FJBC addresses election issues, fills vacated commissioner seat during meeting
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ST. IGNATIUS – Dave Vincent was sworn in to serve on the Flathead Joint Board of Control on Tuesday, April 18, during the regular meeting that addressed election issues, water rights adjudication, an employee resignation, and high school scholarships.
Commissioner Vincent was chosen by the Flathead District to fill Dick Erb’s position for the remaining year of the term. Erb resigned in March stating in a letter that he didn’t want to be associated with many of the decisions the board was making, mainly focused on litigation.
Chairman Ray Swenson held up an election notice during the meeting and said voters in the Mission District should be getting a pink piece of paper containing information about a ballot error for the May 2 Irrigation District Commissioner Election.
He said about 100 Mission ballot envelopes contained a Flathead ballot. The Lake County Election Office sent out a second ballot to all Mission irrigators to correct the issue. The second ballot has two vertical lines on the address label to distinguish it from the incorrect first ballot.
Swenson noted his concern about the mistake. He also encouraged people to make sure they complete a form designating one person to vote for property with multiple owners, if needed. Last year, hundreds of ballots were not sent out because people did not fill out that form.
The FJBC is looking for a hydrologist to go over the water rights issues concerning the adjudication process before the claims are taken to the Montana Water Court. Tom Hughes was hired as an employee to do the work, but health concerns and time constraints forced him to resign. The board is considering several applicants for the position.
FJBC Clerk Johanna Clark resigned from her position on April 14. She stated that she submitted her resignation due to a “lack of accountability” from the board. The board asked her to stay during the last meeting via a 6 to 5 vote to continue her three-year contract. Several board members said they felt the position needed to be advertised because Clark resigned. She agreed to continue in the position.
The FJBC is undergoing an audit to ensure that procedures are being followed according to Montana statue. Several board members requested the audit. During the meeting, questions concerning changes to Clark’s contract were brought up. It was said that Clark made changes to her contract without board approval, which was one of the reasons for the audit. Clark told the board she welcomes an audit as an informative tool. “I think this is a great thing,” Clark said.
The board also voted to continue a scholarship program for high school seniors. Up to three scholarships are given to student applicants from the irrigation districts. Board members donate one of their FJBC paychecks, about $100 each, to the scholarship fund.
