GREAT FALLS — There has been some frustration from the public lately regarding the Cascade County Commission meetings. Some residents of Cascade County feel they are kept out of the loop from ongoings in the county; however, the commissioners say they follow the laws laid out for local government and seek guidance from their legal team.
WATCH:
Former county commissioner Rae Grulkowski, said, “The statute [says] it’s the agenda that has to be posted, but so many other government entities also include the packet. Here in Cascade County, there are no packet materials.”
Grulkowski added, “[They’re] silencing the voice of the people, and you don’t ever want to do that.”
The county commissioners are required to post the agendas for each meeting at least 48 hours in advance, but they are not required to post other documents.
Commissioner Joe Briggs said they don’t always post the packet with full details for each item on the agenda ahead of the meeting, because they don’t always have it in advance.
“There are sometimes we don't get all the details of everything we're going to be talking about online as fast as any of us would like, and that's because the process of getting the materials put together, we don't always get them 48 hours in advance. All the details; we know the general topics [and] the agenda has been published, which is actually all that is legally required,” said commissioner Briggs.
Commission meetings are held the second and fourth Tuesday of every month, and agendas for each meeting are available on the county’s website.
