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Federal judges hear PSC districting case as candidate filing deadline nears

Three seats are up for reelection on the Public Service Commission.
Three seats are up for reelection on the Public Service Commission.

An upcoming election of utility regulators is still up in the air after a panel of federal judges met Friday to consider the constitutionality of Public Service Commission districts.

Ahead of a March 14 filing deadline for candidates, the federal judges are weighing arguments that allege the PSC districts are unconstitutional and malapportioned. Two of the PSC’s five districts are up for election in 2022. The judges indicated a decision should come before the filing deadline.

Their ruling could leave the current district map in place, create an updated district map or result in the state postponing the election of these two seats.

On Friday, counsel representing the Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen argued the state Legislature should resolve the issue instead of the court.

The plaintiffs agreed that lawmakers should redraw the districts. But they noted the Legislature hasn’t called a special session and the candidate filing deadline is less than two weeks away. The Legislature’s next regular session isn’t until 2023.

If the judges ruled the districts unconstitutional but declined to create a new map, the state could forgo election of the districts until 2024 and the governor would appoint interim commissioners. The plaintiffs argued that move would equate to disenfranchisement of voters.

Copyright 2022 Montana Public Radio. To see more, visit Montana Public Radio.

Shaylee is a UM Journalism School student. She reports and helps produce Montana Evening News on MTPR.