Law Enforcement & Em Services

Law Enforcement and Emergency Services Committee December 10, 2021 3rd Floor County Board Room Call Meeting to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by Lester Lewis. Members Present: Lester Lewis, Myron Brooks, Scott Mildbrand, Ray Soper, Catherine Lemke, and Jim Metz. Members Absent: None. Other Attendees: Larry Woebbeking, Corey Dassow, Christina Schuld, Larry Brandl (Fi nance), John De al (Ambulance), Jason K effeler (Aspirus Medivac), Colleen Handr ick (E.M.), and Brian Wilson (Star News). Approve Minutes: Brooks moved to a pprove the minutes of the October 15, 2021 meeting; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. Approve Agenda: Mildbrand moved to approve the agenda of 10 items; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Set Next Meeting Day: Call of the Chairman; tentatively set for January 14, 2022. Review and Approve October and November Invoices: The purchase of scopes for the squad rifles was a sked regarding the value compa red to the price. Cor ey Dassow stated law enforcement received a discount for each unit. The quality of the scopes is very good. Lemke moved to approve the Oc tober and November invoices as presented; Se conded by Soper. Motion carried. Ambulance Business: Jason Keffeler, Assistant Director fo r the Medivac, and John Deal, E MS Manager fo r Ambulance presented the Operational Plan for Taylor County and d iscussed staffing concerns. a) Deal stated most of the EMS staff are volunteers and there are challenges in keeping these volunteers. Due to different reasons, the staff ha s dropped from 60 to 44 throughout the county. Deal stated with the current staff filling extra hours, the payroll expenses h ave been about the same as when fully staffed. The monetary incentive to pick up shifts has helped. Deal stated sometime in the f uture, he will be asking to hire 3.8 career positions to help offset the extra on-call hours with current staff . Deal stated through November 2021, EMS responded to 1221 calls for service with 867 tr ansports; Medford had 945 calls, Gilman had 210 calls and Rib Lake ha d 248 calls. Currently, the county ’s coverage for ambulance services meets the 90% industry standard. Discussion was h eld re garding the reasons for the staff shortage and retention, particularly if COVID played a part. Deal stated out of th e 16 that left, on ly four (4) were due to COVI D mandates. Other reasons were “aging out”, moving out of the area, and being on the roster but not working any hours. Deal also stated the health care profession itself is dealing with a shortage of people entering the field. Keffeler stated the vaccine mandates are not just a loc al hospital requirement . These mandat es are also from the Federal le vel for funding purposes and OSHA. Discussion was h eld regar ding the po tential of hiring fulltime career EMS staff and the willingness of volunteers to stay. Keffeler stated it is harder to fill the daytime hours due to employers not allowing EMS volunteers to leave work and those are hours the career employees would be filling. b) Deal stated the 2009 ambulance unit needs to be replaced. It is past its life expectancy, which is about 14 years . Deal stated a new a mbulance is approx. $255,000 with an estimated delivery date of 12 months. LifeLine has been the com pany used in the past for purchasing the un its. The new unit would have a truck chassis versus the van style. T he truck option also has 4-wheel drive. The unit itself is the about the sa me size overall. A question about leasing a unit was asked and will be looked into by Deal. The purchase of a new unit does not affect the current county levy. Mildbrand moved to allow Deal to put bids out for a new ambulance unit; Seconded by Bro oks. Mo tion carried. The bids will be re viewed at the next LEES meeting. Medical Examiner: A report was emailed from S cott Perrin and handed out for review . A request for clarification on C OVID-19 related deaths, mainly cause or contributing factor, was made. Also requested was the total number of COVID deaths for 2021. Schuld will contact Perrin for this information. Emergency Management Services: a) EMPG-S Grant was completed but Handrick was notified by WI Emergency Management some of the items submitted would not be reimbursed. Some of th e items were wood, plexiglass and a webcam. 1) PPE distribution continues and more requests are being received from County Depts. for guest availability. 2) Handrick is waiting for a response from S tate of WI regarding coordination with the Nation Guard to continue with the vaccine/testing clinics. 3) Handrick will hold an emergency preparedness program, Prepare with Pedro, at Holy Rosary on Dec. 16. This is in conjunction with the American Red Cross. 4) Gilman will hold an emergency drill next week. I t has been two (2) years since the last one. Soper asked how the school is preparing the s tudents with special needs for the drill. Handrick s tated the school is working those student s and their teachers to help minimize any traumatic effects. 5) The next Blood Drive will b e Friday, January 14, 2022 from 10am -3pm at the Community Center. 6) Lewis stated a report came out on Tuesday that there is some movement in the wording for a state Declaration of Emergency. Currently, the wor ding is evaluation of an emergency is immediate (upon/during the emergency). T here is concern for citizen safety and proper evaluation after an emergency to be considered. Sheriff’s Report & Law Enforcement Bu siness: Woebbeking stated the new jail nurse started and is in training. There are currently 35 total inmates, 16 from Marathon, and 5 from State. Adjourn: With no further business, Lemke moved to adjourn the meeting; Seconded by Soper. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 9:54 am. Secretary: Christina Schuld, Taylor County Sheriff’s Office Law Enforcement and Emergency Services Committee October 15, 2021 Sheriff’s Office Training Room Call Meeting to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by Lester Lewis. Members Present: Lester Lewis, Myron Brooks, Catherine Lemke, Ray Soper, Scott Mildbrand. Members Absent: None. Other Attendees: Christina Schuld , Colleen Handrick (Emergency Man agement), Larry Woebbeking, Corey Dassow, Larry Brandl (Finance) and Emily Gojmerac (Star News). Approve Minute s: Brooks moved to approve t he minutes of the August 27, 2021 meeting; Seconded by Soper. Motion carried. Approve Agenda: Mildbrand moved to approve the agenda of 10 items; Seconded by Lemke. Motion carried. Set Next Meeting Date: Call of the Chairman; tentatively set for November 12, 2021. Review and Approve August and September Invoices: Mildbrand moved to approve the August and September invoices as presented; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Ambulance Business: Lewis