Election 2014: House District 27: Roy Hollandsworth

Rep. Roy Hollands-worth, R-Brady, won the Republican primary for House District 27, which starts on the Canadian border in Liberty and western Hill County and runs through Chouteau County and to the northeastern corner of Cascade County out of Great Falls.

He faces Democrat Rob Laas of Chester in Tuesday's general election. Laas is unopposed in the primary, in the general election.

Hollandsworth did not respond to multiple emails and telephone calls asking for an interview to run last week, so the Havre Daily will run his responses he made to questions before the primary election.

Hollandsworth, who farmed in the Knees community on the corners of Liberty, Chouteau, Toole and Pondera counties, retired from farming when elected to his first term to the Legislature.

He has served all three of his terms on the House Appro-priations Committee and chaired the education subcommittee for appropriations, and has vice chaired and chaired the interim Committee on Revenue and Transportation..

Select issues discussed

The Havre Daily News asked Hollandsworth about himself and his positions on some hot-ticket issues in the last two legislative sessions. his answers follow.

Why should the voters vote for you?

Hollandsworth said his experience in the Legislature, including the full-time work required on the House Appropriations Committee, writing the state spending bills, makes him the best candidate.

"I've got a lot of experience, being a chairman, and Appropriations is a full-time hard committee," he said. "You don't get a chance to do anything else when you're in Helena,you do that only. It is experience, is what im saying."

He added that due to term limits, people spend their first years in the Legislature learning their way around, and getting "to know people so they trust you."

Freedom of education

The Republican leadership in the House pushed hard last session to increase freedom of education in the state, trying to set up savings accounts to help fund people trying alternatives to public education.

Hollandsworth said the top priority is, if public money is spent for education, the education has to be accountable to the taxpayers.

"We've tried to tell people who are trying to do charter schools and other alternative things, if you have a local local board of directors that report to taxpayers, 'cause they're going to be after taxpayers money, then I would very much be for it on a trial basis ... ," he said. "It's public money, and we have to be careful how we spend it, and why should we give them free rein when we make the public schools go through certain hoops and report back to us?"

Charter schools

Last session also saw a push for expanding charter schools in Montana.

Under Montana rules, a school district now can set up a charter school, which operates under a charter and could focus on particular area such as agriculture, arts or engineering. The school would operate under the same rules and the administration of the state Office of Public Instruction.

Hollandsworth said there is no need for a change. If people get involved, right now, they can set up whatever school district they want within state regulations, including charter schools.

"That's how our constitution is set up," he said. "The school board can change that school and they can literally run it like a charter school right now.

"They have the ability to do that, if people got involved, but there's the rub. They want it all done so they can blame someone else instead them doing it theirselves."

Infrastructure in the Bakken and elsewhere

Gov. Steve Bullock last session vetoed a bill to provide funding for infrastructure at the booming area of the Bakken, saying it overspent his goal to provide a $300 million reserve ending fund balance. He has proposed offering a special loan rate on the state revolving fund and selling $45 million in bonds to fund existing infrastructure improvements and improvements in the Bakken.

Hollandsworth said money will be set to help with Bakken infrastructure, but he does not support Bullock's proposal. The bill last session was sponsored by a Republican, but had heavy bipartisan support, yet it was vetoed, he said.

"And now, he's turning around and wanting us to help him out ... ," Hollandsworth said. "That's a question within the question. All the legislature needs to have credit for helping the Bakken area, because we were all behind, it not just the governor.

"I'm not trying to slam the governor because I get along pretty good with him, but he needs to know it takes all of us to work together to do this stuff," he said.

The ending-fund balance

Hollandsworth said Bullock's goal of a $300 million ending fund balance is not a problem in itself, "As long as it doesn't get spent on more government growth.

"People think buying buildings is growth. No, thats infrastructure," he said. "When I talk about growth (that's) starting another program that funds and goes on forever, and I hate funding that's in statute because the only way you can ever change it is by changing the statute which is hard.

"An ending fund balance is good as long as there's a plan that we don't use it it foolishly," he said.

Editor's note: The Havre Daily News was unable to contact Republican Rep. Roy Hollandsworth of Brady, who faces Chester farmer Rob Laas in the race for House District 27. We will run Laas' interview today along with an interview Hollandsworth gave before the primary election in the last profile of area legislative races.