HELENA — Wednesday in Helena, advocates made their case on whether the state correctly granted NorthWestern Energy a permit for their planned power plant near Laurel.
The Montana Supreme Court met before a full audience Wednesday morning, to hear oral arguments in a case that centers on whether the Montana Department of Environmental Quality did sufficient environmental analysis when approving an air quality permit for the Yellowstone County Generation Station – a 175-megawatt natural-gas-fired plant.
Jonathon Ambarian
A full audience was in attendance May 15, 2024 as the Montana Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case that centers on NorthWestern Energy’s planned Yellowstone County Generating Station near Laurel.
Last year, a state district judge in Billings vacated the permit. It came after environmental groups challenged DEQ’s decision, saying the agency hadn’t taken the required “hard look” at issues like the plant’s greenhouse gas emissions and the impact of its lighting and noise on nearby residents.
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During Wednesday’s arguments, DEQ and NorthWestern defended the permitting decision and called on the Supreme Court to reverse the district court ruling.
Shannon Heim, NorthWestern’s general counsel and vice president of federal government affairs, said greenhouse gases aren’t regulated the same way as other pollutants, so DEQ didn’t have authority to regulate them. Therefore, she argued the permit can’t be vacated simply because the department didn’t review their impacts.
“The DEQ could not, in the exercise of its lawful authority, deny the permit based on greenhouse gas emissions, because there are no legal standards for greenhouse gas emissions,” she said.
Jonathon Ambarian
Jenny Harbine, an attorney for Earthjustice, addressed the Montana Supreme Court May 15, 2024, during oral arguments in a case that centers on NorthWestern Energy’s planned Yellowstone County Generating Station near Laurel.
Jenny Harbine, an attorney for Earthjustice, represented the plaintiffs – Montana Environmental Information Center and the Sierra Club. She argued DEQ is required to look more broadly at the possible impacts of a project, and that the emissions from the Laurel plant had to be considered in the context of the potential effects of climate change in Montana.
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“Plaintiffs here are not criticizing the analysis that DEQ did do,” she said. “Our point is that there’s analysis that DEQ omitted.”
Harbine said plaintiffs are also concerned that, because the district court put a stay on its decision and NorthWestern was able to resume construction, they could begin operations without having had the full review plaintiffs believe is necessary.
Both sides in this case noted that the issues raised here overlap with those in Held v. Montana, the prominent climate change lawsuit that is also now before the Montana Supreme Court. In Held, a state district judge ruled that a law preventing regulators from considering greenhouse gas emissions in environmental reviews was unconstitutional. The 2023 Montana Legislature passed that law in response to the judge’s decision that vacated the permit for the Laurel plant.
Jonathon Ambarian
Jeremiah Langston, an attorney for Montana DEQ, addressed the Montana Supreme Court May 15, 2024, during oral arguments in a case that centers on NorthWestern Energy’s planned Yellowstone County Generating Station near Laurel.
Jeremiah Langston, an attorney for DEQ, said the department had been planning to update its review in light of that law when it was blocked. He encouraged the Supreme Court to make its decision in Held and this case at the same time or somehow tie them together.
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“It would be immensely helpful to DEQ to know what laws apply to its MEPA analysis for a project,” he said.
Harbine said Held gave an example of the broad impacts of the state’s policies on climate reviews, and this case provided a specific example.
“I would just urge that whether the issue is resolved in this case or in Held – or in both, which we think is most appropriate – that it be done in a manner that prevents the constitutional infringement that would be caused when that plant begins operating and emitting greenhouse gas emissions before those emissions have been studied by DEQ,” she said.
The Supreme Court generally takes no immediate action after an oral argument, and that was again the case Wednesday.
Jonathon Ambarian
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Attendees hold signs protesting against NorthWestern Energy’s planned power plant near Laurel, during a May 15, 2024, rally organized by Northern Plains Resource Council.
After the hearing, the conservation group Northern Plains Resource Council held a rally at the State Capitol, saying the possible impacts of the Laurel plant’s emissions need to be taken into account.
Those in attendance chanted “Clean and healthful; it’s our right!” – referring to the Montana Constitution’s guarantee of a “clean and healthful environment.”
