The Gallatin Valley Sentinel

04/13/2026

Right now, our city operates on a top-down model, where the system dictates the future and public input is just a box to be checked. It’s time for a complete shift in the power dynamic.

We’re proposing a new blueprint for Bozeman's local government, one built from the ground-up, not from City Hall down.

Email your public comments to the Bozeman Study Commission at [email protected] if you want your feedback included in their deliberations at their upcoming meetings on April 15, April 24, and April 30, where they will be making decisions on how commissioners are elected and how neighborhoods and advisory boards are structured.

Our 5-Point Plan for True Representation:

1️⃣ Organic Neighborhoods

2️⃣ Revitalized Advisory Boards

3️⃣ Ward-Based Representation

4️⃣ Meaningful Dialogue with Mandatory Quarterly Town Halls

5️⃣ A 7-Member Commission

It’s time to move away from a government that leads by personal ideology and toward one that follows the collective will of its people. Now is the time and the opportunity.

Read the full article at https://www.thegvsentinel.com/from-the-ground-up-a-new-blueprint-for-a-better-bozeman-local-government/.

04/05/2026

04/01/2026

Bozeman's local government has a lot of problems, and the Study Commission elected to solve them just isn't getting it.

That is why we have outlined the problems and created the solutions that need to be adopt to ensure that all of Bozeman's residents are represented. Our solutions can fully overhaul the status quo that has eroded Bozeman's neighborhoods and allowed a tone-deaf City Commission to care more about their personal agendas than the interests of residents they are supposed to represent.

Read the latest here: https://www.thegvsentinel.com/how-to-move-a-giant-why-this-is-the-problem-the-local-government-study-was-elected-to-solve/ -content

What can you do to help? Attend their next meetings on April 2 and April 15 at 4 p.m. at City Hall. Tell them what you think. Don't let this opportunity to change the fundamentals of our local government pass us by. You can also attend their meetings online at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_iWr35aglT7WtyrzQkTttuw #/registration and email your public comments to [email protected].

03/02/2026

We recently sat down with Bozeman Study Commissioners Carson Taylor and Deanna Campbell to check in on the study process and take a closer look at the transparency and accountability of the study process. The outcome of that interview raised important questions about engagement, accountability, and whose voices are actually being heard in shaping the future of Bozeman's government.

To listen to the interview and read our response, visit https://www.thegvsentinel.com/a-study-of-the-study-commission/.

The Study Commission is making decisions this week, on Thursday, March 5 at 4 p.m., on who will hold executive power in the city, commissioner pay, and more. Email them your thoughts at [email protected], and try to attend their meeting in person or online at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_iWr35aglT7WtyrzQkTttuw #/registration.

02/26/2026

The Study Commission is deciding right now how our city will be run for at least the next 10 years. Ask yourself:

Do you want Bozeman Mayor Joey Morrison or any future politician to have the power to single-handedly VETO decisions?

Especially if we move to wards, an at-large mayor with veto power could effectively silence your neighborhood's elected representative with the stroke of a pen.

Think about the stakes: A $500 Million Budget: Would you trust a politician with zero professional management experience to oversee half a billion dollars of your tax money?

The "Hire & Fire" Power: Should a politician be allowed to fire any city employee, from the Police Chief to your local snowplow driver, based on political whims?

Do you want your local mayor to become a full-time employee of the city and thereby exclude anyone who has a career from being able to serve in this capacity?

If your answer is a hard NO, you’re in the right place.

Bozeman needs to keep a professional city manager who is hired for their expertise, not a "monarch mayor" who won a popularity contest. We need to protect our city’s stability and change the way we select our mayor to ensure they remain a presiding officer, not a political boss.

Stop the power grab before it’s in the Charter. Read our latest deep dive and find out how to take action before the March 5th deadline: https://www.thegvsentinel.com/why-bozeman-needs-a-manager-not-a-monarch-and-why-the-mayor-should-be-selected-not-elected/

02/14/2026

End the Leftist Group-Think Stranglehold on Bozeman!

Here is how ...

On February 18, the Bozeman Study Commission will decide if they will keep the status quo appointment process for filling commission vacancies or if they will do what the public has asked and change the process to have special elections.

Here is what we recommend, based on public comment, our survey results, and data-backed research:

1. Mandatory Special Elections for any vacancy over 12 months.

2. If you're appointed to fill a term under 12 months, you don't get to run in the next election. End the "Instant Incumbent" advantage.

