Committee will take a look at city government

Hungry Horse News

The Columbia Falls City Council recently approved three members to a commission designed to examine whether the city should change its form of government or keep it the way it is.

Former city managers Susan Nicosia and Roger Hopkins were named to the commission as was former city clerk Connie Konopatzke. Nicosia retired in June, Hopkins and Konopatzke have been out of city government for years.

The city currently has a city manager form of government, where the city council and mayor oversee a paid city manager.

But voters in the 2023 election approved a review of the city’s government by a narrow margin. The state constitution requires the question of whether city and county governments should be reviewed every 10 years. It’s one of the most unique laws in the nation, according to legal scholars.

The commission will go through some training in December and then likely begin in the task in 2025.

Ten years ago, the city went through a similar review and the commission found that the city manager form of government was the best way to go.

The city budgeted $20,000 for the review effort, but Hopkins has already suggested to city council in previous meetings that they wouldn’t spend close to that.

Columbia Falls is not alone. Twelve counties, 22 cities and 20 municipalities are undergoing reviews across the state.