SCCB reviews $134 million budget, fails to fund $185,000 for UW-Extension and $70,00 4-H admin assistant
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
HUDSON — The St. Croix County Board has reviewed a budget of $134 million for 2025 and has declined to provide from the unassigned fund balance $185,000 for UW-Extension and $70,000 for an administrative assistant to support a 4-H educator.
The St. Croix County Board’s Committee of the Whole reviewed the 2025 budget at the October 1 meeting.
The proposed expense and revenue budget for 2025 of $133,934,445 presented by Ken Witt, county administrator, represents an increase of $8,569,409 over the 2024 budget of $125,365,036.
The St. Croix County Board will consider approval of the proposed 2025 budget following a public hearing at the November 6 meeting at 5 p.m.
Providing $185,000 and $70,000 from the unassigned general fund balance would create a structural deficit in the 2026 budget, which means that without additional funding sources, $255,000 would have to be deducted from another part of the budget, Witt said.
Jason Hausler, area extension director for UW-Madison, explained that not funding $70,000 for an administrative assistant would make it more difficult to find an 4-H educator for a program the size of the 4-H program in St. Croix County.
The St. Croix County 4-H program has about 600 participants and 200 volunteers.
UW-Extension
The $185,000 for UW-Extension funds programs that are already available through St. Croix County departments, said Dave Ostness, county board supervisor.
The UW-Extension programs dealing with crops and soils, nitrate and phosphorus studies, research and programming, organization and leadership development and community wellness overlap with county departments such as land and water conservation, health and human services and the Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC), according to several county board supervisors.
Jerry Van Someren, county board supervisor, said he had contacted various sources about winter wheat production in St. Croix County.
One of the UW-Extension programs funded by the $185,000 covers research on the effects of winter wheat on crops. One farm is growing about 30 acres of winter wheat as an experiment related to feeding calves, and another farm produces 10 acres of winter wheat for a distillery so the distillery can say it uses local ingredients, he said.
Since winter wheat is planted in the fall but does not start growing until spring, most farmers use rye grass as a cover crop over winter to keep the soil from eroding until spring planting, Van Someren said.
Regarding nitrogen and phosphorus research, also funded by the $185,000 to UW-Extension, an agronomist said no one asks about having nitrogen and phosphorus research conducted on their fields, he said.
As far as animal reproduction, another area covered by the $185,000, the large dairy farms have their own employees on staff who work with animal reproduction, Van Someren said.
St. Croix County should “take a year off” from UW-Extension “to see how much it is missed,” he said.
“We are up against a stone wall for the tax levy,” Van Someren said.
No info
Several county board supervisors noted that they had asked UW-Extension several times for the numbers of people using the programs funded by the $185,000 but did not receive any information
St. Croix County is “seeing an overlap” and repetitive programs between UW-Extension and programs offered by St. Croix County, said Shawn Anderson, county board supervisor.
Anderson said he had received many comments about the 4-H program, but 4-H “is being maintained.”
It is a bad idea to create a structural deficit to fund a program that is under-performing, said Bob Long, chair of the St. Croix County Board.
If St. Croix County backs out of UW-Extension now, the resources that have been allocated to St. Croix County will be reallocated to another county. St. Croix County will not have an option to “go back” to the UW-Extension program, said Daniel Hansen, county board supervisor.
An amendment for the proposed 2025 budget that would fund UW-Extension at $185,000 from the unassigned general fund balance for one year and would create an oversight committee failed on a vote of 11 “no” to 8 “yes.”
4-H
Without the funding for the 4-H administrative assistant, it is difficult to hire a 4-H educator, Hansen said.
The previous 4-H educator resigned after the 2024 St. Croix County Fair.
The $70,000 for the 4-H administrative assistant could be taken from the unassigned general fund balance or it could be taken from the ADRC and applied to 4-H, Hansen said.
Without the administrative assistant, Hansen said he had been told that UW-Extension will not be able to provide a 4-H educator.
Several county board supervisors questioned why a 4-H educator would not be able to be found for St. Croix County without the administrative assistant.
The issue is attracting talent for a 4-H program as large as St. Croix County’s 4-H program, Hausler said.
If St. Croix County wants to maintain the program the county has, then the recommendation is to hire an administrative assistant to help the 4-H educator, Hausler said.
It is about “attracting talent” in a competitive marketplace, he said.
At some point during the year, the St. Croix County Board “could also come back and make an adjustment” to hire an administrative assistant for 4-H, said Paul Berning, county board supervisor.
One person without the appropriate support staff cannot maintain a program of this size, Hausler reiterated, adding that he has already seen turnover in other 4-H programs when there is a lack of support staff to maintain a large program.
Are there other administrative assistants in other departments who could be borrowed to help with the 4-H program when needed? asked Kerry Reis, county board supervisor.
Someone providing support from community development is not the same as a dedicated position, Witt said.
The motion to fund $70,000 for an administrative assistant from the unassigned general fund balance for 4-H failed on a vote of 6 “yes” to 13 “no.”
