Bozeman Study Commission Meeting - July 23, 2026: Charter Edits and Ward Advisory Board Discussion

The Bozeman Study Commission met on Thursday, July 23, 2026, at 4:00 PM in the Commission Room at City Hall. The meeting focused on reviewing and editing the proposed charter, particularly a new section on ward boundaries (Section 7.04), and discussing revisions to the tentative charter based on public feedback and expert input. The commission aims to have a finished charter and final report ready for approval at the August 6 meeting after review on July 30.

Consent Calendar

• Approval of Minutes: The commission approved the minutes from July 15, 2026, by a 4-0 vote (Commissioner Carson Taylor was absent). A motion to excuse Taylor’s absence was also approved.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Dan Cardi (Bozeman resident): Urged the commission to remove political party affiliation from the Ward Advisory Board composition.
• Katie Adams (Gallatin Valley Sentinel volunteer): Testified on several points: (1) Remove partisan language from Ward Advisory Board; (2) Recommend a 10% population deviation trigger for redrawing wards (citing Missoula city attorney’s letter); (3) Simplify candidate filing deadline language in Section 7.04C; (4) In Article 8, suggested replacing “shall” with “should” to avoid overly prescriptive language; (5) Noted potential conflicts between HOA bylaws and Inter-Neighborhood Council (INC) recognition requirements; (6) Suggested wording for public solicitation of board members.
• Emily Talago (Bozeman resident): Raised that MLUPA (Montana Land Use Planning Act) may be revised by the legislature and asked for clarity on whether INC having a presentation opportunity constitutes decision-making or presentation authority.

Discussion Items

F.1 – Review Edits to Wards and Adjustments (Section 7.04)

Commissioner Barb presented a new Section 7.04 establishing a Ward Advisory Board process, drawn from public comments, the National Civic League model, and Missoula’s approach. Key debated elements:

• Political party affiliation: Commissioners unanimously agreed to remove the sentence requiring party disclosure from the board composition, as Bozeman elections are nonpartisan.
• Appointment of board members: Commissioners preferred that the city commission appoint all five members, rather than four appoint a fifth chair. Jan supported this, and the public comment echoed it.
• Population trigger for redrawing wards: Deanna favored a 10% threshold to avoid frequent redraws due to rapid growth; Jan argued for a five-year mid-census review instead; Mike recommended leaving the details to ordinance rather than the charter. Barb will present a revised version on July 30.
• Criteria for ward boundaries: Deanna proposed adding “shall preserve existing neighborhood association boundaries to the maximum extent feasible”; Jan and Barb cautioned against over-specificity. Mike noted that compact, contiguous, and respect for political/census boundaries (including precincts) is standard.
• Annexation treatment: Mike will consult Community Development Manager Chris Saunders on whether to prescribe annexation placement in the charter or leave to ordinance.
• Timeline: Commissioners decided to move the first implementation to 2029 (rather than 2027) to allow adequate transition time, especially if both ward and commission expansion are approved. Deanna preferred 2027, but the majority supported 2029.

F.2 and G.1 – Review Edits to Tentative Charter and Draft Final Report

Barb walked through changes to Article 8 (public engagement, boards, INC), Article 6 (financial management), and Article 9 (Board of Ethics). Key discussion points:

• Article 8.04 – Inter-Neighborhood Council (INC): Commissioners agreed to keep the requirement that INC shall follow the city’s code of ethics, with training implied. A sentence about presenting recommendations to the city commission was removed to avoid making INC a decision-making body.
• Article 8.05 – City Boards: Carson and Jan requested reinstating Section B (purpose, number, skills) that had been removed as overly prescriptive. Mike argued the city commission should retain flexibility. After debate, commissioners supported a modified version: “The city shall establish the purpose of each board and the number of desired skills, necessary experience” without specifying “by resolution.” Section C (public education, subcommittees) remained but Barb suggested it may be too prescriptive.
• Article 6.09 – Independent Audit: A sentence allowing the same firm to provide audit and other services was debated. Deanna and Becky opposed it as contrary to industry standards. Mike noted only two firms have been used in 10–15 years and one no longer provides audits. A compromise was reached: require a unanimous vote of the city commission to waive independence.
• Article 9.01 – Board of Ethics: Barb removed candidates for political office from annual training requirements, citing city attorney advice that the city cannot bind candidates. No objections.
• Preamble: Jan defended the inclusion of “human rights” as previously voted; Deanna noted poor parallel construction but no change was made. Deanna requested re-adding reference to the U.S. Constitution (from the 2006 charter). Barb will check and include.
• Other: Edits to comply with MLUPA (Section 5.04) were accepted. Deletions of references to specific organizations like GFOA were approved.

Key Outcomes

• Consent agenda approved (4-0).
• Direction to Barb: Revise Section 7.04 per discussion (remove party affiliation, adjust appointment process, decide on population trigger, simplify language) and bring updated version to July 30 meeting.
• Direction on Charter: Barb will incorporate decisions (Article 8 revisions, audit compromise, ethics board change, preamble edits) and produce a clean document for July 30.
• Final Report Edits: Commissioners must send written edits to the draft final report to Becky (via group email) by end of day Saturday, July 25. Becky will compile them for a unified clean report on July 30.
• Additional Tasks: Mike will report on annexation placement (by end of day July 24) and on the number of state-approved audit firms. Jan will resend the ballot education outreach list; commissioners to respond by end of day July 24.
• Next Meeting: July 30, 2026 – review clean charter and final report; final approval scheduled for August 6.