Westcap reports services to Barron County, outlines funding mix and warns of federal funding volatility

Tim Mather, executive director of Westcap (West Central Wisconsin Community Action Agency), gave the board an overview of the agency’s programs and its work in Barron County.

Mather said Westcap serves seven counties and that, in 2024, it assisted 2,845 households in Barron County. He reported that Westcap’s Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) funding is about $400,000 annually, of which roughly $60,000 was used to support Barron County programs in 2024. In addition to CSBG, Mather said Westcap administers federal, state and private funds; across its service area the agency manages roughly $27 million in program dollars.

Program highlights Mather provided for Barron County in 2024 included: - Food access: Westcap helped more than 2,000 individual residents; Mather estimated the value of food and staff time at about $251,000. Westcap runs USDA-funded programs including the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) and the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program. - Housing: Westcap served 153 households and cited roughly $773,000 in related value; the agency also owns or developed affordable housing in the county (Mather cited two properties north of Barron totaling 48 units and an additional 21 units in Rice Lake). - Energy assistance: Westcap served more than 1,600 households in Barron County with energy-assistance payments averaging about $550 per household, representing roughly $1 million paid directly to local utilities. - Weatherization and emergency responses: Westcap conducted energy audits or weatherization work on 102 homes in Barron County and responded to 54 “no heat” emergency calls, with an estimated $600,000 in direct value from weatherization and related services.

Mather described CSBG as an operational backbone rather than the primary funding source for program delivery; he emphasized that the agency combines federal, state, local and private funding to run its programs. When asked how Westcap’s budget breaks down, he said the $400,000 in CSBG supports operations while program dollars total roughly $27 million across the agency’s service area.

Board members asked about coordination with county agencies. Mather said Westcap coordinates with county ADRCs and human services offices on programs such as the Senior Farmers Market voucher program and energy-assistance referrals. He also confirmed that Barron County had previously administered energy assistance in-house but that Westcap took over a few years ago.

During questions, Mather warned that abrupt federal funding actions can expose the agency to financial risk. He described a recent incident in which HUD funding was shut off abruptly, which could have left the agency exposed to about $1.5 million in unreimbursed payments to landlords; he said those interruptions have led Westcap to operate more conservatively in recent months.

Supervisors who spoke during the presentation included Supervisor Patty Anderson, Supervisor Cook, Supervisor Fall, Supervisor Turcotte and Supervisor Banks. Supervisor Fall, who serves on Westcap’s board, praised the agency’s work and asked Mather for success stories; Mather described client outcomes including education and housing stability programs that, he said, help people increase income and retain housing.

Mather closed by saying Westcap seeks to expand affordable housing where feasible and that the agency uses private developers and low-income housing tax credits for many projects.

Notes: Program counts and dollar figures were provided by the presenter; the transcript includes some numeration artifacts and pauses. Figures are reported as stated by Westcap’s executive director during the presentation.