Read our full analysis at https://www.thegvsentinel.com/the-appointment-trap-why-bozemans-instant-incumbents-undermine-the-ballot-box-and-why-the-study-commission-needs-to-choose-special-elections-for-filling-vacancies/.

Email the Study Commission by noon on February 18 to tell them what YOU want! [email protected]

02/04/2026

Action Alert!

Despite the public voting for change, the Bozeman Study Commission is leaning toward keeping an appointment-based system for filling vacancies and potentially turning Commissioner roles into full-time, high-salaried positions. We believe:

❌ Appointments entrench the ability for the City Commission to hand-pick those who already agree with them and bypass the voters.

❌ Full-time requirements exclude anyone with a career from serving.

✅ We need special elections and a "citizen government" model.

Bozeman belongs to its residents, not a small group of professional politicians. Read our full response to their January 28 meeting and find out how you can take action before the deadline this Thursday, February 5!

👉 Read more: https://www.thegvsentinel.com/our-response-to-the-january-28-study-commission-meeting-on-vacancies-pay-and-more/

01/23/2026

Bozeman: Your silence is about to be interpreted as consent.

A Study Commissioner recently suggested that low public turnout means residents are "generally satisfied" with the structure of our city government. Are you?

Next Wednesday, January 28, the Study Commission will begin making major decisions on things like full-time salaries for elected officials, how vacancies on the commission are filled, and the size of the commission. These rules will shape Bozeman for the next decade.

If you want a citizen government focused on neighborhoods and not career politicians, you must act now.

Read our latest article for the common-sense reforms we support, including 7 Ward seats, term limits, and special elections: https://www.thegvsentinel.com/your-silence-is-about-to-be-used-against-you-what-you-should-do-before-january-28/

THE DEADLINE IS WEDNESDAY. Email your comments to [email protected] by 12:00 PM on January 28 or show up in person at City Hall or online at 4:00 PM. Don't let them decide your future without you.

01/01/2026

Do you know how you would answer these questions?

❓Would you want incoming Mayor Joey Morrison, who is a former community organizer and founder of Bozeman Tenants United (formerly Bozeman United for Racial Justice), to have veto power?

❓Would you like Commissioner Emma Bode, who identifies as q***r, was first appointed to the commission because of her identity politics, was an organizer with Forward Montana, and is now dating Forward Montana's lead organizer on housing, to be a full-time paid city employee where the ideologies of far-left organizations will have more of a say than you do?

We believe this all needs to be discussed and that our city government should represent all Bozemanites, not just special interests, developers, and the whims of misled activists.

Get educated and get involved by watching our latest video on representation at https://thegvsentinel.com/understanding-the-options-elections-and-representation/ and answer a few questions after to make your voice heard.

GVS will make sure your voice is heard, but in order to do that, we need you to take the time to give us your input so we can present a plurality of voices to the Bozeman Local Government Study Commission.

12/27/2025

Are you a part of the 94% of residents that believe Bozeman is heading in the wrong direction? Well, it is on pace to get worse.

Bozeman is in the middle of its official local government study, and decisions are about to be made that will change Bozeman's government for at least the next decade or more. This is a high-stakes process, but few residents even know it is going on, let alone what options are on the table to be changed.

In our latest video, we explain the options for what forms of city government are available to Bozeman. This should matter to you because the form that gets selected will determine how much power the mayor has, who manages day-to-day operations of the city, and much more.

Do NOT be left out of the conversation. Watch the video and take the survey here: https://www.thegvsentinel.com/understanding-the-options-form-of-government-and-the-bozeman-local-government-study/.

Your responses will be used to help draft a more representative government and create the change the majority is seeking.

12/13/2025

What powers should the City of Bozeman have?

Do you know what that means? It sounds important, doesn't it? Well, that is because it is! This foundational question is where the Bozeman Local Government Study should begin, and the answer shapes what our local government can and cannot do. That's right, we are being given the power to vote for what we want our local government to able to do and how we want it to represent us ALL.

It's unfortunate the official Bozeman Study Commission didn't start with this conversation months ago, but that's why GVS is doing what we are doing with our parallel study: Making sure that residents are truly given an opportunity to understand the options on the table and to decide as a community what we want our local government to look like.

Watch the presentation and share your thoughts. and please consider supporting our work!

After you've listened to the presentation, please take a few moments to let us know which type of powers you think the City of Bozeman should have. Just clic...