_01152026-1363

Price County Executive Committee Minutes Date: January 15, 2026 Time: 9:00 a.m. Place: Courthouse County Board Room 101; 126 Cherry St; Phillips, WI 54555 Meeting called to Order: Meeting called to order at 9:00 a.m. by Brian Ernst, Committee Chair. Roll Call: Members Present: Alan Barkstrom, Doug Erickson, Brian Ernst, Jeff Hallstrand Other Members Present: Jason Hastings Members Excused: Larry Palecek Also Present: Skylar Dural-Eyder, Executive Director NWCEP; Carrie Kyle, County Finance Director; Nick Trimner, County Administrator Items For Discussion and Possible Action 1. Public Comment: Ginny Strobl, Town of Georgetown, commented publicly on an agenda item. Communications: Supervisor Hastings commented on Strobl’s public comment, and he has a resolution which will be given to the chair after the meeting. 2. Meeting Minutes December 11, 2025: Motion Barkstrom/Erickson to approve the December 11, 2025, minutes. Motion carried. 3. Treasurer Report a. Monthly Reports: The County Treasurer’s Report on Revenues and Disbursements and the Financial Report for December were presented and are on file. County loan amounts, interest rates, payments, balances and due dates are recorded on the financial report. b. Delinquent Taxes and In Rem – 2022 Start: Updates were presented on collecting unpaid property taxes from 2022 using the in-rem process for over 70 parcels. About half of those titles have been returned from the title work process. Approximately 15 parcels are small areas (sliver parcels) from past years, which resurfaced during assessments. c. Land Sale for In Rem Parcels – 2019-2021 Auction: The third land auction concluded with one remaining parcel for sale, and the Executive Committee needs to set the starting bid for it. d. Land Sale Parcels – #23518, #5164: Discussion on the sale of parcel Tax Identification Number 5164 for $26,750. Parcel number 23518 was unsold and will be auctioned again with a new starting price. e. Set Minimum Bid for Unsold Land Sale Parcels – #23518 Motion Hallstrand/Barkstrom to set the starting auction price at $500.00 for the land parcel tax ID #23518 in the city of Park Falls. Motion carried 4. Register of Deeds Office a. Updates: In December 2025, the Register of Deeds (ROD) Office recorded 304 documents, conveyed $12.2 million in straight sales, received 42 vital record applications, and issued 249 vital certificates. On January 8, 2026, the State Department of Revenue began the transition to a new electronic Real Estate transfer program. The interface with the State still has some issues. The ROD; land records vendor Fidlar Technologies, and the Wisconsin DOR are working closely on the issue and hopefully by the end of this week the State side will be fully functioning. 5. Office of Administration: The amended Highway borrowing resolution 30-24 for $3.1 million needs to be amended to reflect changes in amounts spent between two categories: road construction and equipment purchases. The total amount borrowed, $3.1 million, remains the same. Price County Information Technology (IT) Department has been very busy lately with a 9-1-1 outage for a short period of time (due to a third-party vendor issue); working with the financial software transition from an in-house server to a cloud-based service (updated go-live date is February 19, 2026); and combating an influx of malicious emails sent to County addresses. The County is still waiting for a District Attorney to be appointed by the Governor, the special prosecutor filling in for the DA is finished working for the County, and an assistant DA is working part time. a. 2025 Monthly Financial Reports: The following December 2025 financial reports are preliminary. The receivables account for “Period 13” exists to collect grant money and funding pertinent to expenses from fiscal year 2025. Period 13 goes through April 2026, and departments such as Land Conservation, Forestry and Parks, and Emergency Management typically collect funding and grant money during Period 13. General Fund: The Sherriff’s Department fund is in good shape at ($69,446) for 2025. Jail finished at ($420,392) considering staffing and training needs, and health care costs. Forestry finished at ($647,701), Land Conservation ($131,157), and Land Information ($146,127), and all three are expecting grant money and revenue deposits during Period 13 to repay those losses. Health and Human Services (HHS): HHS financial reporting is traditionally a couple months behind, showing a balance of ($976,992) Net Gain/(Loss) Versus Budget. Other