OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Butte-Silver Bow Council of Commissioners Meeting: January 21, 2026

Council of Commissioners & Committees — Thursday, January 22, 2026
BodyButte Silver Bow, Montana
SessionCouncil of Commissioners & Committees
DateThursday, January 22, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:58:54

Transcript — Verbatim
2:11

I'd like to call the Butte Silver Boat Council of Commissioners regular meeting for Wednesday, January twenty-first, twenty twenty-six.

2:18

Clerk, could we please have roll call?

2:24

Ten present, one absent.

2:26

Ten present, one absence.

2:28

Please note that Commissioner Mankins is absent from tonight's agenda.

2:32

Uh Commissioner Walker, could you lead us in the prayer in the pledge?

3:01

And to the Republic for which it stands.

3:14

Next we'll move on to public comment on any item on tonight's agenda.

3:19

So I think we have a pretty full house, and we're gonna have people that are gonna want to come up and speak.

3:23

We're gonna stay really tight on the three minutes.

3:25

So as the three minutes ends, you'll see the the lights on here.

3:30

So please adhere to that.

3:32

And once it's done, then we're gonna ask you to to wrap up and then we'll move on to the next one.

3:37

Okay.

3:38

So um if anyone would like to come forward, please come forward, state your name, your address, and the item that you'd like to speak about.

3:48

Make will you will you please turn on the there you'll there's a spot right there, it'll turn on red.

3:54

There you go.

3:58

My name's Mick Ringshock.

4:00

I live at 3310 Hannibal Street.

4:02

And I would like to comment on item number 2026 41, uh council letter to the PSC, if I may as you all know we've got some interest in a data center coming forward, and the PSC is involved with that.

4:20

But I want to just give you a few facts real quickly and a recommendation.

4:27

We all know electrical prices across the country are uh just out of sight, they're surging.

4:32

And there's an outfit called PJM, which is Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland.

4:38

It serves sixty-three million people.

4:41

It's the largest transmitter of energy in the United States.

4:44

They've sent a request to FERC to put a hold on development anymore data centers because of what's happened to electrical rates.

4:51

And this is an example, and it's not here, but in that area for T in June of 2024, a megawatt day, which is twenty-four megawatts.

5:04

Last year, a megawatt day cost 269.62 cents.

5:11

Next year, a megawatt day is going to cost $329.

5:17

There are still areas where the increase has been 17%.

5:21

What's the difference?

5:22

The difference is tariffs and rate classes and strong ordinances in states that have taken action to tighten up the rules and the sideboards for data centers because it's caused such an issue across the country on transmission.

5:40

The PSC has the ability to make rate classifications, and they should separate out the rate for databases from the rate for residential units.

5:51

But this letter from this council on current circumstances is gonna have an impact on that organization.

5:58

And they're the ones that can affect this issue.

6:01

The large load tariffs are critical to what's going on in the energies and the modern energy management.

6:07

Without them, it's it's a you know wild horse race, basically.

6:13

And it's the challenges all come from high demand customers.

6:17

Residential customers will see the rising costs, but you can do a lot to hold them down.

6:24

So specifically, you got to categorize the large energy facilities.

6:29

You have to put them in their own category.

6:31

And then secondly, you have to put a tariff on it.

6:34

And what is the tariff?

6:35

It's a set rate.

6:37

It ensures that the large load customers will pay their share of all of the things that are going on.

6:43

If you look at the data center they built in Washington, they talk about there's four substations around it.

6:49

Just around that one little area.

6:52

And you need to categorize those large energy.

6:55

You have to ensure that the large load customers are addressed.

6:59

So my last thing is we need to require long-term contracts to protect the residential customers from the rising costs, and you have the ability to do this.

7:08

And Commissioner O'Leary, thank you for drafting the letter.

7:12

Thank you, Mr.

7:12

Ringsack.

7:15

Is there any other public comment on tonight's agenda?

7:19

If you'd like to come forward, please come forward, state your name, address and what you'd like to speak about.

7:28

No, it's on.

7:29

All right.

7:29

My name is Holly Genson.

7:31

I live at 116054 South Buxton Road.

