Living in Paradise, MT: what to set up and who to call
Paradise has no town government of its own, so Sanders County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Plains K-12 Schools. Paradise Water District has a clean five-year EPA record, but its latest lead result, 6.0 ppb, was higher than 93% of similar systems’ (the action level is 15).
I’m new in town
What to set up in Paradise, 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 Paradise.
Power comes from NorthWestern Energy
NorthWestern Energy (NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT)), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Paradise. Its homes paid an average of 14.4¢ per kWh in 2025, about $102 a month (its average across Montana, for customers on its standard service). Montana lets you buy power from another supplier; 0% of NorthWestern Energy’s home customers do, and NorthWestern Energy still delivers it.
Start or move service: northwesternenergy.com · (888) 467-2669
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Paradise Water District
Paradise Water District supplies Paradise: about 95% of residents live in its service area. About 5% 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 200 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 77% of the 15,074 systems serving 101–500 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2023–Dec 2025, was 6.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 93% 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. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. MT0000385.
1 home internet providers serve Paradise
100% of 93 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 100% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blackfoot Telephone Cooperative | DSL, Fiber | 100% | 1,000/500 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Paradise’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Paradise.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Paradise is in Plains K-12 Schools.
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
Paradise is unincorporated, so Sanders County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jan 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Paradise is in ZIP code 59856
ZIP codes where Paradise residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Paradise | ZIP’s residents in Paradise |
|---|---|---|---|
| 59856 | Paradise, MT | 100% | 70% |
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 Paradise
Who supplies Paradise’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Paradise Water District (EPA ID MT0000385). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 77% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 6.0 ppb (Jan 2023–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Paradise?
NorthWestern Energy (NorthWestern Energy LLC - (MT)), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 14.4¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Paradise?
Blackfoot Telephone Cooperative (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Paradise?
59856. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Paradise in?
Plains K-12 Schools.
How do I register to vote in Paradise?
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 Sanders 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.