Funds: Highway fund totaled $171,740. The remaining funds will be put towards equipment purchases for future budgets. Price County Cash: December 2025 shows $11.7 million, up 12% from 2024. Price County Sales Tax: December 2025 sales tax reflects ($37,595) difference from October 2024. Price County Stumpage Sales 2019-2025: The projected budgeted amount in sales for December 2025 of $1.27 million was surpassed with a preliminary total of $1.44 million. High Cost Placement – Children and Youth: November 2025 preliminary totals are $611,435, up 31% from November 2024. There are currently two high-cost placements, with potential for a third. High Cost Placement – AODA: November 2025 preliminary total $324,377 is down 37% from November 2024. Health Insurance 2025: December 2025 fund balance for health insurance is ($61,125). Multiple cost savings measures have been implemented for employees for 2026 including utilizing Health Check 360, Taylored Health clinic, and partnership with multiple vendors to reduce health insurance costs. 6. Clerk’s Office a. Updates: There is no Primary Election needed in Price County, and the Spring Election will be held on April 7th. There are candidates for all the County Supervisory District Positions, and there are 2 candidates running in both District 4 and District 13. All but one contract Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) for WisVote services was returned. Invoices for WisVote election maintenance services provided to municipalities were sent out January 5th, and they’re due on February 5th. The office has been busy organizing and getting ready for the April Election. 7. Presentation: Northwest Wisconsin Concentrated Employment Program, Inc. (NWCEP) Loan Forgiveness: Presentation given by Skylar Dural-Eder, Executive Director NWCEP. For five decades NWCEP has helped people gain skills and training to get back to work. Over time, both State and Federal funding has declined while needs for services have increased. Specifically, within the last year, there have been multiple funding cuts and changes to the program. NWCEP acknowledged the $5,000.00 loan and was fully prepared to repay the loan in full if required; however, the service provider respectfully requested loan relief from the Price County Board. NWCEP, established as a government program in the 1960s, has been widely utilized throughout Price County. 8. Loan Forgiveness (Res18-24) Northwest Wisconsin Concentrated Employment Program, Inc. (NWCEP): Discussed various options including loan forgiveness, creating a payment plan, and adding NWCEP as a community partner with Price County in the future, rather than a service provider. Motion Hallstrand/Erickson to set up a small and manageable payment plan from Northwest Wisconsin Concentrated Employment Program (NWCEP) for $5,000.00 and to amend Resolution 18-24 Provision of Short-term Financial Assistance to the Northwest Wisconsin Concentrated Employment Program, Inc. (NWCEP). 9. Resolution: Town of Georgetown Bridge and Culvert Aid (Executive): Motion Erickson/Hallstrand to approve the Town of Georgetown Bridge and Culvert Aid resolution and send it to County Board of Supervisors for final approval. Motion carried. 10. Monthly Vouchers: Motion Barkstrom/Erickson to approve the December 2025 vouchers in the amount of $1,235,624.83. Motion carried. 11. Date of Next Meeting: February 12, 2026. 12. Closed Session – Announcement and motion to adjourn to closed session pursuant to the exemption in Wis. State Statute 19.85 (1)(c) for considering employment, promotion, compensation or performance evaluation data of any public employee over which the governmental body has jurisdiction or exercises responsibility and for the purpose of: a. Review County Administrator Contract b. Motion to Return to Open Session Motion Barkstrom/Hallstrand to adjourn into closed session at 10:14 a.m. Roll call vote: Yes (4): Barkstrom, Erickson, Ernst, Hallstrand. No (0). Motion carried. Motion Barkstrom/Erickson to return to open session at 10:49 a.m. Roll call vote: Yes (4): Barkstrom, Erickson, Ernst, Hallstrand. No (0). Motion carried. 13. Take Action, as needed, on closed session items: Motion Barkstrom/Hallstrand to send the County Administrator Employment Agreement to the full County Board of Supervisors with recommendation to approve it. Roll call vote: Yes (4): Barkstrom, Erickson, Ernst, Hallstrand. No (0). Motion carried. 14. Adjourn: Meeting adjourned at 10:58 a.m. by Brian Ernst, Committee Chair. Respectfully submitted by Meredith Hueckman, County Clerk