Tester sets flood outreach meetings

U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., has set a series of meetings to gather information and answer questions about flood-related issues, with a Havre meeting set for Monday, July 11.

The two-hour sessions are designed to connect residents affected by flooding to resources available from state and federal agencies, said a press release announcing the meetings. The Havre meeting will start at 11 a. m. at the Timmons Room of the Hill County Courthouse.

The state is reeling from widespread flooding, which led to a disaster declaration issued by President Barack Obama June 17.

The state Disaster and Emergency Services has scheduled initial meetings to start the disaster recovery process around the state, with one set to start at 9 a. m. Tuesday in the Hill County Electric Hospitality Room just west of Havre.

Tester’s outreach meetings will be similar to an information session he organized in mid-June, when he provided information to Billings-area farmers and ranchers affected by flooding, the release said.

The senator is inviting to each meeting representatives from the Farm Service Agency, Natural Resource Conservation Service, Rural Development and Risk Management Agency, Montana Department of Revenue, Montana Disaster Emergency Services Division, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Small Business Administration, Red Cross, local food banks, Human Resource Development Council and local councils on aging.

Tester also put up an online page helping victims of the flooding connect with resources, at www.tester.senate.gov/flood.

Tester has set 10 outreach meetings in communities across the flooded regions of the state from July 6 through July 12. His staff also held meetings in flooded areas in the end of May.