Butte Silver Bow Study Commission Meeting - November 10, 2025

The Study Commission convened on November 10, 2025, to deliberate on the structure, funding, and governance of the Butte Silver Bow Fire Department. The meeting featured extensive public testimony regarding the conflict between career and volunteer fire services, financial constraints under the state tax cap, and calls for charter modifications to clarify the authority of the Director of Fire Services. The commission voted to establish a specific working group to research legal precedents, equipment ownership, and fiscal implications before recommending changes to the public.

Consent Calendar

• Minutes Approval: The minutes from the meeting held on November 3, 2025, were moved, seconded, and unanimously approved following a discussion on the procedure for handling email correspondence (to be added as amendments rather than read into the record).
• Correspondence: Updates regarding the ex-officio member and the handling of new emails from volunteer fire service representatives were noted for inclusion in the official record.

Public Comments & Testimony

• J.R. Richardson (Former Fire Coordinator): Expressed support for reviewing 1995-96 study commission minutes for historical context. He warned that the Fire Fund operates as a separate taxing jurisdiction approaching the state tax cap, lacking the flexibility to shift levies like other county funds, which could lead to expenditure reductions if new ballot measures increase costs.
• Banner (Citizen Advocate): Expressed strong opposition to the current trajectory of fire department consolidation. He argued the issue is one of "top-down mandatory government versus bottom-up representative democracy" and that volunteer fire stations serve as vital neighborhood community centers. He opposed the elimination of volunteer districts and the demolition of halls, urging a direct survey of residents to decide between full municipal consolidation or a blending model.
• Austin Perry (Public Servant): Expressed support for combination fire department models based on his professional experience. He argued that consolidation improves staffing, standardized equipment, and morale, though he noted historical fears of losing station identity that were overcome by unified leadership.
• Mike Bern (Citizen): Expressed concern regarding the cost-effectiveness of maintaining a 30+ apparatus fleet, which he noted outnumbers that of Billings. He raised the issue of aging frontline equipment (some 30 years old) affecting both career and volunteer departments.
• John Sorich (Former Commissioner): Expressed support for the need for volunteer services but acknowledged the necessity of charter changes. He also later expressed the position that 12 commissioners is too many and recommended a reduction to five elected commissioners plus one elected chief executive.
• Jerry Ellison, J. (Citizen), Lee Sullivan, and Riley Hash (Fire Service Members): Expressed strong support for a unified command structure, a single Director of Fire Services, and standardized training to ensure mutual collaboration and firefighter safety. They argued that a lack of consistent standards leads to confusion on the fire ground.
• Shane Worley (Battalion Chief, Career Fire): Expressed support for consolidating administrative control under the Director of Fire Services as defined in the current charter. He stated that introducing a "Fire Coordinator" position is unnecessary bureaucracy and that the root cause of disputes is conflicting language between the Charter and Ordinance, not the structure of volunteer vs. career personnel.
• James Olette (Safety and Health Coordinator): Expressed concern regarding OSHA compliance (specifically respirator fit-testing) and the lack of clarity on indemnification for volunteer employees. He argued that the current tax fund structure, which blends rural and urban levies, creates fairness issues regarding who controls spending in specific districts and who holds liability.
• J.R. Richardson (Follow-up): (No new comment, previous statement noted).
• Great Neighborhood Community Development Corp (Citizen): Expressed support for a "bottom-up" government approach, arguing against a mayor-elected/appointed model. They advocated for elected council chairs and district-based commissioners.
• Donovan Sargent (Racetrack Volunteer Fire Dept): Expressed the position that removing all language referencing volunteer fire departments from the Butte Silver Bow Charter is the necessary first step to allow volunteer districts to operate under state law, establish their own levies, and negotiate as equals with the career department.
• Dan Olson (Former Commissioner): Expressed support for maintaining rural volunteer fire protection as separate from city fire departments. He argued that the costs of a fully career-staffed rural department are unaffordable and that volunteer departments in Montana generally operate well with state-mandated standards.

Discussion Items

• Charter Ambiguity and Authority: The commission discussed the conflicting mandates between the Butte Silver Bow Charter (which places the Director of Fire Services in charge of both career and volunteer departments) and State Law (Montana Code Annotated), which suggests rural volunteer districts operate autonomously under their trustees. Ms. Casey and others noted this conflict creates an environment where volunteers revert to state law when the Director asserts authority.
• Anaconda-Deer Lodge Model: Ms. Dolan requested an opportunity to learn from the Anaconda-Deer Lodge County fire service structure regarding autonomy and consolidation. The Chair noted attempts to invite them have not yet succeeded.
• Taxing Jurisdiction and Maps: Ms. Casey requested that GIS produce a map of the fire district boundaries described in the ordinance, noting that current "metes and bounds" descriptions are difficult to visualize and verify.
• Pre-1977 Operations: The commission sought historical context on fire service operations prior to the 1977 consolidation. John Sorich and Donovan Banderab described a time when city and county fire districts were separate entities with separate funding and no cross-jurisdictional response, citing this as a source of past animosity due to "turf wars."
• Financial Sustainability of Volunteers: Concerns were raised by Mr. Silk and Ms. Casey regarding the financial viability of volunteer departments if the charter removes them from the unified tax fund. It was noted that if volunteers must levy their own taxes, they must have sufficient revenue to fund operations, a data point currently unavailable due to past budgeting practices.
• Equipment Ownership: The commission discussed the potential ownership status of equipment (grants, donations, county-owned) if volunteer language were removed from the charter. Mr. Worley confirmed that some equipment belongs to individual districts for mutual aid and wildland response, not the career department.
• Training Officer Position: Shane Worley highlighted that the position of Assistant Chief/Training Officer has been mandated in the Charter yet unfunded since 1989, preventing standardized training and qualification verification for volunteer responders.

Key Outcomes

• Motion Carried: A motion was made by Mr. DeNehy and seconded by Ms. Casey to authorize a three-member working group comprised of Cindy Perdue Dolan, Ben Thielen, and Matt Steppen to research the fire department issues.
• Work Group Mandate: The group is tasked with researching:
  • The legal implications of removing volunteer language from the Charter (including tax authority, double taxation, and funding).
  • Equipment ownership disputes.
  • The Anaconda-Deer Lodge charter model.
  • State Law (MCA) restrictions on volunteer services in Type 1 cities.
  • The 2001 Montana Supreme Court case (Eureka).
  • Revenue sources and taxing district definitions.
  • The 2024 Fire Department Master Plan recommendations.
• Collaborative Structure: Ms. Casey and Mr. Silk were designated to "tag-team" with the working group to provide background information and research support.
• Next Steps: The working group is to report findings back to the full commission, which will then deliberate on potential ballot language or charter amendments. The next commission meeting is scheduled for November 17, 2025, to discuss neighborhood councils.
• Administrative Action: A letter from Director of Fire Services Zach Osborne (expressing a desire for clarity and consolidation) will be added to the meeting minutes via email correspondence.