request ed at the last meeting for additional infor mation specifically related to Medicaid. Greg Shaw emailed a b reakdown showing Medicaid representing only 14.7% of Ambulance revenue. The rest of the revenue breakdown is Medicare - 61.7%, Commercial - 16.1%, Other Governmental - 3.9%, Self-Pay - 2.7% and Workers Comp - 0.9%. Schuld received an email from Michael Borgen stating he handed in his resignation as the Director of ER at Aspirus Mem orial Hospital. H is last day is November 1, 2021. Larry Brandl stated he received an email with the new EMS Mana ger starting on November 1, 2021. No other business. Medical Examiner: No report given. Emergency Management Services: Handrick gave an update. ▪ Plan of work grant requirement measures were d ue on Sept. 30 for the EMPG, EMPG -S and EPCRA grants . Handrick is working on the financial portion of all three (3) grants with those being due October 31. ▪ PPE distribution has picked up again and is specifically being delivered to some loca l care facilities. ▪ The next Ameri can R ed Cross Blood Drive is set for No vember 12 at the Community Center. The location has been a great site. ▪ Handrick is working to co ordinate w ith Jeff Paddock of the WI DNR to present information on Hazardous Materials at the Taylor County Fire Association and the Taylor County Unit of Wisc onsin Towns A ssociation. Paddock must get authorization as it is outside normal work hours. The goal is to have an in -person p resentation but if not feasible, then a vi rtual presentation will be held. Handrick is working with Mic helle Grimm to see if technology is available for a zoom me eting in the Town of Maplehurst hall. ▪ The Health Dept. has hired a temporary position for site management of the vaccination and testing sites. Handrick assisted this past week in reviewing the site layouts and inventory storage areas. ▪ Testing an d Vac cination Clinics con tinue to be worked with the National Guard. The Health Dept. has coordinated with Clark County to offer bi-weekly testing at the Medford Fire Dept. through December 2021. The Health Dept. also contract with Accelerated Labs to offer testing each Thursday from 2-6pm at the Medford Fire Dept. and on alternating Tuesdays for additional testing availability. ▪ It was asked if deadlines are being met with vaccinations and Handrick stated of thos e who received their first dose, the next do se will be available in November and boosters to follow. Sheriff’s Report & Law Enforcement Business: Woebbeking gave a brief update. ▪ Currently we are housing 47 inmates, with 26 being from Marathon County and one (1) from Wood County. ▪ Woebbeking stated the jail staff is still down in positions and a new reti rement notice was given which makes it about three (3) total open positions. ▪ Lewis asked if the new 12-hour shifts are working. Accor ding to W oebbeking, the staff likes the new schedule. It is a 4 day on -4 day off rotation. The scheduling itself is going fine even with staff numbers down. It has reduced overti me. It is expected to keep this current schedule ev en when fully staffed. It appears to be a benefit in the recruitment process also , as potential applicants do n’t seem to mind the longer workday and a longer stretch of days off. ▪ The Jail Nurse po sition ha d five (5) applic ants and interviews will hopefully start next week. The wage might be an issue with a few of the applicants. ▪ The Committee was pr ovided the updated job de scription for the Jail Nurse for review prior to the meeting. No discussion was held. Soper moved to approve the updated job description for the Jail Nurse as presented; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. ▪ Soper stated he was approached by Marilyn Ovyn regarding calling 911 for an incident and having issues with reception, the call going to Clark County initially, and then getting put on hold when received in Taylor County. Chief Deputy Dassow clarified the situation. At the same time this 911 call was transferred from Clark County, it was sent in on our administrative line, not the 911 line , and another 911 em ergency call cam e in for a n accident. The dis patcher put the administrative line on hold to respond to the 911 call first. Dassow said if the di spatcher had known Ovyn ’s call was an em ergency also, the response would have been different. Some training will be done with dispatchers to first ask everyone on the administrative line if it is an emergency or not, and the n proceed with the call appropriately. Dassow apologized for the confusion but stated again, training will be held so this type of situation doesn’t happen again. Adjournment: With no further business, Lemke moved to adjourn the meeti ng; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 9:28 am. Secretary: Christina Schuld, Taylor County Sheriff’s Office Law Enforcement and Emergency Services Committee August 27, 2021 Sheriff’s Office Training Room Call Meeting to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by Lester Lewis. Members Present: Lester Lewis, Myron Brooks, Catherine Lemke, Ray Soper, Scott Mildbrand. Members Absent: None. Other Attendees: Alyssa Branowitzer, Colleen Handrick – via phone, Larry Woebbeking, Corey Dassow, and Michael Borgen and Greg Shaw – Medford Aspirus Hospital. Approve Minutes: Lemke moved to approve the minutes of the July 2021 meeting; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Approve Agenda: Brooks moved to approve the agenda of 10 items; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. Set Next Meeting Date: Call of the Chairman. Review and Approve July Invoices: Mildbrand moved to approve the July invoices as presented; Seconded by Lemke. Motion carried. Ambulance Business: Review and approve tentative 2022 budget. 2022 budget presented by Greg Shaw. Anticipated 60% write off in 2022 compared to 66% in 2021. Lewis questioned the reason for the change in write offs next year. Shaw stated this is an o verall decrease write off and no t just fo r the ambul ance and Medicare is doubling payments. Lewis request ed more information be presented about this at the next meeting. Also, there are higher ALS2 runs over ALS1 in 2022. The main reason for the 4% increase in expenses is due to salar ies. Aspirus is giving bonuses to employees working critical needs shifts. There is a subsidy decrease of $100,000 for 2022 overall. Lewis asked if the number of COVID patients within the last month is known. Borgen is unsure of the exact number but stated it is picking up over the last three weeks. Soper moved to approve the ambulance budget. Brooks seconded. All ayes. Motion carried. Medical Examiner: Report was provided via email and presented to committee members. Emergency Management Services: Handrick appeared via phone. ▪ Handrick request ed an increase in hours from 35 to 40 hours per week. Mildbrand