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Take annexation slow In casual conversation, people often use the word “town” when talking about a city, village or general place of residence. They might say “I live in town,” meaning that they don’t reside on a farm, or ask “What town are you from?” to learn the city in which you were born. It seems “town” has become the generic term for a municipality. The legal definition, however, is much different. In Wisconsin, a town is an unincorporated jurisdiction within a county. Towns have less authority than villages and cities; they do not, for instance, have home rule granted to them by the state. At the minimum, towns maintain their roads and zone land. They may choose to provide more services, but mainly, they offer limited services and thus town residents — the township — often pay lower taxes than their city or village counterparts. Villages and cities, on the other hand, provide a broad range of services to persons and properties within a defined geographical area, including street maintenance, sewer and water, police and fire protection, garbage collection, libraries, parks and recreation and public transportation. In addition to having home rule, they can create tax incremental finance districts, initiate ordinances and resolutions and expand their boundaries by annexing unincorporated territory. The latter is what the Village of Palmyra Board of Trustees will be considering when it meets in special session at 6:30 tonight at the village hall. The board will be discussing a state Department of Administration review of a petition to annex 740 acres of property primarily owned by Standard Process Inc. It would take a two-thirds majority — or 5-2 vote — to pass. If it’s 4-3, it fails, and two members already have voted against it earlier. According to statements made by Standard Process President Charles DuBois, the purpose of the annexation is to ensure that the company's assets all are within the same municipality rather than two, preventing inconsistent decisionmaking that might restrain the company's growth. Standard Process is located in Palmyra's business park, which can be entered by taking State Highway 59 to Industrial Drive. Raw materials for the company's supplement and vitamin products are grown on its certified organic farm in the Town of Palmyra. The proposal calls for annexing approximately 600 acres of agricultural land (382 acres of Standard Process land, 148 acres owned by Town Chairperson Stewart Calkins, 38.4 acres owned by Robert Oleson, 12.4 acres owned by Lawrence Tutton and 66 acres belonging to Robert Willson); the Palmyra Town Hall and the 91-plus-
acre Palmyra Municipal Airport, which has been owned by the township since 1948. The state Department of Administration has found the annexation to be against the public interest. The village attorney, however, contends that the shape of the proposed annexation is entirely regular and that the territory is homogeneous with the village. He further states that concerns regarding the loss of farmland are unfounded, and those about doubling the size of the village is beyond the purview of the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and are irrelevant to its review. The Town of Palmyra Board of Supervisors has taken no action regarding the annexation except to hire a Madison law firm to evaluate the town's legal options to potentially challenge the annexation of the airport. We can understand why Standard Process might want to have all of its property in the village. Having to deal with two different local governments can be difficult, especially when they don’t always see eye to eye. However, we can’t understand instantly doubling the size of the village while leaving hundreds of acres of it as farmland. Standard Process uses much of that land for its organic crop production, so there is little doubt that it will remain in agricultural use. It isn’t like the land will be set aside for a future industrial park or residential housing. That much farmland traditionally belongs in the rural towns. Then there are the airport and town hall. It seems extremely odd that they should be annexed into the village. At the same time, the proposal leaves various areas of the town surrounded by the village; they aren’t islands, exactly, but more like peninsulas. And what about the services that the village provides? Will it be required to extend sewer and water out for miles into the “rural” area? Will it be required to plow and maintain the roads within those new 704 acres? Will the number of police officers and public works crews have to be increased to accommodate patrolling the extra area? All this would boost village taxes, although Standard Process apparently is willing to pay the village’s stormwater runoff fee on all of its acreage. Standard Process is a wonderful employer and an incredible industrial asset for Palmyra. However, it seems like a lot of details still need to be worked out before taking the annexation petition to a vote. We would encourage the trustees to slow down and get all the questions asked and answered, because too much haste could be detrimental to the village, township and Standard Process alike.
