Ravalli County’s five commissioners are gone this entire week, off to the Montana Association of Counties 102nd annual conference. This year, it is being hosted by the Gallatin County commissioners in Bozeman.
The event runs Sunday, Sept. 25 through Thursday, Sept. 29. In a welcome letter, MACo president John Ostlund (of Yellowstone County) says commissioners at the conference will be “reviewing resolutions, polices and discussing issues that are important to all of us. The many sessions and workshops planned to give us the tools we need to be more productive in our roles as elected officials.”
Some of the week’s presentation topics include:
- Changes in workers’ compensation laws
- Legislative redistricting
- 2011 floods
- Role of county sanitarians
- Disaster guidance
- Open Meeting Act compliance
- Federal funding for transportation
- Health care reform (presented by Monica Lindeen, MT Commissioner of Securities and Insurance)
- Commissioner responsibility when serving on boards
The conference also includes a host of committee meetings and reports as well as annual business meetings and general sessions. Attorney general, and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Steve Bullock, will also be giving a speech.
Ravalli County commissioner Greg Chilcott is currently MACo’s second vice president. Chilcott is also the chair of the justice and public safety committee. Commission chair J.R. Iman is the co-chair of the land use and development committee. On Thursday, new officers will be elected.
Here’s a look at this week’s entire schedule.
Update: Ran into Matt Kanenwisher at the commissioners’ office today. Apparently he’s skipping out on the conference. But Chilcott, Iman, Suzy Foss and Ron Stoltz are all attending.
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