About Chris
Personal Background
I grew up in a family with four boys and parents who were hard-working business owners. My parents instilled in me a work ethic that guides me to this day. After my graduation from Billings West High School, I was fortunate enough to win a scholarship to play football for Montana Tech. Following in the footsteps of my father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, I wanted to become a business owner. My college major was Small Business Marketing and Financing. After I finished college,
I met my wonderful wife of twelve years, Leslie. We have been blessed with two children, Arabella and Liam.
Political Background - Billings City Council
My work as a public servant began in 2015 when I was elected to the Billings City Council to represent Ward 3. In the four years that I served on the Council I
- Voted against tax increases
- Voted for snow removal on residential streets
- Voted for construction of the West End Reservoir to ensure that Billings residents always have the water we need
- Voted against a pay increase for City Council Members
- Voted to eliminate wasteful spending from the city budget
- Pushed for the repair of neglected streets like Orchard Lane, King Ave East, and Hallowell Lane
- Voted to expand the 911 Call Center so that it could take more calls for service to make emergency response time better
- Voted to hire more police officers and firefighters to make our city safe
Political Background - Montana State Senator
In my work as a State Senator in the two sessions (67th and 68th), I was a member of the Judiciary, Chaired Local Government, and Vice Chaired Highway and transportation. I have passed several bills into law, a few including:
- SB 127 to ensure the people elect all municipal judges.
- SB 289 Allows tuition waivers for qualified survivors of firefighters and peace officers when they pass away during their duty.
- SB 325 Strengthened laws around privacy of marital communication.
- Voted against tax increases.
- Voted to strengthen criminal laws.
- Voted to remove restrictive laws around gun ownership.
- Voted to remove the red tape around restrictive laws on housing.
The list goes on and on.
Volunteering
I have enjoyed giving back to our community by helping our youth cultivate the same skills that have helped me throughout my life.
I have been blessed to work with groups like Thomas Carnival to provide tickets to Montana Fair for our less fortunate youth.
I am grateful for being able to be a part of the March Against Drugs and Violence since 2014.