prioritize new, higher-efficiency boilers as primary units, with backup provided by existing equipment. • Craig described the issue of spalling walls in the basement, particularly in the Historical Society area, explaining the moisture-related damage and confirming that it does not pose a health hazard, with repairs planned. • Committee members discussed the use of fund balances and reserves for major expenditures, noting rising costs for boiler replacements and the importance of timely action to avoid further increases. • Craig advocated for replacing the 23-year-old lawnmower with a more efficient model, explaining the time savings and limitations of current equipment for mowing the county grounds. District Attorney: Kim Lawton, District Attorney, highlighted a decrease in revenue from discovery reimbursements due to state policy changes and advocated for board support of the UW Law School prosecution project, which would bring law student interns to the area to address attorney shortages. • Kim explained that the public defender's office in Madison has unilaterally reduced discovery reimbursements, resulting in a projected $10,000 revenue loss for the county, and has communicated this issue to Mark and relevant associations. • Kim proposed support for the prosecution project at UW Law School, which would fund law student interns to practice in court under supervision, addressing local attorney shortages and providing stipends through the law school. 3 • Kim noted ongoing difficulties in recruiting prosecutors in Ashland and Douglas counties, emphasizing the need to attract more lawyers to the area through internship opportunities. Register of Deeds: Dan Heffner discussed the department's simple budget, upcoming server upgrade for document security, ongoing efforts to scan mortgage books, and management of microfilm records, with committee members receiving updates on project progress and cost considerations. • Dan reported that the IT department prompted a server upgrade to enhance document security, with a quote provided for working with a third party. • Dan described challenges in scanning large mortgage books, some of which do not come apart, and ongoing efforts to locate records on microfilm to potentially reduce scanning costs. County Board: The committee reviewed estimates for contractual services, meals, employee appreciation events, youth scholarships, per diem, and mileage, basing figures on historical usage and noting policy changes. Coroner/Medical Examiner: The Committee discussed the transition from coroner to medical examiner, budget estimates for autopsies and training, and the number of annual death investigations, with question about assistance levels compared to other areas. Mineral rights owned by County: : Abeles-Allison and Heffner led a discussion on county-owned mineral rights, explaining the history of retaining rights during tax foreclosures, upcoming deadlines for filing statements of mineral claim, legal constraints, and options for renewing, lapsing, or selling rights, with committee members exploring administrative costs, property impacts, and recent mineral surveys. • For about 50 years, the county retained mineral rights on tax-foreclosed properties, resulting in over 1,000 parcels with county-held rights, and reviewed the last statement of mineral claim filed in 2007. • The committee discussed the need to file a statement of mineral claim every 20 years to maintain rights, with the next deadline in May 2027, and reviewed Attorney General guidance on transferring rights. • Options include letting rights lapse, renewing claims, or selling rights to current landowners, with concerns about administrative workload and potential public auction risks if rights are sold. • Committee members discussed the random distribution of affected parcels, the impact on property sales, and recent mineral surveys conducted by the US Geological Survey using airborne geophysical technology. • Heffner clarified the process for reclaiming mineral rights, including filing requirements, lapsing conditions, and distinctions between federal and private ownership of mineral rights. Land Records Budget Amendment Resolution for Next Gen 911 Grant: : The NextGen 911 grant budget amendment, specifying the $44,000 allocation for 2026. There will be some carryover to 2027. Motion Pocernich, Crandall to forward the resolution to the county board for approval. Motion Carried (6-0) Human Services Risk Reserve: The committee reviewed a resolution to increase the Human Services risk reserve from $635,000 to $1,000,000, specifying its use for mandated out-of-home placement expenses and confirmed revenue shortfalls, 4 Motion Pocernich, Crandall to forward the resolution increasing the Risk Reserve from $635,000 to $1 million to the county board with recommendation for approval. Motion Carried (6-0). Executive Committee Ordinance, inclusion of other committees: Abeles-Allison and Westlund presented an updated ordinance. The revised ordinance integrates three committees that meet infrequently (Industrial Development, Fraud, and Ethics) into the Executive Committee, assigning policy oversight and coordination of duties. Motion by Pocernich, Sandstrom to forward the ordinance to the county board for consideration. Motion Carried (6-0) County Board Supervisor Attorney Expense Policy: The committee discussed a draft policy for legal expense reimbursement for county board members, focusing on eligibility criteria, advance approval, documentation, and confidentiality concerns, with Lee and Pocernich raising questions about policy wording and privacy boundaries. • The draft policy requires that legal expenses be directly related to official county board duties, with advance approval and review by Corporation Counsel and insurers to ensure proper documentation and coverage. • Pocernich raised concerns about confidentiality boundaries between the administrator and legal counsel, prompting discussion on client privacy protections and the need for policy clarification. Reports: 1) Financial Reports end of June 2026: General Fund revenues at 50%, up $400k. Expenses at 51%. Human Services revenues at 46%, down $200k. Exp0enses at 41%, down $600k. Highway revenues at 65%, up $1.2million, Expenses at 23%, down $200k. Total county revenues at 56%, up $3.8 million, expenses at 41%, up $2.5 million. 2) Treasurer’s Report, end of June 2026: $31.6 million, up $4.4 million over 2025, primarily due to carbon funds and unspent highway dollars. 3) Hillside Tower ATT Update: Hillside tower is complete, new ATT coverage in Washburn area should be live mid to late July. 4) ERP Update: Project is underway. 5) Clean Sweep: To be held on July 23, 2pm-6pm at the Iron River Fairgrounds Westlund shared some notes related to the Special County Board meeting on July 15th regarding the EMS Proposals. Meeting adjourned at 5:45pm. Respectfully submitted by Kristine Kavajecz as transcribed from recording.