Committee hears answers to questions over value of state group

“The more people that are in these organizations, the more power you have for passing legislation,” said Taylor County board chairman Jim Metz to members of the county’s forestry committee on Friday morning.

The committee was discussing if the annual dues of about $2,600 were worth the value of being a part of the Wisconsin County Forests Association. Taylor County has been a member of the organization since at least 1969 and there has been a Taylor County Forestry member on the organization’s board continuously since 1988. Currently county board supervisor Myron Brooks serves on the WCFA board.

According to forestry committee chairman Scott Mildbrand, the annual dues had been questioned during a recent meeting of the finance and personnel committee.

“The question was asked why this is so high compared to association memberships for other departments,” Mildbrand said.

According to county forest administrator Jake Walcisak, the membership fees are based on a base $1,600 per member plus six cents per acre of county forest. Counties such as Douglas and Bayfield which have much larger county forests pay much higher. In addition, Walcisak explained that for the past three years the county forest administration grant has paid $700 of the cost bringing the county’s portion to $1,965.12 per year.

Mildbrand emphasized that the finance and personnel committee had not just questioned that department’s membership fees but raised the question of all the membership fees being paid.

According to Walcisak, the WCFA provides support to county forestry departments in working with the state and federal partners. It also provides a platform for collaboration between counties and a conduit for professional development for foresters.

“Without WCFA, I wouldn’t be the forester I am today,” Walcisak said, noting he sees it as an integral part of the county forest program in the state. He said all 30 counties with county forest lands are part of the organization.

In addition, he said the organization contracts with a lobbyist in Madison to help educate legislators on issues that are important to the county forests. He said the group has pushed to get additional state funding for county forest roads and changes in forestry laws at the state level.

“I don’t like lobbyists,” Mildbrand said, noting he recognizes that is how government works.

Walcisak said the group does not give any campaign contributions to legislators. “We don’t stick money into some lawmaker’s campaigns. We are paying someone to express our views to lawmakers,” he said.

Committee member Rollie Thums said he was the one who questioned it at the finance and personnel meeting and said they needed to talk about it. “We have to ask those questions,” he said noting that he needed Walcisak to justify the expense to them so that they can defend it as part of the county’s desire to cut $500,000 from the budget.

“I just wanted an explanation,” Mildbrand said. “$500,000 is serious business, we have to start with nickels and dimes. We have to start somewhere,” Thums said.

In other business, committee members: Approved a bid for replanting 11 acres of red pine plantation in the forest for a cost of $1,100. Walcisak said this was about right on target and is actually below budget. He noted that the last planting bid was for $97.43 per acre and that he had budgeted $115 per acre. He said 8,640 trees will be planted.

Received word that the Chelsea Dam replacement project is under contract with a substantial completion date of September 15. Walcisak also noted that the project will require the water level to be lowered by six inches from its current level during the construction to keep it under the 100 year flood level. This will be done with a coffer dam and sheet piling. Walcisak also told committee members that he anticipates having the contract signed for the Camp 8 dam project soon with an October completion date planned.

Received an update on excessive costs to snowmobile trail maintenance due to the December ice and snow storms which brought down a significant number of tree limbs. According to Walcisak, Taylor County had the second highest cost per mile of clean up with it in the $200 per mile range. Rusk County had $600 per mile in expense. The county will use existing maintenance funds from the state to cover those costs and will seek additional funds from the state.

Received an update on logging work in the forest. Typically winter is a busy time for logging, but due to lack of frozen conditions and market conditions there has been below average logging activity going on.