requested it to stay as it is since she is already getting ex tra at this time for COVID pay and stated there will be budget problem s in the future if it were to change. Brooks believed Handrick is stretched thin with helping the Health Depa rtment with COVID issues. Soper stated a possible better approach to this would be to extend the COVID pay after it runs out January 1, 2022. Lemke requested to wait on this wage recommendation and wants to see what revenue the looks like. ▪ Handrick stated $53,172 will be re funded to the County for completion of grant items and this amount will not change whether she is at a 35- or 40-hour work week. ▪ Lewis requested a motion for a work week hourly budget. Mildbrand motioned for the 35-hour work week budget . Soper seconded. Roll call was taken : ayes - Mildbrand, Soper, and Lemke; nos - Brooks and Lewis. Motion carried. ▪ Mildbrand mo tioned to approve the overall Emergency Management 2 022 Budget . Soper seconded. Motion carried. Sheriff’s Report & Law Enforcement Business: Woebbeking gave a brief update. ▪ Currently there are 19 Marathon County inmates for a total of 41 inmates. Woebbeking was uncertain i f th e boarders are long or short term. W oebbeking state d inmates coming from M arathon County are being tested for COVID be fore being accepted into our jail to minimize exposure. ▪ Woebbeking state d the Sheriff ’s Office is curre ntly doing shooting training with state equipment. ▪ Woebbeking presented the Sheriff’s Office budget. Lower revenue for 20 22 due to the boarder populati on decreas ing and overall p opulation decrease. Woebbeking state d there is an increase in hiring expense s due to fulfilling vacant positions on the road and the jail. ▪ Woebbeking stated due to budget constraints there is a decrease in rural patrol m oney paid to Gilman and Rib Lake for 2022 from $3,000 to $2,500. ▪ Woebbeking stated overall there is a 0% increase for the 2022 budget. ▪ Mildbrand want ed to know about resolutions for employees on administrative leave. Woebbeking state d at this time there are no of ficial upd ates. Lewis suggest ed contacting corporation counsel so they can speak with the Attorney General’s office for a resolution. ▪ Soper requested an increase in budget from the budget outline. Lewis explained inmate boarder revenue goes to the general fund therefore it is not put into the Sheriff ’s Office budget and is not an increase. ▪ Brooks motioned to approve the 2022 budget. Lemke seconded. All ayes; motion carried. Adjournment: With no further business, Lemke moved to adjourn the meeti ng; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 9:41 am. Secretary: Alyssa Branowitzer, Taylor County Sheriff’s Office Law Enforcement and Emergency Services Committee July 9, 2021 3rd Floor County Board Room Call Meeting to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by Lester Lewis. Members Present: Lester Lewis, Myron Brooks, Catherine Lemke, Ray Soper, Scott Mildbrand. Members Absent: None. Other Attendees: Christina Schuld, Colleen Handrick – E.M., Larry Brandl – Finance, Larry Woebbeking, and Brian Wilson (Star News). Approve Minute s: Soper moved to approve t he minutes of the June 11, 202 1 meeting; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Approve Agenda: Lemke moved to approve the agenda of 10 items; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. Set Next Meeting Date: Call of the Chairman; Tentatively set for August 13, 2021. Review and Approve June Invoices: Schuld reviewed the monthly bills. Mildbrand moved to approve the June invoices as presented; Seconded by Lemke. Motion carried. Ambulance Business: Nothing to report at this time. Medical Examiner : Report was provided via email. Mildbran d stated as of July 6 th, Taylor County had 32 COVID-19 related deaths based on an online report. Emergency Management Services: Handrick gave an update. ▪ PPE items are still being distributed to local nursing home facilities. ▪ LEPC meeting has been scheduled for July 15th at 9am. ▪ The completed application Handrick su bmitted has been returned for m odifications. Updates are be ing made and the application will be resubmit ted to Wisconsin Emergency Management. ▪ Handrick w ill be hosting a 3 -day course on A ugust 24, 25 & 26 regarding Debris Management Planning for State, Tri bal and Loca l Officials. The cou rse is designed to provide local officials with the knowle dge and skills to manage debris removal and disposal in the af termath of a tornado or flood. The course covers staff de velopment, pre-disaster planning, local response and recovery actions, contracting pr ocedures, selecting and operating a temporary debris storage site. Course information was shared with county/city staff and as of today no one has signed up. Handrick will follow-up with those departments to encourage participation. ▪ Shelter-in-Place brochures will be distributed at the Taylor County Fair to make residents better aware of what to do in case of a chemical release. ▪ The Clark County EM D irector is resigning for a job in the private sector. His last day is July 23 rd and it is hoped for a replacement by Septembe r. Currently a new part-time clerical staff person will be the only one available, but she ha s no prior EM experience. Clark Cou nty has asked if Handrick woul d be available to assist if necessar y. Due to mutual aid agreements and lack thereof with other counties, they are unable to assist. Handrick is requesting authorization to assist if neede d. Discussion was held for mutual aid a greements to be drafte d with the surrounding counties and disappointment was expressed this was not addressed at the State /Region levels. Mildbrand moved to allow Handrick to assist Clark C ounty, if necessary, during the absen ce of a new director ; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. ▪ The Taylor County Fair Incident Action Plan is being updated for the upcoming event. Sheriff’s Report & Law Enforcement Business: Woebbeking gave a brief update. ▪ The new 911 project is completed with approx. $36,600 left over in funds . Brandl recommended using these funds to cover the K9 replac ement costs of $15,000 and $21,600 towards two (2) new squad replacements. The Committee agreed with covering the K9 costs. Woebbeking stated he reduced the squad replacement account to m eet the 2% decrease for the 2021 budget resulting in delaying replacements for a year. The estimated time for delivery is about 15 -16 weeks if ordered today . Brandl stated since the funds were in a law enf orcement account, they could be moved to another one without having to go to the Finance Committee. Brandl stated the squads are on a three (3) lease agreement. He stated holding off on the purch ase would be playing catch up next year with needing to purc hase four (4) squads inst ead of two (2). Discussion