Chippewa Falls Councilman Scott Sullivan submitted a letter of resignation Monday evening July 21, where he criticized the city for what he perceives as a lack of transparency on the city’s budget.
The Eau Claire Leader-Telegram covered the resignation in a July 23, 2025 report. According to the story:
Sullivan, 64, was elected in April 2024 to the council’s Fourth District seat, which covers parts of downtown and the West Hill. He defeated incumbent Chuck Hull.
The resignation letter opens with Sullivan saying he was resigning “due to irreconcilable differences and the lack of transparency, unwillingness to properly investigate red flags and for the harassment for being a whistle blower for performing my civic duty protecting the taxpayers.”
Among his criticisms in the two-page letter is that the city’s finance director, Lynne Bauer, also serves as the human services director, and he considers that to be a conflict of interest.
Sullivan also felt that other cities, like Eau Claire and River Falls, have better transparency on their websites, and said Chippewa Falls should follow those examples. The letter details several “red flags” and questions he had about budgeting during his 14 months on the council where he wasn’t satisfied with the response he received. He contends that the council is routinely asked to ‘rubber stamp’ spending reports without given line-item reports.
The council does obtain an annual outside audit of its financial records, and that report is presented to the council. Sullivan also questioned the collection of money after city residents approved a referendum to help pay for additional police officers and EMT/ firefighter positions.
One of Sullivan’s recommendations was to once again have a city administrator. The city hasn’t had a city administrator since Ron Singel was fired Jan. 13, 2009, after just 10 months on the job. The council conducted a search in 2010 to hire a new city administrator but ultimately decided to leave the position unfilled, and there hasn’t been a city administrator since then. Sullivan also recommended hiring a full-time human resources director.
Mayor Jason Hiess acknowledged some of Sullivan’s concerns when reached for comment Tuesday July 22, but thanked Sullivan for his work on the council, adding,“I wish he had stayed his full term.”
