Adams County committee forwards two grant resolutions to county board; questions raised over procedure and membership

Adams County Land and Water Committee members voted on two grant resolutions and clashed over committee procedure and membership during their March meeting.

The committee approved forwarding a resolution to accept up to $800,000 from the Sand County Foundation (funds sourced through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program) to support producer-led watershed groups, contingent on review and approval by corporation counsel. The committee also approved forwarding a Nutrient Management Farmer Education grant resolution to the county board; that grant would fund workshops and training for local producers to develop nutrient-management plans using tools such as SnapPlus.

Why it matters: the Sand County Foundation funding would finance on-farm trials of a new NRCS practice standard for biochar aimed at improving soil and water quality and sequestering carbon, and the nutrient-management grant is a prerequisite for farmers seeking participation in the county’s farmland preservation and cost-share programs. Both items have short administrative deadlines that committee members cited when moving the measures forward.

The Sand County Foundation resolution was presented by Heather Gayton, watershed coordinator, who said the request seeks “the maximum amount of $800,000” and described the funds as obligated to Sand County Foundation to support producer-led groups implementing a new biochar NRCS practice standard. Colton (staff) introduced the item and answered procedural questions from supervisors. The committee heard that the grant’s application deadline was March 31, and members moved to approve the resolution contingent on corporation counsel’s review.

Tyler, resource conservationist, described the Nutrient Management Farmer Education grant as funding workshops, operational costs and stipends that would help producers develop nutrient-management plans, perform soil and manure testing and to use software such as SnapPlus. Tyler said the grant would also support certification that enables producers to enroll in the farmland preservation program and access county cost-share funding.

Several supervisors raised procedural objections during both grant discussions. Multiple speakers noted county board rules and Wisconsin statute language requiring that resolutions and ordinances be reviewed and signed by the county manager/administrator and corporation counsel prior to being submitted to the clerk for a board meeting. Concerned supervisors argued that the documents had not been approved by corporation counsel prior to the committee meeting and that board rules require earlier review; staff and other supervisors replied that the committee could forward the resolutions to the county board contingent on counsel’s subsequent approval. The committee approved forwarding both resolutions contingent on corporation counsel review; one supervisor recorded a dissent on the Sand County Foundation motion.

The meeting also included a sustained procedural dispute initiated by Supervisor Posdowski (listed in the transcript with variant spellings) who repeatedly objected to the committee’s roll call and moved, without an agenda item, to strike two citizen members—Barbara Morgan and Mary Lou Paylor—from the committee roster. The chair and other members ruled that removing citizen members was not an action that could be taken during roll call and that such a removal would require a separate agenda item. Later, Posdowski moved unsuccessfully to add a notation to the county calendar that a previously scheduled committee meeting had been cancelled; that motion failed for lack of a second.

UW Extension program reports drew complaint from the same supervisor, who said Extension presentations did not belong before the Land and Water Committee and recommended they be presented to Human Services. Committee members replied that Wisconsin statute assigns county extension reports according to county board rules and that the Extension office coordinates with Human Services and other departments on overlapping projects. The committee’s UW Extension update noted staff activity, a resignation (regional crops educator Natasha Paris has left for a private-sector job at Miller Fertilizer), and ongoing educator work in multiple counties.

Other staff updates included a land-and-water project status report, a planned pollinator/butterfly garden project on a Solid Waste parcel being developed with U.S. Fish and Wildlife and a Lake Alliance update covering planned invasive-plant treatments and local lake management activities. Committee members asked how Patrick’s Lake could join the local lake alliance; staff explained that lake associations must request membership.

Votes at a glance: - Sand County Foundation grant resolution (forwarded to county board contingent on corporation counsel review): approved; recorded dissent by Supervisor Posdowski. Motion language: approve resolution to request up to $800,000 from Sand County Foundation (RCPP funds) to support producer-led watershed groups implementing an NRCS biochar practice standard; forward to county board contingent on corporation counsel review and approval. Deadline for grant application: March 31. Presented by Heather Gayton, watershed coordinator.

- Nutrient Management Farmer Education grant resolution (forwarded to county board): approved; motion moved on the floor and seconded; forwarded to county board. Motion language: approve resolution to pursue Nutrient Management Farmer Education grant to fund producer workshops, training, and stipends to develop nutrient-management plans (tools: soil/manure testing, SnapPlus); forward to county board for consideration. Presented by Tyler, resource conservationist.

What’s next: Both resolutions will go to the county board for final approval; corporation counsel review is pending. Staff said they will follow up on the procedural questions raised about pre-meeting counsel review and about the committee calendar entries. The committee set its next meeting for May 6 at 3:00 p.m.

(Reporting based on the Adams County Land and Water Committee meeting transcript; quotes and attributions are taken from recorded remarks in the meeting.)