Commissioners won't suspend college trustee

Citing their concerns about overturning a decision made by voters, Flathead County commissioners Tuesday decided unanimously that probable cause did not exist to suspend a college board member from office.

Commissioners were following up on a May complaint filed by Ed Berry.

Berry claimed that Tom McElwain, a Flathead Valley Community College board member, should be removed from office because he had missed four consecutive board meetings.

Berry’s complaint alleged that McElwain violated state law by being out of the college district for four months. Berry also said the rest of the college board members should be removed because of their alleged failure to police themselves.

Berry said state law requires commissioners to remove McElwain from office.

But Commissioner Jim Dupont said language of the state law says an elected official “may” be removed from office, the language doesn’t say it must happen.

“Tom is an elected official,” Commissioner Pam Holmquist said. “I have some problems with suspending an elected official.”

Commissioner Dale Lauman voiced a similar concern. He said he didn’t think it was appropriate for the commissioners to override the vote of the citizens and discharge an elected official from office.

Because McElwain had participated in the board meetings via telephone, it’s obvious that college officials and trustees knew he was out of town, Lauman said. But taking that step to remain involved was important and showed McElwain’s continued interest, he said.

Dupont concurred with Lauman.

“It’s not like he skipped out of town,” Dupont said. “He participated by telephone.” 

Before the commissioners voted, Deputy Flathead County Attorney Tara Fugina told them their task Tuesday was to decide if probable cause existed to suspend McElwain. If they had decided that there was probable cause, the matter would have been forwarded to District Court for a determination if McElwain was to be removed from office, she said.

Berry, an unsuccessful candidate in the May 3 election for a position on the college board, had filed four complaints about FVCC officials with the commissioners on April 27.

In May, commissioners dismissed three of those complaints.

At that time, Fugina discounted Berry’s allegation that incumbent trustees improperly used photos owned by the college in their personal election campaigns.

Another of Berry’s claims was that the college board’s financial audit was inadequate and there were conflicts of interest on the part of two trustees. Fugina suggested Berry work with FVCC personnel for an answer to his query about “how much money is flowing between the FVCC and Glacier Bank and Rocky Mountain Bank.” There is no legal requirement that the college report such specifics, she said.

 Berry referred to the wrong state statute in his allegation that the college trustees didn’t properly announce openings for trustee nominations, Fugina said.

FVCC officials exceeded the requirements for publishing notice of the election, she said, by publishing legal notices three times in The Daily Inter Lake. Two such public notices are required. And, she said, trustees published notice of their resolution to conduct an election in The Daily Inter Lake on March 13 and issued a press release on the election on March 15, meeting the requirements of the law.

In a press release issued Monday, Berry said “there have been clear indications that the public integrity of the FVCC board has deteriorated into a clique of insiders, deeply engaged in cronyism.”

He challenged the commissioners in the release.

“Will the Flathead County commissioners serve the interests of all the citizens of Flathead County, or will the Flathead County commissioners serve the interests of a clique of insiders who have attached themselves to running the Flathead Valley Community College?” Berry asked.

Reporter Shelley Ridenour may be reached at 758-4439 or sridenour@dailyinterlake.com.