The Shawano County Finance Committee on Monday recommended rejecting a fee increase for cremations proposed by the county coroner’s office.
Supervisors expressed dismay that Coroner Mike Jesse requested the increase, just one month after the County Board approved the 2014 budget. Jesse asked to increase the fee from $125 to $150.
“At budget time, he didn’t bring up anything about additional costs or shortfalls in his budget,” Supervisor Sandy Steinke said. “He didn’t mention anything.”
Jesse was not at Monday’s meeting, but in September he told the Public Safety Committee that it takes one hour to complete the cremation permit, and then he has to take fingerprints and photos. The process takes about 2 1/2 to 3 hours, he said, and the fee has not been increased in five years.
Committee members said they would reconsider if Jesse gave them a reasonable explanation for the proposed increase.
Supervisor Marlin Noffke said the committee needs to see evidence of where costs have gone up for the coroner.
“It’s expensive enough to die,” Noffke said.
Noffke also suggested that any fee increase should go into the county’s general fund instead of the department requesting the increase. That might curb any desire to seek more money just because time has passed, he said.
Administrative Coordinator Tom Madsen also opposed the fee increase, questioning whether some of the work Jesse does is required by law. He said this was an example of government intrusion.
“I question why counties even have a cremation fee,” Madsen said. “That’s a personal choice, in my mind, between the bereaved and whoever does the cremation, the funeral home. I don’t know why we have to meddle inside that. We don’t do anything; we just say it’s going to cost you $150.”
The cremation fee is on the agenda for the Public Safety Committee, which meets at 3:30 p.m. today.
If that committee approves the fee, it could still go to the County Board for a final determination on Nov. 20, despite the Finance Committee’s opposition.
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