April 22, 2026 – Town of Kewaskum, WI – The Town of Kewaskum held its Annual Meeting on Tuesday night, April 21, 2026. About 40 people were in attendance. Town Treasurer Daniel Stoffel, who will be retiring after 50 years, presented the 2026 annual budget.
2026-ToKewProposed-Budget-DetailedThe hottest topic was a proposal to convert the clerk’s position and the treasurer’s position from elected to appointed.
Anne Trautner, the current elected clerk, presented the scenario behind the proposal.
Convert clerk position from elected to appointed (discussion and possible action) and Convert treasurer position from elected to appointed (discussion and possible action).
A couple points to note:
-a maximum appointment for a clerk is a 3-year term.
-One of the major concerns is the Town of Kewaskum is dramatically shrinking as property is lost to annexation. “Our pool of people is getting smaller,” said Trautner.
-In Washington County there are 11 towns and of those the only ones where they are elected are in the Town of Germantown, Town of Kewaskum, and the Town of Wayne.
-Neighbors in attendance expressed some concern regarding secure elections with an appointed clerk.
-Former Town of Kewaskum clerk and current Town supervisor Holly Knoeck said the “clerks support the election process and manage the ballots but the election is run by election workers.”
-Knoeck said the clerk’s position was “not a secretary,” and “it’s a very hard and very regulated position.”
-According to Knoeck a clerk should have knowledge of finance, grants, payroll, and go through training.
After about an hour and 15 minutes of discussion the vote was put to those in attendance.
-38-5 voted in favor of an appointed clerk.
-43-0 voted in favor of an appointed treasurer.
Trautner’s term as an elected clerk ends in April 2027.
