Montana Supreme Court Clears Butte-Silver Bow Data Center Vote for November Ballot

Montana voters will decide in November whether Butte-Silver Bow residents can block data center construction without their approval.

The Montana Supreme Court ruled that a citizens’ initiative requiring voter consent for any data center construction in Butte-Silver Bow will appear on the November ballot, overturning a retroactive deadline change by the county elections administrator. This decision clarifies the application of signature deadlines under a new state law and reinforces direct democracy in local land use matters.

The initiative, backed by the group 406 People First, gathered more than the required 3,652 signatures before the original August 14 deadline. However, the county elections office retroactively moved the deadline to July 13, which the District Court initially upheld. The Supreme Court reversed that ruling, citing public interest and the risk of disenfranchising voters if the initiative were excluded. The court drew on Senate Bill 11, passed in 2025, which set signature submission four weeks before ballot certification, tightening previous deadlines by 10 days. A similar Yellowstone County initiative failed to overcome the deadline challenge.

The Butte-Silver Bow initiative will now appear on the November ballot as ordered Tuesday.

Montana’s rural and semi-rural communities may watch this case closely, as it highlights tensions between local control and state regulatory changes. Communities with evolving tech infrastructure interests might find the ruling a precedent for how voter initiatives can influence economic development under new legislative frameworks.

Montana Supreme Court allows Butte data center initiative onto ballot
By Micah Drew, Daily Montanan