was held regarding saving the funds for the communication radios needing to be replace d, both squad a nd portable. It was stated the funds initially were taken from the general account and should go back to it. Woebbeking gave a quick estimate of $90 ,000 to $100,000 for the radios. H owever, he stated the radio commun ications comp any is making changes and it was suggested to him to hold off a little bit before purchasing any units. The question i f ARPA money could be used to purchase the radios but no specific guidelines have been set for that. Brooks moved to approve using the remaining 911 system funds of approx. $21,600 towards the purchase of two (2) new squads ; Seconded by Lemke. Vote – 3 yes (Brooks, Lemke, Lewis) and 2 no (Soper a nd Mildbrand). Motion carried. ▪ Woebbeking stated the Jump River 4th of July events took a lot of resources but ended with a great deal of positive feedback from citizens. ▪ Currently the jail is housing 29 inmates, no outside inmates. The s taff is short two (2) jailers. ▪ The jail nurse has su bmitted her resignation for Jan. 14, 2022. Woebbeking stat ed the position will be difficult to fill, as it only half-time of 28 hours per week. Discussion was held regarding adv ertising and job shadowing with curren t nurse. Mildbrand asked about cont racting in stead of filling the position . Woebbeking stated the cost of contracting would be more costly than filling th e position. Soper moved to fill the jail nurse position as it currently is and start advertising as soon as possible ; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. ▪ The Cha mber of Commerce is going to be auctioning off “a Sheriff fo r a Day ” as a fundraiser for Huey’s Hideaway. ▪ Lewis inquired about the dep artment’s p rocedure for how long a deputy will stay on scene for a downed tree over the road , as he had a recent experi ence involving such a situation. Woebbeking stated there could have been a number of factors but will ask the deputies involved. Adjournment: With no further business, Lemke moved to adjourn the meeti ng; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 9:51 am. Secretary: Christina Schuld, Taylor County Sheriff’s Office LAW ENFORCEMENT AND EMERGENCY SERVICES COMMITTEE MEETING June 11, 2021 3rd Floor County Board Room Call Meeting To Order: Chair Lewis called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. Members Present: Lewis, Brooks, Lemke, Mildbrand, Soper. Members Absent: none Other Attendees: Larry Brandl -Accounting/Finance, Colleen H andrick-Emergency Services Manager, Jeff Nuernberger-Ambulance, Alyssa Branowitzer, Larry Woebbeking-TASO Sheriff. Approve Minutes of the April 9, 2021 meeting: Brooks made a motion to accept the minutes as written; Lemke seconded the motion. All ayes; motion carried. Approve Agenda : Soper made a motion to approve the agenda; Mildbrand seconded the motion. All ayes; motion carried. Set Next Meeting Date: The next meeting will be at the call of the chair. Review and approve April and May invoices: The monthly bills were presented and reviewed. Mildbrand moved to approve the April and May invoices as presented; Seconded by Soper. All ayes; motion carried. Ambulance Business: Jeff Nuernberger explained what a Binder Lift was and how it works. A Binder Lift allows EMT’s to easily lift p atients. The ambulance is currently using a demo Binder Lift. Looking to purchase 4 bariatric and 4 regulars so there will b e one in each ambulance. This wi ll be purchased using funds given by the state with an approxi mate total cost of $6,500. The bariatric is for a circumference chest size of 58”-82” and the standard is for 34”-62.” Lewis questioned how they would be cleaned and if cleaners would d eteriorate the material, it is made out of over time. N uernberger stated hospital grade cleaners are able to be used to clean the surfaces and it will not affect the Binder Lift. Soper questioned if any equipment would need to be ta ken out of the ambulance to make room for the Binder Lift and Nuernberger stated there are places to store the Binder Lift in each ambulance without removing any current equipment. Mildbrand motion ed to purchase Binder Lifts; Seconded by Lemke. All ayes; Motion carried. Nuernberger addressed staffing issues for the ambulance crew in Medford with moving people to Gilman and Rib Lake. Lewis suggests a notification to the public of staffing issues. Full time staffing for Rib Lake and Gilman would be very cos tly compared to the curre nt cost of volunteers on the ambulance crew. Medical Examiner: Medical Examiner Scott Perrin provided the committee with a written department status report for March – June 10, 2021. Emergency Management: PPE items still being distributed to reduce Handrick’s final inventory. A number of items were taken to the Medford Fire Department to be placed into t he Mass Casualty trailer for potential future needs. The Mortuary Affairs group will discontinue their monthly meetings at thi s time, but Handrick will remain in contact wit h all to monitor any needs that may arise. (TC EMS, Taylor County Funeral Homes, th e Medical-Examiners Office, Human Services, Health Department and Chairman Metz). Taylor County community testing events with the National Guard ende d on May 27th. Future requests can be made with the state if any outbreaks occur in the future. All (9) of the Taylor County off-site plans have been completed. LEPC Meeting has been set for July 15th @ 9am. Public notice will be g oing out in the next week or two. Taylor County Emergency Management received notification fr om Wisconsin Emergency Management on 6/10/21 that FEMA has approved their Hazard Mitigation Plan. Taylor County received $1,721.78 for the 1st allocation of the EMPG-Supplemental grant to support local and st ate COVID-19 efforts. Handrick has submitted a grant application with Wisconsin Eme rgency Management – EMPG-S for the 2nd round of allocations which would cover expenses from 1/27/2020 -9/30/2021 for items such as travel expenses incu rred with PPE delivery/pickups, equipment (PPE), supplies & operating expenses not covered by other COVID- 19 grants. Taylor County could potentially receive $5,730 – expenses are reimbursed at 50%. Handrick will work with Andria to review what was not cove red under the Routes To Recovery Grant and expenses incurred after that grant closed last fall. Handrick will be hosting a 3 -day course on August 24, 25 & 26th – Debris Management Planning for State, Tribal & Local Officials. The co urse is designed to prov ide local officials who may have to manage debris removal and disposal in the aftermath of a tornado or fl ood with the knowledge and skills to do so. The course covers staff development, pre -disaster planning, local response and rec overy actions, contracti ng proce dures, selecting and operating a temporary