Dunn County Board candidate: Jim Zons

COLFAX — Incumbent Dunn County Board supervisor for District 6, Jim Zons, will be running for re-election April 2 against challenger Dustin Shackleton.

Zons, age 60, is engaged to his fiancee and has two children, Daniel (age 21) and Catherine (age 20).

The Colfax Messenger sent a questionnaire to the candidates.

As of press time, after sending two e-mail messages to Shackleton about the questionnaire, the Messenger had not received a reply.

Here are Zons’ answers to the questionnaire. 

• What is your occupation?

I am a small business owner. My company, EZ New Media, helps other small businesses around Dunn County and the Midwest with marketing, including video production, television commercials, websites and more! Learn more at www.eznewmedia.com

• What is your educational background?

Graduate of Durand High School. UW-Eau Claire Communications Major.

• Why did you decide to run for re-election to the Dunn County Board? 

I have served on the Dunn County Board since 2016. I am running for re-election simply because I believe in good government and doing my part to give back to the community. I’m proud of the work I do, and am willing to set aside the time to do it well; it is my honor to serve my constituents in District 6! I serve on the Executive Committee and Legislative Committees, and also serve as chair of the Community Resources and Tourism Committee and as chair of the Broadband Taskforce. I’m also a commissioner for the Tainter Lake Rehabilitation district. Having leadership roles in these committees helps me to better shape public policies and drive initiatives that improve people’s lives and the quality of life in Dunn County. Being a small business owner means I bring a different perspective to serving on the county board.

• What do you believe to be the two biggest issues facing Dunn County?

There are a lot of important issues facing the county; it’s hard to pick just two things! But first, I think we need to keep local government services affordable (meaning avoiding property tax increases whenever possible). I also think there are many parts of the county still suffering from a lack of broadband, high-speed internet access (which impacts educational opportunities, economic development, tourism, and so much more).

• How would you go about addressing those issues? 

To keep county property taxes affordable, yet still maintain local government services that people rely on (road maintenance, sheriff’s department, health and human services), we need to find alternate ways to fund government services. Some of that funding can be through grant opportunities (something that many departments are already doing successfully). Another huge way that we can address funding shortfalls, especially thanks to unfunded state mandates, is by pressing the state legislature to find a better formula for shared revenue (the percentage of tax revenue that the state collects that is then sent back or “shared” with local governments.  The legislative committee I serve on successfully pressed the legislature to make some changes to shared revenue this past year, but there is much more that we can do, and I want to be there to do it.

As far as broadband access, there are still parts of Dunn County that are underserved or not serviced at all when it comes to high-speed internet access. This affects everything from kids being able to access school materials, telehealth services, economic development and even home values (who wants to buy a house that doesn’t have high speed internet?) As chair of the newly formed Dunn County Broadband Taskforce, our committee is working with local internet service providers and county residents to determine areas in the county that need broadband access. We then identify grant opportunities through the various government programs now available to expand broadband through both the State of Wisconsin and federal government, and encourage county internet providers to expand into those unserved areas.  It is my goal to see all of Dunn County served by high speed broadband in the next five years!

• Anything else you would like voters to know?

I enjoy serving on the Dunn County Board, and it’s work I take seriously. It is a privilege to serve on the county board as your representative! I have a strong commitment to public service, and I actively seek public comment, feedback and expertise on issues impacting Dunn County residents’ lives … reach out to me anytime! If re-elected, I promise to continue working hard for the residents in District 6 and all of Dunn County on the issues that are important to all of us.