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Audubon City Council tables action on City Clerk applications

News

March 10th, 2014 by Ric Hanson

The Audubon City Council Monday evening tabled action on the discussion and consideration of applications for their City Clerk or Interim City Clerk’s position, because they weren’t ready to do so, according to Mayor Sam Kauffman. In addition, the Council directed the Mayor to correct an error on the published notice calling for applications and resubmit the ad, because it left out important legal terminology, according to former city councilperson Linda Weston, who researched the process through the Iowa League of Cities.IMG_20140310_185834_075

Weston said the advertisement left out a statement with regard to EEO – Equal Employment Opportunity – which is required by law. The EEO statement typically says that a company or governmental body “Provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, amnesty, or status as a covered veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws.”

Mayor Kauffman admitted he made an error when drafting the advertisement for publication, and made then a comment that drew laughs of disbelief from the audience and caused numerous eyes to roll.  He suggested City Clerk Lora Hansen – who he admitted is much more knowledgeable about such things – be the person to write the ad. The comment was ironic, because it would have meant Hansen would have been writing an ad seeking her own replacement for a position she did not wish to leave.

She currently serves as the “Hold over” clerk after a series of mis-steps taken by the Council that drew the threat of legal action and several requests for e-mails under the Open Records and Open Meetings law. Hansen has served as City Clerk in Audubon for more than 30-years.