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Committee declines to reinstate a county sponsorship fund under Wisconsin Stat. §59.56 after staff and members question value and staffing burden
Summary
Members discussed statute 59.56, past county sponsorship funding (historically around $40,000–$50,000) and decided not to reinstate a dedicated county event-sponsorship fund; staff said there is no current budget allocation and recommended a case-by-case approach through the existing budget process or outside grant sources.
The committee discussed Marathon County’s potential role in sponsoring local events and studies under Wisconsin Statute §59.56. County Administrator Leinart reviewed the statute and the county’s prior practice of maintaining an annual pool (historically about $40,000–$50,000) that community groups could seek for festivals, studies and other events.
Leinart said the line item was repurposed in prior budgets and that there is no current dedicated funding in the county budget for sponsorships. Committee members and staff noted that some events and studies have produced economic-impact data in the past (for example, earlier work with municipal partners and visitor-bureau tools) but cautioned that economic-impact estimates can vary and sometimes overstate benefits.
Vice Chair Pfeiffer and others said the county receives many ad-hoc requests and that staff time to evaluate and manage a small sponsorship program would be disproportionate to the likely budget amount. Supervisor Lamer and others noted local capability to produce impact estimates through county partners and visitor-bureau tools if the board chooses to request them for specific proposals.
After discussion, the committee did not move to reinstate a county sponsorship fund in the FY2026 budget; staff said groups seeking county assistance may bring formal requests for consideration through the usual committee and budget processes, or pursue state and municipal grant sources for events that draw visitors.
