Bill Sell

Airport Takeover Plan Won’t Fly County Officials’ Testimony Helps Persuade Committee

March 7, 2006

Contact: Supervisor James White-278–4257

Supervisor Marina Dimitrijevic-278–4232

Today Milwaukee County Board Supervisors Marina Dimitrijevic, Vice- Chairwoman of the Intergovernmental Relations Committee, and Supervisor James White, Chairman of the Transportation, Public Works and Transit Committee, traveled to Madison to testify against legislation introduced by Senator Jeff Plale and Representative Jeff Stone that would remove General Mitchell International Airport out of the public domain.

County Board Supervisors expressed their pride in well-managing Milwaukee County’s great economic asset—GMIA: the largest airport in Wisconsin and whose increased passenger traffic has made it the 50th largest airport in the nation.

As Assembly Committee Members from both parties raised serious questions about moving this legislation forward, the Chair of the Committee did not hold a vote on the bill today.

A letter signed by 17 of the 19 Supervisors, or 90% of the County Board, raised serious questions about the lack of accountability to the public that would result from an appointed rather than elected board.

Milwaukee County has created a successful business model at our airport and will continue to operate it with efficiency as it has done, since there has been no good evidence citing the opposite to be true.

-end-

Last edited by bs.   Page last modified on March 07, 2006

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