Tuss reelected to national economic development board

Press release

The National Association of Development Organizations has announced that Paul Tuss, Executive director of Bear Paw Development Corp., was recently re-elected to NADO’s Board of Directors, representing the Central Region, a multi-state area that includes Montana.

“I am honored to once again be elected by my colleagues in our region to serve on NADO’s Board of Directors and be Montana’s voice for those initiatives that help organizations like Bear Paw Development properly serve the economic and community development needs of rural America,” Tuss said. “NADO has a strong history of advocating for public policy at the federal level aimed at bolstering the economic competitiveness of rural regions and small communities and also for providing training for economic development practitioners nationwide.”

Tuss is a Democratic candidate for the Legislature this year and will face incumbent Rep. Ed Hill, D-Havre, in the general election.

NADO provides advocacy, education, research and training for the nation’s regional development organizations and promotes regional strategies, partnerships and solutions to strengthen the economic competitiveness and quality of life across America’s local communities. Approximately 540 multi-jurisdictional regional planning and development organizations exist nationwide, including Bear Paw Development, which is Montana’s longest-serving Economic Development District, and has been meeting the economic and community development needs of northern Montana since the late 1960s.

“We are very pleased that Paul will continue in his role on NADO’s Board of Directors and be an important advocate for what resources and federal policies are needed in places like northern Montana and rural areas throughout the United States,” said Rick Hunsaker, NADO treasurer and executive director of Region XII Council of Governments in Iowa. “To be effective as regional economic developers, it is necessary to have solid partnerships at every level of government as well as with the private sector. Paul understands this and brings 25 years of experience with him to NADO’s Board to assure that the needs of rural Montana are being met.”

Tuss is the only Montanan to have ever served on NADO’s Board of Directors and also served previously as the president of the Montana Economic Developers Association.