During the 2013 Montana legislative session, it was my honor to work with Rep. Ed Lieser on a bill he sponsored. This bill was an amendment to the Montana Subdivision and Platting Act and would have addressed the growing problem of work force housing in the Bakken area of eastern Montana.

During my “day on the hill,” I testified in favor of the bill before the House Local Government Committee. Prior to the hearing, Ed showed me around the capitol and introduced me to several fellow House members. To my surprise, most of them were Republican. And, it was very clear to me that the mutual respect I witnessed between Ed and his colleagues was genuine and heartfelt. Ed’s bill sailed through Committee with bi-partisan support.

Unfortunately, right-wing Sen. Matt Rosendale sponsored competing legislation that favored the oil companies while setting up a complex “parallel universe” for local governments to deal with the haphazard work force housing was springing up everywhere and straining local resources.

Fearing the simplicity and logic of Ed’s bill, and that it might gain some traction once it reached the House floor, the Repubs “caucused” it — meaning that the Repubs put out the word that all party members MUST vote a certain way, or risk the ire, and funding, from the state GOP.

The Dems don’t do that, leaving each member free to represent his/her constituency as they see fit. That’s called, um, democracy.

Just last month, we learned that the Community Technical Assistance Program of the Department of Commerce, as well as local governments across eastern Montana, are still trying to figure out how to implement the Rosendale bill, while gray water and raw sewage continue to spill on the ground and into irrigation ditches all over eastern Montana. One attorney working with CTAP on the work force housing issue stated publicly that she brings her own food and water when she travels to Richland County. Good job, Sen. Rosendale!

I consider Ed’s opponent in the House District 5 race, Doug Adams, to be an honorable man. He was diligent and hard-working when I knew him as a Whitefish City Councilman. However, his corporatist point of view is already too well represented in Helena. And his idea to turn federal lands over to state management is a disaster waiting to happen once the state figures out how much competent management costs, and begins to sell off our public lands to private development interests.

With Ed Lieser you get a highly respected and proven legislator who really does reach across the aisle to get things done. Ed has kept his eye on statewide issues while effectively representing his diverse constituency here in the Whitefish area. You can’t ask for more from a freshman legislator. Ed has earned and deserves your support. Let’s send him back to the Capitol in 2015 — and beyond.

— Robert Horne, Jr.