“Did you hear that?” Megan McCauley asked as we talked in her new office at City Hall.
She was referring to a short, sharp chime that came from her computer, situated just to the right of us. “That’s what drives my day. That’s what drives my job.”
The chime, McCauley said, means another email has come in, and there are an awful lot of them, one after another.
As city clerk, it is McCauley’s job to prioritize her emails and stay on top of all city business, be it reporting, banking, researching insurance, studying zoning, reading ordinances, reading Montana Code Annotated or – as is the case this time of year – determining the budget.
“That’s priority number one,” said McCauley, a Helena native. “It’s been pretty crazy timing.”
But McCauley is up for the challenge, as she has an extensive background in government. For close to three years she was an office assistant for the Jefferson County Road Department. She also served as claims examiner for the Montana State Fund, managing claim caseloads, tracking expenditures and claiming medical statuses. She’s comfortable with budgets, and with what the position entails.
Still, she has a bit of a learning curve. As she navigates the new position, she has a lot of help, thanks largely to City of Boulder accounting assistant Rose Perna and former clerk Ellen Harne, who has made herself available to assist when needed.
It’s early yet to set goals but McCauley said it’s her intention as city clerk to keep misunderstandings to a minimum and do her best to ensure the community stays community driven. In order for this to happen, she said more people have to get involved by coming to meetings and participating in public comment.
A Boulder resident for close to 10 years, McCauley said she’s fallen in love with Boulder, and wants to do all she can to keep it charming. She looks forward to doing her part. She’s happy to share any information on operations and proceedings with the community. She records all meetings and documents and publishes all ordinances and resolutions.
“We have nothing to hide,” she said. “We work for the residents, and we want to hear from you.”
McCauley can be reached at (406) 225-3381 or by chiming into her email, cityclerk@cityofbouldermt.com.
