October 10th, 2019

October Newsletter

  MEDA Conference a Great Success!

We had 110 attendees at our 111th Annual Conference at the Lodge at Whitefish Lake for two days of great speakers and panels.  The focus of MEDA is “Educating Your Future Workforce,” so our invited speakers included educators from across the state and our own members who have created novel ways to engage high school students in training and internships.  Click here to see the Conference Agenda.

  Adam Gilbertson Elected President of MEDA 

Congratulations go to Adam Gilbertson for being elected President of the Montana Equipment Dealers Association!  Adam is the Vice President of the Midwest Construction region of RDO Equipment.  He oversees the company’s 5 John Deere construction stores in Montana as well as Williston and Rapid City.  He joined RDO in 2003 as a Sales Professional and has steadily worked his way up to his current position.  He also served our country as Company Commander in the U.S. Army for 9 years and served a 168-person infantry in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.  He is looking forward to his two-years as President of MEDA and is excited about our focus on educating our future workforce.

Montana Restaurant Association Booth at Montana Food Show
We had a great day at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse on the campus of MSU-Bozeman on Friday, September 27.  The show is put on by the Montana Department of Agriculture as a way to showcase Montana produced food.  It was impressive to see the incredible variety of food: duck bacon, charcuterie, beef, lentils, oatmeal, goat cheeses, ice cream and dozens of other delicious products.  We made some great connections and picked up a few new members.  All in all, a great day and time well spent! 

Montana Restaurant Association Board Meeting
The Board of Directors for the Montana Restaurant Association will meet on November 13 in Bozeman to discuss several emerging issues that might require legislative action in 2021: tip pooling to reflect the federal law, off site alcohol delivery of difficult to reach locations and alcohol licensing ideas.

Department of Public Health and Human Services Bans Flavored e-cigarettes

On October 8, 2019, Governor Steve Bullock directed the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) to implement emergency administrative rules to temporarily prohibit the sale of flavored e-cigarettes.
The emergency rules will be filed on October 8, 2019, the ban will take effect on October 22, 2019 and it will last for 120 days, the maximum allowed by law. The rules will expire on Feb. 19, 2020. Link to the emergency rules 

Montana’s Minimum Wage to Increase to $8.65/hour on January 1, 2020

The Montana Department of Labor announced that the minimum wage in Montana will rise by 15 cents per hour, from $8.50 to $8.65 per hour. Click here to read the announcement.

Our guest speaker at the  September 11th Billings ORCA Meeting was. Chief Deputy Attorney General Jon Bennion. Jon learned about the success of our ORCA Group in Billings and across Montana. He also offered his perspective on changes that could be made to State Law to help lower the incidents of organized retail theft, including increased funding for drug treatment courts. As the Deputy Chief Attorney General, Jon was responsible for getting the Department of Justice's legislative agenda passed.  Jon will be attending the next Bozeman Meeting on  Tuesday, November 12th to meet our law enforcement partners and loss prevention professionals in the Bozeman market. 


 Next MTORCA Meeting Dates
Billings ORCA: Tuesday, November 12th at 3pm at the Heights Target Store
Bozeman ORCA: Tuesday, November 12th at 2pm at the Bozeman Target Store


A Carousel for Missoula
J & H, Inc.
Buck's T-4 Lodge & Restaurant
Food Services of America
McDonald's of Helena
Running Bear Pancake House
Ryan's Applebee's Group
Ryan's Denny's Group
Ryan's Famous Dave's Group
Ag Spray Equipment
Fiberglass Structures
John Deere Company
Sentry Insurance
GCR Tire Center Butte
The National Restaurant Association's ServSafe Alcohol Training provides servers and operators with the alcohol training needed to be compliant with Montana Law.  Go to ssamontana.com to learn more! Montana Restaurant Association Members get a $10 Discount with a special code! 
Email [email protected] to receive your discount code.

We are delighted to welcome these New Members to our Association!

                

              

 

Calendar of Events:
October 17th, MRA Board Meeting
November 13th, MTRA Board Meeting
November 20th, Gene Burgad Reception
November 21st, ProStart Teacher Training
March 5th and 6th, MT ProStart Invitational

  

 

Montana Retail Association