Whatcom County health department director Erika Lautenbach was fired on Wednesday, March 19, after abruptly being put on leave about two weeks earlier.
Lautenbach told Cascadia Daily News that she was “surprised” by the termination notice she received, as she was under the impression that attorneys were still negotiating a separation agreement “in good faith.”
“I have served the county with integrity and have, in all matters, put the health and safety of the public first,” Lautenbach said. “I did nothing illegal, unethical or otherwise.”
The decision to remove Lautenbach from the position follows a “pattern of concerns” with regard to her leadership responsibilities, including a “failure to provide accurate and complete budget information, ongoing failure to resolve budget inaccuracies, and an inability to work collaboratively and deliver on the highest priority Executive directives,” according to the termination letter Lautenbach received from the county on Wednesday and shared with CDN.
Lautenbach said the allegations are inaccurate, and that she intends to fight “this wrongful termination.”
She is the first department head fired by County Executive Satpal Sidhu since he took the helm in 2019. Former Public Works director Jon Hutchings signed a separation agreement with the county after resigning amid allegations of sexual harassment, which ultimately resulted in a $225,000 settlement.
Lautenbach was appointed as the director of Health and Community Services in March 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and tasked with leading what has become one of the largest and most complex departments in the county.
A prepared statement issued by the county Wednesday stated there was “a need for better alignment with the County’s strategic priorities.”
“Increased departmental oversight and a stronger focus on stabilizing the County’s budget and operations,” led to the decision to seek new leadership at the health department, according to the statement.
“Ms. Lautenbach led WCHCS through the difficult years of the pandemic and oversaw a significant expansion of the department’s services, including the Response Systems Division, Healthy Children’s Fund, Fentanyl response plan and severe weather shelters,” Sidhu said.
“We are very grateful for these accomplishments and wish her well on her future personal and professional endeavors,” he continued.
Council was ‘in the dark’
Leading up to the firing, the council found itself “in the dark” about Lautenbach’s employment status.
Two county council members who spoke with CDN last week said they first heard rumors about the situation from constituents who noticed Lautenbach was missing from meetings.
Senior deputy prosecutor George Roche sent an email to county council members informing them Lautenbach was “on leave” on March 11.
“We will update you when we have additional information to share,” stated the email, which was obtained through a public records request after Sidhu “waived privilege” in the “interest of transparency.”
The email contained no details of whether or not Lautenbach would return to her position or the reason she was on leave. However, the termination letter sent on Wednesday states that Sidhu made his intent to remove Lautenbach clear to her in a meeting on March 5.
“It sounds like she’s been fired, and nobody’s saying it,” county council member Todd Donovan told CDN last week. “The executive has not given us the courtesy of saying what’s going on.”
Donovan said that if it was a personnel matter, Sidhu could have brought the council up to speed in an executive session.
“If it’s just a regular, ‘I’m reshuffling my leadership,’ tell us that publicly,” Donovan said.
Donovan said he understands that Sidhu has the right to fire people and make adjustments to department heads as he sees necessary.
“Given the thing with the previous public works director, that just screams that we need more transparency about what’s going on,” Donovan said. “I’m in the dark, again, here.”
The county council was blindsided by the circumstances around Hutchings’ departure and the settlement, first learning about it through a Cascade PBS investigation.
County council member Ben Elenbaas said a constituent was the first to put Lautenbach’s situation on his radar. Elenbaas brushed it off, but when he reached out to Lautenbach and got an out-of-office reply, he started to wonder.
“It seems like there’s some chaos here,” Elenbaas said last week. “I expect, as well as the public should expect, that if there’s something that’s going on, that we should all be informed.”
Elenbaas said that though he often challenges the health department in county council meetings, he has a lot of respect for Lautenbach, recognizing how much she’s grown the department since she took charge.
“If there’s any change of leadership, which we have not been informed about, what is Plan B?” Donovan said.
When the county’s director of parks and recreation retired in 2023, Donovan noted the county did a national search.
“It was a considered process,” Donovan said, noting that he was unaware last week of a search for a replacement for the leader of one of “the most consequential departments in terms of complexity and budget” in the county.
The health department, which employs about 150 people, provides a broad spectrum of services for the community, from veteran and mental health programs to immunization clinics and the disposal of toxins. It is also on the frontline in the county’s response to the fentanyl crisis and homelessness in the community. The department is also in charge of implementing the heavily-debated Healthy Children’s Fund.
The county confirmed in a statement that it will be looking for a new director for the department. Assistant Director Charlene Ramont will be running the day-to-day administration of the department, while Whatcom County Health Officer Dr. Amy Harley will serve as director until an interim director is confirmed by the County Council.
Isaac Stone Simonelli is CDN’s enterprise/investigations reporter; reach him at isaacsimonelli@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 127.
