Havre to review its government

Havre voters in November will elect a three-member commission to review the way the city government operates.

Voters approved creation of the commission in Tuesday's primary election.

According to the Montana constitution, voters every decade get the opportunity to decide if they want to review the form of government.

While Havre voters narrowly approved the proposal to form a review commission, voters in Hingham, Hill, Blaine, Chouteau and Liberties counties and the cities of Harlem and Chinook all narrowly voted against the idea.

Havre now has a part-time mayor and an eight-member council setting policy, while the mayor is in charge of day-to-day operations.

Many city officials have talked about the idea of a city manager form of government, though the commission has a wide range of options.

The three-member panel will have a year to review various proposals before submitting the plan to voters in November 2015.

Previous efforts to alter the government have been rejected by voters.