Dane County Executive Joe Parisi signed Dane County’s 2015 budget Wednesday, which calls for investing in the homeless community, lessening the phosphorous concentration in Wisconsin lakes and incorporating security body cameras into community policing.
A portion of the $532.7 million county budget aims to help the homeless community by devoting $2 million annually to an affordable housing fund until it reaches a proposed goal of $8 million, according to Leland Pan, District 5 supervisor for the Dane County Board of Supervisors.
Pan also supports another budget item that would invest $35,000 for the homeless youth as a part of the homeless and low-income community financial incentive.
"There's always been a very big gap in our homeless services," Pan said. "Hopefully with the creation of a new shelter, specifically designed for homeless youth, it will alleviate some of that gap."
However, Pan hopes to see a future development in a daytime resource center for the homeless that was not included in this year's budget.
The budget also devotes $10 million to restore lakes in Wisconsin and build new manure storage facilities.
Phosphorous-rich manure that farmers spread on fields can be extremely detrimental to surrounding lakes. Pan referenced that Lake Mendota has high concentrations of phosphorous that spill over to surrounding lakes. Additional storage facilities for Lake Mendota will hopefully decrease the spillover of phosphorous into the neighboring lakes, according to Pan.
Pan said he also favors a budget amendment that provides funding to supply Dane County police departments with body cameras to help protect the community and officers.
The budget will take effect starting January 2015.
