Mike Boyett is no stranger to city government in Billings. Boyett, who is wrapping up his second term on the Billings City Council, is one of four candidates in the running to be the next mayor.
“I know a lot of people here. I grew up here. I have seen Billings change,” says Boyett.
Watch Mike Boyett discuss his qualifications for mayor:
Boyett has spent most of his life in his hometown, other than some stops during his time in the Air Force.
“I was at Ellsworth Air Force base in South Dakota working in the silos—Minutemen silos. It was very interesting of course. And then when I came back, I went into the sheriff’s department,” he says.
Boyett says his time with the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office was a valuable experience that taught him how to be able to talk to people.
“I did everything from homicides to, I was a gambling inspector. I was the fire marshal. That was a lot of fun being fire marshal. I was a polygraph examiner. That was good. Wwe cleared a lot of cases that way,” he says.
Boyett then made a move into the private sector, working his way to corporate security officer for First Interstate and also becoming a voracious volunteer in the community.
“I was zoning commissioner for 10 years, board of adjustments. I ran the McGruff Take a Bite Out of Crime program,” he says.
Boyett has served as Billings deputy mayor for the past three and half years.
He feels his experience helps set him apart, but he admits that whoever is elected will face big challenges that will need to be addressed, beginning with the budget.
“Our mill cap is at 2025 budget forever, so we need to go to the public and say, public, what do you want? How do you want us to go forward? And that is going to be the 64-thousand-dollar question is how we word it to the public. We need the public to change our tax structure,” he says.
The other glaring issue that he says needs to be focused on is public safety.
“I realize that we can’t arrest our way out of the problem, but we certainly need more jail space,” he says.
Boyett says he’ll devote his entire focus to leading the city if elected—saying he’ll make it a full-time job.
“The council and the mayor are part-time positions. I plan on being there 8 to 5 Monday through Friday. That’s what I do. If I go into it, I’m going to into it full force, he says. “The best way to get results is to be there and talk to people.”
MTN News is featuring each Billings mayoral candidate this week to give voters a closer look at their vision for the city. Next up: Amanda Housler.
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Jennifer Owen focuses on families, transparency in bid for Billings mayor
