Town Government Quits

In Pomeroy, Iowa, the local police officer has a problem. The town, whose population was estimated to be, in 2003, 669, had over 80% of its government quit last Friday. The mayor and 4 of the 5 City Council members left with no explanation. It is not expected that the issue will be resolved until the November elections, which means paychecks can't be signed, bills can't be paid, and government is at a standstill.



I'm sure many of us feel like we'd like to see all of our government officials quit at times, but no one ever thinks it would happen. I never would have thought of the paychecks not being signed or anything, but I'm shocked the local bank isn't working with William Sankey to keep their police officer employed and paid.

It seems awfully odd that, if they quit in protest to the status and pay of the former city clerk, they wouldn't say anything.

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[edit on 10-9-2005 by DJDOHBOY]

Dang, they didn't even tell anyone, they all just left letters of resignation that the city clerk later found Friday morning. It really seems like they all planned this together; I wonder why William Sankey was left out of the conspiracy.

They're kinda up against a wall, too. The county requires that, if they hold a special election, that they file 60 days in advance. On top of that, in order to appoint people to temporary positions, they need 3 sitting members. These 5 people really stuck it to their town. As the ex-mayor put it, after refusing to give an explanation (it would only "stir things up"), "I have resigned and I feel good about it."

Well, maybe this explains why Sankey was left behind:

"I care too much about this town to do that. I'm not going to leave the town like this," he said. "You don't just wash your hands of this and walk away — you just help."

At least one town official has some honor. I'm really curious what the whole deal with the status and pay of the former city clerk is, though. This is really, really bizzare.