NDACo Final Priorities Approved in Last Hours of Session

The 66th Legislative Assembly wrapped up its business at 10 p.m. Friday on Day 76. The final day marked the completion of several remaining ND County priorities. 

Lawmakers Restore Funding to County Extension Program; Increase Funding for Road Study

Lawmakers Friday approved HB 1020. This bill included $875,000 funding for the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute study. This study is necessary to provide the level of detailed data needed to identity local road project funding priorities across the state. The UGPTI road study has also been used as a basis to calculate the distribution of county road funds in the past as was as in the future through HB 1066, Operation Prairie Dog, which was approved earlier this session. 

The bill also includes $870,000 that will go to restore the funding formula between Extension and Counties for County Extension Agents. Due to the budget cuts in 2017 and allocations, Extension was left with a shortfall. Counties negotiated a one-year agreement to increase their portion of the funding. The restoration of these funds will allow the formula to be returned to a more equitable level. 

House and Senate Approve Bill that Improves Asset Forfeiture Process

HB 1286 has had many transformations since being introduced. As introduced in the House, law enforcement opposed the bill. However, they worked diligently through the process to offer suggestions for improvements. The Senate made many changes to the bill, many of which law enforcement saw as positive. The conference committee expanded on the improvements made in the Senate. Overall, the bill increases transparency of the asset forfeiture process by: 

• Requiring an annual report
• Providing additional oversight of funds from forfeited property by requiring them to be deposited into the local political subdivisions asset forfeiture fund that can only be appropriated by the local political subdivision
• Increases the burden of proof to the highest level possible to “beyond reasonable doubt” the property was used in the commission of a crime or involved in criminal activity, for situations where there is no conviction

Lawmakers Approve Increase to Public Guardianship Program
Legislators approved an increase of $400,000 for the public guardianship program to bring the total funding to $1.95 million. Although the request was for $2.33 million, this funding is a considerable increase to the current $1.32 million appropriation in this biennium. Public Guardians provides assistance to the state's most vulnerable adults. These are individuals who the district court has determined are incapacitated and unable to adequately make decisions on their health, finances and other affairs due to their age, dementia, physical disability, mental illness, addiction, etc. The current funding level has remained level for the past three bienniums. Due to that, caseloads have been frozen at 205, it is estimated there are about 150 additional individuals who would qualify for the assistance who are unable to receive it due to the lack of funding. 

DOCR Facility Changes to be Studied

During the Governor's budget speech, he introduced major shifts in Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DOCR) system which included moving inmates from facilities and shutting down one of the prisons. Lawmakers instead voted to study a plan to conduct an assessment and review of the DOCR facilities and report it's findings to the 67th Legislative Assembly. This will allow DOCR and the State to thoroughly study the facilities available, the needs and best options for the future. 

The DOCR Budget also includes $750,000 and 7 FTE's to establish a pre-trial services pilot program.   

Legislators Approve Small Increase to Infrastructure Loan Fund 

The conference committee for the Industrial Commission Budget rejected the proposed $500 million bond to enhance the local government infrastructure loan fund. The bill however now contains a mechanism  to supplement the existing Bank of ND $150 million 2% interest revolving loan fund with an additional $40 million from the SIIF.  This addition will be after the balance of this oil royalty and tax fund reaches a $750 million balance, so it is essentially the “final bucket” and likely won’t be filled until near the end of the upcoming biennium.

House Rejects Change to Posted Land
The private property rights bill, SB 2315, failed in the House after lengthy discussion. The bill essentially closed all land except for to hunting. Posted signs would still be required to close land to hunting.  However, the ITD budget includes a provision to study access to private and public lands including trespass violations and penalties as well as explore a land access database with the capacity of electronic posting.

Day 73 Update

Compromises Reached on Feed Lot Zoning Regulation

Both chambers approved a bill relating to animal feed lot zoning regulation, HB 2345. This bill makes a change from the House version. The House originally struck the counties ability to vary setback distances as established under State law but after some negotiations the county’s 50% variation was restored. The only change in the final bill is that the county must establish by compelling evidence the need for the variation and that decision can be reviewed by the Agricultural Commissioner and the Attorney General. It also retains the "shot-clock" for decisions at 60 days.

Legislature Approves Health Department BudgetThe Department of Health budget, HB 1004, passed both houses Monday after adopting the conference committee report. As when first introduced in the House, the question regarding vital records fee increases was brought forth. It was explained that fees for vital records have been stagnant for a few decades and that the increase aims for a break even scenario. The bill provides for excess funds to go the general fund. On the Senate side, the only change from the version that was previously passed was the addition of authority to apply for a CDC grant. The conference committee members decided to remove the CDC grant because of attached CDC requirements. The passage of this budget bill provides level state aid funding from the previous biennium to the local public health units.

