STATE BUDGET PRIORITIES

In partnership with other organizations, the Business Advocacy Committee supports several key funding opportunities being considered in the State's 2023-2025 Budget:

• Priority: We support continuing to invest in Child Care Providers in Wisconsin in order to stabilize current providers and incentivize the growth of child care providers in our community. 

We support Governor Evers' proposal to make the Child Care Counts Program permanent and allocate $340 million over the biennium to support child care providers through this program.

Member Action: Write your state legislators with your/your company's experience with trying to find child care availability in our area. 

• Priority: We support Investing in Small Businesses to support a thriving local economy. 

We support Governor Evers' recommendations to refund the Main Street Bounceback Grant program, creating an appropriation of $25 million over the biennium, to provide grants to aid businesses in newly occupying or expanding into vacant commercial spaces.

Member Action: Write your state legislators and share what impact this grant had or could have on your business. ​

• Priority: We support Increasing Funding to Public Schools in order to allow our schools to better serve our students and help our community thrive. 

We support the Mount Horeb Area School Board's request for the following items to be included in the 2023-2025 biennial budget:

1. Increasing General Purpose Revenue (GPR) a minimum of $350/$650 per pupil over each of the next two years, respectively, and indexing the GPR to the rate of inflation.
2. Raising the low revenue ceiling by $450 per pupil in FY 2023-24 and an additional $750 per pupil in FY 2024-25.
3. Increasing special education reimbursement rates. The Governor's budget proposal includes increasing special education categorical aid rates from the current estimated 31% reimbursement rate to 45% in 2024, and 60% in 2025.

Member Action: Write your state legislators in support of this request. You can download this template email/letter, add your name, and send to your elected officials and members of the Joint Finance Committee (JFC).  

• Priority: We support increasing the state's Tourism Budget. 

Destinations Wisconsin is advocating for a $13.3 million increase in ongoing marketing funds to the Wisconsin Department of Tourism’s 2023-2025 state budget. They also support the one-time tourism funding proposed by Governor Evers for a tourism infrastructure grant program and an opportunity attraction and promotion fund. The additional marketing funds will support: 1) General tourism marketing; 2) Meetings and convention (M&C) and sports events marketing and staff; 3) An opportunity fund to attract and promote large-scale, one-of-a-kind events.

Member Action: Write your state legislators and share how important tourism funding on a state level is to support the marketing efforts in smaller communities like ours with limited budgets. 

Want to learn about the State Budget Process? Download Informational Paper #78 from the Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau. ​

CONTACTING YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS

FEDERAL

• Senator Ron Johnson (R)
• Senator Tammy Baldwin (D)
• Congressman Mark Pocan (D)

STATE

• Representative Mike Bare (D – Verona)
• Senator Dianne Hesselbein (D – Middleton)

COUNTY

• Dane County Executive: Joe Parisi
• Dane County Supervisor: Patrick Downing

VILLAGE OF MOUNT HOREB

• Village of Mount Horeb Board of Trustees
• Mount Horeb Area School District Board of Education

NEIGHBORING COMMUNITIES

• Village of Blue Mounds
• Town of Blue Mounds
• Town of Springdale
• Town of Vermont

MOUNT HOREB RECREATION SPORTS COMPLEX

The Village of Mount Horeb is considering taking part in the purchase of land for a Recreation Sports Complex in our east commercial district.

READ THE CHAMBER'S POSITION STATEMENT

You can find village board meeting packets here and videos of the meetings here. You can read coverage of this issue in the Mount Horeb Mail. 

On April 12, 2023, the village, school board, and private group spearheading the project invited the community to a Public Input Session. You can watch a recording of the session here.

APARTMENT COMPLEX PROPOSED IN DOWNTOWN

There is an apartment complex being proposed in downtown Mount Horeb by Steve Brown Apartments. The location of the project is on Front and First Streets where there is currently a parking lot. 

The Business Advocacy Committee conducted a survey of downtown member businesses/organizations to gauge what impact this project could have on our downtown parking needs. You can find the results to our 2023 Downtown Parking Survey here.

A similar survey was conducted in 2019. You can find the results of the 2019 Downtown Parking Survey here.