Madison County board approves appointment of Matthew Schwartz as county auditor, contingent on resignation

The Madison County Board of Supervisors voted to appoint Matthew Schwartz to fill the county auditor vacancy, with the appointment effective July 7, 2025, contingent on the current county auditors resignation.

The action came at a special meeting where the board first reviewed the agenda, took public-comment rules, and then moved into deliberations on several candidates for the auditor post. Speaker 1 read the boards resolution naming Matthew Schwartz and stating pay "as read" during the meeting as "$8,080,424 dollars and 16¢ a year," effective 07/07/2025, and contingent on the resignation of current county auditor Terry Kaczynski. Speaker 2 told the board that the secretary of state had said the resignation could not be rescinded and that the prior acceptance was final; the board proceeded and approved the appointment by voice/roll-call vote.

Board members divided over the choice. Speaker 2 expressed concern that Schwartz "openly states" he would keep his full-time business, saying that could affect his ability to be present full time, but also defended Schwartzs record on process improvement and government knowledge: "I definitely had some statements ... I think that he has a proven track record on process improvement." Speaker 1 acknowledged the concern about outside employment but noted examples from Schwartzs interview showing familiarity with code and department budgeting and cited a prior instance where he discovered and fixed a software issue at a previous employer.

Several supervisors also praised Laura Mathiss work in the auditors office and described her as able to "hit the ground running" because she has been performing many auditor duties already. Speaker 1 said she was "torn" between Mathis and Schwartz, citing Mathiss continuity for immediate operations and Schwartzs experience in improving processes. Speaker 2 emphasized plans to retain current staff to ease any transition: "I envision it as we have retained the current staff ... and the new audit would hopefully be a resource to them."

The resolution was moved and seconded (movers not identified in the transcript) and the board took a roll-call-style voice vote; Speaker 1 announced, "Motion carries." The transcript does not record a detailed roll-call vote tally by named board member; it records the motion, second, and the result.

Board members scheduled the swearing-in for Monday, July 7 at 9:00 a.m. in the District Courtroom on the second floor and noted the need to post notice; Speaker 1 added that the incoming auditor had a first hearing scheduled at 9:30 a.m. that day, so the swearing-in would be brief.

The meeting adjourned after the vote.