Plale Out As Railroad Commissioner

Gov. Scott Walker’s office says Railroad Commissioner Jeff Plale has resigned.

Walker’s office issued a news release Tuesday saying Plale quit Monday. The release didn’t offer a reason for Plale’s departure and the governor’s spokeswoman didn’t immediately respond to an email.

The governor has cited two railroad commission workers caught having sex on state time as justification for a bill to overhaul the state civil service system. Walker said existing rules kept state managers from firing the employees.

Word broke last month that no one pushed to fire or discipline the workers beyond a reprimand. Plale, who made the final disciplinary decision, said he was following the Office of State Employment Relations’ recommendations. One of the workers was an aide in the state Senate when Plale was a state senator.

Walker’s office announced plans to appoint civil engineer Yash Wadhwa to replace Plale, pending state Senate approval.