County Executive Abele vetoes County Board reform plan

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele has vetoed a Milwaukee County Board reform plan.

The plan was approved by the Milwaukee County Board one week ago, by a 15-3 vote.

The reform package would have cut Board Supervisors’ salaries by 20%, staff by 50% and the Board’s budget by 50%.

Under the reform package, Supervisors’ terms would have been cut from four years to two beginning with the new term in 2016.

The package included other measures, such as the requirement of an efficiency audit for all levels of County government and use of a mediator to enforce those efficiencies.

In a statement, Abele cited three main concerns and reasons for his veto:

In his statement, Abele said: “I'm sure most Supervisors agree that their constituents deserve policy that is always the result of disciplined research and motivated solely by representing the best interests of the people. This resolution does not meet either of those standards. I continue to believe that the most appropriate and most effective mechanism for county governance reform is the same state legislature which created the position of Milwaukee County Executive in the first place.”

Abele also vetoed the Board’s resolution opposing State Assembly Bill 85 (AB 85) and Senate Bill 95 (SB 95), the state legislation that would reform the Milwaukee County Board.

The County Board will consider the vetoes at a special meeting on May 6th. The Board can then vote to override Abele's veto.

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