A month following their last debate, Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk and challenger Nancy Mistele continued their campaigns for the top seat in the county at a business debate Wednesday morning.

Both Falk and Mistele were not hesitant to comment on the allocation of prospective funds from the economic stimulus package and public safety.

Falk said after submitting a letter to Congress, President Barack Obama approved her proposal to build 12 new highways in the county and two new highway bridges with the money from the stimulus package, adding the project is “designed, engineered and ready to go.”

However, Mistele said while she wants to repair road intersections to develop thousands of new jobs in Dane County, she hopes to invest more in public safety, specifically in the 911 Center.

Mistele said she has been in contact with the sheriff’s department and the county jail to ensure there is enough police protection throughout the county.

“Nothing is more important,” Mistele said. “No land purchase, no road project, nothing is more important than public safety. … If people go out the door and don’t feel safe, we’ve done nothing for the county.”

Falk, however, fired back saying she has hired 111 deputies and doubled the budget for the county sheriff’s department.

Mistele also criticized Falk’s plan to install a commuter rail through Dane County, saying it is not practical. She said the project will cost $250 million to build, with an additional $10 million subsidy each year. She added if the commuter rail is approved by the Regional Transit Authority, taxpayers will undergo a $45 million sales tax increase.

Falk defended the commuter rail, saying that 80 percent of people who work in Madison will live on the rail line and 70 percent of jobs proposed for the future are predicted to revolve around the rail as well.

“One hundred thousand people drive every single day into the city of Madison to go to work,” Falk said. “They want options. They don’t want to sit in gridlock, and you can’t put a road over Lake Mendota.”

Falk promoted her safety initiatives, saying three out of four property tax dollars are spent on public safety. She added that over the past 12 years, she has initiated jail penalties and community service sentences for repeat alcohol offenders.

She also spoke about employing priority fire dispatch and priority emergency medical service dispatch, a service that has the closest fire truck or ambulance is deployed regardless of political jurisdiction.

Finally, Mistele addressed the 250 services in Dane County for persons in need and disabled adults, saying she plans to increase personnel for these services.

Mistele also said programs to fight illiteracy are necessary to improve peoples’ positions in the job market.

“If we get them to work, [they can] pick themselves up by the boot straps and move forward,” Mistele said.

The election for Dane County Executive and other city positions is on April 7.