debris storage site . This class is required towards Handrick’s WI EM certification and she also felt it was important to have so she can work with other TC Departments that would be responsible for the ite ms if th ere would be an incident in Taylor County or to assist the surrounding communities. Course informa tion will be shared with county/city staff within the next week. Lewis also requested Handrick to s peak about a recent chemic al spill that occurred i n Stetsonville and the response to the situation along with the disposal of the chemical. Sheriff’s Report & Law Enforcement Business: Woebbeking state d he met with a prisoner transport company to compare rates and availability to the current transpor t company. Will be using both companies intermittently to determine which one to go with. The Taylor Coun ty Jail is currently housing 26 inmates and one Price County Boarder. Holly Miller graduated from the Law Enforcement Academy and is going through fi eld training. Brittany Hoffman is next to go to the Law Enforcement Ac ademy in August to fill the vacant deputy position. Deputy Petersen is currently with a new K9 at training and the dog is doing well in training and is social a round the public. Deputy Petersen has been asked to do a K9 demonstration at the fair this year as he has done in past years. The 911 upgrade is up and completely operational. The jail is struggling with staffing issues and there are currently three new jailers training. Soper asked about exit interviews for the jailers that are quitting to help figure out why people are leaving. Woebbeking said exit interviews are being conducted by Human Resources and one reason given for leaving was better pay and better insurance at the new job. Adjournment: With no further business, Lemke made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Soper seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 9:53 a.m. Respectfully Submitted, Alyssa Branowitzer Law Enforcement and Emergency Services Committee April 9, 2021 3rd Floor County Board Room Call Meeting to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by Lester Lewis. Members Present: Lester Lewis, Myron Brooks, Catherine Lemke, Ray Soper, Scott Mildbrand. Members Absent: None. Other Attendees: Christina Schuld, Colleen Handrick – E.M., Jeff Nuernberger – Ambulance, Larry Brandl – Finance, Larry Woebbeking and Corey Dassow via Zoom meetings. Approve Minute s: Soper moved to approve t he minutes of the March 12 , 2021 meeting; Seconded by Lemke. Motion carried. Approve Agenda: Mildbrand moved to approve the agenda of 12 items; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Set Next Meeting Date: Call of the Chairman; Tentatively set for June 2021. Review and Approve March Invoices: Schuld reviewed the monthly bills. A few clarification questions a sked by Mild brand re garding internet r eimbursement and cell -phone bills . Soper moved to approve the March invoices as presented; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. Ambulance Business: Nothing to report at this time. Medical Examiner: No report was provided. Emergency Management Services: Handrick gave an update. ▪ Week 54 of COVID-19. ▪ PPE items are still being inventoried and distributed. ▪ The EOC remains activated on a virtual basis. ▪ The Mortuary Affairs group will continue to meet monthly. ▪ Taylor County community testing events with the N ational Guard continue and the next event is scheduled for April 15, 2021 at the Medford Fire Department. ▪ Five (5) off-site plans have been completed and four (4) remain to be finalized. ▪ The County Wide Hazardous Materia ls Strategic Plan has been updated a nd signed off by LEPC Chair, Lester Lewis. County Board Chairman, Jim Metz, has sign ed the p lan. It will now go the LEPC Committee for review. ▪ Taylor County E.M. participated in a state exercise on April 8 . It will go towards EMPG 2021 Plan of Work grant requirements. ▪ The local Hazardous Tabletop Exercise will be held on April 13, 2021 from 2 -4 pm. This event will count as credit towards the EPCRA Plan of Work Requirements. ▪ Andria Farrand, County Clerk, is waiting f or confirmation regarding the amount of another grant opportunity for Taylor County, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. This grant will run through December 31, 2024. Specific items have already been determined under this grant and as further information becomes available, it will be sh ared with the Taylor County Board. All COVID-19 expenses continue to be run through a designated account for tracking purposes. ▪ Shellie Shaw, who was a n LTE staff member , has accepted the position as Veterans Officer with Taylor County. Handrick is now needed to assist the Health Dept. staff at the vaccination clinics. She will also be handing the PPE inventory responsibilities. ▪ There were four (4) vaccina tion clinics held this week and one (1) scheduled for next week. Locations included are Gilman and Rib Lake School Districts, Marathon Cheese, Gilman Cheese and Taylor County jail for inmates. ▪ There are currently 12 active COVID-19 cases in Taylor County with 20 individuals being monitored. ▪ There was a suggestion for the Mortuary Committee to temporarily stop meeting due to the lower number of cases. Lewis stated the Committee me ets monthly and should continue unless something changes. ▪ Handrick stated t he US Treasury has determined each Town will receive a po rtion of COVID-19 grant money. The amount will be determined by population size and needs and will have until 2024 to spend the money on sp ecific items. At this time, those items have not been identified, but COVID-19 and Broadband expenses should be included. Sheriff’s Report & Law Enforcement Business: (a): Deputy E ric Petersen gave a brief update on the K9 replacement process. Petersen stated Perces has health issues and muscle degeneration in his leg, often resulting in limping at the end of the shift. Petersen rese arched some k ennels and ba ses on location, training qualifications and cost, he is suggesting Jessiffany Canine Services out of Iron Ridge, WI. An invoice for a fully trained dual purpose police service canine, det ection and handler protection, health guarantee and warranty, and a five (5) week training course with JCS Certification, with housing included, was provided for a total of $15,000.00 . Pe tersen stated it will be th e same breed of dog as P erces. Mildbrand asked if P erces will retire with Petersen an d he said absolutely. Woeb beking stated having Co rp Counsel draft a letter of ownership transfer from the County to Petersen. Mildbrand moved to approve proceeding with the K9 r eplacement using the Jessiffany Canice Services in th e amount of $15,000.00 as presented ; Seconded by Lemke. Motion carried. (b): Woebbeking requested filling another Jailer/Dispatcher