Supreme Court puts Butte’s data center initiative back on the ballot
The Montana Supreme Court has ordered a ballot initiative requiring citizen approval for data center development to be placed on the November ballot in Butte-Silver Bow County. This ruling overturned a lower court's decision that had initially blocked the initiative. The county has expressed uncertainty on how to comply, given that ballots have already been printed and some distributed.
Voters in Butte-Silver Bow County will now have the opportunity to consider a ballot initiative that would mandate citizen approval for data center development. The Montana Supreme Court recently overturned a lower court's decision, which had previously prevented the initiative from appearing on the November ballot.
In response to the Supreme Court's ruling, Butte-Silver Bow County officials stated their intent to comply but expressed confusion regarding the implementation. Ballots for the general election have already been printed and some distributed without the initiative included. The county has formally requested guidance from the court, proposing solutions such as modifying existing ballots or issuing supplemental ballots.
The initiative, organized by 406 People First and Denise Kelly, would necessitate a special election where two-thirds of all registered voters must approve a data center project before the county can authorize its construction or expansion. Organizers initiated legal action against Butte-Silver Bow County in August after being given incorrect information regarding the petition signature submission deadline.
A district court judge initially rejected the organizers' request to include the initiative on the November ballot due to the confusion over the deadline, a decision that was subsequently appealed by the plaintiffs' lawyer, John Meyer, leading to the Supreme Court's intervention.