City of Libby announces transparency week events

The City of Libby on Thursday announced two events taking place during its inaugural “Transparency in Government Week” from June 4 to June 8.

The first event, a presentation on “How Your Government Works,” is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, June 4, at Libby City Hall at 952 E. Spruce St.

The presentation will cover governmental basics including budgets, funding, how to get a law changed and placing items on the agenda, according to a news release provided by City Council member Kristin Smith.

“In addition, the City will put forward several ways it can improve communication with the public and provide better access to meetings and materials,” Smith wrote.

The week’s second event is an “Open Mic” night at Libby City Hall from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 7. The public is invited to attend “to offer constructive ways the City might be able to improve how it operates,” Smith wrote.

Next week’s “Transparency in Government Week” is the first of four such annual events stipulated in an agreement the City reached last October to close a case in which Montana’s former Commissioner of Political Practices determined that state campaign finance laws were violated during Libby’s 2013 mayoral election.

The case — Magill v. Reintsma, City of Libby, et al. — arose after Arlen Magill of Libby filed a complaint in September 2014, originally against former City Attorney James Reintsma, alleging interference in the mayoral race between incumbent Doug Roll and Allen Olsen.

Upon review of the complaint, Jonathan Motl, the Commissioner of Political Practices at the time, added to the defendants the City of Libby, Doug Roll and five members of the 2013 Libby City Council — Robin Benson, Barbara Desch, Vicky Lawrence, Bill Bischoff and Peggy Williams.

The transparency week stipulation was part of a settlement proposed last July by Jeffrey Mangan, Montana’s current Commissioner of Political Practices.