Public Service Commission reduces public meetings on NorthWestern Energy plan

Ready to give the Montana Public Service Commission an earful about NorthWestern Energy’s plan to provide electricity for the future?

You may not have as many chances as you did last time.

Last time NorthWestern worked on its Integrated Resource Plan, a roadmap for meeting energy needs during the next 20 years, the PSC held five public meetings, one in each of the five Public Service Commission districts.

This time around, the PSC is planning to hold just a couple of hearings.

The truncated number of meetings held by the agency comes despite a call from some groups for more opportunities, but also in the face of a shortened period to review the plan following a change in state law in 2025.

Commissioners are proposing to take public comment at public meetings July 21 and 23 in Helena, although details haven’t been released.

In April, a letter from the Montana Environmental Information Center and 18 other groups raised concerns about the limited opportunity for public comment and called for meetings in all five Public Service Commission districts.

“Given the current heightened scrutiny around NorthWestern’s decision-making, particularly arising from the recent rate case, the proposed merger with Black Hills Energy, and the utility’s plans for serving major data center loads … this transparency and public engagement are more important now than ever,” the letter said.

PSC spokesperson Jamey Petersen said state law requires only two public meetings.

The commission isn’t adding meetings in person “at this time,” she said, but Petersen said it’s accepting written comments and “including remote attendance opportunities.”

“Unlike in 2023, when the commission was able to travel to multiple districts, we are currently operating with limited staff and significantly increased workloads, which has made statewide travel infeasible this year,” Petersen said.

NorthWestern is required to hold public meetings and did so in January and February, with roughly 30 people in attendance in Great Falls, 89 in Missoula, 50 in Helena, and 70 in Bozeman, according to the utility’s records.

In an email, Petersen said she wasn’t aware of any Public Service Commissioners who attended the utility’s hearings.

The plan includes comments NorthWestern received from the public and from the Electric Technical Advisory Committee, a group established under state statute that provides input to the utility.

For example, the draft resource plan notes data centers are a concern, and said it would be helpful to have a more robust discussion about whether loads on the transmission system would require “extensive” transmission upgrades.

In the plan, NorthWestern responded that data loads need to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis through site-specific feasibility studies, and not based on hypothetical scenarios.

The groups said commissioners should hear concerns directly “as the elected officials tasked with balancing the needs of utilities with those of their captive ratepayers.”

Petersen said changes in House Bill 55 from the 2025 Montana Legislature shortened the PSC’s review time, “further limiting the ability to schedule additional in-person hearings without reducing the time available to fully consider public input.”

The law sets a new deadline of 120 days for the PSC to review a submitted plan and ensure it complies with commission rules. It keeps a minimum 60 days for public comment.