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October 29, 2008 |
The Crawford County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved of the 2009 budget at the budget hearing Tuesday afternoon.
The total levy after the subtraction of the County Sales and Use Tax is $6.7 million. The total levy for 2008 was $6.5 million.
The 2009 tax rate for county purposes will be $6.41 per $1,000 of equalized valuation, down from the $6.42 of 2008. This means that the owner of a property valued at $100,000 would pay $641 in property taxes for county purposes.
The County Board approved of a flat budget, with the exception of the county employees’ health insurance, which went up approximately $150,000.
Several county supervisors brought up the fact that the budget is very tight and that Crawford County, along with counties throughout the state have been put in a budget squeeze by the state. According to state law, Crawford County could only increase its tax levy by $125,775. Meanwhile county expenditures continue to rise.
"We will soon be at critical mass," said Supervisor Peter Flesch. "They (the State Legislature) put constraints upon us that they don’t put upon themselves."
Finance Committee Chairman Larry Kapinus pointed out that measures undertaken in order to keep the budget down included having 0 percent wage increases for employees, having the employees enrolled in the State Health Insurance Plan, having all county department budgets decreased by 7 percent and having all new equipment reduced to $500, with the understanding that departments would need to get permission to spend more than that amount.
Various County Board members discussed the fact that the county asked the county employees and their unions to change health insurance providers, which board members said would have saved the county approximately $300,000. Board members said that the health insurance benefits would have been the same with the change, no reduction whatsoever. But, the employees voted down this proposed change.
Several board members said that the budgeting process will be just as tough for 2010.
County Board Chairman Ron Leys suggested that people contact their state legislators about the continuing problem.
"They need to take the chains off of us," he said.
"After experiencing it for myself, it opened my eyes to what they have to do every day," says Prairie du Chien High School sophomore Cody Kuchinski of the nation’s security advisors after he participated in the National Youth Leadership Forum on National Security (NYLF/NS) in Washington, D.C.
He was among some 450 young people from throughout the nation who attended the National Youth Leadership Forum on National Security (NYLF/NS) in Washington, D.C.
Cody was nominated by his teachers and a counselor at school, then went through an additional selection process before being chosen.
Participants learned about how governmental security policies are created, and the various civilian, governmental and military groups involved in creating them. They also learned, said Cody, techniques the government uses to interact with other governments and promote security policy. Guest speakers included the director of the Counter Terrorism Center, the former ambassador to Iraq, Afghanistan, Algeria and Iran, the president of the American Academy of Diplomacy, CIA members and others.
At the conclusion of four days of presentation, students were divided into simulation groups. Each group was given the same situation: countries in the Middle East were scrambling for control of oil. The groups were each to create a policy, acting diplomatically or militarily, depending on how they viewed the situation. Each person in the group chose a role and was given a packet of information and instructions depending on the role. Cody chose to be a U.S. senator on the foreign relations committee. Each group had an advisorwho promoted the discussions and kept bringing in new material, but did assist them in creating policy. Cody’s group created a policy based on diplomacy, without going to war. They were told they "did a pretty fair job" compared to other groups.
The excitement of what they did carried over even into their down time, where debates continued right through social events. Cody had obtained his assignments and brought his school work with him, but had no time to complete it. "We went from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m." he said.
Participants were instructed to bring professional attire for the forum. For the males, that mean a suit, tie, dress pants and dress shoes.
Cody has two family members who are military officers, and even prior to the trip he was interested in a career as a military officer. Since the trip he has become more interested in national security as a possible career choice. He finds the combination—influencing and shaping national security policies as a military officer—particularly intriguing. As of now, he would like to attend a military academy, but if that is not possible, he envisions enrolling in a ROTC program at whatever college he attends.
Each participant in the forum had a choice of places to tour, including the CIA and the Pentagon. He chose the Naval Academy at Annapolis. The tour gave him time to observe the daily life of the students and to eat lunch with them. His cousin, a physician for the navy, set up a meeting giving him the opportunity to meet with both liberal and conservative officers.
"He set this up for Cody," said his dad, Chris, "because he wants him to realize and see to the fullest what’s in store for him if he decides to attend a military academy."
If there is a drawback to participation, it is the cost. Cody’s parents, Chris and Celeste, were willing to help him out, but did insist that Cody, who works at Papa Murphy’s, pay a certain percentage of the cost. The website, www.nylf.org, said Chris, does offer suggestions for students to help raise the money.
Cody doesn’t feel that the experience has really changed him, but does think it has increased his work ethic about reaching his goals. It has also brought him new friends from all over the country, and they are emailing and text messaging each other to plan a reunion.
