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Butte-Silver Bow residents sit in on Gubernatorial debate

Posted: Sep 27, 2012 11:03 PM by Katy Harris KXLF News

Butte-Silver Bow residents watched Montana Gubernatorial candidates face off at Montana Tech.
Republican candidate Rick Hill and Democratic candidate Steve Bullock were asked questions about issues they could face if elected as Governor.
Butte-Silver Bow city officials, residents and Montana Tech students filled the auditorium for the debate.
The candidates were asked how they would move Montana Tech out of the shadows of the University of Montana and Montana State University.
Both Hill and Bullock say they would invest in jobs for college graduates to keep them in Montana and build a work force.
"We shouldn't be exporting our most valuable source which is an educated student. We need to make changes in Montana's legal environment and regulatory regiment so that we can get those kind of jobs back, so that not only can they go to school here, but they can also get a job here," says Congressman Hill.
Attorney General Bullock says, "We can continue to build on our natural resources development, also encouraging the jobs of the future to make sure that they located right here in Montana."
Both Rick Hill and Steve Bullock say that they would support more Ph.D programs at Montana Tech.
"Montana Tech is certainly one of the highest quality engineering institutions in the country and obviously we need to support it. If a Ph.D program will help strengthen it, that's a good idea," added Hill.
"What we know time and time again is that employers-as they're looking to expand, as they're continuing to re-locate, they need a highly talented, educated work force. You can get that from Montana Tech," replied Bullock.
Hill says he supports the natural resources industry because he worked with people in the business for 30 years.
Bullock says his brother graduated from Montana Tech and started an engineering firm that employed up to 100 people.
The next Gubernatorial candidate debate will be October 9th in Billings.
It will start at 7-30 at Petro Hall at MSU-Billings.