January 25, 2019 - Bring a Shovel!
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Just like snow, legislation is piling up in North Dakota -- 961 bills and resolutions have been introduced. Good news: the bill introduction deadline has now passed.
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Oil Taxes Benefit ALL of North Dakota
Study Reveals Dramatic Funding Levels
A study released this week shows that from 2008 to 2018, oil and gas extraction and production taxes have raised almost $18 billion in North Dakota. Over the last five years alone, oil and gas taxes accounted for more than half of all tax revenue collected by the state.
The study, commissioned jointly by the Western Dakota Energy Association and the North Dakota Petroleum Council, outlines the various funds that benefit from oil tax revenues and how the taxes are distributed to all areas of the state.
“The oil industry benefits the entire state, not just the west,” said Geoff Simon, executive director of WDEA. “We are excited to share this information so people have a clear picture of how their government services are being funded.”
The full report features a visual display in the form of “heat maps” showing all of North Dakota’s counties and their receipt of oil tax funding for water projects, property tax buydown, the Outdoor Heritage Fund, school funding, and local transportation funding.
The full report is available
here. Click
here to see a Williston Herald story on the study,
here for a story from KFYR-TV, and
here for an opinion written by Rob Port in the SayAnything Blog.
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"Prairie Dog 3" Hits the Senate
There were behind-the-scene discussions this week about Operation Prairie Dog (
HB 1066), but no House action on the bill . However, what’s been dubbed “Prairie Dog 3” had its first hearing in the ND Senate.
HB 2275, introduced by Senate Majority Leader Rich Wardner, R-Dickinson, would establish the Essential Infrastructure Revolving Loan Fund. It would allow the state’s public finance authority to issue up to $500 million in bonds to support the fund.
Wardner calls it Prairie Dog 3 because he says it complements Operation Prairie Dog and its two components: 1) Funding for oil-impacted communities in the west, and 2) Essential infrastructure grants for non-oil regions.
Click
here to listen to Wardner’s comments.
The legislation had its first hearing this week in the Senate Finance and Taxation Committee. Local projects eligible for loans under the bill mirror the list in HB 1066. Funds could also be borrowed for flood control and water supply projects, and for infrastructure projects on the campuses of higher education.
House leaders have been working on amendments to Operation Prairie Dog, which are expected to be considered in the House Finance and Taxation Committee next week.
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Bill Would Fund Emergency Radio Network
A bill aimed at funding the development of a statewide radio network for first responders will be considered by the 2019 North Dakota Legislature.
The legislation would support development of a Statewide Interoperable Radio Network, commonly called SIRN 2020. Rep. Glen Bosch, R-Bismarck, introduced
HB 1435, which he said is aimed at replacing the state’s aging emergency communications infrastructure.
Click
here to listen to Bosch’s comments.
Bosch said the need for a better radio communications network was demonstrated during the Dakota Access Pipeline protest, when first responders on the same hilltop were unable to communicate with one another. Despite those difficulties, some local jurisdictions have been reluctant to sign agreements with the state for use of their radio frequencies for the project. Bosch hopes his bill will overcome those concerns by assuring local officials the project will be completed.
Click
here to listen to Bosch’s comments.
Bosch, who serves as a member of the Statewide Interoperability Executive Committee (
SIEC), said the state recently awarded a $206 million contract for the project to Motorola Corporation. He said it’s expected the project will take five years to complete because there is a lot of work to do.
Click
here to listen to Bosch’s comments.
The legislation Bosch introduced would provide a $40 million appropriation for SIRN 2020; provide a $1,500 state match for purchase of radios; and would establish a line of credit with the Bank of North Dakota to the Information Technology Department for use in developing the project.
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Primary Seat Belt Bill Clears ND Senate
There was high drama in the North Dakota Senate when legislators cast their vote this week on a bill that would allow the state’s mandatory seat belt law to be enforced as a primary offense.
Monday's vote on
SB 2060 ended in a 23-23 tie with one member absent, but was reconsidered Tuesday and passed on a 24-23 vote.
The missing member was Senator Scott Meyer, R-Grand Forks, who said he had a business conflict and was not able to be at the Capitol on Monday.