By Sen. Scott Fitzgerald 13th Senate District
This session, one of our first priorities will be passing legislation that begins the process for safe and environmentally sound mining in Wisconsin. We focused on it last session, and we’re making it a priority again because it has the potential to bring a robust job creating industry back to our state. Senate Bill 1, co-authored by Sen. Tom Tiffany and Rep. Scott Suder, is an improved, comprehensive version of a compromise made last session. But scare tactics and misinformation are being launched by opponents who desperately want to derail this bill and the thousands of good paying jobs that can be created along with it. These false attacks have moved me to set the record straight on what this bill does and does not do, because you deserve to know the truth. First, it does not allow a mining company to begin digging on the day the bill passes. This legislation requires a minimum 12month pre-application process followed by a 420-day permitting and review process between a mining applicant and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Second, the bill applies Wisconsin’s current air, water, and groundwater or drinking water requirements. Contrary to claims made by those who oppose mining, this bill does not permit increases to limits on emissions or pollutants. Lastly, Senate Bill 1 ensures
that mining waste is properly regulated and disposed of in accordance with federal and state law. The bill also would not allow the DNR to issue a permit to a mining company that would significantly affect any of the following: Public rights and interest, the flow capacity of a stream, the rights of owners adjacent to the body of water, or water quality. So, let’s get to the bottom line. The Wisconsin DNR, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Army Corps of Engineers will not allow a mining company to harm our environment under this bill. But here’s what this bill can do. According to a third party analysis by NorthStar Econom-
ics, this is an opportunity for sizable economic growth. A mining company is estimated to invest $1.5 billion in an operation creating 3,000 construction jobs, $604 million in annual economic impact and over 2,800 long-term jobs in Wisconsin. We’ve been hit hard by the sluggish national economy, and new industry would do wonders for our state. Mining also has a strong place in Wisconsin’s history. Our state flag is covered with references to it. Sen. Tiffany recently posed an important question: “Is mining just going to be part of our past or is it going to be part of our future?” Mining helped build this state and it has the potential to be at the forefront of the next generation of Wisconsin industry — if we choose to allow it. Making job creation a priority was one major thing that both Democrats and Republicans could agree on at the beginning of this session. This bill makes job creation a priority and does so while protecting our beautiful state. Now it’s time for legislators to match their words with their actions. It would be an absolute shame to leave all of those life-changing jobs and economic progress buried underground because of partisan games. The environmental protections are there. A vote against this bill is a vote against jobs. It’s that simple. (Editor’s note: Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, RJuneau, represents the 13th Senate District, which includes a portion of Jefferson County.)
Reform runs into human nature What is the most basic component of traditional public education and why is it structured the way it is? Answer: The length of the school year. And, it is structured the way it is — Labor Day to Memorial Day, give or take a few days either way — in an historic nod to agriculture, so youngsters could help out on the farms. Five states — Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, Tennessee — are participating in an experiment with a yearround school schedule. The objective is to give students more hours of instruction and less down time with long vacations between school sessions. Rather than emphasizing long summer vacations that stretch into months, students might have shorter summers and longer breaks at Christmas and spring. U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan is a big advocate of reforming the schedule and adding instructional time for American students. Duncan believes lessening the time between school years will result in lessons staying fresher and diminish the need HERMAN® by Jim Unger
for remedial work. The worst enemy of creativity and innovation is resistance to change, clinging stubbornly to traditional ways of doing things. And a key to successful reform is willingness to take risks, try new things while challenging all points of the status quo. Advocates of longer school days and years say research suggests shorter but more frequent breaks help students absorb and retain learning. This is apparently most pronounced with average and marginal learners, who slip most during long absences from the classroom. Top performers retain lessons longer, which shouldn’t surprise anyone. The point is — as conditions evolve — change is always necessary, though never easy. From the human tendency to resist change, to childcare challenges for parents, to affordability issues as teachers expect more pay for more work, reform will come hard. Yet the path of the future is always paved with new ideas. If America is not looking ahead, it is falling behind. — The Beloit Daily News. MODERATELY CONFUSED™ by Jeff Stahler
By J.B. Van Hollen State attorney general
Today, Jan. 28, is Data Privacy Day, an occasion to emphasize the importance of keeping our personal information safe, and the steps we can take to avoid the serious problems that can arise from the misuse of private information. Although there continue to be security problems associated with paper records, such as theft of mail and misuse of confidential documents, the sphere of electronic data is where we face the greatest risk. The explosive growth of the digital world has not only increased the volume of data associated with each of us but has transformed the way information is used, kept and disseminated, leading to greater threat of theft and misuse of personal information. Most of us are now regular users of the Internet for an everexpanding list of purposes, including shopping, conducting financial transactions, social networking, education and entertainment. But as the usefulness of the Internet has increased, the
potential for breaches of privacy and the loss of personal data that can cause harm to consumers also has increased. Fortunately, there are steps we can take to minimize the risk of having our personal data lost, stolen or misused. They include the following:
Attorney General
J.B. Van Hollen • Maximize the safety of your computer by using up-to-date antivirus software, password-protecting your wireless router, and turning off your computer when not in use; • Use “strong” passwords that cannot easily be compromised; • Be wary of suspicious email. Do not provide financial information by email, and do not download attachments or click on
Internet links unless you are confident they are legitimate. If you question whether an email is actually from the business claimed, contact the business to verify that the email is genuine; • When making purchases online, check out sellers and sites using Internet search tools. Transact business only with secure sites, indicated by a closed padlock in the address bar or an Internet address that begins with https:// or shttp://. • Avoid using public, unsecured Wi-Fi hotspots for engaging in financial transactions. • And, if you use a smartphone, find out what types of security applications are available for your phone and use them. If you have the misfortune of having your personal data compromised, you can file a complaint with the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). You can download a complaint form or file an online complaint at: File a Consumer Complaint. You also may call the Consumer Protection Hotline at 1800-422-7128.
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