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Wabasha County Commissioners testify in appeals case regarding county attorney's salary
Jun. 17—WABASHA, Minn. — Testimony for the appeal case regarding the Wabasha County Attorney's salary was heard on Tuesday, June 17 in Wabasha County Court.
The appeal case was filed in December after the Wabasha County Board of Commissioners passed a motion to reduce County Attorney Matt Stinson's salary by $20,000.
During his opening statement, Stinson argued that the board's decision to cut his salary violated the Minnesota statute that says a county attorney's salary cannot be reduced during his term.
Stinson's salary was set at $130,000 for 2024. The board of commissioners rescinded its motion to reduce his salary to $110,000 in January and set his 2025 salary at $119,000, which was the salary set for the county attorney position in 2022 when he was elected.
Ann Goering, who represented the county board of commissioners, said the board did not violate the statute because they rescinded the motion to set his salary at $110,000.
While the $119,000 salary is less than Stinson's 2024 salary, it does not dip below the amount set for the term, Goering said.
She continued to argue that commissioners received reports of poor job performance.
Stinson did not call any witnesses to the stand and rested his case.
Goering first called commissioner Don Springer to the stand. Springer was the first commissioner to make a motion to reduce Stinson's salary in November 2024.
During the November board of commissioners meeting, Springer said he spoke with nearly all department heads in the county and received complaints about the county attorney's office.
Many complaints involved Stinson's lack of responsiveness to phone calls and emails, a "sense of superiority over other offices," truancy reports not being filed and complaints about sexual assault cases, Springer testified.
Springer told the court he made a motion to reset Stinson's salary because he felt $119,000 was more appropriate.
Commissioners Mike Wobbe and Bob Walkes were also called to the stand. Both echoed that they spoke with county department heads who complained to them about responsiveness from the Wabasha County Attorney's Office.
Walkes said he agreed with the motion to reduce Stinson's salary to $110,000 because he knew they would have the opportunity to raise it to $119,000 during a January meeting when commissioners officially set the salaries of elected officials.
Goering finally called Wabasha County Administrator Michael Plante to the stand. Plante, who speaks to all department heads as part of his position, said he was informed that county departments spent over $180,000 on outside legal assistance in 2024. The amount was $100,000 more than the previous year, he testified.
The case was rested Tuesday afternoon, June 17. Closing arguments will be heard on July 14.