Click
here to listen to Meyer’s comments.
Before the Senate cast its final vote on the bill, Meyer, who grew up on a farm, told members how the use of a seat belt saved his life.
Click
here to listen to Meyer’s comments.
North Dakotans can be cited now for not wearing a seat belt, but only if they are first stopped for some other traffic offense. In addition to allowing primary enforcement, the bill would also require adults in the back seat of a vehicle to buckle up. That is currently required only for passengers under the age of 18.
Click
here for a rundown of other traffic legislation from the Minot Daily News.
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Legislators Hear Small School Gun Bill
Many North Dakota school districts employ a School Resource Officer, an armed law enforcement official who is assigned to protect students, encourage them to follow the rules and investigate criminal misconduct when necessary.
But most small schools can’t afford to hire an SRO, and many are miles away from the nearest law enforcement office. That’s why Rep. Pat Heinert, R-Bismarck, has introduced
HB 1332. Heinert, the former sheriff of Burleigh County, said the bill would provide an option for smaller school districts to allow a properly-trained employee to carry a concealed weapon on school grounds.
Click
here to listen to Heinert’s comments.
Heinert said the legislation is patterned after South Dakota’s
School Sentinel Program, which provides training in firearms, use of force, first aid and other skills. He said three South Dakota schools have opted to use the program.
The bill had its first hearing this morning before the House Energy and Natural Resources Committee. A subcommittee will examine the legislation in greater detail.
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Bill Promotes Win-Win for Coal and Oil
House Legislation Supports Project Tundra
The House Energy & Natural Resources Committee heard from its chairman, Rep. Todd Porter, R-Mandan, who is sponsor of a bill to provide incentives for oil producers to use CO2 from lignite-fired coal generating units for enhanced oil recovery (EOR).
The incentive in
HR 1439 would provide a 20-year exemption from the state's five percent extraction tax on additional oil produced using CO2 injected into the formation. Porter believes an incentive is necessary due to the substantial cost of the EOR process.
Click
here for comments from Rep. Porter.
“This is a good marriage between the two industries since it uses a byproduct of one as an enhancement tool for the other,” Porter said.
The bill supports
Project Tundra now underway at the Milton R. Young Station near Hazen where they intend to capture CO2 from the plant for ultimate use in enhanced oil recovery.
Click
here for a white paper on enhanced oil recovery from lignite CO2.
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Ethics Committees to Meet Next Week
Special House and Senate committees appointed to deal with the aftermath of an ethics measure approved by voters in November will meet next week to begin sorting through the confusing language.
Despite the opposition of dozens of North Dakota businesses and trade organizations, the so-called “anti-corruption” measure was approved by 53.6 percent of the voters. Now, separate bills have been introduced in an attempt to implement the will of the voters.
The
Senate Ethics Committee, chaired by Sen. David Hogue, R-Minot, will meet at 2:00 p.m. next Wednesday, January 30, to hear
SB 2148. The bill, sponsored by Senator Tim Mathern, D-Fargo, would implement one section of the measure that provides for the establishment of an Ethics Commission, but would defer questions about other parts of the measure to an interim study committee.
The
House Ethics Committee, chaired by Rep. Jim Kasper, R-Fargo, is scheduled to hear
HB 1521 at 3:30 the same afternoon. The 43-page bill, sponsored by Majority Leader Chet Pollert, R-Carrington, is much more extensive than the Senate Bill. It would provide definitions for ambiguous terms in the measure such as “ultimate and true source of funds,” and “state government action.”
Both hearings will be held in the Brynhild Haugland Room, the largest committee room in the Capitol.
Click
here to read a seven-page document summarizing existing North Dakota laws relating to ethics.
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Legislature to Consider Gas Tax Hike
Bills have been introduced in the North Dakota Legislature to raise the state’s motor fuel tax to help fund road and bridge construction and maintenance needs.
The Senate Transportation Committee held a hearing this week on
SB 2288, introduced by Sen. Larry Luick, R-Fairmount, that would raise the tax seven cents per gallon. Luick points out that bordering states have higher gas tax rates than North Dakota. He believes the state is missing an opportunity to collect tax revenue from the out-of-state users of its roads.