7:34

I'd like to speak first on uh your communication number 22 tonight, which is the TRAN PAC.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural████████████████████████████████32%
Personnel Matters██████████████████18%
Public Engagement██████████████14%
Economic Development█████████9%
Community Engagement███████7%
Data Center Development█████5%
Engineering And Infrastructure████4%
Technology and Innovation██2%
Water And Wastewater Management██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Butte-Silver Bow Council of Commissioners Meeting: January 21, 2026

The Butte-Silver Bow Council of Commissioners convened a regular meeting on January 21, 2026, to address urgent community matters, including the appointment of an interim Commissioner for District 10, infrastructure bidding, and significant public concerns regarding economic development and energy policy. The meeting featured robust public testimony focused on the potential impacts of a new data center, the noise and environmental concerns associated with the TranPAC Manufacturing project, and a strong public pushback against AI-powered surveillance cameras.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the minutes from the January 7, 2026, regular meeting (10 yea, 0 nay).
  • Approved Section 2 of the consent agenda, comprising committee reports and communications A1-A4 and B1-B38, excluding three items segregated for further review: Communication 2026-12 (AI surveillance), Communication 2026-16 (Praxis Center update), and Communication 2026-22 (TranPAC land sale).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Mick Ringshock expressed strong support for the separation of large energy load rate classes, arguing that residential customers must be protected from the rising costs driven by data centers; he urged the Council to endorse a tariff system ensuring large consumers pay their proportionate share.
  • Holly Genson expressed opposition to the TranPAC project, citing concerns regarding noise levels (up to 120 decibels) and light pollution; she supported the need for rate controls and protective measures for residents in Buxton from potential data center impacts.
  • Jeff Gallus, on behalf of Rick McGregor, testified in strong support of McGregor as a candidate for District 10, highlighting McGregor's character and near-election victory.
  • Lila Klobacar expressed full opposition to the data center proposal, raising concerns about public health, environmental impact, water resources, and the sustainability of energy; she stated residents cannot afford the trade-offs of such development.
  • Clark Grant, Melody Rice, and others expressed explicit support for the appointment of Butch Gerbrandt to the vacated District 10 seat, citing his engineering background, history of renovating local properties, and civic engagement.
  • James Rose and an unnamed resident expressed support for James Madison as a District 10 candidate, highlighting his community involvement and home rehabilitation efforts.
  • Evan Barrett expressed full support for the letter to the Public Service Commission (PSC) regarding large load tariffs, viewing it as a necessary protection for citizens against rate hikes; he also urged that the TranPAC land sale be removed from the consent agenda for committee review due to noise pollution concerns.
  • Unnamed Commissioner (likely in testimony) expressed a stance of neutrality regarding the data center while advocating for sustainable development, emphasizing concerns about water usage from Silver Lake, fire suppression safety, home values, noise pollution, and heat island effects.
  • Adam Sammons expressed concern regarding radiation, water well impacts, and the lack of transparency on the data center's final plan and long-term effects.
  • Unnamed resident expressed full support for the data center to boost local trades but expressed strong opposition to AI-powered "Flock Safety" camera systems, characterizing them as invasive data harvesting tools and "overpriced and evil."
  • Ryan Prosek challenged the motivation behind rural data center developments, asking for a five-year "why" justification for targeting rural Montana over major urban centers, urging caution on AI surveillance.
  • Louis Pizanti expressed personal interest in the data center and questioned the lack of Environmental Impact Statements regarding server replacement cycles.

Discussion Items

  • District 10 Interim Appointment: The Council conducted interviews with five candidates for the interim District 10 Commissioner seat (Harold Gerbrandt, Douglas Ingraham, James Madison, Ann Kish, and Brian McGregor). Following the interviews, the Council determined a tie between Harold Gerbrandt, James Madison, and Ann Kish for top vote-getters. A runoff vote was held between Madison and Kish for the second spot, resulting in a win for Madison. A final vote between Gerbrandt and Madison resulted in a 6-4 victory for Harold Gerbrandt.
  • Letter to PSC (Communication 2026-41): The Council deliberated on a letter drafted by Commissioner O'Leary requesting the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) to establish a separate rate classification for large energy loads (data centers) to protect residential ratepayers from cost surges. Several commissioners expressed support, noting that Virginia and Oregon have already implemented similar protections, and urging the PSC to prioritize citizen ratepayers over large commercial interests.
  • TranPAC Manufacturing Land Sale (Communication 2026-34): The Council debated the propriety of the purchase and sale agreement for a 6.89-acre parcel in Montana Connections Park. Public testimony and commissioner concerns were raised regarding the process transparency (lack of minutes from the TEID board) and noise pollution concerns. The project owner, Christian Euland, clarified that the facility produces virgin plastic profiles (not recyclers) and has no intention of operating high-noise shredding equipment on-site. However, due to the desire for more public information and a need to clarify legal safeguards, the Council moved to hold the item in committee.
  • AI Surveillance Cameras (Communication 2026-12): The Council considered a request to schedule a presentation on AI-powered "Flock Safety" camera systems. Due to strong public opposition regarding privacy and data harvesting, the Council voted to hold the item in the Committee of the Whole pending the presentation.
  • Praxis Center Update (Communication 2026-16): Discussion revealed that the proposed presenter, Ray Rogers, was unwilling to appear before the Council at this time. The item was noted on file.

