N.D. Legislative Report: January 30, 2023

North Dakota's 68th Legislative Session began on January 3, 2023. On December 1, 2022, newly formed District 29 went into effect.

District 29 now consists of Foster County, Griggs County, Steele County, Nelson County, and most of rural Stutsman County including a small portion of Jamestown.

Seated in the 68th Assembly representing District 29 are Representative Don Vigesaa, Representative Craig Headland, and Senator Terry Wanzek.

Rep. Vigesaa will serve as Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, Rep. Headland will serve as Chairman of the House Finance and Tax Committee, and Sen. Wanzek will serve as the Chairman of the Government Operations Division of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

The first day of the session began with the State of the Tribes Address. Each session, the Tribal Chairman of one of the 5 federally recognized tribes in North Dakota addresses the joint session of the legislature. This year, Chairman Jamie Azure from the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewas spoke to the assembly.

Chief Justice Jon Jensen gave the State of the Judiciary Address. The Chief Justice spoke of the desire to have salary increases for the 52 District Judges across the state, their request to integrate the county Clerk of Courts offices into the state system, and begin the process of moving the Judicial Wing from the State Capitol to the Liberty Memorial Building.

The first day concluded with Governor Burgum's State of the State Address. In his remarks, he set out his vision for the 2023-25 biennium and the initiatives that the legislature will be debating over the next four months.

Early in every session, the appropriations committees from both chambers adopt a revenue forecast that will be used for the 2023-2025 biennium. Both the executive branch and the legislative branch individually contract with a global economic forecasting firm. These companies forecast the revenue that will be derived from the four major tax types collected by state government; sales tax, motor vehicle excise tax, individual income tax and corporate income tax. In addition, they forecast the price and production levels of oil that will be extracted in the next biennium. The committees came to agreement on the tax revenues that will be collected and adopted projection on oil price of $70 per barrel for the first year of the biennium and $65 per barrel for the second year. Production was set at 1.1 million barrels of oil per day throughout the biennium.

The bill introduction deadline has passed in the House and 538 bills were introduced. That is 38 more than last session but slightly fewer than the 2019 session. At this writing, bills introduced in the Senate thus far were tracking ahead of last session's pace.

Hearings have begun in the policy committees. However, many of the initial bills discussed are relatively simple in nature and usually pass on the House floor with little discussion. There has been vigorous debate on certain measures. House Concurrent Resolution 3002 would put a constitutional amendment on the 2024 ballot authorizing sports betting which would be conducted, licensed, and regulated by the state. It passed on the House floor 49-44. HB1121 would make it a Class C felony if an individual assaults an on-duty healthcare worker within a healthcare facility. This currently applies only within an emergency department. This bill passed the House 67-25. HB1335 would allow "off-sale" alcohol beverage sales on Thanksgiving Day. After spirited debate, HB1335 narrowly passed 48-42. All bills and measures passed by the House now go to the Senate for another hearing and vote.

There are going to be many major initiatives discussed during the 68th Legislative Session. Some of the more notable will be tax relief, public employee pension reform, infrastructure needs, capital building projects, and workforce development. Thankfully, the North Dakota economy has been strong and we are blessed that revenues are running ahead of forecast. With that in mind, District 29 legislators are committed to making sound decisions that will benefit the citizens of North Dakota into the future.

During the session, we can be reached by e-mail or by leaving a message with the legislative telephone message center at 1-888-635-3447. E-mail addresses are; dwvigesaa@ndlegis.gov, cheadland@ndlegis.gov, tmwanzek@ndlegis.gov.

(Photos provided by the North Dakota Legislative Assembly)