Strissel, Wicks square off in race for Hill County Commissioner: Jacob "Jake" Strissel

Democrat and Bullhook Community Health Center Behavioral Health Specialist Jacob "Jake" Strissel of Rudyard is facing Republican Mark Wicks, an Inverness-area farmer and veteran, in the Hill County Commissioner 2020 Election to fill the seat of Democrat Mike Wendland, who is not running for re-election.

Strissel said his experience working within the county, helping people, makes him an ideal choice for the role of commissioner.

"Everything that I've done in my professional life has revolved around helping others and serving my community, and I think this is the next logical step," he said.

Strissel said, in addition to his role at Bullhook Community Health Center and his work as a

fifth-generation farmer, he's coached high school football, worked at the Boys and Girls Club of the Hi-Line in Havre and is a former educator.

"I've really dedicated my life to serving the community of Havre and Hill County," he said.

Strissel said he thinks the biggest problem the county is facing in the coming years is its budget and he wants to make sure the money is there for the things that Hill County needs.

He said his experience writing grants will be useful, as he's interested in seeking out ways to cover the county's needs without having to raise taxes.

"I'm all for generating new revenue ... finding alternatives," Strissel said. "You know, anything that doesn’t require raising taxes is going to be huge. I think going out and looking for those grants, being able to write those grants so we can get that funding so there will be less cost to the taxpayer.”

The county has been seeing declining funds in the past decades due to a drop in revenue derived from natural gas. Strissel said he’s unfamiliar with the issue and felt uncomfortable providing an opinion, but it’s something he will look at and doing research on now that the issue is on his radar.

He said the primary county need on his mind is improving the roads both gravel and paved, as well as addressing general infrastructure related problems.

Strissel said he knows it’s an expensive undertaking and he’s hoping there are ways to realign the budget in order to make as much of the county as self-sustaining as possible so there are more funds to deal with the areas infrastructure issues.

He said there will be times when raising mill levies might be the only way to make sure services that benefit the people of Hill County can continue and he’s willing to take flak for that if necessary.

“I realize there are times when I’m not going to be everybody’s favorite,” he said. “There will be times when we have to possibly raise taxes to keep certain entities afloat … it may be difficult as a county commissioner to make those decisions.”

But, he said, even if he receives criticism, knowing that there is a service out there that can and does save people’s lives is worth it and he thinks a lot of people in the county will understand that.

Strissel said the Havre Ambulance Service and Rudyard Rural Ambulance Service are examples of services he thinks are necessary for the county and need to be funded.

He said he went to both public meetings meeting in Hingham and in Havre to listen to people’s concerns about the service and the county’s proposed creation of an ambulance district.

The county has since changed its plans and has proposed an eight mill levy to people outside the city limits in order to keep the services, which the City of Havre has been subsidizing for years, running at full capacity.

The city has said the shortfall experienced by the service is caused by out-of-city calls, which make up 28 percent of their calls, but only provide 5 percent of the services’ income, which they asked the Hill County Commission to help them fix.

As for whether the county should have stayed with their county-wide district idea, he said he’s undecided, seeing merit in arguments made for both solutions.

Strissel said he saw significant skepticism at the meeting in Hingham and he understands there is a dynamic where people in the rural county feel the city makes decisions without them in mind.

He said he wants to help mend that gap, particularly between the western part of the county and Havre, something he said he will be in a position to do given that he’s representing District 1.

Strissel said he thinks the county has handled the COVID-19 pandemic well, but thinks there is some room for improvement.

“I’m on a lot of boards with (Hill County Public Health Director and Health Officer) Kim Larson … so I believe the county has handled things very well, but there are some things I think the county could do better.”

He said he thinks the county should defer to health experts more readily and adopt a more science-based approach to their COVID-19 related policies.

“I’m a simple man with a bachelor’s in elementary education, I mean (we should be) listening to those that are on the front lines with medical degrees, and really using them as a guiding light.”

Strissel said while he thinks his experience working along the Hi-Line makes him the better candidate for commissioner he doesn’t have anything against his opponent and wasn’t interested in making any specific criticisms.

“I do think I’m the better candidate… but I have nothing at all against Mark Wicks,” he said. “He lets me hunt on his place, our families go back generations.”