position. There are currently three (3) open po sitions. B rooks moved to approve filling the Jailer/Dispatcher position; Seconded by Soper. Motion carried. Closed Se ssion for the purpose of conduct ing interviews for Deputy Sheriff po sition: Motion made by Mildbrand to go into closed session; Seconded by Lemke. Roll call taken: YES – Soper, Brooks, Lem ke, Mildbrand, Lewi s, NO – none. Motion carried. Committee in close d session at 9:27 am. Open Session: Motion made by Mildbrand to go back into open se ssion; Seconded by Lemke. Motion carried. Committee in open session at 10:12am. Woebbeking stated Marathon County will be pulling their inmate s from the T aylor County j ail due to open space ava ilable in the Marathon County jail. Adjournment: With no further business, Lemke moved to adjourn the meeti ng; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 10:15 am. Secretary: Christina Schuld, Taylor County Sheriff Office Law Enforcement and Emergency Services Committee March 12, 2021 3rd Floor County Board Room Call Meeting to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:03 a.m. by Catherine Lemke. Members Present: Lester Lewis, Myron Brooks, Catherine Lemke, Ray Soper , Scott Mildbrand via Zoom meeting. Members Absent: None. Other Attendees: Christina Schuld, Colleen Handrick – E.M., Jeff Nuernberger – Ambulance, Greg Shaw – Aspirus Hospital, Larry Brandl – Finance, Larry Woebbeki ng via Zoom meeting , Brian Wilson – Star News. Approve Minutes: Soper moved to approve the minutes of the February 11, 2021 meeting; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Approve Agenda: Brooks moved to approve the agenda of 11 items; Seconded by Soper. Motion carried. Set Next Meeting Date: Call of the Chairman; Tentatively scheduled for April 9, 2021. Ambulance Business: Greg Shaw from Medford Aspirus Hospital p resented the 2020 Ambulance Subsidy Re quest. The estimated budget for the 2020 Taylor County Su bsidy was $354,092 and th e actual amount was $444,239, an increase of $90,147. Shaw explain ed th e differences between the budgeted items and the act ual costs were due to wages and training for additional EMS st aff hired late in 2019 , the number o f service calls were higher than projected, and the discounts f or insurance (Medicare, Medicaid, HMO and Uncollectibles) were higher ( paid less due to m ore deductions from the bill sent to insurance companies) . Shaw stated the insurance discounts was the biggest gap in the comparisons. Larry Brandl stated the County will absorb the overrun and money will come from reserves to c over the dif ference. Soper moved to approve the 2020 Aspirus Ambulance Subsidy Request of $444,239, an increase of $90,147 over budget, as presented; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Jeff N uernberger mentioned the th ird week i n May is Nation al EMS Wee k and he is planning on a celebration for May 1 0, 2021. He stated he wou ld be donating $300 out of his own pocket to purchase three (3) $100 Visa gift cards, one for each EMS unit (Medford, Rib Lake and Gilman) to recruit a new me mber. He would also like to hold a raffle and provide a small dinner. Nuernberger stated he is not looking for any financial support, but Larry Brandl said the County budgets $500 each year for misc. items and suggested matching Nuernberger’s amount to put towards the purchase of raffle prices. Soper moved to match Nuernberger’s donation of $300 for the celebration for National EMS Week; Seconded by Lewis. Motion carried. Mildbrand asked Nuernberger why Taylor County was t he lowest county for vacci nes to be distributed. N uernberger said the County ’s distribution is based on what is allocated, not requested. Currentl y the number of vaccinated employees at A spirus is un known but of all EMTs offered to receive the vaccine, only about 33-36% have chosen to receive it. Medical Examiner: No report was provided. Emergency Management Services: Handrick gave an update. ▪ Week 50 of C OVID-19 and this is th e longest emergency acti vation in the State of Wisconsin’s Emergency Management history. ▪ PPE items are still received on a bi-weekly basis and getting distributed as needed. ▪ The EOC remains activated on a virtual basis. ▪ The Mortuary Affairs group will continue to meet monthly and the next meeting is scheduled for March 24, 2021. ▪ Taylor County has renewed the community testing events with the National Guard but are moving it to bi-weekly Thursdays from noon to 5 pm starting on March 18. ▪ Handrick has begun wo rking on the business off -site pl ans and will start on the Emergency Operations Plans in the upcoming weeks. ▪ The County Wide H azardous Materials Strategic Pla n has been updated and signe d off by LEPC Chair, Lester Lewis. County Clerk, Andria Farrand, confirmed this morning it will need to go to the County Board for an updated promulgation statement signature. ▪ The WI Emergency Management Plan of Work requirements have not changed since last month. ▪ A regional tabletop exercise is scheduled for Tue sday, March 16, 2021 f rom 10 am to noon. The exercise will give Handrick credit for her EMPG Plan of Work Requirements. ▪ The next employee blood drive is scheduled for Friday, March 26, 2021. ▪ The local Hazardous Tabletop Exercise has been scheduled for April 13, 2021 from 2 -4 pm. This event will count as credit towards the EPCRA Plan of Work Requirements. ▪ Handrick has been in touch with Farrand regarding another pote ntial grant opportunity for Taylor Cou nty through FEMA -Public Assistance Grant. They have not been able to meet to determine what Taylor County would qualify for besides vaccination effor ts as some other potentia l department needs could be met , including some SCBA ’s for the Taylor County Jail. Review and Approve February Invoices: Schuld reviewed the monthly bills. Lewis moved to approve the February invoices as presented; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Sheriff’s R eport: Woebbeking requ ested th e filling of two (2) vacant Jailer/Dispatcher positions. A fe w applications have been received bu t the re is a continual struggle f or dispatchers. Lewis moved to approve the filling of two (2) Jaile r/Dispatcher p ositions as requested; Seconded by Soper. Motion carried. Woebbeking also requested fil ling an anticipated vacant Deputy position. Lewis m oved to approve filling a Deputy position when it becomes vacant; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Law Enforcement Business: Woebbeking gave a brief update. ▪ The jail is currently housing 41 total inmates, 16 from Marathon County and two (2) from Price County. Marathon County may tra nsfer a few more inmates and potentially another county may be interested in housing a few inmates here. ▪ Currently six (6) inmates are on ankle bracelets but four (4) have violated their bonds and are back in