Cody is involved in community service, mock trial, football, and political science club at school. He also leads a youth group at Grace Lutheran.
October 27, 2008 |
Crawford County Circuit Court Judge Michael Kirchman ruled that a former Gays Mills elk farm owner is not guilty of releasing 31 feral hogs into the county in Feb. of 2002. Kirchman made the ruling at the conclusion of a trial for Robert S. Johnson, 55, on Friday, Oct. 24.
"This is circumstantial evidence. It is not enough to say clearly, satisfactorily or convincingly that the defendant introduced hogs into Crawford County. Although there is a strong suspicion," said Kirchman, who then dismissed the case.
"We’re probably done with the case," said DNR Conservation Warden Mike Cross, who was the lead investigator. "I’m very disappointed, but the judge has to rule based upon how he views the evidence."
"I think that the DNR did a great job of investigating this case," said Assistant Attorney General Cynthia Hirsch. "It was a tough case to put together. Of course, I’m disappointed. I certainly respect the way in which Judge Kirchman weighed the decision."
Hirsch said that she did not yet know if she was going to appeal the case. She would have to confer with the investigators, she said.
"We had a touch uphill battle," said Warden Mike Cross, who noted that he worked on the case for the past two years. "It was a dificult case."
Johnson, who now resides in San Marcos, Texas, was charged with hauling 31 wild hogs from Texas to Crawford County and then releasing the hogs near the Kickapoo River in Feb. of 2002. The official charge was illegally stocking wild animals, a civil infraction.
The trial began on Sept. 5 but then was delayed until Oct. 24. The state Department of Justice, which handled the case, wanted at least $31,000 in forfeitures from Johnson, or $1,000 for each hog. If Johnson had been found guilty, further court proceedings would have begun in order to determine how much money Johnson would have had to pay to cover environmental damage caused by wild hogs in Crawford County.
In making his ruling, Judge Kirchman said that several out-of-state witnesses were not credible. One witness is a convicted felon and others appeared to have reasons for holding grudges against Johnson, Kirchman said. The main witness, Kirby Fulbright of Medina, Texas, told investigators from Wisconsin, Illinois and Texas and a USDA agent in March of 2007 that he had helped trap wild hogs on his property for Johnson. Fulbright said that he and Johnson drove to Wisconsin in the spring of 2002 with a horse trailer loaded with 31 hogs and that he watched Johnson release the hogs into the wild near Johnson’s elk farm.
Fulbright read and signed a written statement, saying that he helped trap the hogs and that he had watched Johnson release them.
Two weeks later, while giving a sworn affidavit in the case, Fulbright recanted his signed statement, saying that he was drunk at the time of the questioning by wardens. He said that he just wanted to go to sleep and that he told the wardens what they wanted to hear so that they would go away.
Warden Mike Cross testified Friday in court that Fulbright was alert and cooperative when he was being questioned and when he signed his statement. He showed no signs of being intoxicated or otherwise impaired at the time of questioning, said Cross. Cross said that he began questioning Fulbright at 8:28 a.m. and ended at about 10:30 a.m. on March 14, 2007.
In making his ruling Friday, Judge Kirchman said that Fulbright had either committed perjury in the case or obstruction of justice by giving a false statement to investigators.
Johnson testified in court Friday and denied that he ever brought wild pigs into Wisconsin.
"They would be of no benefit at all to me," he said. "I was trying to get my elk herd cleared for CWD. I wouldn’t do it (release wild hogs). If those hogs had any diseases, it would have messed me up entirely."
Wild pigs showed up in Wisconsin in about 2000. They’ve been reported in at least a dozen counties. Dave Matheys, a DNR wildlife biologist, has said that about 275 wild pigs have been shot in Crawford County, where they started becoming a major problem in about 2002. It is estimated that about 30 to 50 wild pigs still remain in Crawford County.
Johnson now faces a trial Nov. 3 of federal charges in Illinois alleging that he illegally moved elk into the state from Wisconsin.
In March of 2008, a grand jury handed down a four-count indictment against Johnson. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Pederson said that Johnson is accused of moving elk between a farm near Gays Mills to another farm near Rockford, Illinois, without complying with all regulations in 2005.
When Prairie du Chien voters go to the polls Nov. 4, they will have the opportunity to vote yes or no regarding a proposal to fluoridate the city’s water supply.
The issue is on the ballot as an advisory referendum only, meaning that the results of the election will not determine if the water supply is fluoridated or not. However, Prairie du Chien Council asked for the advisory referendum to determine public feelings about the issue.
