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| Walworth County Board turns down pay increase |
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| Written by Todd Mishler/Walworth County Sunday |
| Monday, 14 November 2011 08:13 |
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(Read the full story in the e-edition HERE.) ELKHORN — The Walworth County Board of Supervisors last week followed the same path as its executive committee, turning down a proposed amendment to increase members’ compensation. The committee — David Weber, Dan Kilkenny, board chairwoman Nancy Russell, Randy Hawkins and Richard Brandl — previously had voted 3-2 against Weber’s plan to raise salaries by 2 percent, which would have gone into effect Jan. 1, 2013. The proposal would have increased compensation for 10 supervisors from $500 to $510 per month and the chairperson’s salary from $1,000 to $1,020, but the board rejected it by a 6-4 margin — a two-thirds majority, or eight votes, is required. Weber said there’s no doubt that the issue will be addressed again. “This rate has been on the books for years and years, and when the county board decreased from 25 members to 11, the workload and homework obviously went up for everybody. None of us does this for the money, but there’s a certain amount of respect implied with the compensation level. “There’s a certain psychology here in that we’ve worked hard with staff and employees to follow state guidelines in contracts with our unions, changing language and addressing overtime for public works folks, for example,” Weber said. “It’s all about finding a level playing field with the public sector. In implementing this budget, nobody wants to hurt anybody else, but fair is only fair.” In another matter, the board voted unanimously in supporting the public works committee’s efforts in urging the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to proceed more quickly on an environmental impact study surrounding the proposed U.S. Highway 12 reconstruction/bypass project between Elkhorn and Whitewater, including the concerns around the Lauderdale Lakes region. The committee, which is made up of Russell, Rick Stacey, Joe Schaefer, Kathy Ingersoll and Russ Wardle, voted 5-0 and needed a majority of the full board to proceed with its latest recommendation to the state. “This original proposal dates way back to the 1960s, and there’s never been an environmental study done by the DOT,” Weber said. “I know the folks in Whitewater are strongly behind this because they want to have that artery from here to their industrial park and the Fort Atkinson area to move forward. “The final design would have to be finished, but as you know, money drives all issues. So it’s a matter of making this a priority and finding available funds, and that would require federal dollars to make it work.”
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