The Village of Hortonville board voted Feb. 6 to adopt the County Hazard Mitigation Plan for 2024–2029, a five-year county-level plan that staff said identifies hazards affecting Hortonville — notably localized flooding and potential dam failure — and assigns municipal responsibilities for response and mitigation.

Staff explained the county revisits the plan every five years and asks municipalities to adopt the county-wide mitigation plan rather than producing separate, FEMA-certified local plans. Adoption keeps the village eligible for certain federal funding through FEMA for repair and rebuilding after qualifying disasters, staff said.

Board members asked whether adopting the county plan changes municipal responsibilities or shifts liability. Staff replied the worksheets break out likely responsibilities (public works for infrastructure repairs, police for certain emergency oversight, administration for coordination) and said there are no significant new municipal obligations compared with previous versions. Trustees also asked about railroad-related incidents and historic flooding tied to bypass construction; staff said county emergency management would coordinate on larger incidents and that eligibility for federal funding would be determined through the emergency-management process.

The board approved the resolution adopting the county mitigation plan on a roll-call vote (motion, second; board recorded "Aye" and "Motion carried"). Staff said the village retains its own emergency response plan, which dovetails into county mitigation efforts, and emphasized that adopting the county plan is primarily a prerequisite for FEMA funding in the event of a major disaster.