jail. The Dept. is not too impressed with the program. ▪ Some of the cells must remain emp ty due to C OVID quarantine measures. As new inmates come into the jail, they must be secluded from the general population for two (2) weeks first. ▪ A question was asked regarding the replacement of the Jail Nurse . Woebbeking stated the position is working great as it is and has some anxiety a bout filling it due to b eing limited hours and set in the jail. However, the cost of contracting a nurse to come in would be approx. $115,000 to $120,000 annually. ▪ Woebbeking stated the new dispatch equipment has been ordered but not yet installed. Adjournment: With no further business, Lewis moved to adjourn the meeti ng; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 9:44 am. Secretary: Christina Schuld, Taylor County Sheriff Office Law Enforcement and Emergency Services Committee February 11, 2021 3rd Floor County Board Room Call Meeting to Order: The meeting was called to order at 9:03 a.m. by Lester Lewis. Members Present: Lester Lewis, Scott Mildbrand, Myron Brooks, Catherine Lemke. Members Absent: Ray Soper - excused. Other Attendees: Christina Schuld, Colleen Handrick – E.M., Jeff Nuernberger – Ambulance, Larry Brandl – Finance, and Larry Woebbeking and Corey Dassow via conference call. Approve Minute s: Brooks moved to approve t he minutes of the January 8, 202 1 meeting; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. Approve Agenda: Lemke moved to approve the agenda of 13 items; Seconded by Mildbrand. Motion carried. Set Next Meeting Date: Call of the Chairman; Tentatively scheduled for March 12, 2021. Resolution Expressing A ppreciation to Angela Becker For Her Ma ny Years of Service to Taylor County: Lewis presented a Resolution to Angela Becker for her service to Taylor County. Mildbrand moved to approve the Resolution Expressing Appreciation to Angela Becker For Her Many Years of Service to Taylor County as presented; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Resolution Expressing Appreciation to Jennifer Hess For Her Ma ny Years of Servi ce to Taylor County: Lewis presented a Resolution to Jennifer Hess for her service to Taylo r County. Lemke moved to approve the Resolution Expressing Appreciation to Jennifer Hess For Her Many Years of Service to Taylor County as presented; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. Ambulance Business: Jeff Nuernberger gave a brief update. ▪ The stair chairs are available and ready for use. Gi lman has used the power-load system and liked it. ▪ The old chairs are boxed and ready for return. ▪ Refund of approx. $2,000 should be expected in a couple weeks. The subsidy should be ready for the March meeting. ▪ Lewis stated with the new chairs, the recruitment opportunities might be more favorable for personnel. ▪ Nuernberger was asked if they respond to 911 calls outside their service areas. He said 911 calls are obligatory and they can not refu se. It was discussed private ambulance services do not to cover certain areas and often the cost of services can be expensive. Nuernberger stated public 911 service cannot refuse calls, no matter the locatio n. They often work with adjacent agencies for coverage if needed. Medical Examiner: No report was provided. Emergency Management Services: Handrick gave an update. ▪ Week 46 of COVID-19 and continuing to work with the Health Dept. ▪ Still receiving PPE items on a bi-weekly basis. Contact information for some busin esses changed and PPE supplies available through E.M. was not relayed properly to new staff. All contacts have been updated. ▪ EOC remains activated on a virtual ba sis. The Health Dept. is working on the wee kly vaccination requests with DHS and completing phase 1a eligible individuals. Phase 1b does not open until March 1st for the next group. ▪ The Mortuary Affairs group continues to meet bi-weekly. No updates to report. ▪ Taylor County has t wo (2) community testing events with the Na tional Guard scheduled for February 19 and March 5. Tes ting needs have been decreasing at the events. Clark County ha s cancelled their remaining testing events due to low participation. T aylor County will con tinue to of fer the events but will adjust the times as noon – 5pm at the Medford Fire Dept. and reduce the number of testing kits available. ▪ Wisconsin Emergency Management Plan of Work requirements h ave not been modified through COVID -19. Handrick will continue t o do online courses but the i n-person classes are still required but not available at this time, which will delay her certification. ▪ Taylor County has sc heduled four (4) additional blood dr ives with the American Red Cross for 2021. The Courthouse employee blood drive will be an additional one for a total of five (5). ▪ Handrick is finalizing the date in April for the virtual tabletop Hazardous Chemical Exercise. Th is exercise is necessary as part of the EPCRA Plan of Work req uirement for 2021. ▪ Additional notes based on questions from committee members: o Despite the cold weather, the testing sites worked fine with 19 participants at the last one. It is still recommended to get tested if a person shows any symptoms or is quarantined. o Vaccines are being administered as they are available. The Health Dept. requests approx. 200 doses but receives less. The second dose for the vaccine i s going to start in March for those who have received the first dose. o EMS must be present during the vaccines. To date, no reaction to the vaccine has occurred in Taylor County. o An interpreter is also present at both testing and vaccination sites. o It was stated the He alth Dept. has been tr aining over the years f or a pandemic and was ready to respond when this one started. Review and Approve January Invoices: Schuld reviewed the new format for the monthly bill s due to the County’s new financ e system. Brooks moved to approve the January invoices as presented; Seconded by Lemke. Motion carried. Sheriff’s Report: A brief update was given. ▪ Woebbeking introduced the new Jail Sergeant, Kevin Kree. ▪ The jail is currently housing 44 total inmates, 16 being from Marathon County. ▪ The K9 unit is starting the process for a replacement dog in 2021. The costs and possible breed of dog will be considered. It was mentioned by Lewis to contact Sawyer County for information on their unit. ▪ Dassow stated he has been in contact with General Communications for a replacement system for Etime. The cost of th e system and installation is approx. $29,900, a five (5) year warranty is approx. $14,000, for a total approx. cost of $44,000. There is a pending refund for the current returned system of $60,000. The new system will be installed late February/early March 2021. Law Enforcement Business: None. Adjournment: With no further business, Lemke moved to adjourn the meeti ng; Seconded by Brooks. