67th Legislative Session Off to Smooth Start

Week 1 NDACo Legislative Report - 1/8/21

The hustle and bustle of a Legislative Session is definitely felt in the Capitol. The energy is high and committees are getting to work fast! Committee hearing rooms look much different as they have been moved into larger rooms and are equipped with cameras and big tv screens. Seating in the hearing rooms has been dramatically reduced. The new system to submit testimony had some hiccups but for the most part has been a good addition to allow folks to testify remotely. You can submit written or oral testimony using their new system but you need to have it submitted an hour before the hearing. The technology also provides for you to view hearings remotely. Click here to see the step by step instructions for submitting testimony or watching hearings. 

Highlights from Week 1 include: 

Infrastructure / Bonding Proposal - Legislators laid out a proposal for a $1.1 billion infrastructure package funded by Legacy Fund earnings. The proposal includes $170.9 million bond to cover city and county infrastructure projects that would have been funded by oil and gas tax revenues. It also includes funding for water projects, a carbon capture project, and the State Hospital. 

Human Service Zone Correction bill - Terry Traynor along with Human Service Zone Directors Kim Jacobson and Steve Reiser provided testimony outlining a number of items that should be addressed in the Department of Human Service bill to include: indirect costs, reserve fund balances, and compensation equity. The committee is committed to working with the zone directors, the department and NDACo on the suggestions. 

Increasing Liability Caps - NDACo Executive Director Terry Traynor provided testimony supporting the Office of Management and Budget proposal which would raise the liability caps for the state adn political subdivisions from $250,000 to $375,000 per person and from $1 million to $1.5 million per occurrence. NDACo agreed that, based on court decisions, governmental liability caps need to be reviewed as the existing individual caps have been in place since originally established in the 1970's  The OMB proposed change is the result of an interim research effort by the State Risk Pool and NDIRF in response to much larger increases proposed in 2019.  

Road Train Pilot project - NDACo along with Cass County Engineer Jason Benson provided solid opposition to the proposal without local control or authority. 

CLICK HERE FOR: SCHEDULE FOR WEEK 2: January 11-15th, 2021