Living in Shepherd, MT: what to set up and who to call
Shepherd has no town government of its own, so Yellowstone County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Shepherd Elementary School District. Power in Shepherd comes from Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op, a cooperative utility rather than a private company.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Shepherd, 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 Shepherd.
Power comes from Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op
Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op (Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op), a cooperative utility, serves all of Shepherd. Its homes paid an average of 14.2¢ per kWh in 2025, about $127 a month (its average across Montana).
Start or move service: www.yvec.com · (406) 348-3411
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Shepherd Water Station
Shepherd Water Station supplies Shepherd: about 12% of residents live in its service area. About 88% 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 100 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 2025–Dec 2027, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.
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. MT0004920.
4 home internet providers serve Shepherd
97% of 223 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 0% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| CenturyLink | DSL | 67% | 60/5 |
| Wisp West, Celerity Internet | Fixed wireless | 99% | 100/20 |
| Nemont | Fixed wireless | 91% | 100/100 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 89% | 300/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Shepherd’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Shepherd.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Shepherd is in two districts that split the grades: Shepherd Elementary School District and Shepherd 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
Shepherd is unincorporated, so Yellowstone County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Oct 2022; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Shepherd is in ZIP code 59079
ZIP codes where Shepherd residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Shepherd | ZIP’s residents in Shepherd |
|---|---|---|---|
| 59079 | Shepherd, MT | 100% | 14% |
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 Shepherd
Who supplies Shepherd’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Shepherd Water Station (EPA ID MT0004920). 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 0.0 ppb (Jan 2025–Dec 2027), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Shepherd?
Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op (Yellowstone Valley Elec Co-op), a cooperative utility. Its homes paid about 14.2¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Shepherd?
CenturyLink, Wisp West, Celerity Internet, Nemont, Verizon (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Shepherd?
59079. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Shepherd in?
Shepherd Elementary School District and Shepherd High School District.
How do I register to vote in Shepherd?
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 Yellowstone 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.