Marquette County departments report mixed results in 2025 annual reports; board places reports on file

Marquette County leaders filed a slate of 2025 annual reports Wednesday night, telling the county board of supervisors that permitting and fee revenue rose in planning, public-health vaccination activity declined, and law enforcement credited fixed ‘flat’ cameras with breakthroughs in a major sexual-assault investigation.

The board voted to place the submitted annual reports on file by unanimous voice vote.

Why it matters: The reports outline financial and programmatic health across county services that affect budgeting and policy choices for the year ahead — from permitting revenues that support county operations to public-health trends that may prompt program changes.

Planning and zoning: Zoning Administrator Jean Potter said 2025 saw a 28% increase in zoning permits and a 21% jump in total fees collected to about $282,000. Potter said the department completed 110 septic inspections, restructured the county zoning ordinance into separate chapters (shoreland, floodplain, wireless communications), and passed a DSPS field audit that found the county in substantial compliance.

Driveway enforcement question: Multiple supervisors pressed Potter about who enforces technical driveway construction standards after language was removed from the zoning ordinance; Potter and others said highway historically handled driveway construction specifics and culvert checks, and that enforcement language will be added to relevant highway and building chapters rather than remain in the zoning code.

Public health: Health Director Jamie Sofa told the board the department recorded a sizeable drop in vaccine administration in 2025 — about a 30% decline in doses given and roughly a 15-point fall in the two-year-old series coverage compared with prior years. Sofa said the department is forming a partnership with Central Wisconsin Pharmacy to expand access and plans to start broader vaccine clinics in fall 2026. Sofa also noted that Marquette County remains high in state Lyme-disease rates and highlighted harm-reduction, dental outreach and a ‘Libraries with Heart’ blood-pressure-cuff lending pilot.

Law enforcement and courts: District Attorney Cliff Burton and Sheriff Joel Conrath credited crime-prevention funding and fixed-camera evidence with helping solve a February sexual-assault case that resulted in a 25-year sentence for the defendant. Burton described treatment court successes and diversion programs that reduced juvenile petitions in 2025; Conrath summarized jail statistics (average daily population of 32; 586 bookings) and described PAP grant reimbursements and technology investments (an X-ray scanner and drone use).

Budget context: Several presenters flagged staffing and grant changes that affect county budgets: Extension returned roughly $11,000 to the general fund after spending 91% of a $127,000 budget in 2025; Buildings & Grounds returned about $67,000 due to a vacant custodian position; the health department reported turning back nearly $40,000 in grants that reduced levy pressure.

What’s next: The board approved Resolution 14 (appointments and a rezoning) and other routine matters later in the meeting. Department directors said they would continue follow-up on technical items (for example, coordinating driveway construction standards with the highway department) and pursue partnerships or grant-funded expansions (public-health vaccination partnerships; treatment-court supports). The reports are now on record for use in the upcoming budget cycle.