Chouteau County Republicans vie for commissioner seat: Clay Riehl

Republican incumbent Clay Riehl is running for reelection to keep his seat on the Chouteau County Commission against fellow Republican and local business owner Dan Wirth.

Riehl said he's a lifelong resident of the county and he feels he's still the best person for the job, having had a successful first term as a commissioner.

He said the county is working on administering its American Rescue Plan Act funds, which is a huge boon for the community, and he wants to continue his work on that issue.

"I wanna see it through to the end. It's a pretty exciting deal," he said.

Riehl said. how the county dealt with ARPA funds, with the help of Bear Paw Development Corp., is one of the commission's standout recent accomplishments, having allocated and spent their funds more quickly and efficiently than the vast majority of counties, which has prompted people at the state level to point to them as how to do it right.

He said water projects funded by the program are already underway while some counties are still figuring it all out and that's the kind of thing he wants to keep contributing to.

In general, he said, the county's finances are in a better place than they've ever been, with the budgets balanced and money and resources being stretched as far as they can.

Riehl said the county's finances weren't in a dire state when he got there, by any means, but the current commission has consistently made improvements that have brought it to a much-better place over the years.

He said the commission is always striving to improve county roads, which he knows are an issue for county resident and he'd like to continue improvements on that front as well.

"Roads are on everybody's minds," he said, "They see them every day, they drive them every day, so I really understand that."

He said he also wants to continue making the community hospitable to new businesses by offering tax holidays and other benefits that will increase economic development.

Riehl said his six years of experience on the commission, has taught him a lot and he thinks that experience is a big part of the reason for why he remains the best person for the job.

"I think it takes a commissioner two to three years to truly understand the job," he said. "You develop a network of contacts in Helena and with other commissioners in other counties, and there's a lot to be said for that."

He said he's also spent decades serving on various boards of directors including that of Opportunities Inc. and the Area III Agency on Aging, and has experience managing employees in the public and private sectors.

Riehl said there aren't any massive problems the county is facing at the moment, but there are always things that can be improved, and he feels that he and his fellow commissioners have successfully made steady progress on those improvements over the years and he'd like to keep doing that.

He said he also gets along well with the public and tries his best to meet people in person when they contact him about an issue so they can really have a chance to talk about what's on their mind.

He also said he has a great relationship with his fellow commissioners and with others at the courthouse which he said runs exceptionally well.

"I'm very fortunate to work with a great bunch of people," he said.