 Welcome to Sheboygan County, working for you. My name's Adam Payne and with me today is my co-host, fearless leader and friend, Dan Lemeyou. Today marks the 30th program that Dan and I have co-hosted. Our objective was and continues to be to share with you the many programs and activities that Sheboygan County has to offer. Today is somewhat of a unique program because again, my co-host is also our guest. Dan, why don't you start a little bit telling us what your future plans are? Although before that, a little background about yourself and where you grew up and what's new in your life? What's new in our life is a little puppy. We got that about a month ago and we're back to having a baby in a house again, so we have a puppy. But I grew up in Huesburg, born and raised there. I published the local shopper in that Southeastern part of Sheboygan County for the last 20 years. That's what I do to make a living. The last 14 years I have served on Sheboygan County board for the district that covers Huesburg and part of Tonga Holland. Serving the last 14 years on the board and the last two terms or term and a half as County Board Chairman. So that's a little bit of my background. The future, there will be a change in my life and in my family's life come January. I've been elected to the State Assembly representing parts of five counties, Sovereign Sheboygan County and parts of Ozaki, Washington, Final Act and Dodge counties. So I've expanded the number of people I represent, the area I represent, and I'll be spending some time in Madison next year. So that'll be the change in my life. And that's exactly why Dan is our guest today. He resigned from the County Board this week. He's going to soon be moving into a state office. And today we wanted to talk a little bit about not only some of the accomplishments of the past, but where we're headed for the future. Dan, why don't you share with our viewers or at least remind our viewers how long you were on the County Board and some of the committees that you were active with. Like I said, I've been on the County Board for 14 years. When I first got on the County Board, being a rookie, I'm not knowing a lot about County Government, I asked some questions and said, well, what about committee assignments? What should I try to get on? Well, I was told as a freshman County Board Supervisor, you pretty well get what's left over. But they said, if you volunteer for the personnel committee, you'll get your first choice because nobody wants to serve in a personnel committee. So I did that, volunteered, requested personnel committee. I served eight or 10 years in the personnel committee, chaired that committee, did a lot of work with the negotiating contracts, grievances, benefits, things like that. And then I also spent a number of years on the finance committee, chaired that committee prior to serving as Vice Chairman and then Chairman. As Chairman, you don't serve in any committees, you're ex-official in all committees. So, but that's the area that I was involved in on the County Board the most, was personnel and finance committees. So as you look back and you reflect on those 14 years and the different committees that you served on, what do you see as some of the primary accomplishments or contributions that you made during that time? Well, on the personnel committee, I think back to the time where we were starting to see some premium costs increase in our health insurance and decided, and we had private, a private carrier at the time and we made the decision that we wanted to go self-insured and I was part of the process to get us there was with the number of unions that we have and union contracts which stipulate benefits and healthcare coverage, it wasn't an easy move. It was a struggle for a couple of years to get to that point but we went self-insured with a preferred provider and for a number of years saw no increases or decreases in our health insurance costs which were very beneficial to the bottom line of our budget. Now we're starting to see that increase again so we need to look at that area again but I think that was a big area while serving and the personnel committee was that change over in that area of the benefits. On finance committee, I think some of the things that I mean just in general working on budgets and trying to maintain a flat or a level mill rate, we've done some things in the last few years to refine the budget process which as far as goal setting and accountability, I've been a part of that and I think we've come a long way in the budget process. As chairman, one of the things that I wanted to do was to get more discussion among all supervisors as to where we were going as accounting board and what are some of our goals were and I started when I became chairman once a year we have a leadership forum where we all get together outside of the court house in a neutral setting for a number of hours, sometimes a greater part of a day and just talk about where we're going have some discussion, have some input and try to reach agreement on where we're going as a accounting board and county government and I think that's been very instrumental in helping us with the direction we are going. One of the other things that I've done in the last year and a half is, started has a local government meetings with top elected officials from all the towns, villages and cities and myself and again just to sit down in an informal setting and discuss some of the common concerns, common issues that we're all dealing with and try to solve them together so that we don't all have to solve them ourselves and try to share some services and opportunities with the different levels of government and that's something that the state wants is to do a down the road to share services and to be more efficient in providing the services at the local level. I know when you're asked well, what contributions or what accomplishments did you make and certainly you shared some with us but with the county board as a whole, it's a collective approach and I think that was one of your greatest strengths was really pulling the board together. We also have a tax rate today that's less than it was 10 years ago. I think you could go on and on with a number of good things that