North Dakota Bills

failed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1372: A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new chapter to title 13 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to litigation financing; to provide a penalty; and to provide for application.

HB 1372 would create a new licensing system for litigation financiers in North Dakota, requiring them to obtain a license from the Commissioner of Financial Institutions. It defines key terms like "litigation financer" (entities funding lawsuits for a share of recovery) and "litigation financing contract," while exempting standard contingency fee agreements between lawyers and clients. The bill mandates written applications with specific details, $800 in non-refundable fees (including $400 for investigation), and public disclosure of all filings. This regulation directly affects businesses providing lawsuit funding, not individual consumers or legal representatives in standard cases.

passed · North Dakota · Senate Feb 19, 2025

SB 2313: A BILL for an Act to amend and reenact section 38-08-04.12 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to reclamation of land disturbed by oil and gas activity.

This bill would require oil and gas operators in North Dakota to restore land disturbed by their activities (like well sites, pipelines, and facilities) as close as possible to its original condition before disturbance. Key provisions include mandating the preservation and documented use of suitable plant growth material from the site for reclamation, requiring a pre-disturbance meeting with the state commission to plan this, and needing commission approval before land disturbance begins. The commission could also waive reclamation requirements after decommissioning with proper documentation. The bill does not apply to properly reclaimed pits or abandoned pipelines.

Topics ✓ Environment

passed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1356: A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 54-03 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to access to requests to the legislative council made by members of the legislative assembly.

HB 1356 modifies North Dakota's open records law to clarify what legislative records cannot be disclosed under public access rules. It protects personal communications between lawmakers and the legislative council, legislative work product, and private phone records from disclosure. However, it specifically allows disclosure of bill draft or resolution requests made by legislators to their caucus leaders. The bill directly affects legislators and legislative staff by defining boundaries for sharing internal legislative communications.

failed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1325: A BILL for an Act to amend and reenact section 20.1-02-04 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to positive detections of chronic wasting disease.

HB 1325 proposes to amend North Dakota's wildlife code by requiring the state wildlife director to publicly maintain and make available for four years all positive chronic wasting disease (CWD) test results. This includes specific documentation like microscopic slides of the prion and necropsy reports. The bill directly affects the state wildlife agency, which would be responsible for implementing this public record-keeping requirement. It does not change wildlife management practices but mandates transparency about CWD detections, which are critical for monitoring a fatal neurological disease affecting deer, elk, and moose. The bill failed to pass in the 2025 legislative session.

failed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1605: A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 61-28.1 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the prohibition on water fluoridation; to provide a penalty; and to provide an effective date.

HB 1605 would ban adding fluoride to public drinking water systems in North Dakota for fluoridation purposes, directly affecting municipal water providers and public health departments. The bill prohibits adding any fluoride compound (like sodium fluoride) to public water supplies but excludes naturally occurring fluoride or industrial uses. Violators face a $500 fine for first offenses and $1,000 for repeat violations, enforced by the Department of Environmental Quality. The bill was introduced in January 2025, passed committee, but failed to advance in the legislature on February 19, 2025 (40-53 vote).

passed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1337: A BILL for an Act to provide an appropriation to the department of health and human services for mental health services for incarcerated individuals; and to provide for a report.

HB 1337 would provide $10 million in state funds to counties for mental health and substance use disorder treatment services for people in jail. The bill requires counties receiving grants to report annually on how funds were used and outcomes, and the health department to submit a summary report to lawmakers by 2026. This funding would cover the 2025-2027 biennium and aim to expand access to mental health care for incarcerated individuals.

Topics ✓ Budget & Taxes ✓ Criminal Justice ✓ Healthcare

failed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1516: A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 15.1-09 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the requirement for an educational employee to be an observer of the board of a public school.

HB 1516 would require North Dakota public school boards to include 1-2 non-voting "board observers" who are current educational employees (like teachers or support staff) from the school district. These observers would represent staff interests at board meetings, participate in discussions, and provide summaries of meetings to the district's education association. The bill specifies observers must be appointed annually by the education association and cannot attend meetings about their own employment. This bill directly affects school boards, educational employees, and their associations by creating a formal channel for staff input in school governance.

Topics ✓ Education ✓ Labor & Employment

passed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1445: A BILL for an Act to amend and reenact sections 48-01.2-01 and 48-01.2-02.1 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the definition of a pre-engineered structure and the threshold for procuring plans, drawings, and specifications from an architect or engineer for construction of a public improvement.

Relating to the definition of a pre-engineered structure and the threshold for procuring plans, drawings, and specifications from an architect or engineer for construction of a public improvement.

failed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1595: A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 23-12 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to pregnancy resource centers that receive state funding.

HB 1595 requires North Dakota pregnancy resource centers receiving state funding to meet specific health care and transparency standards. The bill mandates that funded centers must employ at least one licensed health care provider (like a nurse or physician), provide medically accurate and comprehensive pregnancy counseling, maintain HIPAA-compliant client records, and publish detailed organizational policies. Centers must also submit annual reports to the state including financial data, staff details, client service statistics (like pregnancy tests or ultrasounds provided), and material support given (e.g., diapers, baby supplies). These requirements apply directly to centers receiving state grants for pregnancy-related services. The bill was introduced in 2025 but failed to pass in committee.

Topics ✓ Healthcare

failed · North Dakota · House Feb 19, 2025

HB 1490: A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 15.1-13 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to required psychological evaluations for school counselors.

HB 1490 requires North Dakota school counselors to undergo periodic psychological evaluations by licensed psychologists to ensure they can safely and effectively provide student services. The bill mandates that counselors must obtain documentation from a psychologist confirming they lack conditions impairing their ability to work with students, with evaluations valid for two years. This applies specifically to licensed school counselors working in North Dakota public schools. The bill failed to pass in the legislature on February 19, 2025, with 18 votes in favor and 74 against.

Topics ✓ Education

failed · North Dakota · House Feb 18, 2025

HB 1399: A BILL for an Act to amend and reenact section 31-01-16 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to compensation and mileage and travel expenses for witnesses.

HB 1399 amends North Dakota law to set witness compensation at $25 per day for civil or criminal court appearances (excluding municipal court) and requires mileage reimbursement at the same rate paid to state employees. It limits criminal case witness expenses to $30,000 per county every two years, with the attorney general covering prosecution witnesses and the legal aid commission covering indigent defense witnesses. Prisoners cannot be paid as witnesses under this bill. The law also allows counties exceeding the funding cap to share unused funds with other counties, subject to attorney general approval.

failed · North Dakota · House Feb 18, 2025

HB 1486: A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 49-04.1 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the installation of smart meters; and to amend and reenact section 49-04.1-01 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to unauthorized metering.

Relating to the installation of smart meters; and to amend and reenact section 49‑04.1‑01 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to unauthorized metering.

Bill results