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Lincoln County Commissioners agree to sign support letter for forest stakeholders collaborative
Summary
The county agreed to sign a support letter for a local forest-stakeholder collaborative seeking DNRC local-government assistance funding for facilitation of meetings; the collaborative cited long-standing interagency work and requested county sponsorship for a grant application.
The Lincoln County Commissioners voted May 20 to sign a letter supporting the Quinney Forest Stakeholders Collaborative’s application for a Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) local government assistance grant to pay for meeting facilitation.
Jennifer Nelson, who identified herself as Lincoln County Forester, introduced the request and said the collaborative has worked with the Forest Service and ranger districts for nearly 20 years and relies on grant funding to pay facilitation costs. Representatives on the call, including Tim Dhy and Julie Thirstston, described previous DNRC awards and their current facilitator arrangement and asked the board to sign a draft letter to accompany a grant application.
A commissioner moved and another seconded the motion to sign the draft letter. After brief discussion about the collaborative’s role and the value of facilitated stakeholder processes, the board approved signing and agreed to scan and send the signed copy to the collaborative’s contacts.
Why it matters: The collaborative says facilitation is its largest expense and that the requested funding would allow continued stakeholder work that supporters contend reduces litigation and improves agency project outcomes. The letter will be used as local-government backing for the DNRC assistance application.
What’s next: Commissioners asked staff to send the signed letter to the collaborative’s contacts and to provide the collaborative with a copy when completed. The collaborative representatives indicated they will proceed with their legislative outreach later in the session.