Senate Defeats Firearms BillSenators defeated SB 2172, which had been changed to allow certain individuals to carry in public. The Senate bill was introduced to allow only retired Judges to carry in public, but was amended heavily in the House and later changed in conference committee. In the latest version, the bill allowed retired judges, staff members of the Attorney General's office, a member of Congress, and paramedics or emergency responders while on duty to carry in public buildings and public events. This would include county buildings, courtrooms, schools, school events and churches. There was a requirement for these individuals to obtain the same level of firearms proficiency as is required of law enforcement by the Peace Officer Standards and Training board. The bill failed with a 4-43 vote.

Counties Invited to Ceremonial Bill Signing for Social Service Redesign

The signing of the Social Service Redesign bill is an event worth celebrating! NDACo President Scott Ouradnik, Kim Jacobson of Agassiz Valley Social Services Director and NDACo Executive Director Terry Traynor were invited to a ceremonial signing of SB 2124. Special thanks to our partners who worked diligently on this important legislation. This bill will improve the quality of services, increase the speed of delivery, reduce cost and continue to provide property tax relief.

Lawmakers Approve SIRN Funding and other updates

Day 71...And Counting
We are in the last leg of the Legislative Session. We expect lawmakers to wrap up their work late next week.  Friday was Day 71. The Legislative Session is limited to 80 days, and it has been the goal of the legislature to avoid using all 80 days.
There are still several bills being worked out in conference committees. The NDACo legislative team has been busy sitting in these meetings monitoring the negotiations and helping to educate where we can. There are still a few of our issues yet to be decided. Funding for Public Guardianships (SB 2015) and funding for NDSU Extension & Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute (HB 1020) are two of the top budget bills we are watching. Asset Forfeiture reform (HB 1286) has had three conference committee meetings, but little movement. Overall there are about 50 bills we are tracking that we are still awaiting final action on.

SIRN funding bill, HB 1435, receives final approval
The House and Senate both gave final approval to HB 1435, the bill that authorizes the funding for the entirety of the Statewide Interoperable Radio Network (SIRN). The bill includes $40 million of state funds, which was a great accomplishment. NDACo and other public safety associations articulated the importance of state funding to demonstrate the state's commitment to the project. The project will be financed by a .50 9-1-1 fee that was approved during the 2017 Legislative Session, along with local dollars. The passage of this bill will result in an interoperable and dependable radio network for our public safety officials.

House defeats Cottage Foods bill

Lengthy and lively discussions concerning the state’s cottage food laws eventually led to the defeat of Senate Bill 2269 yesterday on the House floor.  The bill was initially brought forth to clarify language in the cottage food law which passed in 2017.  After amendments were made on both sides, the bill was further amended in conference committee and passed in the Senate.  Representatives in the House took issue with some of the final changes and felt the bill ultimately placed too many restrictions on cottage food producers.

Other updates

Governor Burgum signed the Social Service Redesign (SB2124) bill .This has been a top priority for ND Counties and has been an issue we have worked on for more than a decade. Here is the Governor's news release on the bill: Governor Burgum's Release on 2124

Also this week, the Senate defeated a bill that would have printed constitutional measures up to 500 words on the ballot. Auditors opposed this bill because of how this would make ballots longer in length or possibly multiple page ballots. 

A publication related bill was passed by both chambers. The bill shifts the cost of election notices for commodity groups to those commodity associations. The bill also included a date change for a notice for financial statements. 

  

Social Services Redesign Heads to Governor

One of the greatest legislative priorities for ND Counties this session has been to continue the Legislature's efforts to fully fund the direct costs of county social services with state resources rather than property taxes. We are pleased to report that the legislature has made it's final action on SB 2124, the Social Service Redesign bill. The Senate voted to "concur" with the House changes with a vote of 46-1. The bill now goes to the Governor for his signature.

We have reported at length on this legislation, but it goes beyond just permanent state funding, it redesigns the system allowing for enhancements to be made in delivering services across the state. The Social Service Directors worked tirelessly with the Department of Human Services on this bill through the session and during the interim to develop the redesign plan.
Some highlights include:
The development of up to 19 multi-county zones
Local decision-making in zone creation
Zones to be approved and implemented by Jan. 1, 2021
Employment and salaries of existing employees will be preserved

This bill is the culmination of more than a decade of work. The work will now shift to guiding counties and social service departments to implementing the changes set forward in SB 2124. Thank you to all of you who have been involved in providing input and dedicating time to guide the legislative effort.