you and the board as a whole did. You started talking about some of the roles that you had as a county board chairman the last few years. You were unanimously reelected as chairman a little over a year ago. What do you see as the primary roles and responsibilities of being a county board chairman? Well, obviously the chairman as the type elected official is a spokesperson for the county. When somebody calls the county and wants the county to be represented at a function, my office is the office they call and obviously since we've had the position of administrative coordinator that you filled since we've had it and we share that responsibility somewhat and that's good. I mean, it's a good sharing and it lessens the time commitment to the chairman a little bit because it's a part-time position. But you're the top spokesman for the county and besides that, I think the most important thing takes place the first two days you're chairman that's setting up the committees. Sheboyin County as many counties are run for the most part by committee work and our county board meetings are shorter than most that's because we have a strong committee structure and in order to have a strong committee structure you need strong committees and it's the duty of the chairman to come forward with those committee assignments within 48 hours after he's elected as chairman and that's probably the toughest and most important job that the chairman has is making sure that we maintain strong committees that the committees are accountable to the executive committee and to the liaison departments that they work with. So that's very important. I think the other thing is just to keep things running in an orderly way, whether it be county board meetings or executive committee meetings maybe be a common effect when things get a little tense and keep everybody focused in on the issue at hand instead of letting the emotions run away with the issues and that's not always the easiest thing but try to be a common effect and keep things going in an orderly way. Which we're gonna continue to need more of in the state legislature as well. As you look back over those 14 years you talked about some of the accomplishments that you and the board have made. What do you see as some of the significant changes that have occurred during that time period? I think one of the, well a couple of the areas are healthcare centers, some big changes there over the years. It's a discussion that we've been having for years and years and years and we'll probably continue to have for years and years and years but there's been a change in how funding comes to healthcare facilities whether they be public or private. There's been a change in how the orderly are taken care of. When I first got on the county board we had nursing homes and they were the orderly retired and went to a nursing home. Now and stayed there for many years prior to becoming real sick or real dependent upon nursing care. Now the people we have in our healthcare facilities are there because they need nursing care. They need almost 24 hour care and that's been a big change and it's shown in the numbers of beds that we have and in our recent consolidation. So that's been a big change. Another change has been in technology. Tremendous change in technology and it continues to change in the business role and in the public sector. We went through that right before 2000 and since with our JD-Edwards program and the technology we have now I think we're set now for a number of years hopefully and but technology keeps on changing. So that has been a change. Probably the other change is the concern right now over how services that the counties provide for the state are being funded and the future of that funding and who's gonna provide those services? Who's responsible for providing those services? Not only at the county level but at the city and tongue level also and that relationship between all these levels of government and that's a big concern right now and it's been changing and it'll continue to change. And that's a good segue to the next question as you look ahead. What do you see as some of the key challenges for county government? Some of these changes are changes that I'll probably be involved with from the state, from the other side of the table now. Shared revenues obviously are a big concern. Almost $4 million worth of shared revenues every year and that number has stayed flat for the last about seven, eight years and it doesn't look like it's gonna go anywhere up if anything down in the future. So that's a concern and a big budgetary concern. IGT funding for our healthcare facilities is a concern. Again, all these come back to budgeting. The IGT money, if that goes away we have some serious concerns of how we're gonna fund our healthcare facilities in the future. So I think that that whole relationship is gonna be the biggest concern in the next few years. And earlier you also mentioned health insurance and the difficulty we're having tackling that right now. I think a 29% increase for 2003. We saw a 17% increase for 2002. And because we're a service organization, we don't make a product. We're not manufacturing automobiles or anything like that, we're a service organization. So what we have is a lot of employees and as the wages go up, as the benefits go up and the cost of benefits are increasing much faster than the wages in the private sector and public sector that is gonna be a concern. And in order for us to maintain the level of employees we have, something has to happen because we just can't continue to absorb those costs. We have levy caps and things that we just can't do. The money just won't be there to continue those increases the way they are. And as many of our viewers I'm sure know we have 23 departments, we have nearly 1,300 employees. It's a good size organization providing a broad way of services and activities. This week the county board elected a new county board chairman. And supervisor Bill Gehring is going to be stepping in your shoes for the remainder of your term maybe reelected for a second term. He's likely gonna be seeking some advice. What advice would you offer to our new chairman as well as leadership on the county board in general? Good luck. The