Living in Fortine, MT: what to set up and who to call
Fortine has no town government of its own, so Lincoln County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Fortine Elementary School District. Power in Fortine comes from Lincoln Electric Coop, a cooperative utility rather than a private company.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Fortine, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Fortine.
Power comes from Lincoln Electric Coop
Lincoln Electric Coop (Lincoln Electric Coop, Inc), a cooperative utility, serves all of Fortine.
Start or move service: www.lincolnelectric.coop · (406) 889-3301
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Crystal Lake Subdivision HOA water system
The Crystal Lake Subdivision HOA water system supplies Fortine: about 4% of residents live in its service area. About 96% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws ground water and serves 34 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 78% of the 11,392 systems serving <=100 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2023–Dec 2025, was 2.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 71% of similar systems’ latest results.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0 (EPA’s estimate). Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. MT0001145.
1 home internet providers serve Fortine
99% of 170 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 99% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| InterBel Telephone Cooperative | Fiber, DSL | 99% | 1,000/1,000 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Fortine’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Fortine.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Fortine is in two districts that split the grades: Fortine Elementary School District and Lincoln County High School District.
Test scores and every school: see Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
No town hall: the county runs things
Fortine is unincorporated, so Lincoln County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jul 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Fortine spans 2 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Fortine residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Fortine | ZIP’s residents in Fortine |
|---|---|---|---|
| 59918 | Fortine, MT | 88% | 57% |
| 59917 | Eureka, MT | 12% | 1% |
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Fortine
Who supplies Fortine’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The Crystal Lake Subdivision HOA water system (EPA ID MT0001145). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 78% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 2.0 ppb (Jan 2023–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Fortine?
Lincoln Electric Coop (Lincoln Electric Coop, Inc), a cooperative utility.
What internet providers serve Fortine?
InterBel Telephone Cooperative (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Fortine?
59918 (88%), 59917 (12%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Fortine in?
Fortine Elementary School District and Lincoln County High School District.
How do I register to vote in Fortine?
Montana has no online registration; you can register in person up to and including Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before). Elections here are run by the Lincoln County Election Administrator. Check your registration at prodvoterportal.mt.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.