In a rare appearance, Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk addressed the Dane County Board of Supervisors Thursday night to assure them that independent of Gov. Scott McCallum's proposed $5.74 million in shared revenue cuts, the government she oversees is in strong fiscal health.
A number of supervisors, however, were critical of Falk for glossing over a potential $17 million to $22.6 million shortfall that Dane County's budget may face in 2003, depending upon the end result of McCallum's budget reform bill.
\The only threat we face this year is the governor's proposal to immediately cut $5.74 million in promised, committed revenue,"" Falk said. ""As the Legislature becomes better informed about the consequences of the governor's proposal to immediately eliminate shared revenue for hundreds of Wisconsin local and county governments, including Dane County, it is more likely that there will be substantial amendments or alternative proposals adopted.""
Saying that she does not want to wait until the state Legislature takes final action on McCallum's Budget Reform Act of 2002, Falk outlined a three-prong response program to deal with the shortfall. Generally, the program will freeze or delay some county expenditures, assess where more financial actions can be taken once McCallum's plan is enacted and attempt to make Dane County operate more efficiently.
If the full cuts to Dane County's shared revenues are made, Falk said no department will be immune to further nips and tucks.
""Even when we take all these steps, all of us must be clear on the following point,"" she said. ""If Dane County has to take an immediate $5.74 million cut from the state this year, every program and every project, short-term or long-term, is on the table, subject to reductions.""
Sup. Larry Olson, District 12, said that the county executive is addressing the immediate problem well. But he said he is ""uncomfortable"" with Falk's failure to address a potential $22.6 million budgetary shortfall in 2003.
""The deficit that we have for 2003 she keeps calling a 'challenge,' that's the problem, we've got to address that,"" Olson said. ""The best-case scenario is $7.2 million, assuming we don't lose any shared revenue and everything comes into line.""
""If I'm $100 overdrawn in my checking account, I don't call that a challenge, I call that a deficit,"" he said.
