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Residents urge cameras for deputies, expanded treatment options and timely dome repairs during budget hearing
Summary
During the public hearing on the proposed budget, several speakers urged the county to fund abatement programming with opioid settlement money, equip deputies with body cameras, and pursue stronger treatment options for repeat drug offenders; another resident questioned reserve balances and some employee raises.
Speakers at the county's public hearing on Oct. 23 raised public safety and budget concerns and urged the board to prioritize treatment and building maintenance.
A judge from Branch 3 in Manitowoc County told the board he supports directing opioid settlement money to human services for abatement programming, saying court‑linked programs are showing positive effects in addiction control. The judge also urged timely action on a long‑discussed dome project, thanking the board for recent window and HVAC work and warning that delay will increase future costs.
Jim Langley of the City of Manitowoc urged the county to ensure deputies are equipped with body cameras, calling cameras a necessary tool for officer safety and for reducing legal exposure. Langley also urged tougher responses for repeat drug offenders, suggesting a 'three strikes' approach that would move people to locked treatment programs run by facilities such as Winnebago Mental Health when outpatient options fail.
Another resident, Jim Thairo, questioned the county's undesignated reserve balance, contrasting a cited 2003 balance of $13,722,742 with an undesignated reserve of about $1,825,600 as of Dec. 31, 2024, and asked where funds have gone. Thairo also criticized what he described as large raises for some employees, citing an operations manager's pay increase he said was much larger than 2%.
Chair closed the public hearing after three calls for speakers and moved to the regular public comment period before proceeding to the consent agenda.
