Montana Public Service Commission

• Detected Sep 7, 2026

  Kirk BushmanAppointment

  Kirk Bushman was appointed to the Montana Public Service Commission.

• Detected Jul 20, 2026

  Brad MolnarDeparture

  Brad Molnar departed from the Montana Public Service Commission.

Address

1701 Prospect Avenue, PO Box 202601, Helena, MT 59620-2601

Phone

(406) 444-6199Fax (406) 444-7618

Website

psc.mt.gov ↗

Utility landscape

• NorthWestern Energy IOU

  Central and western Montana electric and gas service, covering roughly 400,000 customers across a large swath of the state

  NorthWestern is the dominant IOU in Montana and faces ongoing scrutiny over resource adequacy, rate design, and cost recovery for capital investments. The commission has historically engaged contentiously with NorthWestern over prudency of generation acquisitions and transmission cost allocations.

• Glacier Electric Cooperative coop

  Northwestern Montana including Glacier County and surrounding rural areas near the Canadian border

  As a distribution cooperative, Glacier Electric is primarily subject to USDA RUS lending requirements and internal member governance rather than direct MPSC rate-setting, though interconnection and reliability issues intersect with MPSC jurisdiction.

• Missoula Electric Cooperative coop

  Rural areas surrounding Missoula County, excluding the city of Missoula itself

  Missoula Electric has navigated increasing distributed generation interconnection requests driven by residential solar adoption in the Missoula corridor, creating tension with its wholesale power supply arrangements.

• Montana-Dakota Utilities (MDU) IOU

  Eastern Montana natural gas distribution serving communities including Glendive, Miles City, and surrounding Yellowstone and Dawson County areas

  MDU's Montana gas operations are a smaller footprint compared to its multistate profile, but the utility has sought recovery for pipeline integrity management costs and system modernization investments in recent MPSC proceedings.

• City of Missoula Water Utility muni

  City of Missoula municipal water and wastewater service territory

  Following the city's acquisition of Mountain Water Company after prolonged litigation, the municipal water system remains under MPSC jurisdiction for rate-setting purposes, an unusual posture for a muni utility that has generated ongoing jurisdictional and rate design disputes.

• Flathead Electric Cooperative coop

  Flathead Valley and Lake County in northwestern Montana, one of the larger coops in the state

  Flathead Electric serves a high-growth recreational corridor with increasing electrification and EV infrastructure demand, and has been active in Bonneville Power Administration wholesale contract negotiations that affect member rates.

Key issues

• NorthWestern Energy general rate case cycle: Following its last major rate case, NorthWestern is expected to initiate or is in active proceedings for cost recovery tied to the Yellowstone County generating facility acquisition and ongoing transmission infrastructure investments, with MPSC scrutiny focused on whether acquisition premiums were prudently incurred.
• Resource adequacy and capacity planning amid coal retirement: Montana's dependence on Colstrip Units 3 and 4 creates acute capacity replacement pressure; MPSC is actively engaged in reviewing NorthWestern's integrated resource planning filings to ensure adequate replacement capacity timelines as Colstrip co-owners accelerate exit discussions.
• Renewable energy integration and net metering reform: The MPSC has been evaluating reforms to net metering tariff structures and standby charges for distributed solar customers, balancing NorthWestern's cost-shift arguments against consumer and clean energy advocate opposition, with the proceeding drawing significant stakeholder intervention.
• Municipal water rate jurisdiction — City of Missoula: The MPSC's continued assertion of ratemaking jurisdiction over the Missoula municipal water system remains contested, with pending questions about the appropriate rate of return, capital investment recovery, and whether the city can exercise municipal authority to supersede commission-approved rates.
• Grid modernization and advanced metering infrastructure cost recovery: NorthWestern has sought or is anticipated to seek recovery mechanisms for AMI deployment and associated cybersecurity infrastructure, raising questions at the MPSC about the appropriate ratemaking treatment and consumer data privacy safeguards.

Upcoming

• 2026-09-15

  Estimated deadline for NorthWestern Energy to file updated integrated resource plan with MPSC reflecting revised Colstrip retirement scenarios and replacement capacity procurement strategy; exact date subject to commission scheduling order.

• 2026-10-07

  Estimated MPSC open meeting at which commissioners are anticipated to consider next procedural steps or issue a decision in the pending net metering tariff reform docket, following conclusion of the comment period.

• 2026-11-18

  Estimated evidentiary hearing date in NorthWestern Energy rate case or cost recovery docket related to Yellowstone County generating facility prudency review; date estimated based on typical MPSC procedural timelines following initial filing.

• 2027-01-12

  Estimated MPSC decision expected on Missoula municipal water rate jurisdiction and rate design proceeding, following anticipated fall 2026 hearings; timing is approximate and contingent on hearing completion and commission deliberation schedule.