FRANKLIN COUNTY, Wash. – Franklin County Commissioner Clint Didier motioned to County Administrator, Mike Gonzalez during a Board of Commissioners meeting on Wed., June 26.
Gonzalez previously announced he was stepping down during a June 18 special County Commissioners meeting. The commissioners agreed he would be taking paid time off until they were able to come to a severance decision.
“I move to terminate Mike Gonzalez for cause as administrator of Franklin County,” said Commissioner Clint Didier midway through Wednesday’s meeting.
That motion failed and was immediately followed by one to place Gonzalez on paid administrative leave, which passed. This will allow the county to figure out a severance agreement.
Gonzalez’s original decision to step down comes during an ongoing criminal investigation into alleged misconduct by some Franklin County officials, which was started in part by a report from Gonzalez. Didier and Commissioner Rocky Mullen are both under investigation.
Charges for the officials have not yet been put in place and are being determined by the Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office.
Gonzalez is now one of three finalists to become the new Administrator for the City of Yakima.
