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Dunn County administration discusses cutting meetings, estimates ~$325 per meeting in direct costs
Summary
Committee considered canceling the November meeting in favor of December 18 and discussed a broader proposal to meet every other month to save costs and staff time. Staff estimated about $325 per standing-committee meeting in per diems and mileage; no formal ordinance was adopted, but the committee agreed to pursue options.
Committee members discussed changing the meeting schedule to reduce costs and staff workload and tentatively approved moving the November meeting to December 18 to avoid holiday conflicts.
The county clerk raised the possibility of meeting every other month as a budget-savings measure. Staff said some standing committees already cancel when there is no material business and suggested developing a calendar that staggers which departments present written reports. County staff provided a rough cost calculation: roughly $250 in per diems per meeting (based on five members) plus average mileage claims (about 27.43 miles per member), producing an approximate direct cost of $325 per committee meeting. The presenter noted that the calculation did not include staff time for preparing reports or time department heads spend attending meetings.
The group discussed operational consequences of moving meetings (for example, voucher approvals and the timing of board actions) and noted that shifting the schedule could delay items to the January board if committee action is not timed to the board calendar. Committee members also discussed consolidating committees, limiting travel to conferences, and asking department heads to provide fewer routine monthly written reports.
There was no formal vote to change standing meeting frequency beyond placing the proposed November cancellation and December 18 date on the calendar; staff were asked to explore options and bring back recommendations about meeting cadence, report frequency, and potential committee consolidation.
