Jefferson County v. Department of Environmental Quality

¶1 The Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and Intervenor Northwestern Energy (Northwestern) appeal the Fifth Judicial District Court’s judgment in favor of Petitioner Jefferson County. Appellants argue the District Court erred in issuing a writ of mandamus, granting summary judgment to Jefferson County, and enjoining DEQ from releasing a draft environmental impact statement. We reverse the District Court and remand with instructions to dismiss this action. We restate the issues as follows:

¶2 1. Whether the District Court properly granted a writ of mandamus requiring DEQ to…