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 9:41 am. Secretary: Christina Schuld, Taylor County Sheriff Office LAW ENFORCEMENT AND EMERGENCY SERVICES COMMITTEE MEETING January 8, 2021 County Board Room Call Meeting To Order: Chair Lewis called the meeting to order at 1:00 pm. Members Present: Lewis, Brooks, Lemke, Mildbrand, Soper, Members Absent: Other Attendees: Larry Brandl -Accounting/Finance, Corey Dassow -TASO Ch ief Deputy, Colleen Handrick-Emergency Services Manager, Jeff Nu ernberger-Ambulance, Holly Miller, -The Star News, Larry Woebbeking-TASO Sheriff Approve Minutes of the 11/13/2020 meeting: Brooks made a motion to a ccept the minutes as written; Lemke seconded the motion. All ayes; motion carried. Approve Agenda : Mildbrand made a motion to approve th e agenda; Brooks seconded the motion. All ayes; motion carried. Set Next Meeting Date: The next meeting will be at the call of the chair. Animal Control Contract: The Taylor County Huma ne Society presented their writt en bid for the Taylor County Animal Control Contract. The Hu mane Society Provided their mission statement, adoption statistics, and details about their facilit ies and programs. Programs run by the Humane Society include their spay and neuter program, The Fix is In, as well as vaccination and microchip clinics. Staff at the Humane Society regularly participate in continuing ed ucation programs for further training. The Humane Society receive d a $200,000 donation that allowed for a new shelter and facilities to house both cats and dogs. In the past, the Humane Soci ety required $3,900 per month for the contract. Due to county-wide budget cuts, the Humane Society’s bid for contract would only require $3,822, a figure 2% lower than the previous $3,900. Paws of Hope Animal Rescue presented t heir verbal bid for the Tay lor County Animal Control Contract. Paws of Hope provided their mission statement, adoption statis tics and details about their fa cilities. Paws of Hope operates primarily off community donatio ns and adoption fees. Currently, the facility is only able to house cats. The shelter would like ly be able to expand their f acilities to be able to house dogs if they were to win the contrac t. Paws o f Hope would require $3,200 per month for Animal Control operating costs. The committee took time for discussion. Soper stated that the Humane Society is already fully established and equipped to manage both cats and dogs. Both Lemke and Books voiced agreement that the contract should remain with the Humane Society. Soper asked for clari fication on the contracts. He pointed out that the 2018 animal control contract contained language for vet services. Chairman Lewis read a portion of the current contract for clarification. Soper made a motion to accep t the Humane Society’s bid for the Animal Control Contract as written; Lemke seconded the motion. All ayes; motion carried. Ambulance Business Jeff Nuernberger said the power stair chairs ha ve arrived. Power stair chair t raining for staff is scheduled for January 13, 2021. The chairs are expected to be in use by February. Soper asked about the status of the old chairs. Jeff said the old power stair chairs will be returned for rebate when training is complete. Jeff als o affirmed that each chair has a spare battery. Chairman Lewis asked for an update regarding EMT training. Jeff stated that Stetsonville and Rib Lake have tr ainees. He said numbers of EMTs ar e lower than ideal, but schedul ing is adequate. Medical Examiner: Medical Examiner Scott Perrin provided the committee with a written department status report. Emergency Management: Emergency Management continues to work closely with the Health Depart ment on various work responsibi lities including provision of PP E and school reopening plans. PPE is being received bi-weekly and inventoried. EOC remains activated on a virtual basis. Colleen has been working closely wi th Taylor County EMS, County funera l homes, the Medical Examiner’s office, human services, and Chairman Metz to address mortuary affair needs to ensure that the count y is capable of handling a n increase in decedents within the c ounty at any given time. Th e Taylor County Mass Fatalities Pla n has been reviewed and modific ations have been made that need to be implemented. A purchase o f body bags was made for potential future needs within our county. Taylor County has begun to host community testing events in conjunction with the National Guard beginning January 8, 2021. Testing will be held bi -weekly at the Medford Fire Department from 9:30am-5:30pm until March 5, 2021. The appeal regarding the withholding of EMPG/EPCRA Grant Funds was reviewed by Dr. Darrel Williams of Wisconsin Emergency Ma nagement. The grant funding f or the FFY20 EMPG and EPCRA Plan of Work was ultimately approved. Taylor County continues to work wi th the American Red Cross to plan regular blood drives. The next blood drive is scheduled for Friday, January 15, 2021. Colleen will be working with Nestle , Aspirus Medford Hospital, Tayl or County EMS, Medford Fire and Police, and the Taylor County Hea lth and Human Services Depart ments to hold a tabletop hazardous chemical exercise. The exercise is anticipated to occur virtually in April of 2021 and is necessary as part of the EPCRA Plan of Work requirement for 2021. Mildbrand asked Colleen about a timelin e for COVID-19 vaccinations for Taylor County. Colleen assured the committee that Emergen cy Management will try to ensure Taylor County gets their share of vaccines. Law Enforcement Business: Law enforcement officers w ill resume trainings. Trainings wil l occur in -house whenever possible, but some may need to travel to attend trainings. Sheriff’s Report The Taylor County Jail is currently housing 35 inmates. 6 Huber inmates are released on electronic monitoring. The jail is fully staffed with new employees still being trained. Chief Deputy Dassow outlined an issue with dispatch recording systems, both on the 911 lines and admin lines. The Motorola sys tem will be uninstalled, and the department will be refunding $60,000. Radio traffic is currently b eing recorded on the old s ystem. Chief Deputy Dassow will begin meeting with vendors next week. The department received $600 in donations for the K-9 fund. Review and Approve November Invoices: After review, Brooks made a motion to approve the invoices from October; Mildbrand seconded the motion. All ayes. Motion carried. Review and Approve December Invoices: After review, Brooks made a motion to approve the invoices from October; Lemke seconded the motion. All ayes. Motion carried. Adjournment: With no further business, Lemke made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Brooks seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 1:54 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Holly Miller