Chapter 17

17.07 Annotation Under s. 17.03, the expiration of a member’s term on the Wisconsin Board of Natural Resources does not create a vacancy. The member lawfully retains the member’s position on the board as a holdover. Therefore, the governor cannot make a provisional appointment to replace the member under s. 17.20 (2) (a). Until the member’s successor is nominated by the governor and confirmed by the senate, the member may be removed by the governor only for cause under sub. (3). State ex rel. Kaul v. Prehn, 2022 WI 50, 402 Wis. 2d 539, 976 N.W.2d 821, 21-1673.

17.07 Annotation Council members had authority to remove the executive director of the council. Terrien v. Metropolitan Milwaukee Criminal Justice Council, 455 F. Supp. 1375 (1978).

17.08 17.08 Suspension of receiver of moneys.

17.08(1) (1) The governor may summarily suspend from office any appointive state officer who collects, receives or handles public moneys, if it appears to the governor by reason of action, proceedings, charges or credible information that the officer has in any particular willfully neglected the officer’s duty in connection with public moneys. The suspension shall continue until the final determination of the action or proceedings or of the investigation of the charges or information, or pending any proceedings to remove the officer from office as provided by law for neglect of duty, and a competent person shall be appointed, in the manner and by the appointing power prescribed for filling vacancies in the affected office, to discharge the duties of the officer during the officer’s suspension. If it is determined in the action or proceedings or is found upon investigation that the officer has not in any particular willfully neglected the officer’s duty in connection with public moneys, and that fact is certified to the secretary of state by the judge, governor or other officer who conducted the action, proceedings or investigation, the suspended officer, unless the officer has been removed from office for any cause provided by law, shall thereby be restored to office, if the term for which the officer was elected or appointed has not expired, and shall thereby become entitled to the emoluments of the office for all of the time the officer would have served therein had the officer not been suspended as herein provided.

17.08(2) (2) This section in no manner impairs or restricts the power of the governor or other officer or body to remove any officer from office as provided by law.

17.08 History History: 1991 a. 316.

17.09 17.09 Removal of elective county officers. Elective county officers may be removed from office as follows:

17.09(1) (1) County clerk; treasurer; surveyor; supervisor. The county clerk, county treasurer or surveyor, or a county supervisor, by the county board, for cause, by a vote of two-thirds of all the supervisors entitled to seats on such board.

17.09(2) (2) Clerk of circuit court. The clerk of the circuit court, by the judge or a majority of judges of the circuit court for the clerk’s county, for cause.

17.09(5) (5) Other elective county officers. The sheriff, coroner or register of deeds, by the governor, for cause.

17.09 History History: 1977 c. 449; 1979 c. 32; 1989 a. 31.

17.09 Annotation Removal is governed by s. 17.16 and contemplates a determination of cause by the board. An ordinance making a violation ipso facto cause for removal impermissibly circumvents that procedure. 66 Atty. Gen. 148.

17.10 17.10 Removal of appointive county officers.

17.10(1) (1) Appointed by governor. County officers appointed by the governor may be removed at pleasure by the governor.

17.10(2) (2) Appointed by county board. County officers appointed by the county board may be removed at pleasure by the county board. All removals may be made by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the supervisors entitled to seats on the county board. Removal of personnel supported by federal funds shall comply with federal law applicable to those personnel.

17.10(3) (3) Appointed by chairperson of county board. County officers appointed by the chairperson of the county board may be removed at pleasure by the chairperson, except members of the county civil service commission who may be removed at pleasure by the county board under sub. (2). A county commissioner of elections so removed may appeal to the county board within 10 days after removal; the county board shall conduct a hearing in the manner determined by it and shall determine the question of removal.

17.10(4) (4) Appointed by the circuit judge. County officers appointed by a judge or judges of the circuit court may be removed at pleasure by the judge or a majority of the judges authorized to appoint the officers’ successors.

17.10(5) (5) Appointed by the county judge. County officers appointed by the county judge may be removed at pleasure by the circuit judge or a majority of the circuit judges authorized to appoint the officers’ successors.