Fluoride is a naturally occurring substance present in all water sources. In Prairie du Chien the water contains 0.1 parts per million (ppm). Optimum level of fluoridation is considered 0.7 to 1.2 ppm.
Fluoride has been approved by the Environmental Protection Agency. It is not a medicine, so it is not regulated by the Food ad Drug Association.
The issue was introduced in Prairie du Chien as the result of a recent needs assessment done by Couleecap, which showed dental health as one of the top five issues in Crawford County. Couleecap looked at ways to address dental health, and fluoridation is a relatively inexpensive and, according to many health organizations, proven preventive tool. Currently, it is very difficult to find dentists willing to provide care for low income children or adults, since the compensation does not equal their costs.In 2006, only four dentists in the county would see patients on medical assistance.
According to information from the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services, 32 percent of Crawford County residents did not see a dentist in 2006
Martha McCabe, MSEd, of Couleecap, said that if a family used fluoride tablets, they would spend about $130 a year, while with fluoridated water, they would pay $23 a year or less the first year and the cost would decrease after that.
According to a brochure printed by Citizens for Better Dental Health in Prairie du Chien, fluoridation is supported and recommended by the American Dental Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Medical Association, American Water Works Association and the Division of Natural Resources.
Local support listed in the brochure includes Couleecap, Inc, Crawford County Public Health Department, Crawford County Human Associates of Prairie du Chien, Franciscan-Skemp-Prairie du Chien Clinic, Great River Community Medical Clinic, Gundersen Lutheran-Prairie du Chien Clinic, McKeever Dental, Bruce L. Pomerening, DDS, Prairie du Chien Memorial Hospital, Prairie Medicine, Ltd., Welter Family Dentistry.
Proponents point out that fluoride can be obtained both topically, as in mouthwash, toothpaste or a ‘varnish’ which can be applied by a dentist, and ingested, as through drinking water. Topical fluorides, usually in stronger doses because they are meant to be rinsed out of the mouth rather than swallowed, strengthen teeth already present in the mouth. Systemic fluorides will strengthen existing teeth, but also aid in the development of strong teeth in fetuses and young children.
Proponents say that fluorosis, a tooth condition resulting from too much fluoride, usually occurs in individuals who live in areas where the naturally occurring fluoride is greater than four ppm. Toxicity, they say, would occur only in very high concentrations over large periods of time.
They point out that 280 public water systems in Wisconsin adjust fluoride, and that 76 public water systems have sufficient natural fluoride. In addition, neighboring states of Illinois and Minnesota mandate water fluoridation. In Crawford County, Soldier’s Grove is the only community fluoridating the water.
If fluoride is so great, why then are people opposed? A number of issues have been identified.
•Mass medication—although fluoride is not technically a medicine, many people object to having it added to the water supply so that everyone, whether for it or against it, will have to ingest it.
•Cost—only a small portion of the fluoridated water will be ingested. Much of it will go down the drain. If a family or individual does not want to drink fluoridated water, they would have to go to the expense of buying or renting a reverse osmosis filter.
•Benefit—many people feel that the benefits of fluoride have been exaggerated.
•Over-exposure to fluoride—fluoride occurs in other materials to which humans are exposed or which they eat. Fluorosis can result from too much fluoride.
•Toxicity—there have been claims of disease and other health problems related to fluoride.
•Opposition by scientists, doctors and other professionals—just as there are scientists, doctors and organizations supporting fluoridation, there are also those who oppose it.
With all of the conflicting information and opinion, how is the average person supposed to decide how to vote?
•For information about the positive aspects of fluoridation, check out the American Dental Association website at http://www.ada.org/goto/fluoride or http://www.fluroideinfo.org.
•For information on the negative aspects, there appear to be varied sources. Several of the letters to the editor suggest websites to consult, or visit http.//www.fluoridealert.org.
When studying research reports, whether positive or negative, there are certain things to look for in determining validity. The study has to be peer reviewed for accuracy and it has to be duplicated and the results confirmed for a second time. It is also important to watch for unproven claims, statements taken out of context and outdated studies.
•The Citizens for Better Dental Health, which is promoting fluoridation in the city, can be reached at 326-2463.Concerned Citizens for Good Health, which is opposed to fluoridation, can be contacted at 326-8422, 326-8712 or 326-2511.
•Consult with a family physician or dentist.
Robert S. Johnson, formerly of rural Gays Mills, listens to testimony in Crawford County Circuit Court Friday.
Will your tap water be fluoridated? Prairie du Chien residents will have the opportunity to cast their votes Nov. 4.
