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Commission reviews 2026 budget recommendations for lake programs; members note limited funding and ask Clean Lakes Alliance to present
Summary
The Dane County Land and Water Resources Commission reviewed draft 2026 budget recommendations covering beach monitoring, PFOS testing, lake‑harvester GPS tracking and phosphorus‑reduction programs, and asked Clean Lakes Alliance to present at the next meeting while acknowledging funding constraints.
The Dane County Land and Water Resources Commission reviewed a set of draft budget recommendations for 2026 focused on lake and water programs and agreed to hear a presentation from Clean Lakes Alliance at the next meeting before finalizing requests.
Commissioners discussed several program areas in the draft recommendations: beach health monitoring, PFOS testing of wells, GPS tracking for lake harvesters, ongoing phosphorus‑reduction programs and community outreach. Staff and commissioners noted that many items requested in prior years have not been funded and that county budget constraints make new funding unlikely for some items.
Beach monitoring: The commission reiterated a prior request to expand rapid test sampling and volunteer monitors at beaches and to install electronic signage showing beach status. Commissioners said these items were requested previously but the signage and expanded monitoring were not funded in the 2025 budget; a specific dollar ask referenced in prior materials was not funded.
PFOS/PFAS testing: Federal grants that previously supported testing for income‑eligible households were not renewed, the commission heard. Staff recommended continued testing of county park wells and maintaining existing monitoring for other public wells; the commission left the recommendation as continuation of existing efforts.
Lake management and operations: Commissioners discussed a GPS system for tracking harvesters and barges so residents and staff can see real‑time locations. Funding for the software component had been budgeted previously but the public website implementation had not been completed; staff said they are working to put GPS information on the county site.
Phosphorus and outreach: Commissioners noted ongoing, multi‑year investments in phosphorus reduction and education programs and adjusted a line that previously named a single program to more broadly identify Dane County Land and Water Resources youth and education programs.
Timing and process: Several commissioners pressed for an earlier internal schedule for developing and submitting budget requests, saying August or September is late in the county’s budget cycle for asking other departments to reallocate resources. The commission agreed to refine the draft and to hear Clean Lakes Alliance representative Paul Dearlove at the next meeting for further detail on beach monitoring proposals.
No formal vote to adopt the draft recommendations was recorded at the meeting; staff will circulate a clean copy of the draft for commissioners to review before the next meeting.
