Two men apply for Floyd County supervisor appointment

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

Two Floyd County men – one a current farmer and former trucking company owner-operator from Rudd, the other a retired Army captain from Floyd who is currently working as a maintenance technician for a Garner truck company – have applied to be a county supervisor.

One of them is likely to be appointed on Monday to the District 3 county supervisor position, which will officially become vacant on that day because the person who was recently elected to the seat declined to accept it.

The newly appointed supervisor will then join two newly elected county supervisors, Mark Kuhn for District 1 and Dennis Keifer for District 2, for the first official meeting of the new board on Tuesday.

Jacob Paulus of Floyd and James Jorgensen of Rudd were the two persons who applied for the open position, providing information and answering questions as was requested by a committee of elected county officials who will make the appointment.

JACOB PAULSON APPLICATION PACKET

JAMES JORGENSEN APPLICATION PACKET

That committee – consisting of the county auditor, county recorder and county treasurer – can appoint anyone who meets the qualifications to be a supervisor, which in this case means having been a resident of Floyd County for at least 60 days, residing in Supervisor District 3 at the time the person takes office, and being a registered voter in the county.

County Auditor Gloria Carr said Wednesday, the day applications were due, that it is the intent of the committee to appoint from among the applicants, and that is what she believes will happen at a meeting of the committee Monday, Jan. 2, at 8:30 a.m. in the county Emergency Operations Center in the new Law Enforcement Center.

Jorgensen, age 59, has a wife, Deb, and three grown children. He has been the owner-operator for more than 20 years of a crop and livestock farm near Rudd. Prior to that for about five years he owned and operated Jorgensen trucking.

Jorgensen told the Press that he has been involved in county work and county organizations through the years.

“I thought this was a good time to throw my name in there,” he said about the supervisor appointment

In his application letter, Jorgensen said he has been a lifelong resident of Floyd County, and active in a wide variety of county organizations.

He is the current chair of the Floyd County Board of Adjustment, a previous board member of the Double C Saddle Club, previous officer of the Floyd County Groomers, previous officer positions of the Viafield/Marble Rock Rockford Rudd Coop and was a member of the Civil Service Commission and Floyd County Extension Council.

Paulus, age 41, has a wife, Sara, and three children, ages 11 to 16. For 15 years he was a member of the Iowa Army National Guard, retiring as a captain in 2019 as a logistics plans officer. From 2014 to May this year he was a claim specialist with the Social Security Administration office in Waterloo, and he is currently a maintenance technician at IMT in Garner.

He told the Press he was appointed to the City Council in Floyd when a previous council member moved out of the community, then he won election for a full term, but had to resign halfway through that because he moved out of Floyd to Charles City. He has since moved back to Floyd.

“I believe in being involved (but) I don’t like campaigning. I’m interested and I enjoy working through the government to do things, whether it’s county, federal, state or municipal. I thought, why not have someone who’s a little younger, but that’s not to say I don’t have experience dealing with large decisions. I’m willing to be accountable,” Paulus said.

Jorgensen, in his application letter, wrote he has always been interested in the county supervisor position and he feels this is the right time to pursue it.

“I believe that my strong background in working with budgets and groups to achieve a successful result is a special talent that I have. My strong communication skills are a result of previous ag retail as well as involvement on various boards and committees,” Jorgensen wrote.

“I would love to see this county be prosperous going forward for years to come. Being in a heavy agricultural community and rural environment lets me draw from my vast experiences of farming and agricultural experiences over my lifetime. … My ability to find the right answers by using other resources is a skill that is proved to be very important not only in my business, but also in my community involvement,” he said.

Jorgensen said he has earned people’s trust with his judgment, and he is able to listen to others and see their point of view, while also explaining and educating them about the facts.

Paulus, in his application letter, wrote, “I am very excited about the possibility of being a part of your organization and serving Floyd County. Utilizing my skills and abilities to benefit your organization is an exciting possibility for me.

“My expansive skill set includes government organization, scheduling, financial and budget planning, and personnel and materiel management, project support, and other general administrative duties. During my time with the US Army, I have served in various leadership and staff positions to include platoon leader and company commander,” he wrote.

“I understand how crucial it is for Floyd County to have experienced leadership from its residents, for its residents,” Paulus wrote.

Both applicants also answered 10 questions that the selection committee had agreed on. The list was adapted from questions that other Iowa counties had used to fill vacant supervisor positions.

Both of the applicants identified the budget process and making good financial decisions for the county among their priorities. Both said they understood the time requirements of the job and would be available when needed.

On the greatest challenges facing the county, Jorgensen identified keeping emergency medical services, and Paulus mentioned infrastructure investment and improvement. Both said they would see their positions as the supervisor for the newly formed District 3 as still representing the county as a whole.

“I have a responsibility to serve all of Floyd County equally,” Jorgensen said, and Paulus said, “I will tend to look past the parochialism of any specific area or demographic in order to prioritize resources for the greatest effect or need.”

Part of one question asked the applicants’ party affiliation, as Jeff Hawbaker, the person who won the election without campaigning then declined the position, is considered by many to have ridden a county Republican wave to victory.

Jorgensen said he is a Republican. Paulus said he is “staunchly independent,” but he did change his registration to Republican so he could take part in the 2016 Iowa Republican caucus, but then changed his registration back to independent.

Even though the appointment committee of county auditor, recorder and treasurer decided to fill the vacant supervisor position by appointment, by Iowa Code the residents of Supervisor District 3 can petition to call for a special election to fill the position, within 14 days of the appointment.

If a special election is successfully petitioned for, both candidates said they would run for the office in that special election.

Barring a call for a special election, the appointee expected to be selected Monday will serve as supervisor until the next election that covers all of Supervisor District 3, which is likely to be the general election in November 2024.

Both applicants said they plan to attend the meeting Monday morning where an appointment is expected to be made.

Neither of the other two candidates for District 3 in the Nov. 8 election, runner-up Jim Lundberg of Floyd and third-place finisher Jayson Ryner of Nora Springs, applied to be considered for the appointment.

Neither did current Supervisor Linda Tjaden, who lives in District 3 and whose last two years of her current term were cut short when county voters in a special election in the summer of 2021 voted to divide the county into supervisor districts.

Tjaden said she considered applying to be appointed to the position, but decided not to because she felt if she was appointed it would increase the chances of a special election being called for.

“It had become very apparent that if I had been appointed, certain citizens in District 3 would have petitioned for a special election and cost the county, again, more money, time, and labor,” she said.

“I believe in the process that the elected officials chose based on Iowa Code, which is appointing and not waiting for a special election that would not have happened until March at the earliest,” Tjaden said. “The most important job the supervisors have is the county budget which starts immediately in January and ends at the end of March. It is not acceptable to have two supervisor’s determining the county’s fiscal year 2024 budget and I feel confident the three elected officials can and will select the very important third supervisor.”