Polk County Government (WI)

Polk County provides a broad range of services including law enforcement, child support collection and child protection, transportation and nutrition programs for senior citizens, maintenance of a 515 mile highway system, provision of public health services including immunization and restaurant inspections, monitoring and safeguarding of the County’s environmental resources, promotion of orderly development through planning and zoning, operation of the county detention center and court system, provision of assistance to veterans, the elderly and disabled, operation of a long-term care and rehabilitation facility, and management of 5 county parks, a recycling center, and 17,144 acres of county forest land. The county does so through the efforts of just over 500 employees organized into 23 departments and funded by a $53 million annual budget. Located in northwestern Wisconsin, Polk County contains an incredible variety of natural beauty in its lakes and rivers, small towns, rolling hills, farms and forests. The county is bordered on the west by the St. Croix River, a federally designated wild and scenic river, with the magnificent St. Croix Dalles forming the heart of Interstate State Park. Peacefully rural in nature, the county has no city with a population over 3,000.Polk County was organized in 1853, and over the past decade has been one of the fastest-growing counties in Wisconsin. It has a diverse economy with a mix of agriculture, tour-ism, manufacturing, and services. Its proximity to a large metropolitan area has served to provide a ready market for goods produced here as well as a demand for recreational activities including boating, fishing, hunting, snowmobiling, hiking, biking and skiing.