17.10 Removal of appointive county officers.

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

(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.

(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.

(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.

(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.

(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.

(7) General exception.

(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.

(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.

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

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, 1993 stats., [now s. 59.03 (1)], transfer the authority to appoint. 81 Atty. Gen. 145.

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.