Interim Study Committees: Stop Studying the Problem — Start Solving It

Legislators don’t get paid much for the incredible work they do — it’s long hours, tough decisions, and plenty of sacrifice. For many, interim study committees are one of the few chances to earn a little extra. But the real question is: are all of them necessary?

Most of the time, we already know what the problems are and how to fix them. The answers aren’t hiding in a government study — they’re with the professionals who live these issues every day. And let’s be honest, unless you’re a career politician, you probably have a job back home that pays better and keeps you closer to the people you serve.

Here's How it Starts

After lawmakers head home, Helena fires up another round of “interim” or “summer study” committees. Supposedly, they’re there to dig into the tough issues between sessions. More often than not, they turn into a convenient excuse to put off decisions everyone already knows have to be made.

These committees eat up months of time, taxpayer money, and agency resources to “study” things we already know need to be fixed. Roads still need to be maintained. Schools still need to be funded. EMS and law enforcement are still stretched thin. You don’t need another committee to tell you that — you need leadership willing to act.

Let’s be honest: the people who serve on these committees are often the same ones who helped create the mess in the first place. And rather than turning to the men and women who actually work in these fields — our teachers, first responders, ranchers, engineers, and business owners — the system hands the job to bureaucrats and consultants who’ve never lived a day in the real world of these challenges.

If you want to know how to fix an ambulance shortage, ask a paramedic. If you want to know how to get housing built, talk to the builders. If you want to understand why schools are struggling, ask the local school board or the superintendent—not a study group in Helena that will file another “interim report” no one reads.

Montanans are tired of waiting around for the government to “study” what they’ve already lived through. The answers aren’t hiding in a stack of binders; they’re sitting in our communities, waiting to be heard.

We don’t need another committee to tell us what’s broken. We need the courage to fix it — and that starts with getting the experts involved and cutting the bureaucratic red tape that keeps real solutions from ever reaching the ground.

Because the longer we “study” the problem, the more it costs us — in wasted time, wasted money, and lost trust. And Montanans have had enough of all three.

Montanans don’t need more meetings — we need more results. The next time Helena proposes another “study,” we should all be asking: how much will it cost, and what’s stopping you from fixing it now?