Neel Kashkari, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, is holding a town hall meeting at 12:15 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11 in the Logan Room at the Hilton Garden Inn in Kalispell.

The event also will be live-streamed at minneapolisfed.org and video will be available online afterward.

“I’ll be answering questions and discussing the local and national economy,” Kashkari said. “It’s an opportunity to learn about the [Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis] and hear directly from folks on the ground.”

The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis is one of 12 Federal Reserve banks in the Federal Reserve system, which sets interest rates and maintains other U.S. financial policies. The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis includes Montana, North and South Dakota, Northwest Wisconsin, Minnesota and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

While the organization is headquartered in Minneapolis, Kashkari regularly travels around the region and meets with other reserve bank presidents in Washington, D.C. to discuss issues and set interest rates.

He sees the Kalispell town hall—his first such event in Northwest Montana— as an opportunity to take the pulse of the Flathead Valley economy and report back from national discussions.

Larry Simkins, president of Washington Companies and a Montana native, will moderate the discussion prior to opening up the event for questions from the public.

Kashkari will touch on trends in the national economy, which he said is generally performing well, with unemployment down to 3.5% and wages slowly climbing overall. He will also highlight potential risks to the national economy, including tensions with Iran and the coronavirus outbreak.

For a more local perspective, Kashkari will discuss trends and challenges in the Montana and Flathead Valley economies, including higher unemployment, childcare, lower labor force participation and staffing shortages, particularly when it comes to seasonal workers.

Kashkari said the town hall meeting is a chance to “understand what Kalispell businesses are saying” about these issues. He will meet separately with local business leaders during his visit to Kalispell.

He said these type of events, which happen periodically throughout the region, are usually attended by a few hundred people, including students, business leaders, real estate agents and other community members. He encouraged anyone in the valley to attend the event and ask questions.

The event is free to attend.

Reporter Bret Anne Serbin may be reached at bserbin@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4459.