The Town of New Glarus Clerk-Treasurer has resigned after only a few months on the job, continuing a pattern of turnover in the key local government position — an issue many small municipalities have struggled with in recent years.

Across Wisconsin, local governments have increasingly faced difficulty recruiting and retaining municipal clerks. Between 2020 and 2024, more than 700 municipal clerks in Wisconsin left their posts, the highest raw turnover of any state in the country. Historically, state officials say as many as 25 percent to 30 percent of municipal clerks can turn over in a given year, particularly in smaller communities where the position is often part-time and relatively low paid.