(File Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
SALEM LAKES, Wis. — Salem Lakes Trustee Angela Brooks (D) is facing criticism from residents after attending approximately half of the village meetings reviewed by Kenosha County Eye in 2026 while receiving her full $9,000 annual stipend. Residents who spoke with KCE acknowledged that the stipend is modest, but said Brooks should donate half or return it to the village because she has missed about half the meetings.
After receiving complaints about Brooks’ repeated absences, Kenosha County Eye reviewed meeting videos and minutes and sought an explanation from both Brooks and Village President Rita Bucur. Neither responded to KCE’s inquiries.
Brooks was elected April 1, 2025, receiving 2,446 votes and winning a two-year term running through April 2027. Her first meeting as a trustee was April 21, 2025, when Bucur welcomed her to the board and thanked outgoing Trustee Jared Young for his service.
Brooks’ attendance during her first calendar year in office was strong. In the 20 meetings covered by the 2025 minutes KCE reviewed, she attended 19 and missed only one. An expanded review of meeting videos and minutes for 2026, however, put her attendance through early October at about 50%.
The minutes also document several late arrivals and a few appearances by phone or video. On January 20, Brooks arrived at 6:11 p.m., six minutes after the meeting began. On May 19, she was initially listed as excused but joined virtually at 6:19 p.m., 17 minutes after the meeting started. The April 1 minutes recorded her participation by phone. Remote appearances were counted as attendance in KCE’s review.
Kenosha County Eye regularly attends Salem Lakes meetings, where trustees make decisions affecting village spending, taxes, development and public services. Residents who raised concerns about Brooks’ attendance said they expected the person they elected to participate consistently in those decisions.
Village trustees receive $9,000 per year, while the village president receives $15,000. Residents suggested that Brooks donate half her annual stipend or return it to the village — an amount totaling $4,500 — because her attendance this year has been approximately half of the meetings reviewed.
The reviewed records listed Brooks’ absences as excused, but that designation does not explain the reasons for them. KCE gave her an opportunity to explain before publishing and made clear that a medical issue or another private circumstance could lead the outlet not to pursue the story. She did not respond, and Bucur likewise left KCE’s inquiry unanswered.
There may be an explanation for Brooks’ attendance, but neither elected official has provided one to KCE. Their silence leaves residents asking a basic question: What is taking priority over the work Brooks was elected to do for the people of Salem Lakes?
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33 Responses
We want our money back!!!
WTF
In less than 8 weeks this seat is open to fill out nomination petitions to run. She should obviously not seek the next term.
If she does she owes every voter a full explanation on why she is unable to attend.
Personal or not.
Even if it’s personal, if you can’t do the job because of “more important obligations” then don’t run for it.
Who votes this down? Brooks?
Yes, and Rita.
Brooks, two other Trustees and President Bucur’s seats are up for election in the Spring 2027 election in April, not November.
To run for Salem Trustee this NEXT ROUND You MUST take petitions and gather signatures for nomination STARTING December 1st !!!!
That’s just 7 WEEKS AWAY !!
Then SUBMIT THEM JANUARY 5th !!!!
Yes the General Election IS IN APRIL but to get THERE you have to START IN DECEMBER !!
I would think anyone who is frustrated with the status quo and wants to be part of the change would understand that you don’t just throw your hat in, in March for the April election.
You are confusing the Complete Spring Election Process including the February Primary with the November General Federal Elections.
Look at a Calendar, will ya ?!?
The board excused these absences? How and why. Wasn’t this one of Super Star Cassandra Hiller prodigies? Maybe she has a good excuse?
She is, they still go bicycling all the time. Gross
Salem lakes straight up shit show.
Borrow money to pay people not to show up- perfect.
Not even surprised,
Completely legal.
She doesn’t even have to live in Salem Lakes after election and oath.
Know who gets your vote.
Find candidates who will represent you or risk this.
Change how payment per meeting is made since the village can’t do anything about absence and
Set rules on “excused”. Excused, that in itself is bs. Who is the president to excuse someone I elected. I don’t excuse fakes, absent representatives.
Just more Rita bs.
They have to live in the Village otherwise why did Amanda step down?
They do not, she doesn’t
Sorry you are wrong. A Wisconsin village elected official must continue to reside in the village for their entire term. If they move out, the office becomes automatically vacant under state law.
Give the citation.
Trustee Brooks’ attendance fell off a cliff in 2026 however it appears her stipend didn’t, WHY?
Her attendance 50% in 2026, but the stipend remained steady. It’s the most stable relationship in village government.
Didn’t Kmiec miss only about five meetings in a year, yet the voters threw him out? Well, maybe for other reasons too.
1. Has Trustee Brooks been paid for meetings she did not attend?
Taxpayers deserve transparency on compensation for missed obligations.
2. Why are her absences being treated as “excused”?
There is no clear policy that allows a trustee to simply stop participating in the job they were elected to perform.
3. Why has the Village President not responded to inquiries?
Silence from leadership creates the appearance of avoiding accountability rather than upholding it.
4. Why have other board members not raised concerns?
Every trustee has a responsibility to protect the integrity of the board. Ignoring prolonged non‑participation undermines public trust.
5. How will the Village recover funds if compensation was issued without attendance?
A review of attendance and payroll is necessary to determine whether reimbursement is required.
6. Trustee Brooks owes her constituents an explanation.
Elected officials owe the public consistent engagement, transparency, and respect for the office they hold.
The community deserves answers, not silence. Accountability is not optional for public officials.
Dear Linda sez-
You have skipped over the first fact-
She doesn’t have to attend even one meeting after the election and taking her oath. All the other points you listed are hopes and dreams and made up “why didnt” or “why doesnt” the board do this or that?
We can dislike the abuse of the system but the burden is on the voter to know who they are electing.
Learn how to detect a con. It appears that there are several case studies in office right now that we can investigate.
The salary is a salary, not a per diem payment.
Talk about a waste of money, when you pay people to not show up, sounds like Chicago politics. I think they call those jobs- no show paid jobs. Illinois Infection is spreading.
Even when she is there, she offers nothing, I hope she resigns so the board could appoint John Walker
New election coming up soon.
John can run. He obviously will win as there are 4 seats open. Should even consider running for President.
I think it’s 50/50 on if Rita decides to run again.
Can’t imagine anyone voting for Brooks.
This will be about the easiest year to take a seat from whoever decides to try to stay.
When she talks, it seems like she has no clue what she’s discussing, likely because she isn’t around enough to actually understand what’s happening. The board should be embarrassed by this behavior, but they’re all too timid to speak up. This whole situation is typical for these board members. Aside from Pete and now maybe Tom, the rest could stay home, and the Village would be better off.
Exactly-this board short of Pete and hopefully Tom are absolutely spineless! There is no leadership on the board. Rita has a very powerful position that she is wasting. The village needs leadership and a vision. This article isn’t even a tip of the iceberg on issues this current board is ignoring. You want transparency, a balanced budget, and a board that isn’t going to allow something like this to go on for as long as it has. Start by getting rid of Rita and Brooks. And get some leadership in there. Mike the administrator is a leader. Probably the best this community has seen in 40 years. He needs a strong board to right the ship, not a circus!!!
Here’s what Wisconsin state statutes say about elected village trustees who do not show up to do their jobs:
A Wisconsin village trustee who repeatedly fails to appear for meetings may be removed only under the state’s removal statutes, because Wisconsin law does not provide an automatic vacancy or replacement procedure based solely on non‑attendance.
The controlling statute is Wis. Stat. § 17.16(2), which allows a village board to remove an elective village officer—including a trustee—“because of … gross neglect of duty” by a majority vote of all members of the village board.
What counts as “gross neglect of duty”?
The statute does not define it, but repeated failure to attend meetings is widely understood to fall under this category when it prevents the trustee from performing required duties (quorum issues, inability to vote, failure to represent constituents).
The village board has had a decision to be made about Ms Brooks dereliction of duty, act on it, or leave it to continue unabated.
The village of Salem Lakes Board is led by President Rita Bucur.
Her silence on this matter and failure to act is a direct reflection of her leadership and the way that she views the residents of the village and the money that they pay in property taxes to support it.
Bucur’s term is due to expire after the next election in April when a Village President and three trustee positions, including Brooks, will be chosen by the voters.
Maybe it’s time for a change?
These people have no respect for the taxpayer money. Hey, we will just borrow more, any monkey can run a government like that. Please don’t say anything too strong about Pres. Bucur, she will need to talk to our attorney to figure it out.
She’s phoning in her last 6 months. Rather than gripe, we should ask the board to pay $5400 per year as a set stipend (because members need to do their homework, etc.), and then $300/meeting for physical attendance. (No excuses). Or, $1800 set and $600 per meeting, or something like that. In other words, reward physical attendance.
Cassandra’s prodigy turned out to be a failure just like her, good riddance. Think about all the suckers that voted for Brooks. It’s a shame that others lost because people voted for her, she must really think Salem is filled with suckers.
Dear Linda sez-
You have skipped over the first fact-
She doesn’t have to attend even one meeting after the election and taking her oath. All the other points you listed are hopes and dreams and made up “why didnt” or “why doesnt” the board do this or that?
We can dislike the abuse of the system but the burden is on the voter to know who they are electing.
Learn how to detect a con. It appears that there are several case studies in office right now that we can investigate.
Are you saying Brooks was a con? Maybe if people had ethics these days, we wouldn’t have to deal with this constant nonsense. Aside from a few board members, it’s amateur hour. When votes are based on popularity, you end up with people who just don’t care, no ethics, no soul. It’s disappointing that some voters support this behavior, and even more troubling that the Board, which has the power to act, doesn’t. Options are limited beyond the Board’s action, but they could remove her for gross neglect of duty. Missing half the meetings and being unaware of what’s going on fits that perfectly.