N.D. House Update: Feb. 8, 2021

Although the total number of bills is down slightly this session the workload for the members of the 67th Legislative Assembly seems just as heavy as before. The House had 45 fewer bills this session and Senate has 15 fewer. There are also a few less resolutions in each chamber this session. Both chambers need to complete action on all bills before they move to the other chamber, later in February.

The House acted on several bills that have been of interest to not only our constituents, but residents across the state. On Tuesday HB 1299, which would have required all businesses to accept cash, was defeated by a large margin as it only gathered 21 votes in favor while 70 voted no and three were absent. Opponents made the case that this was an individual business decision which should not be mandated by the government.

The House also defeated HB 1194 which would have made some significant changes to the requirements for getting a driver’s license. Many rural legislators felt it would have created unnecessary difficulties for young drivers to get their license. The bill was also defeated by a wide margin with only 18 votes in favor and 73 against.

House members approved HB 1143 which will require Patriotism Project participation for public elementary students. Sponsors said it would help restore pride in our country. The House overwhelmingly defeated HB 1204 which would have stopped businesses from requiring mask wearing by their employees. There are a number of professions including medical where they are required. In the end the House felt this was a decision for a private business to make without the interference of state government.

The Energy and Natural Resources Committee had the first hearing on one of the most exciting proposals that will come before the legislature this year. HB1452 establishes a Clean Sustainable Energy Authority to support research and development of 21st century technologies and to advance low emissions, minimal footprint energy production in the state. The goal of the bill is to establish North Dakota as a world leader in clean, sustainable energy. The legislation will support research and development of large-scale projects and technologies that advance energy production while reducing impacts, ultimately growing, and diversifying the state’s economy. The plan is to develop all areas of energy from fossil fuels to renewables to move our state into the forefront of developing this type of energy. The plan will be funded in part by a 25 million dollar injection of dollars from the state. The committee had several questions but is committed to strongly supporting the bill, with few changes, and hope to get it out of committee this coming week.

The Government Operations Division of House Appropriations continued their discussion on several agency budgets this past week. HB 1006 is the funding legislation for the Office of the Tax Commissioner. This agency currently has authority for 123 employees but is reducing that number by five for the next biennium. The governor’s recommended general fund appropriation for the tax department is $62.5 million. Two successful programs are being expanded during the next budget period. The Homestead Tax Credit and The Disabled Veteran’s Credit programs have seen increased usage and exceeded projections for the current biennium. The Homestead Tax Credit provides property tax relief for qualifying low-income persons who are 65 years of age or older or who are disabled. The credit is up to 100% of the taxes levied on the first $125,000 of true and full value, for applicants with annual income below $22,000. A reduced level of credit is available with annual income up to $42,000. The budget request for this program is $18 million.

The Disabled Veteran’s Credit program provides property tax relief for disabled veterans with a service- connected disability of 50% or greater. The credit is up to 100% of the taxes levied on the first $150,000 of true and full value. The percentage of credit allowed is equal to the percentage of the disabled veteran’s disability compensation rating. The budget request for this program is 14 million.

HB 1007 is the budget for the Department of Labor and Human Rights. This agency has 14 employees and a budget request of $2.5 million. The department has three primary areas of responsibility; establishing and enforcing laws and regulations relating to the wages and working conditions of North Dakota employees, administering and enforcing North Dakota’s human rights and housing laws, and educating the public about all areas of the law for which it is responsible. The department’s Human Rights Division also investigates cases for the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

The House Human Services Committee continues to work on several bills dealing with vaccines. Some people speaking want all vaccine mandates for schools eliminated, another would have forbidden a business from requiring an employee from having a vaccine to work. It was pointed out by opponents that OSHA already requires some employers to have vaccines. The bill, in original form, was very problematic for the medical field employers including long-term care. It was later softened by the sponsors. Committee members were reminded by health experts that vaccines had eliminated many diseases including smallpox, diphtheria and polio. In the end, the committee gave a do-not-pass recommendation to all the anti-vaccine bills and recommended leaving it up to the private businesses to make the decision on what requirements they have for their employees.

