Tag: 2023 Legislature

State legislators are presenting a resolution to save the wild horses at TRNP

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

The National Park Service has been studying the livestock including wild horses in Teddy Roosevelt National Park; they can’t find a natural reason within the Park Service’s mandate for them to remain. It’s an issue that, now exposed, is riling up citizens. They’re reached out to state legislators for support. Adrienne Oglesby with KX News

Read & Share   sourced from: KX News

Morality Laws and State Hospital Funding Advance in Legislature

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

The North Dakota State Hospital is stepping towards a new investment. The first step is funding to demolish five buildings on the existing campus in Jamestown that have been vacant for decades. The Senate has supported the funding unanimously, if approved by the house, it will clear the way for new designs. Get the full

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The Game Outdoor Enthusiasts Should Be Watching in January are the Legislators

by: Doug Leier  |  

Late January is sometimes considered a time when not much is going on in North Dakota’s outdoors. But this year with new boat registrations coming in and the state legislature in session, it’s a busy time at the North Dakota Game and Fish Department. Here’s a recap of a few news items from recent weeks

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Minot-area School Districts Oppose Administrative Consolidation and Salary Caps

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

A legislative bill that would consolidate administration of some of North Dakota’s smaller school districts and place salary caps on those positions is not popular around Minot. Jill Schramm with The Minot Daily News has the full story on the bill including comments from South Prairie and Surrey School District representatives.

Read & Share   sourced from: Minot Daily News

Legislature Debating Whether to Ban or Require Teaching of Divisive Topics

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

It’s tough making sense of the North Dakota legislature some days. Senate Bill 2247 sets out to ban the teaching of divisive topics in the state’s institutions of higher education. The topics that are defined as ‘divisive’ center around race and sex and privilege and the past. The hearing on the bill brought out thoughtful

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House Passes Thanksgiving Alcohol Sales 

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

It’s always awkward when you’re asked to bring the beer to Thanksgiving dinner, but you forget you can’t buy it on that particular Thursday. Well if you forget this year, you may have the North Dakota Legislature to thank for saving your skin. The house passed a bill making Thanksgiving Day alcohol off-premise sales legal

Read & Share   sourced from: The Dakotan

What is milk? The legislature is attempting to answer the question

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

If you go to the grocery store these days, you’ll quickly notice the milk section is a lot bigger than it used to be. But it’s not the cows that made it so. There are whole shelves of new products made from soy, almonds, oats, coconuts, and more. And it invites the question, what is

Read & Share   sourced from: Dickinson Press

House Bill 1446 Sets The Stage for A Debate On University Tenure

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Tenured University professors have long enjoyed a level of job security far less common in other lines of work. And if House Bill 1446 is approved, it’s a situation that will change. The bill sets forth the terms in which tenured professors can be removed by University Presidents and other delegated administrators. And there’s a

Read & Share   sourced from: Grand Forks Herald

Insulin, Price Caps, and Perspectives from the Outside

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

A U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services study from 2020 found that insulin prices in the U.S. are as much as 10 times higher than in other developed countries. It’s an issue that’s getting the attention of state legislatures across the country, and the solution that’s increasingly adopted — regardless of which party is

Read & Share   sourced from: PEW

Senate Bill 2199 Related to Transgender Pronoun Usage and Enforcement Fails

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

A bill to redefine gender in North Dakota law has failed. Senate Bill 2199 proposed to limit gender definitions in state law to either male or female as determined at birth and created a $1,500 penalty for violation of the law. The bill was given a Do Not Pass recommendation in committee following considerable opposing

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Magrum’s Feud with Gov. Burgum puts North Dakota’s economic wellbeing at risk

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Senator Jeff Magrum filed several bills earlier this week related to the Summit Carbon pipeline; the bills, largely related to eminent domain and property rights, got more than a little media attention around the state. But Rob Port speculates that it may not be a purely political move. From his perspective, it looks personal. He

Read & Share   sourced from: InForum

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Minot-area water projects get hearing

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Minot’s water projects are front and center priorities this legislative session, as they have been for the past several sessions. At stake is state funding for shares of the Mouse River Enhanced Flood Protection Project and the Northwest Area Water Supply project. State dollars are needed to keep the projects moving. Thursday, Mayor Tom Ross

Read & Share   sourced from: Minot Daily News

North Dakota legislative budget writers adopt early revenue forecast

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

How our legislators build the state budget depends a whole bunch on how much money they think they’ll have. How do they that out? They forecast. It’s tricky business because it depends on predicting things like oil prices and sales tax revenues and other factors that tend toward volatility. Nonetheless, the revenue forecast that will

Read & Share   sourced from: Bismarck Tribune

ND Communities rely on local champions to attract workers

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Have you found the good life in North Dakota? If so, how did you find it? If you’re from here, you were probably taught where to find it, but what if you’re a transplant? In a manner of speaking, that’s the question the Department of Commerce is asking, and to answer it, they’re putting local

Read & Share   sourced from: North Dakota News Cooperative

North Dakota lawmakers backing medical marijuana edibles hope Legislature bites on bills

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Legislators from Grand Forks and Dickinson have sponsored two separate bills (HB 1202 and HB 1164) with the same goal of making medical marijuana doses available in edible form. Currently, state law only allows for dried marijuana leaves and flowers, or THC products such as concentrates, tinctures, capsules, transdermal patches, and lotions. Get the full

Read & Share   sourced from: Bismarck Tribune

North Dakota bills take aim at gender issues; LGBTQ advocates voice opposition

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

The culture wars rage on in the early going of the ND legislative session. Several bills aimed at, as supporters say, protecting kids from left-wing ideology are working through the system. At stake are the pronouns people use to describe themselves, the right to perform conversion therapy, drag shows, sports participation, and penalties for doctors

Read & Share   sourced from: Bismarck Tribune