No unilateral move by county, attorneys say

Any consideration of Lincoln County commissioners unilaterally dissolving the Troy Area Dispatch District has apparently been stopped by two legal opinions.

Commissioner Greg Larson said the commissioners received letters from Troy City Attorney Clifton Hayden and Lincoln County Attorney Bernie Cassidy on Sept. 13 and 23, respectively. In essence, Hayden and Cassidy agreed that the county doesn’t have the authority to dissolve the district unilaterally. In other words, both the city of Troy and the county would have to do so.

In addition, Troy Mayor Darren Coldwell wrote to the commissioners on Oct. 3. In that letter, Coldwell said he and the council unanimously support the 70-percent public support the TADD received from Troy residents several years ago. (The TADD was originally created in March 1996.)

The commissioners also received a letter on Sept. 15 from Brian Hopkins, the attorney for the Montana Association of Governments. In that letter, Hopkins said he sees little recourse but to put the matter before the voters again.

The issue came to the forefront in February of 2014 when Troy-area resident Henry LaSala asserted that the ballot issue violated two state statutes.

On Wednesday, LaSala said he would like the commissioners to request an opinion from the attorney general so that there can be some finality to the issue.

He noted that only 24 percent of the voters in the TADD live in Troy, only 15 percent of the taxpayers live in Troy and only 11 percent of the assessed value is in Troy.

Larson said the commissioners may conduct a public meeting on the issue in the future.