Mary Fitzpatrick, a Northern Plains member, said people in Laurel and downwind of the plant in Billings have concerns about the potential health effects. MTN asked her what she thought would have changed if DEQ had taken a closer look at the plant’s greenhouse gas emissions.
“It’s hard to say – you know, just listening to the arguments, I got the impression that, possibly, nothing – except that we would know,” she said. “You can’t manage or change what you don’t measure.”
John Hines, NorthWestern’s vice president of supply and Montana government affairs, said the company sees the capacity of the Yellowstone County Generating Station as critical to make sure they can keep serving customers when other resources aren’t available. He said solar and wind production tends to be more unreliable during extreme weather, and that the company will be forced to pay more to purchase power on the open market if it doesn’t have a on-demand generation facility like this.
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“The bottom line is we have to have enough electrons and enough gas on our system to meet our customers’ needs when it’s critical weather – and, you know, we saw that in January when it was -45,” he said. “That’s our first obligation. And none of the groups who are throwing out alternative proposals have that responsibility.”
Hines said, if YCGS had been in operation during the January cold snap, it could have saved customers about $12 million over six days. He said renewables are a significant part of NorthWestern’s portfolio, and that it’s unfair for opponents to accuse the company of building the plant for profit because they could make more profit by building the same capacity in renewable projects.
Hines said YCGS could be fully operational within the next month and a half. He said NorthWestern has taken steps to address some of the concerns neighbors have raised about lighting and noise.
“We’ve been operating Yellowstone now in a test mode for quite some time, and local people have been asking us when are we going to start the engines,” he said. “So obviously the noise issue has been abated.”
Carroll College tight end Carson Ochoa caught five passes for 125 yards and three touchdowns in the Saints’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 loss to Montana Tech Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, inside Alumni Coliseum.
Carroll College safety Braeden Orlandi breaks up a pass intended for Montana Tech wide-out Levi Torgerson Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, during the Orediggers’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over the Saints.
Montana Tech wide-out Levi Torgerson totaled 124 yards receiving, caught two touchdowns, and tossed a 21-yard score to Orediggers QB Jarrett Wilson in Tech’s 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over Carroll College Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, inside Alumni Coliseum. Torgerson was selected game offensive MVP.
Montana Tech QB Jarrett Wilson completed 11 of 16 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in the Orediggers’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over Carroll College. Wilson carried the football 15 times for 94 yards. He also caught a 21-yard touchdown.
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Montana Tech QB Jarrett Wilson completed 11 of 16 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in the Orediggers’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over Carroll College. Wilson carried the football 15 times for 94 yards. He also caught a 21-yard touchdown.
Email Daniel Shepard at daniel.shepard@406mtsports.com and find him on X/Twitter @IR_DanielS.
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Montana Tech beat Carroll for the 5th-straight time Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, advancing to the NAIA Football Championship Series Quarterfinals.…
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Montana Tech wide-out Levi Torgerson totaled 124 yards receiving, caught two touchdowns, and tossed a 21-yard score to Orediggers QB Jarrett Wilson in Tech’s 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over Carroll College Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, inside Alumni Coliseum. Torgerson was selected game offensive MVP.
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Montana Tech QB Jarrett Wilson completed 11 of 16 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in the Orediggers’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over Carroll College. Wilson carried the football 15 times for 94 yards. He also caught a 21-yard touchdown.
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Montana Tech QB Jarrett Wilson completed 11 of 16 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, in the Orediggers’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over Carroll College. Wilson carried the football 15 times for 94 yards. He also caught a 21-yard touchdown.
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Carroll College safety Braeden Orlandi breaks up a pass intended for Montana Tech wide-out Levi Torgerson Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, during the Orediggers’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over the Saints.
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Carroll College kicker Kai Golan recovered an on-side kick in the third quarter of the Saints’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 loss to Montana Tech Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, inside Alumni Coliseum. Golan’s recovery led to a Saints touchdown that pulled Carroll within three points.
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Montana Tech head football coach Kyle Samson celebrates the Orediggers’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 victory over Carroll College Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, inside Alumni Coliseum.
