Commission holds official first reading for social host ordinance

At their weekly business meeting Thursday the Hill County Commission held the first reading of a county Social Host Ordinance, which, due to an error by the commission, was not officially held at their meeting March 18 that was originally intended to be the first reading.

The ordinance would make it a violation for the social host of a party or event who knows, or reasonably should know, that underage people are drinking alcohol to not make reasonable attempt prevent it.

The ordinance states that the host does not need to be present for the law to apply and could result in a misdemeanor charge.

A similar ordinance has been in place Havre for over 10 years, and advocates of it argue that it has been beneficial in Havre and has been proven to help reduce underage drinking, and Hill County at large would benefit from it as well.

However, Thursday’s reading primarily drew concern from Hill County resident Blake Borst, who expressed his fear that it shifts liability to landowners who may have underage drinkers use their land without knowing it.

The crux of his concern was the word “reasonable,” which he said is to open to interpretation and could be used by sheriff’s deputies to charge people unjustly.

“Well do I consider that reasonable, or does the officer consider that reasonable?” he said. “... Any time it says reasonable the officer is going to give you a ticket and you are going to have to prove yourself innocent, which is absurd.”

He asked if underage people sneak onto his property to drink would he be held liable, or if he’s out of state could he still be charged.

Hill County Commissioner Jake Strissel said he’d received similar concerns from constituents regarding the ordinance and asked similar questions about how the law could be applied.

“That is very concerning,” he said.

At the March 18 meeting, Susan Brurud, a proponent of the ordinance, addressed the concern when Strissel brought it up then as well.

She said, under Montana state law, landowners can be held liable for things that happen on their properties, but the ordinance doesn’t change that.

Brurud said it’s not used against land owners who clearly had no idea what was going on so they should need to be overly concerned.

Havre Mayor Tim Solomon said at Thursday’s meeting that the officer would need to provide enough evidence that the host should have known before a charge can be made.

Hill County Attorney Karen Alley said, as it would be a criminal charge, the burden of proof lies entirely with the prosecution.

Solomon said if, for example, a couple went on vacation and their child threw a party where people drank alcohol underage, the couple would not be charged because they obviously didn’t know and it would clearly be unreasonable to suggest that they should have.

Questions were also raised by Borst and Hill County Public Health Director and Health Officer Kim Larson about how the law would work when dealing with county-owned land like Beaver Creek Park.

“I can see where in the city it’s helped a lot, I mean its just your backyard or your neighbors backyard,” Borst said.

The commission had a brief discussion about possibly amending the ordinance to better suit the county, but voted unanimously to adopt the ordinance, after correcting the dates for the first and second readings.

The second reading of the ordinance will be April 22 and copies of the ordinance’s exact language are available to the public.

Hill County Commissioner Mark Peterson asked people to submit their concerns or endorsement of the ordinance to the commission in written form.

The commission also announced the resignation of County Superintendent of Schools Lorren Schlotfeldt, effective last Friday.

Hill County Commission Chair Diane McLean said she hopes to find someone to fill the position soon.

“I don’t even know what to say,” she said.

The commission also adopted the recommendation of the county’s insurance committee, which was to continue their relationship with the Montana Association of Counties, keep the county’s contribution at $1,325, and add the RM 1,500 plan as a health insurance option for county employees.

The committee also suggested the county participate in the MACo Wellness program, which Larson said has the potential to lower claims by doing preventative health work, a useful tool given the county’s relatively young employee base.

She said the recommendation not to make changes was a result of the committee not having enough time to examine other companies and plans, only being given about two weeks.

She said the committee is hoping to start meeting more often later this year to make a more comprehensive recommendation next year.

Larson also said she needs assistance getting the word out that, when open enrollment comes around, every county employee needs to participate, not just new ones.

Peterson suggested that the committee spread the word to their fellow employees, but Larson said it needs to be more formal and can’t just be word of mouth.

“We do that every year an no one shows up,” she said.

Peterson said they can use both methods.

The commission also approved a request for prosecutorial assistance made by Alley.