Just published in the 8/18/17 special print section of the Yellowstone County News, Here is what was published for the Mayor and City Council publication this week.
The 2017 primary election for the City of Billings is now upon us. The absentee ballots in for the City of Billings will be going out in the mail next Friday August Aug 25th . The City of Billings Primary election is a mail-in only ballot election. All ballots are due in the Yellowstone County Elections Department on or by 8pm Tuesday September 12th. We asked the candidates to answer the following questionnaire regarding local hot topic issues in the area and help us, the readers, decide in voting.
Some candidates chose not to respond for reasons we are not sure. We are grateful to those candidates who did take the time to respond as the answers are pretty telling and you will know where they stand on issues that are hot button issues for the City of Billings residents. You can read their responses in this special issue. Some candidates decided to be short as others decided to add detail. We hope this special edition gives some insight into the candidates that are running in this area for our readers.
Here are the questions that were asked to each candidate:
The questions are:
1 Please introduce yourself to our readers and why you have chosen to run as a candidate? Please include what you have accomplished in the past (in general) to give voters today a good indication of what you can accomplish in the future?
2 Just recently, the City of Billings Zoning Commission voted to NOT allow medical marijuana store fronts in Billings City limits. The decision is being recommended to the Billing City Council. Do you support allowing medical marijuana in store fronts in the City of Billings and Why?
3 During the 2017 Legislative Session, the Billings Chamber of Commerce initiated a local option tax bill of which the Billings City Council supported while the Yellowstone County Commissioners opposed at the time. The bill did not gain enough support to move forward in the session. Do you support a local option tax and why?
4 In 2014, the Billings City Council conducted a series of hearings in regards to the NDO (Non-discrimination Order) that brought widespread feedback from Billings and area Montana residents. As some say the last recent city council election was a referendum on where candidates stood on the NDO, where do you stand on NDO and why?
5 If elected, what are your economic priorities for the City of Billings for the present and then for the next 5-10 years?
6 How are you different from your opponent(s) in this primary election?
Read how each candidate responded and where they stand in the special print edition on newsstands!
