Marion Fire District
P.O. Box 939, 180 Gopher Lane, Marion, MT 59925
Phone: (406) 854-2828 / Fax: (406) 854-9330
Website: www.marionfd.org
BOARD OF TRUSTEES – Minutes
Board of trustees in attendance: Aaron Jones, Betty Heino, Sarah Reide
Other guests in attendance: Chief Jason Hill, Captain Neil Heino, Sue Dexter
Community members in attendance: Emily Eagan, Mark Young, Paula Young, Travis Reide, Lily Brower, Blake
Howell
DATE: April 30, 2025
Time: 6:34 pm
Place: Marion Fire District Community Center at 180 Gopher Lane, Marion, MT
PLEDGE
PUBLIC COMMENT
(Matters under the jurisdiction of the Marion Fire District Board of Trustees that are not on the agenda may
be addressed by the public at this time. However, the Board is generally prohibited from taking action on
matters until the public has been provided sufficient notice.)
1. Laurel Clark / Chief Jason Hill
a. Provided map with property and McGregor station, currently on permanent easement
i. Trying to sell it but the easement is preventing any sale
ii. Documentation was not disclosed from realtor
b. Laurel’s options for Marion Fire Department:
i. Grant FD the land as a gift, and whatever documentation says its allotted
1. Need to make boundaries
ii. Buy more land from her and make new boundaries – subdivide
1. Figure out how much FD would need
2. Aligning with current real estate pricing
iii. Buy entire plot
c. Property has been for sale, but no appraisal has been completed yet
i. Two perc tests, passed
ii. No HOA or covenants
iii. Was going to drill two wells, had plans made
d. Board discussion on how to proceed with proposal from Laurel:
i. Betty Heino: Marion FD is a growing entity that will potentially need more space
ii. Aaron Jones: If FD could take 2-3 acres, that would give more room to build a better
station and take care of septic + parking issues
iii. Betty Heino: Request to Laurel to keep board updated monthly as new information
comes up
iv. Aaron: Work with Sue on budgeting
e. Overall request is to determine how much land Marion FD will need
AGENDA
I. Call to Order, Roll Call and Establishment of Quorum was completed by Chairman Aaron Jones
II. Consent to Agenda
a. Betty Heino: Motion to consent to agenda
i. Sarah Reide seconded
ii. Motion passed
III. Approve previous board minutes (March 2026)
a. Betty Heino: Motion to approve March 26th minutes
i. Sarah Reide seconded
ii. Motion passed
IV. Reports
a. Financial Reports (through March 31st) – Sue Dexter (see attached report)
i. Review of current warrants / claims for payment
ii. Review Treasurer’s Reports
1. Currently at 71% of budget
2. Nothing notable stands out this month
iii. End of May: ~$90,000 tax assessment funds to add to funds
iv. Next month: new insurance included
1. Previously we made payments for insurance
2. New company we paid in full: ~$32,001
v. $104,000 total in operating includes insurance payment
vi. Discussion of account values:
1. Betty Heino: How much will we have left at the end of the year? Will we have
extra money to put into capital account?
2. Sue Dexter: Money will be slim for transferring anything into capital.
a. Last year we waited until last minute to see if we were going to transfer
any money over.
b. Plow truck funds: Recommend not transferring anything back and forth
as it’s a small amount
3. Betty Heino: We added personnel – how does it impact budget?
a. Sue Dexter: Pretty minimal effect, budget is okay through end of fiscal
year (69% of budget).
vii. Pintler Account Updates
1. $2500 in accounts receivable – list of people who make small monthly
payments
a. ~$16,000 billing for the month
b. Fire Chief report & updates – Chief Jason Hill (see attached report)
i. Calls overview
ii. Hired administrative assistant to help with office duties
iii. Review of station maintenance and repair updates
iv. Ongoing and completed projects overview
1. Bitterroot
2. Boisvert
3. Auxiliary – received turnouts
v. Community events recap
vi. Overview of training
vii. Other updates
1. ISO meeting
2. Waiting for quotes for new tender
3. Annexation of McGregor Meadows
c. EMS report – Captain Neil Heino (see attached report)
i. New EMR class mid-May
1. County will cover all costs
2. 2 people in Ashley, 3 in Marion
3. Some training in Ashley, some training in Marion
4. Takes ~50 hours
ii. Asphalt project in Ashley still pending
iii. EMS education is also still pending – slow process
1. Need to visit with college
2. Need to put someone through it every 2 years
V. Action Items
a. Board bylaw updates – Betty Heino
a. County said they never received bylaws from Marion FD – no documentation on file
i. Betty recommends that board signs provided, updated bylaw document
1. Betty Heino and Chief Jason have prepared bylaws to sign
b. Moving forward, Betty recommends forming committee of at least two people to review
bylaws
c. Betty Heino made motion to approve the Marion FD bylaws as presently written and
have it signed by the board and have it sent to the county commissioners.
i. Discussion among board members on why the sudden push for signatures on
the bylaws
1. Potential risk without bylaws being listed on file with county
ii. Board members signed bylaws provided
iii. Sarah Reide seconded motion from Betty Heino
iv. Motion passed
VI. Additional discussion items:
VII. New bussiness
a. Aaron Jones / Sue Dexter:
i. Medical insurance for personnel
1. Permissive levy that Marion FD can apply for to pay for health insurance
a. Added onto taxpayers’ tax bills as a line item
2. No other districts currently use it, but there have been several inquiries
3. Have until August 1st to have application completed
4. Sue Dexter – email: Tax code to help support district budget
5. Discussion on effect on taxpayers
6. Currently pay $30,000 for health insurance for personnel
a. ~5,000 residents in the district
b. Would increase individual taxes by approximately $6
7. Chief Jason: Permanent levy is an option to be used each year
a. Can use varying percentage of levy
8. REQUIRES PUBLIC HEARING
9. May discussion item
10.June action item
VIII. Announcements:
a. Board openings (2)
a. Advertise available board positions on website and social media
b. Next meeting: May 20
th @ 6:30pm
IX. Adjournment – Time 7:55 pm
a. Betty Heino: Motion to adjourn
i. Sarah Reide seconded
ii. Motion passed