Finance Committee — Minutes

Minutes of the September 10, 2026 Meeting of the Sawyer County Finance Committee of the Sawyer County Board of Supervisors Board Room; Sawyer County Voting Committee Members (X) Present: Others Present: John Righeimer Mike Markgren Ron Kinsley Stacey Hessel Liz Klein John Pinnow- Virtual Marc Helwig Ron Buckholtz Andy Phillips- Virtual Steve Kariainen Rhandi Ehn Ben Conrad- Virtual Jeff Hoehne Brian Lehner Call to Order –Chair Righeimer called the meeting to order at 8:30 am. Certification of Compliance with the open meeting law was met. Roll Call taken and quorum was met. Meeting Agenda – Set Public Comments – None Andy Phillips Presentation—Atty. Andy Phillips of Attolles Law discussed proposed Sawyer County financial participation requested to secure EU Swiss bank financing for the sustainable fuel project. The county is being asked to secure a $25M loan from BCPL, to place in an account which would remain under control of Sawyer County, to serve as a type of “earnest money” required by the EU investors. Syntech would pay the interest on the loan. More details will be worked out to ensure it is a zero risk hold harmless transaction should the county proceed. Dave Armstrong of Barron County EDC spoke on the economic development and impact modeling used to assess the large and unprecedented project for viability. The model includes Sawyer and 31 counties who will benefit from job creation and the injection of outside money into the economy. $110M in tax credits over a 20 year Enterprise Zone would be in the form of corporate (not property) taxes. Paper industry expert Masood Akhtar, Ph. D., spoke to the committee about his input on the project from the beginning and explained the financing aspects in more detail. Atty. Phillips and Mr. Markgren will move forward to explore and secure legally and fiscally secure terms and conditions should the county decide to proceed with securing the loan. Minutes from the previous meeting dated: August 13, 2026 Motion to approve made by: Mr. Helwig Second by: Ms. Hessel Motion carried without negative vote. Namekagon Transit 2027 Budget Request—Darrin White spoke on behalf of Namekagon Transit, highlighting Transit services and increased ridership. The agency is requesting an increase of $5,000 over last year in the 2027 Budget to cover cost of living increases for employees, for a total of $175,000 requested. Treasurer’s Report – Mr. Lehner provided a written report on tax collections and delinquent parcels. Finance Department Report - Ms. Ehn reviewed monthly sales tax revenues, Budget Performance Reports for August 2026, and August CIP purchases. 2027 Preliminary Budget Presentation—Ms. Ehn walked through slides of the preliminary 2027 Budget with the committee and answered questions. The presentation will be made to the full County Board on September 17. Department Financial Updates-- HHS Department---Ms. Ehn reviewed August 2026 financials for the HHS Department. Veterans Service Office—Ms. Ehn reviewed July 2026 Financials for the Veterans Service Office. Investments Review and Update—The July investment report was provided: interest rates are holding above 3%; County CD investments are still exceeding 2025 returns. CD Purchase— Motion to approve the purchase of a 12 month CD from Frandsen Bank at 3.98% interest by: Ms. Hessel Second by: Mr. Hoehne Motion carried without negative vote. Board Appointed Committee Updates— None Correspondence, Reports from Conferences and Meetings – None Future Agenda Items – None Adjournment – 9:36 am Next Meeting- October 8, 2026 Time: 8:30 am Location: Board Room Minutes recorded by Liz Klein, County Clerk