HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-19-26 Public Comment - Gallatin Valley Sentinel - Rush to Finish is a Disservice to the CommunityFrom:The Gallatin Valley Sentinel
To:Bozeman Goverment Study Commission
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Rush to Finish is a Disservice to the Community
Date:Tuesday, May 19, 2026 10:29:58 PM
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Members of the Study Commission:
We are writing to address the comments made by Study Commissioner Becky Franks during
last week’s meeting in response to Study Commissioner Deanna Campbell’s remarks aboutslowing the process down so that there would be adequate time to review. Commissioner
Franks asserted that the rushed nature of this final phase is unavoidable because the“legislature” dictates the deadlines. This shift of responsibility is both inaccurate and deeply
frustrating to the public.
The Montana Legislature has not changed the statutory deadlines since this process began. TheStudy Commission has known exactly how much time it had from day one. Passing the blame
to state statutes ignores the reality of how this commission utilized its time: the entire first yearof this study was largely squandered, and now, you are forcing a mad dash at the end of the
process.
By failing to manage the timeline effectively over the last 18 months, you are doingyourselves a disservice, but more importantly, you are doing a massive disservice to the
Bozeman community that voted for and funded this study.
Expecting the public to read, digest, and form meaningful thoughts on a complex, 19-pagedocument within a tight 44-hour window (from 4 p.m. on Monday when the agenda was made
public to noon the day of your meeting) is completely unrealistic. It becomes a farcicalexercise when we factor in that many of you have stated that you do not read all public
comments that arrive on the actual day of the meetings (at least those from The GallatinValley Sentinel), even though your agendas say that you officially accept them until noon the
day of your meetings.
A 44-hour review period is not meaningful public engagement. It is a checkbox exercise tocram through a final product.
If you truly want the community to trust and vote for the recommendations you put on the
ballot this November, you must be careful not to treat public input at this late stage of theprocess as an afterthought or inconvenience. We urge the commission to take accountability
for its own scheduling, go back to getting your meeting agenda packets out the Friday beforeyour meetings, and commit to thoroughly reading and considering all public comments
submitted within your stated deadlines of noon the day of the meeting.
Sincerely,Katie Adams
on behalf of The Gallatin Valley Sentinel