The sun was high in the sky, beating down on the morning like Cassius Clay in the third round. The Tama County Supervisors meeting started with the board being served a petition during the public comments time.

The petition was to place a public measure on the November ballot to decrease the number of supervisors from five back to three. Bob Vokoun started his presentation by reading a letter that read, “On behalf of the 930 Tama County Residents, we wish to file this Petition to decrease the number of Tama County Supervisors from five members to three members with the Tama County Supervisors on this Monday, Aug. 10, 2026.

Upon its validation, we ask that the Board of Supervisors, on or before Aug. 26, 2026, and not less than 69 days before the general election to be held on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, to notify the County Commissioner of Elections to submit the below question to the registered voters: PUBLIC MEASURE Proposition by the eligible electors of Tama County to decrease the number of Supervisors to three.

Shall the following public measure be adopted? The number of Tama County Supervisors shall be decreased from five members to three members.” Then there were circles to vote yes or no.

“It’s been no secret about this,” Vokoun said. “This has been out for quite some time, and people talked about it after the last vote.”

Vokoun went on to express a message of unity and a belief in exercising the First Amendment by saying, “Everybody needs to be able to voice their opinion and get along.”

State law requires that the signatures of at least 10 percent of the number of voters who participated in the last general election for president or governor — in Tama County, the number is around 860 — are needed to place a petition item on the ballot, and the presented signatures will now be subject to official validation.

The meeting moved on with the roads report stating they were mowing, ditching, hauling rock, fixing washouts, and working on many other projects.

A resolution to contribute $7,000 to the Region 6 Housing Trust Fund was approved.

The Auditor’s Quarterly Report was approved.

The Tama County Employee Handbook was approved. Changes and updates have been made, and the handbook is now a living document, making it easier for updates in the future.

After an hour-long exempt meeting to discuss a grievance from the Secondary Roads Union, no action was taken. Health Claims totaling $1,095 and regular claims totaling $149,367.31 were approved.