The Human Service Committee also heard HB 1313 on Tuesday. It is an anti-abortion bill that would charge anyone that aided with an abortion with murder. It is the most extreme abortion bill most of us have seen in our legislative careers. The question for the legislature is whether they want to pass it and then spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to defend it in court as it works its way through the court system. There are numerous other bills from across the nation that are all set to provide a challenge to Roe vs Wade, four of them are pending before the Supreme Court and more than a dozen cases are pending in federal appeals courts. The bill was not supported by the major anti-abortion organizations in the state and was opposed by all medical providers who testified. The committee is expected to take final action this week.

The committee heard HB 1298 which attracted considerable testimony. It would forbid the state, a political subdivision of the state or an entity that receives public funding from allowing an individual who was assigned the opposite sex at birth from participating on a team that is exclusively for males or females. Opposing testimony indicated the bill would create problems for colleges because the NCAA may forbid college playoff games from being held in our state if it passed. There were also questions about a girl who was presently on a high school football team as a kicker or playing another position. Numerous experts testified about the negative affect on the student athletes who would no longer get to participate in their chosen sport. Proponents testified that they felt it would be unfair for a person born as a male to compete against girls and should be stopped. The committee didn’t take action and the sponsors indicated some amendments may be forthcoming, which could eliminate the threat to college sports.

One other bill of interest was HB 1348 which would have made the testing of waste-water illegal. Apparently, there is a belief in the community that water would be tested for COVID and take away the resident’s rights to privacy. Dave Glatt, Director of the Department of Environmental Quality, pointed out that the state has been testing wastewater for over forty years and in fact was required under the federal law.

Glatt went on to say the bill conflicts with long-established monitoring requirements, mandatory under the Clean Water Act. This federal and state program requires the monitoring of wastewater by using indicators such as coliform bacteria to determine the potential presence of disease-causing organisms. Prohibiting this required monitoring would; 1) put communities in violation of the federal/state monitoring requirement resulting in potential enforcement action; 2) put the State/US EPA primacy agreement in jeopardy, resulting in a potential takeover of the programs by the federal government, and 3) most importantly, place the public at increased risk to exposure to disease.

He also pointed out that all waste was mixed in the system and it was impossible to tell which home it might have came from. The committee is looking at another bill that would require that the testing of wastewater for COVID would have to get approval from the governing body of the city. The bills will be voted on in committee this week.

The Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed HCR 3006 urging Congress and the President of the United States to protect the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. The Resolution will be forwarded to the President of the United States and each member of the North Dakota Congressional Delegation.

The committee has been reviewing several gun bills, most advocate expanding the rights of citizens to bear arms. On Thursday they heard HB 1450 which will remove a section of code that says a person convicted of an offense involving alcohol in the last ten years would not be allowed to get a Class 1 permit. They also heard HB 1463 which would expand the rights to carry arms to include members of ambulance squads and firefighter units for their personal protection, while on duty, if approved by the governing body of the community or ambulance owner. The committee requested more information on the potential liability concerns to the city or owner and the type of training that would be required and who would do the training.

The committee took no action on the bills and will probably package all the gun bills together in one package as they complete work on all the bills in committee.

Another bill the committee heard on Thursday, HB 1491 would provide an appropriation of $300,000 to the industrial commission for contracting with the energy and environmental research center to develop a roadmap for the implementation of hydrogen energy.

District 23 residents who wish to contact us with legislative ideas or comments on what is being discussed or proposed can e-mail usat: [email protected] and [email protected].

During the session, mail can be sent to us at: ND House of Representatives, 600 East Boulevard, Bismarck, ND 58505-0360.

If you want to leave a phone message you can call the incoming toll-free number 1-888-NDLEGIS (1-888-635-3447). For hearing-impaired individuals, the TTY toll-free number is 1-800-366-6888 to reach a relay operator. If you wish to watch videos of the floor session and committee hearings you can access that at legis.nd.gov.