Click
here to listen to Luick’s comments.
A
fiscal note attached to Luick’s bill indicates a seven-cent tax increase would raise an additional $103.6 million in the 2019-21 biennium. North Dakota has not raised its fuel tax since 2005.
WDEA was among several groups testifying in support of the bill. There was no opposition during the committee hearing. A separate bill,
HB 1301, sponsored by Rep. Marvin Nelson, D-Rolla, would also raise the tax seven cents a gallon. Nelson’s bill also calls for an interim study of the effects of center rumble strips on the life or a roadway.
Click
here for a story about the gas tax from KFYR-TV.
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More School Funding Bills Heard
More bills aimed at addressing construction needs of rapidly growing North Dakota school districts were heard in legislative committees this week.
Senator Brad Bekkedahl, R-Williston, pitched
SB 2280 to members of the Senate Education Committee. The bill, which provides a description that only applies to the Williston #1 School District, would reduce the amount of money deducted from districts that receive oil tax revenue. Currently, an amount equal to 75 percent of the revenue is deducted from the district's Foundation Aid payment. Bekkedahl's bill would reduce it to 50 percent, which the bill's fiscal note indicates amounts to $2.3 million per biennium, all of which would have to be earmarked for school building projects. Bekkedahl's legislation would replace the money in the Foundation Aid formula with a continuous appropriation from the Strategic Investment and Improvements Fund.
The House Education Committee heard several funding bills this week. Rep. Pat Hatelstad, R-Williston, explained
HB 1353, which would use $800 million from the Common Schools Trust Fund to establish a grant program for public schools. Rep. Bob Paulson, R-Minot, proposed
HB 1350 that would establish a common schools revolving loan fund contingent on passage and voter approval of a constitutional amendment. The committee also heard
HB 1365, a bill introduced by Committee Chairman Mark Owens, R-Grand Forks, that would allow districts to keep all in-lieu-of tax revenue that is devoted to a sinking and interest fund. Currently, 75 percent of the amount is deducted from a district’s state aid payment.
HB 1434, introduced by Rep. David Richter, R-Williston, also had its first hearing this week. The legislation would facilitate the dissolution of non-high school districts, to merge with an adjoining high school district. The measure is primarily intended to resolve the issue in Williams County, in which a majority of the property tax base is in Williams County District #8 School District, which has far fewer students than the rapidly-growing Williston District #1.
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Watford City in National Spotlight
Viewing Party Scheduled Next Week
The light will be shining brightly on Watford City when the popular PBS series “Travels with Darley” airs an episode filmed around McKenzie County. The area will be highlighted in the entire 30-minute show scheduled for airing at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 24.
The broadcast was originally scheduled for Jan. 30 on Prairie Public’s Lifelong Learning subchannel but was moved to the primary Prairie Public channel. Jessie Veeder, a singer and songwriter from Watford City, is featured in the program.
“Anytime I have the opportunity to introduce a new audience to the unique and undiscovered beauty and character of the landscape and people here in western North Dakota I am fully on board,” she said.
Veeder spent two days with the film crew traveling around McKenzie County and Watford City.
“Serving as a guide for a person who is genuinely interested in learning about the culture of our area gives me the opportunity to step back and see my home through their eyes,” Veeder said. “It sort of reintroduces me and reminds me what a special place this is and how lucky we are to call it home.”
McKenzie County Tourism and the Watford City Chamber will be hosting a viewing party at Six Shooters Showhall on Jan. 29 from 12 to 1 p.m.
Click
here for more information about the Daytime Emmy Award winning show “Travels with Darley.”
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Write it Down!
WDEA Annual Meeting
Get this on your calendar! The Annual Meeting of the Western Dakota Energy Association will be held:
October 30 - 31, 2019
Grand Hotel
Minot, ND
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Quick Connect
- Lawmaker calls proposed oil tax increase 'political theater' -- Bismarck Tribune
- Killdeer School District gets responses for new site but still looking -- Dunn County Herald
- Growth grants for ND school districts get support from Williams County -- