Stevensville Mayor Recall Question -

Statement Demanding Recall: This election is being held as provided by law on the question of whether Brandon E. Dewey, holding the office of Mayor, should be recalled for the following reasons: Mayor Brandon Dewey on 12-12-19 signed a contract for Services with First Call Computer Solutions totaling $79,800.00 that had not been authorized by the Stevensville Town Council in accordance with § 7-3-203(7) MCA. The Mayor's action circumvented the requirements of § 7-3-203(7) MCA, § 2-399 thru 403 of the Stevensville Municipal Code (SMC) and the Town of Stevensville Purchasing Policy Section 7.b) and 7.b) ii). The Mayor assumend the Power to Make Contracts, a Power that is assigned to the Stevensville Town Council via § 7-3-203(7), § 7-5-4301, § 7-5-4121(2) MCA and § 2-59 SMC. The Mayor's action resulted in bypassing the competitive bid and contract award process. The Town Council was not allowed to participate in the contract award process and the City Attorney was not afforded the opportunity to review the contract prior to the signing by the Mayor per § 7-4-4604(3) MCA. The Mayor's actions resulted in denying Citizens the Right of Participation, Article II, Part II, Section 8, and the Right to Know, Article II, Part II, Section 9 of The Constitution of the State of Montana, thereby violating his Oath of Office. Officer’s Statement: The Mayor did not violate Montana Law, Stevensville Code, or his oath in authorizing the purchase of IT services needed for the Town. The Town's Attorney investigated and determined that all purchasing activities were done legally and compliant with laws. Montana law has a process for bidding when dealing with "other than professional, technical, engineering, or legal services." This process does not apply to IT services. According to MCA 7-5-4301 contracts for professional, technical, engineering, or legal services are excluded from certain provisions. The Council adopted a Purchasing Policy in 2014 to delegate authority to departments and the Mayor for purchases in varying dollar amounts. Through this policy, the Council puts trust in the Mayor to spend within the budget without direct oversight. The purchasing policy states that for other professional services, including non-construction services totaling between $1,501 - $25,000 per agreement, purchases contained in the current fiscal year budget . . ., Department Supervisor's need only get confirmation by the Mayor prior to purchasing." With Council's approval in the 2019-2020 Budget, the services totaling less than $25,000 in FY2019-2020 was consented to by the Town Council. The Council had authorized several payments to the vendor after the Mayor authorized the purchase.