Key Outcomes

  • Commissioner Appointment: Harold Gerbrandt was appointed as the interim Commissioner for District 10, serving until the November 2026 election (Vote: 6-4). The Council plans to swear him in shortly after the meeting.
  • Energy Policy: Motion passed (10 yea, 0 nay) to authorize the Council Chairman to send a letter to the Montana Public Service Commission supporting the creation of a separate large load rate class to protect residential ratepayers from data center-induced rate hikes.
  • TranPAC Land Sale: Motion passed (10 yea, 0 nay) to hold Communication 2026-34 in the Committee of the Whole with instructions to amend the purchase and sale agreement to include language making the contract contingent upon the passage of the final Council resolution.
  • Surveillance Cameras: Motion passed (9 yea, 1 nay) to hold Communication 2026-12 in the Committee of the Whole pending a presentation on AI-powered surveillance systems.
  • Resolutions:
    • Resolution 2026-01: Passed (10 yea, 0 nay) to amend the budget to appropriate unanticipated DNRC grant revenue for remedial investigation and site planning at Father Sheehan Park.
    • Resolution 2025-72: Passed (10 yea, 0 nay) for final reading and passage.

Note: A discrepancy exists in the transcript regarding the date of the meeting. The Clerk announced the date as January 21, 2026, multiple times, while the transcript header mentions January 22 in the system prompt and the discussion references the "January 7th" minutes of the "regular meeting" held the previous week, which is consistent with a January 21st meeting (Wednesday).

Meeting Transcript

I'd like to call the Butte Silver Boat Council of Commissioners regular meeting for Wednesday, January twenty-first, twenty twenty-six. Clerk, could we please have roll call? Ten present, one absent. Ten present, one absence. Please note that Commissioner Mankins is absent from tonight's agenda. Uh Commissioner Walker, could you lead us in the prayer in the pledge? And to the Republic for which it stands. Next we'll move on to public comment on any item on tonight's agenda. So I think we have a pretty full house, and we're gonna have people that are gonna want to come up and speak. We're gonna stay really tight on the three minutes. So as the three minutes ends, you'll see the the lights on here. So please adhere to that. And once it's done, then we're gonna ask you to to wrap up and then we'll move on to the next one. Okay. So um if anyone would like to come forward, please come forward, state your name, your address, and the item that you'd like to speak about. Make will you will you please turn on the there you'll there's a spot right there, it'll turn on red. There you go. My name's Mick Ringshock. I live at 3310 Hannibal Street. And I would like to comment on item number 2026 41, uh council letter to the PSC, if I may as you all know we've got some interest in a data center coming forward, and the PSC is involved with that. But I want to just give you a few facts real quickly and a recommendation. We all know electrical prices across the country are uh just out of sight, they're surging. And there's an outfit called PJM, which is Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland. It serves sixty-three million people. It's the largest transmitter of energy in the United States. They've sent a request to FERC to put a hold on development anymore data centers because of what's happened to electrical rates. And this is an example, and it's not here, but in that area for T in June of 2024, a megawatt day, which is twenty-four megawatts. Last year, a megawatt day cost 269.62 cents. Next year, a megawatt day is going to cost $329. There are still areas where the increase has been 17%. What's the difference? The difference is tariffs and rate classes and strong ordinances in states that have taken action to tighten up the rules and the sideboards for data centers because it's caused such an issue across the country on transmission. The PSC has the ability to make rate classifications, and they should separate out the rate for databases from the rate for residential units. But this letter from this council on current circumstances is gonna have an impact on that organization. And they're the ones that can affect this issue. The large load tariffs are critical to what's going on in the energies and the modern energy management. Without them, it's it's a you know wild horse race, basically. And it's the challenges all come from high demand customers. Residential customers will see the rising costs, but you can do a lot to hold them down. So specifically, you got to categorize the large energy facilities. You have to put them in their own category. And then secondly, you have to put a tariff on it. And what is the tariff? It's a set rate. It ensures that the large load customers will pay their share of all of the things that are going on. If you look at the data center they built in Washington, they talk about there's four substations around it. Just around that one little area. And you need to categorize those large energy. You have to ensure that the large load customers are addressed. So my last thing is we need to require long-term contracts to protect the residential customers from the rising costs, and you have the ability to do this.

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