Tag: 2023 Legislature

Want to give property owners some relief? Give the firefighters back their full funding

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

There’s lots of talk about how the state can help reduce local property taxes, but they’re usually just shell games that involve taking money from one place and giving it in another. Rob Port argues that’s a great place to start, only in this instance, we should start by talking money originally meant to support

Read & Share   sourced from: InForum

Minot Projects Spur Questions on TIF Law Interpretations

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

When should a City approving a Tax Increment Financing District be forced to notify the other local tax entities like school districts, counties, and park districts that they’re going to excuse property taxes for public improvements? And do other tax entities have the right to negotiate their own deals with TIF project developers? Those are

Read & Share   sourced from: Minot Daily News

Property tax frustrations prompt legislative bills

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Property taxes are an annual challenge for home owners; they’re a biannual challenge for legislator. Minot Representative Larry Bellew is among those who regularly bring the issue back to the legislature; this year the bill was the same as in the past — restrict local jurisdictions from raising their levies by more than 5% without

Read & Share   sourced from: Minot Daily News

Legislative News: Abortion Restrictions Advance, Marijuana Edibles Are Out

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

By a vote of 41-4, the ND Senate advanced Senate Bill 2150. The bill cleans up language from a previous bill that is currently being challenged in court, and restricts abortions in North Dakota as soon as a fetal heartbeat is detected except when a medical emergency exists that prevents compliance. Get the full story

Read & Share   sourced from: Bismarck Tribune

Montana’s American Indian Caucus in State Legislature Mirrors Population

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

There are 11 American Indian lawmakers in the Montana legislature, nine democrats and two republicans. It’s a number that mirrors the percentage of American Indians in Montana’s population as a whole. And on issues of particular importance to the tribes, they’ll often act together. Get the full story from the Missoulian linked below. And why

Read & Share   sourced from: The Missoulian

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Fargo city leaders clash with state legislators over control of gun laws

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Should city zoning laws control where the sale of guns is appropriate they same way they do for every other property use type? Or should the legislature overrule those zoning provisions for the purposes of further protecting the 2nd amendment? House Bill 1340 is setting up a fight over who has control, the locals or

Read & Share   sourced from: InForum

ND Legislature Considering Free Lunch for Students

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

A little over a third of North Dakota students use the free or reduced lunch program, and two bills in the ND Legislature taking on the issue. One approach is for universal free lunch, the second approach is to make sure every student eats and and is never made to feel ashamed of holding a

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Florida Parents react to empty classroom, library shelves as DCPS continues book review

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

In North Dakota, the legislature has a bill in front of them that would ban libraries from keeping legislatively defined ‘sexually explicit’ books in their collections. In Florida, a law cut from the same cloth — defining what can be kept in school libraries — is further along. It’s passed and it’s being implemented, and school

Read & Share   sourced from: News 4 Jacksonville

Minot Legislators provide update at Community Forum

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Workforce, daycare, deer-baiting, group hunting, immigration, foreign ownership of property, funding for private schools — they were all topics at last weekend’s legislative forum at the North Dakota State Fair Center. Jill Schramm with The Minot Daily News has the full story. The next forum is this coming Saturday at 9:00 a.m.

Read & Share   sourced from: Minot Daily News

NDSU president outlines program and faculty cuts, academic college mergers to fix $7.6 million deficit

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

North Dakota State University is up against a difficult budget for the next biennium, and it’s forcing the University to make tough choices. The plan to make up for the deficit includes cuts and consolidations; it was recently outlined by NDSU President David Cook. Get the full story from Inforum.com

Read & Share   sourced from: InForum

Why do Wyoming legislators import other states’ worst laws?

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

From gender and LBGTQ+ issues to banning library books, one long-time Wyoming reporter and columnist is wondering why his state legislators insist on importing bad ideas from other places. It’s a question especially relevant as state legislatures around the country seem to be tackling all the same culture issues at the same moment. Read the

Read & Share   sourced from: WyoFile

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Legislative hearings on CO2 pipeline bills draw big crowds; eminent domain the main issue

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

A slate of bills aimed squarely at a single pipeline project through southern North Dakota saw lots of citizen engagement at hearings last week. At question is whether a proposed pipeline developer should have ability to use eminent domain, the authority to take land and easements with compensation, to advance the project. Get the full

Read & Share   sourced from: Bismarck Tribune

Bill would keep ESG considerations out of MT’s investing decisions

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

ESG stands for ‘environment’, ‘social’, and ‘governance’.  It’s an acronym to describe the emerging pressure corporations and businesses are under to be transparent regarding practices related to the environment, social, and governance issues. As an example, banks that reduce or stop lending to carbon-based energy projects would be an example of an ESG policy. It’s

Read & Share   sourced from: Helena Independent Record

Cigar Lounges for the comeback?

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

They would be required to be enclosed on all four sides and have ventilation systems, and if the Senate says yes, a bill allowing cigar lounges will go to Governor Burgum. The house passed the bill by a vote of 59-32 last Wednesday. Representative Dan Ruby of Minot is the sponsor of the bill; he

Read & Share   sourced from: Dickinson Press

Their Personal Lives Were None of My Business and Other Legislative Musings From a Long-time Democrat

by: Jim Maxson  |  

It is very gracious of the Minot Voice to give me a voice. Like the Federalists and the Whigs of early American history, the North Dakota Democratic party may be on the road to being a mere memory. Why and how that has happened, I will leave to historians. There is plenty of blame to

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North Dakota lawmakers looking to roll back regulations against carrying guns in North Dakota

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by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Here’s the list: House Bill 1483, House Bill 1404, House Bill 1194, House Bill 1341, House Bill 1339, and House Bill 1401. They’re all bills to expand gun rights and where gun owners can legally carry their guns in North Dakota. The bills where in committee hearing last week; the NRA and a others showed

Read & Share   sourced from: InForum