The Bozeman City Study Commission spent most of its May 20th meeting wrestling with how to present ward and commissioner election choices to voters on the upcoming charter ballot. Deanna Campbell and staff member Mike Maas presented several ballot language options for a ward system, with Campbell advocating for the simplest approach: a single sub-option asking voters to choose between the current citywide at-large system and wards where commissioners must live in specific neighborhoods and are elected only by ward voters. Campbell cited the commission's own public survey, where ward supporters preferred ward-only voting by roughly a two-to-one margin. However, commissioners Taylor, Strout, and Cestero raised concerns about ward-only elections, noting that Bozeman lacks geographically concentrated minority populations that typically benefit from such systems, and that ward voting could lead to commissioners prioritizing their district over citywide issues. After two failed motions, the commission unanimously approved using two sub-options: one asking voters to choose between at-large and ward systems, and a second asking how ward commissioners would be elected if wards pass.
The commission also approved two other ballot sub-options: voters will choose whether to expand the commission from four to six members, with the mayor remaining at large. The body passed a proposal to create a City of Bozeman Compensation Board to set mayor and commissioner salaries based on area median income percentages, removing the awkwardness of officials voting on their own pay.
The commission ran out of time before completing its line-by-line charter review and will reconvene May 27th at 4 p.m. Public commenters including Mark Campanelli, president of the Boger Park Neighborhood Association, urged the commission to keep neighborhood associations protected in the charter rather than leaving their status to city commission discretion.