Dane County Board of Supervisors

2026 County Budget

Budget Process

Dane County has an annual, calendar year budget. In the fall, the County adopts the budget for the next calendar year. The budget is divided between the operating budget and the capital budget. The operating budget funds day-to-day expenses like staff, contractual costs, and ongoing activities in departments. The capital budget funds long-term projects like building and maintaining county roads, parks, and other facilities.

The video below provides an overview of the process, describes the difference between the operating and capital budgets, and outlines the general budget timeline.

Ways to Participate

1. Attend a committee meeting. Meeting times and agendas are posted here. You can also sign up to receive agendas automatically as they are posted. Instructions for signing up are available in this video here.

2. Attend one of the County Board Budget Hearings. Meetings dates and locations are listed below. All budget hearings will be available virtually. For the most up-to-date meeting information and to connect virtually, click here.

Hearing Dates:

September 9 at 5:30pm – Public Hearing on Department Budget Requests*
September 10 at 5:30pm – Public Hearing on Department Budget Requests*
September 11 at 5:30pm – Public Hearing on Department Budget Requests**
October 20 at 7:00pm – Public Hearing on the County Execuitve's budget proposal*
November 3 at 6:00pm – Public Hearing on Personnel and Finance Committee budget recommendations*

*Location: City-County Building, Room 201 (210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Madison, WI)

**Location: Alliant Energy Center (1919 Alliant Energy Center Way, Madison, WI)

3. Contact your County Board Supervisor. Not sure who represents you? Use this tool to find your supervisor and get in touch directly.

4. Email all County Board Supervisors. You can send a message to the full County Board by emailing: County_Board_Recipients@danecounty.gov

Dane County Budget Process Overview Handout

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Review Schedules of the 2026 County Budget

The 2026 Budget Review Calendar is available here. For the most up to date information related to meetings, please visit the Legislative Information Center: https://dane.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx

During the budget process, each standing committee will include a section on their agendas titled “Budget Discussion and Amendments.” Any proposed amendments can be found within each committee’s individual action item files. The list below includes the numbers associated with each committee:

Committee	Operating Budget Action Item	Capital Budget Action Item
Environment, Agriculture and Natural Resources
Zoning and Land Regulation
Public Works and Transportation
Executive
Public Protection & Judiciary
Health and Human Needs
Personnel & Finance