Billings council delays national search for city administrator and tasks operations committee with job description

On June 15 the Billings City Council discussed the recruitment process for a permanent city administrator and agreed to delay launching a national executive search while the council and staff finalize the job description and evaluate the interim administration.

Councilmember Scott Aspenlieder proposed postponing the search and allowing internal evaluation of the interim administrator’s performance. Several council members and staff supported a limited delay (the group coalesced around roughly 60 days rather than a longer 90‑day pause) so the city can refine the job announcement and consider local candidates or an adjusted organizational structure. Interim staff and council members said an operations committee meeting should consolidate edits to the draft job description and return a recommendation quickly; the council asked that the operations committee meet the coming Monday to finalize the description.

Councilmembers noted the interim administrator and the staff team have taken on extra duties during the transition, and some members urged adding permanent administrative support if the interim arrangement persists. Staff said a full national search would take 12–14 weeks when initiated; council members asked for a matrix or evaluation form so the interim administrator could be assessed if the council chooses to continue him in the role.

Outcome: council directed staff to delay the executive recruiter kickoff for approximately 60 days and asked the operations committee to consolidate and return a job‑description recommendation at an expedited meeting.