next couple of years are because the money's gonna be tight both at the local level and state level. Budgets are gonna be hard. I guess going back to what I had said before about the roles of the chairman, I think it's important that the new chairman and executive committee keep the committee strong. I think they need to keep people on committees that are willing to make the tough decisions that are willing to set goals and stick to them. And so they need to maintain that strong committee structure and strong individuals on the different committees. I think as county government and also state government we have to realize that we just can't keep everybody happy. Just we're in a situation now where some people are not gonna be happy with us as we make these decisions whether it be at state level or at the county level. And we have to realize that and just bear in mind that you're just not gonna be able to keep everybody happy. And then the last thing is to set goals. We have a budget process in place where we set goals, where we give the departments our goals. I think the chairman and executive committee and finance committee in the next couple of years it's very important that they set very specific goals and that they stick to them and don't compromise those goals or there's gonna be problems. So and I'm confident that the executive committee we have and chairman Gehring they'll do a fine job of that. I've confidence in that. Very good. Well let's move on to the next chapter of your life. You decided to run for the state assembly in the 59th district this fall. You had a challenging primary with a number of folks seeking the office. The final decision and election in November. Why don't we start with why you decided to run for the state assembly? Prior to May or June of this year I had absolutely no intentions of ever running for state office. I was very happy running my business. I was very happy being county board chairman. Serving on the county board has been very fulfilling for me and it's been very rewarding. With the redistricting after the 2000 census in late May the new districts came out and Southern Chewbacca County, Usberg, Cedar Grove, random lake areas for the last 20 years had been tacked on to either Ozaki County or Washington County as the tail on a bigger district and never really had enough population to be able to elect somebody from this area to the state assembly. With the redistricting we picked up four more townships in Southern Chewbacca County and it made it obvious that somebody from Southern Chewbacca County could be elected to the state assembly. The 59th assembly district where I'll be representing was Glenn Grossman's district and Glenn and I have known each other since, well, since he was elected to the state assembly about nine years ago and we started looking around for somebody to run for that position from Southern Chewbacca County and as we talked to people they kept on looking at me and said, well, why don't you run? So after a few weeks of that and Glenn talking to me I decided to throw my hat in the ring finding out that there were eventually that there were seven others that decided it was a good time to try to get the assembly also. But that's basically how the process came. I really had no intention of doing it. Talking with people after the redistricting. My name kept on coming up as I talked to people when we were looking for somebody else and I decided that I would take the experience that I've had in county government and in the business and see if I could do something in Madison. And as we mentioned, a challenging primary a number of good people were seeking the position. You came out ahead and then I think in November you received almost 80% of the vote. Did you not? I think it was closer, 70%. 70%, okay. So Dan, why don't you share with our viewers what strengths, what values, what experience that you feel that you can contribute to the state legislature? Well again, I look back at 14 years of county government. Many of the things that state government does locally are done through the counties. And I'm familiar with that. I'm familiar with the Health and Human Services area, which is basically all state programs that we're running. The court system, the district attorneys, that whole area. I've been the last two and a half years in Madison dealing with IGT funding, things like that. So I think I do bring some background in that relationship between state and local government to the table when I go to Madison. Also being a small businessman, I'm concerned about the tax structure in state of Wisconsin and how tough it is for a small business to operate and function and put up with not only the taxes, but the paperwork and bureaucracy that sometimes you have to put up with and you don't have your staff attorney that you can throw that stuff at, you have to do it yourself. And so those are some of the areas that I think I bring to state government. One thing you've got to bring to the position is patience. Sure, I think one of the, excuse me, one of the other things that I've learned in county government, and especially being the chair of a committee and personal finance were two top committees and also being chairman, is that you need to be a good listener. I think I said Tuesday night at my resignation speech that I found out that all my ideas aren't the best or the correct ideas and you find that out by listening to people. And I found that out that you have to listen to both sides of an issue and then make your decision. And I think I've done that. Not everybody might agree with me that I've always done that, but I think I do. And the other thing is I think I have a reputation both in my community and with my county board work of being a person of integrity and ethical standards, which I think we need in Madison. I think we need to bring back some accountability and integrity to the institution of the legislature. And I'd like to be part of that. You often hear that in a session there can be anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 bills, pieces of legislation that need to be reviewed and may or may not see the light of day. And sometimes people run for the state assembly because they have a very specific agenda