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Carroll College tight end Carson Ochoa caught five passes for 125 yards and three touchdowns in the Saints’ 31-21 NAIA Football Championship Series Round of 16 loss to Montana Tech Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025, inside Alumni Coliseum.
Americans for Prosperity (AFP), a libertarian special interest group, would have you think so. And it is sending out postcards and online ads claiming that Republicans who worked with Governor Greg Gianforte to produce a balanced budget are “pouring gasoline on the fire.”
The problem is that the “accountability information” AFP is peddling is false.
Did the state budget “explode” by $16.5 billion? NO! That number is the two-year appropriation in the General Appropriations Act (HB 2). It is not how much the budget increased. The actual increase in the total state budget was $142 million over two years—a tiny fraction of the amount claimed by AFP—according to the official budget comparison as calculated per state law (17-7-151, MCA) and validated by analysts at the legislature’s nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Division. Was there a 13.5% increase in state spending? NO! AFP’s number comes from considering only part of the state budget. The total state budget grew by only 0.7%, according to the official budget comparison cited above.
Did the budget grow at “2x the rate of inflation and 7x the pace of population growth”? NO! Budget growth was 0.7%—obviously much less than what AFP claims.
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Is Montana running “massive deficits”? NO! he state constitution requires a balanced budget, and the budget we passed is balanced. Montana does not engage in deficit spending. Furthermore, Montana is the only bond debt-free state in the nation because of legislative actions taken over the past two sessions.
Was this the “biggest budget in Montana’s history”? Yes. But that could be said about any year in at least the recent past (I looked back 10 years). Why is that? A big reason is that inflation drives up the cost of providing the services that most Montanans expect, e.g., law enforcement, a corrections system, mental health and drug treatment, an education system, and management of our public lands, to name only a few. Good government is about providing those services as cost effectively as possible. Governor Gianforte and his allies in the legislature have been doing just that.
Americans for Prosperity might be forgiven if they simply misunderstood a thing or two about state finance. But AFP got so much wrong that one can only conclude that it willfully distorted the truth in order to mislead Montana citizens. Where I come from in Montana that’s called lying.
David Bedey is a Republican state Representative from Hamilton.
As ski season approaches and temps drop, Showdown Montana is once again turning the opening month into a chance to help the community while saving big.
Skiers can reduce the cost of a $70 lift ticket to $20 merely by contributing canned goods.
Katie Boedecker, President and General Manager of Showdown Montana, stated that the endeavor represents the company’s long-standing commitment to supporting local families.
Quentin Shores reports – watch the video:
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Showdown Montana offers discounts in exchange for canned food donations
“It’s just a hard time of year for families and for people that need help. And we want to do everything we can to support this,” she explained. “We’ve been doing a food drive for at least 35 years up here.”
This year, the program is expanding. Rather than transporting donations up the mountain, visitors can now drop off 20 canned food items at participating food banks in Great Falls, Helena, Billings, Bozeman, and White Sulphur Springs.
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In exchange, they will receive a certificate for a $20 lift ticket valid on any operational day in December.
“If you bring 20 cans of food to those food banks, you will get a voucher for a $20 lift ticket,” explained Avery Patrick, Showdown’s vice president and marketing director.
The new system also reduces the pressure on food banks. In earlier years, personnel had to drive trucks up the mountain to collect donations, which was a logistical nightmare during the winter. Donors can now go directly to the source.
Shaun Tatarka of the Great Falls Community Food Bank explained that bringing food to the food bank will result in a lift ticket. “There’s a limit of only ten per person.”
Donors may exchange up to 120 cans for reduced tickets while supplies last. The food bank is especially in need of cereal, canned chili, soups, and canned fruit, which help households get through the colder months.
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“People really enjoy giving at this time of year,” Tatarka said. “We really rely on November and December for about 50 to 60% of our income and donations.”
Showdown plans to start on December 5, but vouchers can already be picked up during regular food bank hours.
Showdown Montana’s official opening date is December 12, though they may open on December 5 depending on conditions.
Showdown is about 65 miles southeast of Great Falls; click here to visit the website.