17.10(6) (6) Others. All other appointive county officers may be removed at pleasure by the officer or body that appointed them. Removals by a body, other than the county board, consisting of 3 or more members may be made by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of all the members thereof.

17.10(7) (7) General exception.

17.10(7)(a) (a) Notwithstanding subs. (1) to (6), county officers appointed according to merit and fitness under and subject to a civil service law, or whose removal is governed by such a law, shall be removed only as therein provided.

17.10(7)(b) (b) Notwithstanding subs. (1) to (6), a county may by ordinance provide that any county officer appointed by the county board or the chairperson of the county board may be removed only for inefficiency, neglect of duty, official misconduct, or malfeasance in office. This paragraph does not apply to an officer who is appointed to the classified civil service of the county or who serves at the pleasure of an appointing authority other than the county board or chairperson of the county board.

17.10 History History: 1977 c. 354; 1983 a. 192; 1985 a. 29; 1995 a. 77; 2017 a. 150.

17.10 Annotation In a county that does not have a county executive or administrator, the personnel committee of the county board does not possess the statutory authority to remove the county social services director. The county board may not, under s. 59.025 [now s. 59.03 (1)], transfer the authority to appoint. 81 Atty. Gen. 145.

17.10 Annotation Removal of the chairperson of a county board may be at the will of a simple majority of the board under s. 59.12. This section is inapplicable. Sub. (2) applies only to persons who are removed from a position as a county officer. Ending the tenure of a member of the county board as chair of the board does not oust that member from county office but only from a particular position on the board. OAG 1-07.

17.11 17.11 Suspension of district attorney or sheriff.

17.11(1) (1) If any district attorney or sheriff is arrested for or charged with any offense against the laws of this state, or if the governor is credibly informed that any district attorney or sheriff is guilty of any offense against the laws of this state, or that proceedings are pending before any court or officer involving any criminal charge against any district attorney or sheriff, or that any district attorney or sheriff willfully neglects or refuses to perform that district attorney’s or sheriff’s duties, the governor shall in the case of a felony and may in the case of a misdemeanor suspend the district attorney or sheriff from office until the charge shall be investigated and finally determined. The governor shall, in the case of the district attorney, appoint the attorney general or one of the attorney general’s assistants or some competent attorney of the state, and the governor shall, in the case of the sheriff, appoint a suitable person, to discharge the duties of the affected office during the suspension.

17.11(2) (2) 

17.11(2)(a) (a) The state shall pay an attorney temporarily appointed under sub. (1) for his or her services and expenses in an amount determined and fixed by the governor.

17.11(2)(b) (b) The county in which a person is temporarily appointed sheriff under sub. (1) shall pay the appointed sheriff for his or her services in an amount determined and fixed by the governor and certified by the governor to the county clerk of the county.

17.11(3) (3) Any attorney so temporarily appointed shall have all the power and discharge all the duties of the district attorney and that attorney shall speedily bring to a hearing and determination any charges made against the district attorney so suspended. Any person so temporarily appointed as sheriff shall have all the power and discharge all the duties of sheriff.

17.11(4) (4) If it is determined in the action or proceeding or is found upon the investigation that a district attorney or sheriff suspended under this section is not guilty of an offense, or has not willfully neglected or refused to perform his or her duties, as charged, that fact shall be certified by the governor to the department of administration if a district attorney is involved or to the county clerk of the sheriff’s county if a sheriff is involved. Upon the certification, the district attorney or sheriff shall be:

17.11(4)(a) (a) Entitled to the emoluments of the office for the time he or she would have served in the office had he or she not been suspended under this section; and

17.11(4)(b) (b) Restored to office if the term for which he or she was elected or appointed has not expired.

17.11(5) (5) This section in no manner affects provisions of law relating to the removal from office of the district attorney or sheriff.

17.11 History History: 1989 a. 31; 1991 a. 316.

17.12 17.12 Removal and suspension of city officers.

