>La Grande Observer | Union and Wallowa Counties' News Leader

It is official — Elgin’s future now is in the hands of the Union County Board of Commissioners.

The resignations of all seven of Elgin’s city councilors, submitted last week, took effect at noon Monday. The Union County Board of Commissioners now must appoint four people to serve on the Elgin City Council until an election is held.

There had been a question about how Elgin’s vacant positions would be filled following its April 8 city council meeting. Six of Elgin’s councilors announced they were resigning because of issues related to a new ethics reporting requirement.

Elgin was left with one councilor who had not announced whether he was resigning — Pat McMullen, who missed the April 8 meeting because he was out of town. McMullen has served on the council a total of about 25 years since the 1970s.

McMullen followed the lead of Elgin’s six other councilors on Friday when he submitted his resignation, effective Monday. McMullen said this morning he was willing to file the required ethics form, due today, even though he did not want to.

McMullen said he stepped down because the wording of the city’s charter and state law makes it easier for the council to be replaced if all members resign rather than just enough to give the council less than a quorum.

Elgin City Recorder Joe Garlitz explained that if the council is left with less than four members, those remaining must conduct an election to fill all the vacant positions. However, if everyone resigns, the Union County Board of Commissioners must appoint enough councilors to form a quorum. The appointed quorum then operates until an election is held to select new councilors.

Garlitz said Elgin will be able to reestablish a council much faster now that everyone has resigned.

McMullen is among at least three councilors who said they were resigning to expedite the replacement process. The others included Lisa Garcia and Mayor Carmen Gentry.

Garlitz will talk with the Union County Board of Commissioners Wednesday about the appointment of a new council. The public meeting begins at 9 a.m. at in the Union County Board of Commissioners’ conference room, 1106 K Ave.

Northeast Oregon has had a rash of resignations like those submitted by Elgin’s city councilors as today’s ethics report filing deadline approached. The entire Elgin Planning Commission quit March 21. The Enterprise Planning Commission no longer has a quorum because of resignations. On April 7 three North Powder city councilors and its city recorder quit and on April 8 four of Summerville’s city councilors and its recorder resigned.

Passed in 1974, the Oregon Government Ethics Law requires elected officials, planners, administrators and managers and others to file an annual Statement of Economic Interest. The law also asks for quarterly reports.

A total of 97 of Oregon’s 240 cities and six of its 36 counties were exempt from filing until last year. Then the Legislature amended the law to include them. The communities were exempt because because their citizens had voted against having the ethics reporting requirement apply to them.

Communities now affected by the law which previously had not been include Elgin, Enterprise, North Powder, Cove, Imbler, Island City, Joseph, Lostine and Wallowa.