The Knowles Nelson Stewardship Program is up for re-authorization this year.
It’s a funding program that primarily uses general obligation bonds to grant money for outdoor recreation projects and purchasing land or easements for conservation.
Gov. Tony Evers has called for a billion dollars in funding for the Knowles Nelson Stewardship Program over the next 10 years.
That comes out to $100 million a year.
The Oneida County Board passed a resolution in support of the Knowles Nelson Stewardship Program, though not all parts of it.
Board Chairman Scott Holewinski strongly opposes using the program to buy land that would come off the tax roll and borrowing money to do so.
“It's about borrowing money for the future generation, [we] keep talking about future generations, and we just keep digging a bigger hole for them,” said Holewinski.
He also brought up the Wisconsin Supreme Court decision that ruled the Joint Finance Committee overstepped its authority by anonymously blocking projects that wanted to use Knowles Nelson funds.
Holewinski raised concerns about proper oversight without it.
“There is no oversight. It depends on how much the governor wants to take out about there's no oversight,” said Holewinski.
This became an issue a couple years ago when some local towns opposed the Pelican River Forest project, but the Natural Resources Board, which provides oversight, never heard those concerns.
While land acquisition is a portion of the stewardship program, the Governor’s proposal does call for more investment into infrastructure development and maintenance.
In the past it helped fund things like boat launch repairs and trail building.
A few board members pointed out that this program does support the tourism and recreation industry, which is a major industry in Oneida County.
Supervisor Collette Sorgel talked about how the program has supported Minocqua Winter Park which brings in thousands of visitors each year.
“Studies have shown that protected land boosts local economy by attracting tourists, hunters, anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts. In Oneida County, the biggest driver of our economy is tourism and forestry. When tourists come here and spend money, we do get tax dollars,” said Sorgel.
Supervisor Steven Schreier brought up the need for investing in ATV/UTV recreation, especially after back-to-back years of little to no snowmobiling.
“I think this is a valuable resource for something like that. We don't have the money and the funds that the state does to redirect and pivot. We're going to have to rely on every source we can and so many funding sources right now, as every single department of ours can tell you, is up in the air,” said Schreier.
Schreier also commented on the oversight piece, saying that someone “failed to exercise their responsibility” but that the oversight piece is there.
The board ended up passing an amended resolution that supports reauthorization of the program but not using it for land acquisition or by borrowing money.
In April, the Vilas County board passed a resolution in support of reauthorizing it and that “sufficient funding be allocated to support projects over the next ten years.”