17.12(1) (1) General and special charter. Officers of cities, except public officials, as defined in s. 62.51 (1) (b), operating under the general law or under special charter including school officers, may be removed as follows:

17.12(1)(a) (a) Elective. Elective officers by recall as provided in s. 9.10, or by the common council, for cause.

17.12(1)(c) (c) Appointed officers. An appointed officer may be removed in any of the following manners:

17.12(1)(c)1. 1. An officer appointed by the common council, by the common council, at pleasure.

17.12(1)(c)2. 2. An officer appointed by an officer or body other than the common council, whether or not the appointment was confirmed by the common council, in any of the following manners:

17.12(1)(c)2.a. a. By the appointing officer or body, at pleasure.

17.12(1)(c)2.b. b. By the common council, for cause.

17.12(1)(cm) (cm) Board of police and fire commissioners. Notwithstanding par. (c), a member of a board of police and fire commissioners who is appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the common council may be removed by the common council, for cause.

17.12(1)(d) (d) Votes required. Removals by the common council may be made only by an affirmative vote of three-fourths of all the members thereof, and by any other body consisting of 3 or more members, by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of all the members thereof.

17.12(2) (2) Commission form. Officers of cities operating under the commission form of government may be removed as follows:

17.12(2)(a) (a) Elective. Elective officers by recall as provided in s. 9.10.

17.12(2)(c) (c) Appointive. Appointive officers, by whomsoever appointed, by the council, at pleasure, by a majority vote; and officers appointed by any officer or body other than the council may also be removed from office by the officer or body that appointed them, at pleasure, by vote as provided in sub. (1) (d).

17.12(3) (3) Suspension. The mayor of any city may summarily suspend from office any officer thereof whose removal is sought and against whom charges have been preferred therefor, and may appoint an officer to discharge the duties of such office until such charges have been disposed of. If such charges are dismissed, the officer so suspended shall thereby be restored to office and be entitled to the emoluments of the office for all of the time the officer would have served therein had the officer not been suspended.

17.12(3m) (3m) Common council authority. Notwithstanding subs. (1) and (2) and subject to sub. (4), a city may by ordinance provide that any appointed city officer may be removed only for inefficiency, neglect of duty, official misconduct, or malfeasance in office.

17.12(4) (4) General exception. But no officer of any city, appointed according to merit and fitness under and subject to a civil service or to a police and fire commission law, or whose removal is governed by such a law, shall be removed otherwise than as therein provided.

17.12 History History: 1987 a. 382; 1991 a. 316; 1999 a. 150 s. 672; 2017 a. 150.

17.12 Annotation City officers are subject to s. 17.03 vacancy provisions. Wellnitz v. Board of Police & Fire Commissioners, 151 Wis. 2d 306, 444 N.W.2d 412 (Ct. App. 1989).

17.13 17.13 Removal of village, town, town sanitary district, school district, and technical college officers. Officers of towns, town sanitary districts, villages, school districts, and technical college districts may be removed as follows:

17.13(1) (1) Appointive officers. Except as provided in s. 60.30 (1e) (c) and (f), any appointive village, town, town sanitary district, school district and technical college district officer, by the officer or body that appointed him or her, at pleasure. Removal of any such officer by a body shall be by a majority vote of all the members thereof.

17.13(2) (2) Elective village officers. Any elective village officer by a majority vote of all the members of the village board, because of continued physical inability to perform the duties of office or gross neglect of duty.

17.13(2m) (2m) Elective town officers. Any elective town officer by a majority vote of all the members of the town board, because of continued physical inability to perform the duties of office or gross neglect of duty.

17.13(3) (3) All officers. Any village, town, town sanitary district, school district or technical college district officer, elective or appointive, including those embraced within subs. (1), (2), and (2m), by the judge of the circuit court of the circuit wherein the village, town, town sanitary district, school district or technical college district is situated, for cause.

17.13 History History: 1971 c. 154; 1977 c. 449; 1983 a. 532; 1993 a. 399; 1995 a. 34, 225; 1999 a. 9; 2007 a. 20; 2019 a. 140.

