Havre residents learn about forms of city government

Montana State University Extension Local Government Center Director Dan Clark spoke to a crowd Wednesday, following his presentation regarding Special Improvement Districts, about the difference between self-governing and general government city structures.

Many communities across the state are changing their powers of government from general to self-governing, Clark said. The communities may not have an immediate need for becoming a self-governing power, but they are changing to allow their communities to be more adaptable in the future.

"They wanted to have all options on the table," he said, "so they can respond and be far more nimble."

In light of the Vacant Property Registration Ordinance, proposed by City Council's ad hoc committee being at a standstill, Havre Mayor Tim Solomon said that one of the reasons the ordinance would not work for Havre is because it cannot be enforced. Havre is a general governing power and does not have the ability to create an ordinance that is not specifically enforced by state law or the state Constitution.

Solomon said, in an interview after Clark's presentation, that the city had proposed in the past few years changing Havre to a self-governing charter government with a city manager, but this action was voted down. He said he suspects voters were against the change because they did not support the city manager position.

He added that it may be time to bring the issue back to the council to see if the city can get the change to self-governing back on the ballot, separate from create a city manager position, he said.

City Clerk and Financial Director Doug Kaercher said that he has always been an advocate for self-governing powers, and although the city may not have a specific need for the change it would allow the city to become more adaptable for the future.

"Like (Clark) said, 'You need to be ready for the change when it comes down the road,'" Kaercher said.

Bear Paw Development Corp. Executive Director Paul Tuss said it is an interesting subject of discussion and the city and the citizens in the community should look into it more.

"It certainly could allow the city more options when it comes to operations," Tuss said, adding that it would broaden the powers of the local government and allow the city to control its own future.

Two types of government powers for cities

Clark said in his presentation that the state allows two types of powers for communities, general or self-governing. In 1976, the city of Havre voted for the city to retain its current form and the powers of its government, which is general powers.

Under general governing powers a city can exercise only specific powers given to them under the state law or the state constitution.

"If the law does not say you can do it, the assumption is that you cannot," he said.

But self-governing is different, he said. Cities are allowed, under self-governing, to exercise power or authority on any issue if it is not specified in the state law, or constitution.

"So if (the state constitution) doesn't specifically say you can't do this, the assumption is that you can," he said.

He added that having self-governing powers does not mean cities can go against or conflict with state laws and the state's authority over issues such as taxes and specific regulations.

Clark said that Havre has been trying to solve a vacant property problem in the community but can't engage its desired solution because the law does not specify that the city is able to exercise that power.

He added that, generally, this would not be an issue if the city of Havre had self-governing powers.

Cities operating under self governing powers can write a charter, which is a local constitution or its own government plan, he said, adding that this is what allows communities to have a bit more flexibility in operations.

Butte-Silver-Bow which has a version of a vacant property registration in place, provides an example of what a city can do with vacant properties under self-governance, he said. He said other examples include Troy, which has a hydro-electric facility owned and operated by the city, and Saco, which has a gas line owned and operated by the city.

Forms of government

Another issue that ties into general and self-governing powers is the form of government, Clark said, adding that Havre has a commission-executive form of government, with the city council as the commission and the mayor as the executive.

Other forms of government include commission-manager, for which the council hires a manager based on knowledge, skill and experience in place of a mayor; a commission form of government, where the commission is the only ruling body; a commission-officer, for which the commission or council elect one of the members to be the presiding officer to take an executive position while still being able to operate on the council or commission; and a town meeting form of government, which is direct democracy with the community presiding over the issues. The town meeting form of government is unavailable to communities with populations larger than 2,000 people.

City governments operate similar to the state and federal government, having executive, legislative and judicial branches to help serve the community, Clark said. He added that the legislative branch, or in Havre's case the council, is responsible for writing resolutions and ordinances, while the executive, or mayor, has the duty to put that ordinance or regulation into effect, while the judicial branch, the court system, has the duty to enforce it.

No branch is responsible for the other, he said, rather they all have a responsibility to serve the community.

Clark said that the Legislature, has created options for how cities can operate, and unless the residents vote to change those options, city government operates under the city's default government plan. He added that in 1976, Havre residents voted to stay with the default plan.