Butte-Silver Bow fire chief warns legal gaps, staffing and funding strains threaten safety; commission seeks more review

Director of Fire Services Zach Osborne told the Butte-Silver Bow Study Commission on June 9 that long‑running contradictions between the county charter, state law and local ordinances have produced safety, liability and staffing risks for both paid and volunteer firefighters.

Osborne said House Bill 547 — a bill he described as a "safety bill" intended to resolve statutory contradictions introduced by a 1979 law (House Bill 392) — was vetoed by the governor this spring. "We are being asked to absorb 100% of the liability with 0% of control," Osborne said, arguing that without statutory clarification volunteers cannot simultaneously claim legal independence while using city‑county equipment, facilities and insurance.

Osborne framed the problem historically: after Butte and Silver Bow consolidated in the 1970s the charter (Article 7, sec. 7.03) intended the consolidated fire department to include both paid and volunteer divisions. He said subsequent state statutes and attorney‑general opinions introduced ambiguity about whether volunteers within consolidated governments retain independent legal and budgetary status. He told commissioners HB547 would have restored primary reliance on the charter and local ordinances and thereby clarified oversight and safety responsibilities.

Why it matters: Osborne said the lack of clear authority has…