17.13 Annotation If a statute provides that a public officer, including VTAE (technical college) board members, serves at pleasure but is appointed for a term, the officer may be summarily dismissed during the term. 62 Atty. Gen. 97.

17.13 Annotation A town board was restrained from discharging its police chief until the issue of impermissible consideration of the chief’s political activities was resolved. Kuhlmann v. Bloomfield Township, 521 F. Supp. 1242 (1981).

17.14 17.14 Removal; assessors; boards of review; county boards; procedure. Any assessor and any member of a board of review or of a county board of supervisors, in addition to being removable as otherwise provided, may be removed by the circuit court for the county of the assessor or member, as follows:

17.14(1) (1) Assessors. Any assessor for one or more of the following causes:

17.14(1)(a) (a) Willful or intentional assessment of property at other than its true cash value with the intent to subject such property to more or less than its lawful share of taxes.

17.14(1)(b) (b) Willful or intentional omission of taxable property from the assessment roll with intent to permit the same to escape taxation.

17.14(1)(c) (c) Willful or intentional assessment of the property of one person at a lower value than the property of another or others whereby favoritism or discrimination between taxpayers in the district is shown.

17.14(1)(d) (d) Solicitation or receipt of any favor, reward, money or other thing of value of or from the owner of any taxable property in the assessor’s assessment district for the assessment or valuation of property at other than its true cash value.

17.14(1)(e) (e) Solicitation or demand by any assessor of any owner of property liable to assessment in the assessor’s assessment district to aid, assist or promote the business or interests of such assessor by means of which and by virtue of the office of assessor the assessor shall gain or receive pecuniary profit or advantage that the assessor could not otherwise have gained or received.

17.14(1)(f) (f) Any violation of law in the valuation or assessment of property in the assessor’s assessment district.

17.14(1)(g) (g) Failure to use the “Wisconsin Property Assessment Manual” provided under s. 73.03 (2a) and as required by s. 70.32 (1) and 70.34. The certification of any assessor removed under this paragraph may for sufficient reason be reinstated by the secretary of revenue after one year upon formal application for reinstatement.

17.14(1)(h) (h) Failure or refusal to deny claims for exemption or to terminate exemptions pursuant to direction of the secretary of revenue under s. 73.03 (45).

17.14(2) (2) Members of boards of review and county board. Any supervisor, alderperson, trustee or other officer who acts as a member of a board of review or of the county board of supervisors, for one or more of the following causes:

17.14(2)(a) (a) Willful or intentional valuation or equalization of property of persons or towns, cities or villages at other than the true cash value thereof, with the intent to subject the property of persons or of towns, cities or villages to more or less than their lawful share of taxes.

17.14(2)(b) (b) Aiding, abetting or assisting in any understanding, combination or conspiracy to value or equalize the property in towns, cities or villages in a county at other than the true cash value, with intent to subject the property in one or more towns, cities or villages to more or less than its lawful share of taxes for state or county purposes or both.

17.14(2)(c) (c) Any violation of law in the valuation or equalization of property in towns, cities or villages or in the discharge of official duties.

17.14(3) (3) Procedure. Removals under this section may be made by the circuit judge, by order specifying the cause thereof, a copy of which order shall be certified by the circuit judge to the proper town, village or city clerk. The removal shall be made only upon a duly verified petition signed by a resident of the county setting forth fully the charges preferred against the officer. The district attorney of the county upon complaint showing cause therefor shall prepare the petition and have the petition duly verified by the complainant. The judge, upon the presentation of the petition, shall by an order to show cause, which shall be served upon the officer personally at least 10 days prior to the hearing, fix a time and place for hearing the matters alleged in the petition. The testimony shall be taken and the proceedings conducted under such reasonable regulations as the judge prescribes. The district attorney shall attend the hearing and conduct the proceedings on behalf of the petitioner. The removal of the officer shall disqualify the officer from holding the office for 3 years from the date of the order of removal.

