“It’s a personnel issue,” Cheyne said. “That was his choice after he conferred with counsel.”

Linda Seater, office specialist for the district, has also been placed on administrative leave, Cheyne said.

Cheyne said no employees at KID have been dismissed at this time. It is unclear at this time when the employees were first put on leave.

“We’re following the process that our counsel and special districts has recommended,” Cheyne said.

It is also unclear at this time if the placement of Wolf and Seater on administrative leave are related.

Wolf was hired in September 2016 by the KID board. At the time, former KID board members Dave Cacka and Greg Carleton questioned the $100,000 annual salary for Wolf, which was approved by a split 3-2 vote by the board. Also questioned by former board members was his ability to work with GIS systems and his “limited” irrigation district experience.

Wolf served as a regional equipment manager for Knife River in the Waco, Texas-area for five years before coming to KID, and is a longtime heavy equipment mechanic and operator. He also brought 30 years of managerial experience to the district, and experience as a farmer and rancher.

Seater, prior to coming to KID, worked for Klamath County as the property control manager and tax collector. She sued the county for wrongful termination in 2014. Seater claimed she was fired based on falsified human resources complaints, and that her termination violated a verbal agreement with county commissioners.

The county paid her $325,000 to settle the suit.

In a settlement reached Aug. 24, 2017, the county agreed to pay Seater $115,000 up front and $35,000 per year through 2023. In exchange, Seater released the county from liability as well as defendants Human Resource Manager Daneen Dail and former Commissioner Dennis Linthicum, now an Oregon senator.