SHAWANO, WI- A contentious debate over the appointment process for a vacant Shawano County Board seat dominated Wednesday’s County Board meeting, as supervisors, residents and Chairman Tom Kautza clashed over transparency, public comment rules and how the District 27 vacancy should be filled.
The controversy began before the meeting officially got underway when Supervisor Joel Miller challenged the agenda order. Miller argued the board should hear public comments and correspondence related to the District 27 appointment before considering a nominee, which was listed first on the agenda.
“We have public comments and also communications pertaining to this that the supervisors should hear before,” Miller told the board.
Here the rest of the discussion
After an appeal of Chairman Tom Kautza’s ruling, supervisors voted to move public comment and correspondence ahead of the appointment.
The controversy centers on the vacancy left by the resignation of the District 27 supervisor Tess Serrano. Kautza declined to nominate Timothy Steffen for the position and instead appointed Steve Pollack for County Board confirmation.
More discussion took place between Miller and Kautza
During public comment, Steffen said he never sought out the position but was encouraged by community members to serve.
“I did not come seeking this position. It sought me,” Steffen said. “I’m honored that people thought so highly of me to ask me to throw my hat in the ring.”
Steffen told the board he contacted both the county clerk and Kautza to express his interest, but claimed the chairman immediately rejected his candidacy.
“The response received was a no. The reason given was that I, as chairman of the Republican Party of Shawano County, would introduce partisan politics to the board,” Steffen wrote in a statement read into the record. “I responded that I would remove that objection by resigning my position. The response to that was still no.”
Steffen also criticized what he described as an effort to silence public discussion.
“What we just witnessed here… the manipulation of an agenda to avoid public comment,” he said. “Everyone in this room works for the citizens of Shawano County, not for yourselves.”
Here Steffens Comments and Kutza’s Reaction Here
Several letters were then read into the record, including a formal complaint alleging Chairman Kautza selectively enforced public comment rules during the June County Board meeting to prevent residents from discussing the District 27 vacancy.
You can see the letters below
Letter from Supervisor Charles Anderson
When the board returned to the appointment, Kautza introduced Pollack as his nominee.
Supervisor Jeremy Gretzinger said his objection was not directed at Pollack but at the appointment process.
“This is nothing against Mr. Pollack, but I’m going to have a no vote just to the process. I’m not agreeing to the process.”
Supervisor Joe Miller agreed.
“My biggest problem is the process of how this happened,” Miller said. “It’s not fair to District 27 and it’s certainly not fair to Mr. Steffen.”
Kautza defended his decision, saying county rules place the responsibility for selecting a nominee with the board chairman.
“The process is I’ve been looking and trying in the meantime to find a good candidate. I don’t always take the first person that comes along,” Kautza said. “I talk to the candidates. I see if they’re level-headed, common sense, and they’re willing to serve.”
He also rejected claims that politics alone influenced his decision and said his goal was to avoid additional conflict within county government.
“There has been drama in the courthouse for a long time,” Kautza said. “We’ve got a really good thing going on right now. I don’t want to let any drama start in the courthouse here.”
Supervisor Bill Swatalla voiced support for the chairman’s decision.
“I stand behind Tom because every time the Republican Party has come and attacked our board, they stood in front and said they were here from the Republican Party,” Swatalla said. “Steve’s a good man. He’s an honest man. And he’ll be nonpartisan totally.”
Following nearly an hour of debate, the County Board voted 19-5 to confirm Pollack as the new District 27 supervisor.
The discussion continued later in the meeting.
Supervisors voted 19-7 to place a proposal on next month’s agenda to reconsider the county’s public comment rules, including whether to remove language requiring comments to be germane to the agenda.
They also voted 18-8 to schedule discussion on changing the rules governing how future County Board vacancies are filled.
The votes ensure the controversy surrounding the District 27 appointment process will return to the County Board for further debate during its August meeting.
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