All paid firefighters at the Isleton Fire Department, the assistant city manager, the accounts payable clerk and the city building inspector were laid off in a unanimous vote by the city council.
Cox and fellow co-city manager Jon Kennedy have only been on the job for five days, hired as a last-ditch effort to try and clean up the devastating financial mess in Isleton before the consequences become officially filing for bankruptcy or the city possibly having to dissolve into Sacramento County.
"This is the worst financial picture I have ever encountered. There needs to be drastic and swift action," said Jessica Bigby, the city's certified public accountant, who was also hired only within the past two weeks.
At this pace, the city admits it will be completely cashless within the next three to five months.
Steele and other past council members including Kelly Hutson were in the crowd Tuesday at the packed meeting where Isleton leaders tried to transparently explain why city services needed to be cut and the consequences of the financial situation the city is in.
Though all paid fire department staff have been laid off, the department also consists of volunteer firefighters. Their future is still uncertain.
The council says it will vote on this in a special-called meeting in two weeks, after staff can research the options for fire protection more. "We definitely would support Isleton in their time of need, until you guys get on your feet," said Paul Cutino, chief of the River Delta Fire District, at Tuesday's meeting.
"I'm worried. It's just a lack of response time mostly. That extra five or six miles or ten to fifteen minutes could be the difference between life and death," Hutson said. Right now, the fire department payroll more than doubles its revenue.The city is also at risk of losing buildings like its community center, where Tuesday night's meeting was held. "We have a crisis here," said one neighbor in public comment at the podium.
News of the departure of Isleton's previous city manager, Uyiosa Felix Oviawe, has been quiet.
Cox and Kennedy promised community members Tuesday night that they would figure out how the city of Isleton got into this mess and who is to blame. They added that they would welcome and fully cooperate with any Sacramento County sheriff or district attorney's office investigation should they find evidence that criminal action took place by any city staffer at any time.
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