or item that they want to address or something that's happened in their life. As you enter the state legislature, are there any areas or issues that you're particularly interested in? Well, like I said before, up until five months ago, I just, this whole thought of serving in Madison wasn't even part of my thought process. Now that I've won the primary of one election, now I have to, you know, now reality sinks in and I've been there a few times now to try to set up a staffer in office. And now what do I do? Well, in talking with leadership, Speaker Gard and some of the leadership and talking about committee work and my involvement there, my request was in the areas of small business and the state and local government relationships that they should use my experience in county government to help better that relationship which has deteriorated over the last 10, 15 years. And they agreed and we don't have all the committee assignments yet as we're taping this, but those are the areas along with, I'm a very strong pro-life individual and I campaign that way. And there are no committees that deal specifically with pro-life issues. But as some of those issues do arise, I'm sure I would get involved in those types of issues also. So those are the small business, state and local government relationships and pro-life issues. Those are the areas I'd like to concentrate on. Now you just said at the time of this taping, the committee assignments haven't been confirmed yet, but how about your office, or you're moving into your new office? I was in Madison yesterday and there's 11 Republican freshmen and four Democrats. The 11 Republicans were there yesterday and we had 11 offices, we could choose from there to draw lots. I drew number two. So I got the second pick and I do have an office picked out. I don't get anything yet until January 6th until we're sworn in because I don't have an office budget until that day. So we don't get the keys or anything until January 6th, but I do have an office picked out. I don't have a phone number address or anything like that yet. Back to the committee assignments, I did have one, found out yesterday that one of my committee assignments is the Committee of Urban and Local Affairs and that does deal with state and local relationships and I was told that I would, actually I was told that I would be vice chair of that committee yesterday. So that would be one of the committees that I'll be on. Very good. And it sounds like there'll be like four committee assignments per representative and I don't have a clue what the other ones are yet. So with all of this coming at you, fast and furious, what's your general impression as far as you're being orientated to your new responsibilities? Well right now, I think a lot of it is it's just standing back and you're sort of in awe of the institution. You go into the Republican caucus room and you realize that a lot of major decisions are made there over the years in caucus and then you bring them to the floor. I haven't been in the chambers yet. I'm sure that's gonna be even more awe inspiring to sit there and be a part of that. I think the half a dozen times that I've been to Madison since the election, as I drive down Washington Avenue towards the Capitol and you just, you see the Capitol in the distance in the dome, it's a humbling experience to think that this guy from Wolfsburg is not gonna be representing one one hundredth of the state making decisions and running the state and right now it's a humbling experience and one that I look forward to. Well I couldn't let you go without asking you one tough question and I know we only have a few minutes remaining but shared revenue has been a topic that you and I have been discussing for the last couple of years pretty frequently and you're now gonna be in a position to make a difference and to vote on what happens with shared revenue statewide. What's your present position if you have one formed in regards to state shared revenue and maintaining the levels for counties and municipalities or whether or not there's gonna be any changes? Well again, you asked me if you could keep that question on the list and that's for sure. Absolutely, keep it on the list. I haven't been involved obviously as a freshman in any of the discussions that have started on the budget process. One of the things and everybody that's been elected has said we're not gonna raise taxes. When we're not gonna raise taxes we have to make cuts. I made no promises when I campaigned and I cited no pledges but I think one of the things at a very minimum I think we need to see a freeze in the spending where it is now and that's a start. Whatever cuts that are made I would like to see made be consistent and I would like to see everything on the table and that includes shared revenues. It also includes the university system and also includes corrections and some of the other areas that are some of the bigger ticket items in the budget. And I think we have to be realistic and realize that for the next few years until the economy improves there probably will be some cuts. My goal is to keep those cuts at a minimum and be consistent with cuts in other areas of the state budget so that they're not penalizing local governments and trying to shift the burden of the tax to the local governments but try to be consistent. Very good. But to think that they're going to stay exactly where they are and increase I don't think that's gonna happen. Well do you have any parting remarks today for your vast TV eight viewers out there in Sheboygan County in the land? Not really. Well it's been a pleasure co-hosting this program with Dan for the last few years and I'm certainly on a personal note going to miss working with him as County Board Chairman. I think he leaves Sheboygan County in good hands. I think the state legislature is very fortunate to have someone with his background and his experience going to be working for the constituents here and I hope that you will continue to join us in the future. Our new County Board Chairman Bill Gehring may or may not be here next month. He was just elected this week so he as well as being orientated and has a number of decisions to make but thank you for joining us and happy holidays.