The House approved the Secretary of State budget, SB 2002 with a vote of 84-6. This bill includes the $12 million requested for election equipment. The bill also included an emergency clause so the work to purchase the equipment can start as soon as the Governor signs the bill. The Secretary of State's office has said counties will be provided training and the equipment will be ready for use for the June Primary. There are not many changes between the Senate and House versions, it is unknown at this point if the bill will go to conference committee. 

Legislative Update for 4-11

Next week will be very busy with conference committee action. As this schedule is very fluid, it is difficult to plan ahead. Below is the schedule for Friday and Monday. You will notice two of our priority bills are listed. HB 1435 - SIRN funding will have it's first hearing at 11:00 Friday. HB 1286 - Asset Forfeiture Reform will be heard for the first time in conference committee 9:30 Monday morning.  See updates on other action below the schedule...

The House Thursday afternoon divided SB 2315 which relates to private property and posting. All private land is automatically posted unless you are hunting. Because this version is different from the Senate version, we expect it to go to conference committee.

The House also passed SB 2172 - which they amended to allow for a new class 1 exempt firearms license to allow those individuals to carry in public buildings and public events including courthouses, schools and churches. This bill will go to conference committee.

This week, the House Appropriations began a discussion of the extraordinary road costs incurred by some local governments due to heavier than normal snowfall. Struggling with an appropriate means to address the concern, the Adjutant General/DES Budget (SB2016) was amended to include a $5,000 allocation out of the Disaster Relief Fund for each non-oil township. As with such past allocations, we understand that the amounts for unorganized townships would be granted to the county. We suspect there will be much more discussion of this in conference.

Also this week, the Senate Appropriations Committee amended the Industrial Commission Budget (HB1014) to add Sen. Wardner’s local government infrastructure loan program that was killed as SB2275 in the House. Obviously a big conference committee debate to follow.

House Appropriations passed out SB2012, the DHS Budget, with a new section segregating the funding for county social service for the first time. The bill now contains $173.7 million as appeared to the $161 million allocated for the current biennium. This correlated with the fiscal note approved with SB2124, the Redesign bill.

SB2124 has not made it to the Senate floor with the house amendments, but there are indications that the Senate is likely to “concur” and not take it into conference.

On the other hand the Senate has decided to Not Concur with the House changes to SB2345, regarding feedlot zoning. Amendments are being drafted to restore the 50% variance on setbacks allowed to counties and township zoning authorities. The role of the Ag Commissioner in reviewing and mediating zoning conflicts is expected to also change. This may take a rapid response if changes aren’t made as hoped.

The House passed its amended version of SB 2139 which clearly restores eligibility for state cost share for snagging and clearing of watercourses. Supporters are urging the Senate to concur with the House version.

House Passes Feedlot Bill Restricting Local Zoning

House members voted 71-19 to pass SB 2345 which relates to animal feeding operations. Amendments made in committee restricts local zoning authority by repealing the 50% variance on setbacks that is currently allowed and requires a local decision within 60 days. During floor debate, members of the House Agriculture Committee acknowledged the push back on the setback changes but stressed that they would like the chance to address this concern in conference committee. 

Several members expressed that they would be voting against 2345 because of the restriction this would have on local control. The bill will now more than likely end up in a conference committee with house and senate members. 

Call to Action: No on 2345 - Restricting Local Zoning Authority

As you may be aware from our Legislative Blog postings, we have followed closely SB2345 that would modify some of the zoning and siting requirements for “animal feeding operations”. At the direction of our Legislative Committee, we had not engaged in the debate, as it was felt that some of the requests for greater certainty were reasonable, and the stakeholders had worked with everyone to advance changes that did not directly diminish local land use control. The changes primarily dealt with timely decision-making.
The bill was amended this week in the House Committee, and many of these changes were also reasonable. However, the elimination of the local zoning authorities’ (counties’ and townships’) ability to modify setbacks by 50% was viewed by our legislative committee (many of them producers themselves) as unacceptable. After meeting today, they unanimously directed that we now oppose the bill.
As this bill is on Monday’s HOUSE floor calendar, we are asking our membership to contact their Representatives urging a NO vote. The link to each House member’s email address can be found below – although don’t hesitate to talk to them personally if you see them this weekend.
Please communicate your own thoughts, but ask that they “VOTE NO (RED) on SB2345 to preserve reasonable local zoning control.”

Click here for list of House Members