17.14(4) (4) Costs. If the court, after a hearing on the merits, dismisses the petition and further finds the complaint was willful and malicious and without probable cause, the court shall order judgment in favor of the officer and against the petitioner for $10 attorney fees and for the costs and fees of witnesses and officers incurred on behalf of the officer. The judgment shall be signed by the clerk of circuit court and entered in the judgment and lien docket. An execution may be issued against the property of the petitioner in the same mode as upon a judgment entered in the circuit court in civil actions founded in tort. Upon the return of the execution unsatisfied in whole or in part, an execution against the person of the petitioner may be issued in the manner and with the force and effect of an execution against the person as provided in ss. 815.01 to 815.10. In all other cases the judge may order that the expenses incurred in procuring witnesses and other needed actual expenses be paid out of the treasury of the county in which the officer resides upon certificates of the clerk of circuit court.

17.14 History History: 1973 c. 90; Sup. Ct. Order, 67 Wis. 2d 585, 773 (1975); 1975 c. 218; 1977 c. 418, 449; 1991 a. 39, 316; 1993 a. 184, 224.

17.15 17.15 Removals; other officers.

17.15(1) (1) Joint county institutions. Any member of the governing body of any joint county school, hospital, sanatorium, asylum or other joint county institution, appointed by the county board of any county, may be removed at pleasure by said county board; and any other officer of any such institution may be removed at pleasure by the officer or body that appointed the officer.

17.15(3) (3) Dane County lakes and watershed commission. Any commissioner of the Dane County lakes and watershed commission appointed under s. 33.44 (1) (c) to (g) may be removed by the appointing authority for cause.

17.15(3m) (3m) Southeastern Wisconsin Fox River commission. Any commissioner of the Southeastern Wisconsin Fox River commission appointed under s. 33.55 (2) (b) may be removed by the appointing authority for cause.

17.15(5) (5) Long-term care district. Any member of a long-term care district governing board appointed under s. 46.2895 (3) (a) may be removed by the appointing authority for cause.

17.15 History History: 1989 a. 324; 1991 a. 39, 316; Sup. Ct. Order No. 96-08, 207 Wis. 2d xv (1997); 1997 a. 27; 1999 a. 9; 2001 a. 16; 2007 a. 20; 2015 a. 226; 2017 a. 150.

17.16 17.16 Removals; definition; procedure; disqualification.

17.16(1) (1) Removals from office at pleasure shall be made by order, a copy of which shall be filed as provided by sub. (8), except that a copy of the order of removal of a circuit court commissioner shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the circuit court.

17.16(3) (3) Removals from office for cause under this chapter, except as provided in s. 17.14, shall be made as provided in this section, and may be made only upon written verified charges brought by a resident taxpayer of the governmental unit of which the person against whom the charges are filed is an officer, and after a speedy public hearing at which the officer shall have full opportunity to be heard to present a defense against the charges, personally and by counsel. A copy of the charges and written notice of the time and place for the hearing shall be given the officer by the removing power by delivery to the officer in person or by mailing the same to the officer at the officer’s last and usual post-office address not less than 10 days prior to the hearing. The officer may within 10 days from service of the charges file with the removing power a verified answer thereto. The hearing shall be conducted and investigation made by the removing power with due dispatch, but in case of charges brought before the governor, the governor may appoint a commissioner to conduct the hearing, make the investigation and report the testimony and proceedings to the governor, and the council of any city having a membership of more than 20, in case of charges brought before it, may appoint a committee of not less than 5 of its members, to conduct the hearing, make investigation and report the testimony and proceedings to it. The commissioner or committee shall have the same power and authority as the governor or the council, as the case may be, in the conduct of the hearing on and investigation of the charges.

17.16(4) (4) The removing power may, before acting upon any charges preferred against any officer, require the person preferring the same to execute and deliver to such power a bond in the sum of $1,000 with one or more sureties to be approved by such power, conditioned for the payment of all costs and expenses actually incurred by the state, county or other unit of which the person charged is an officer and by the removing power in the hearing and investigation of such charges.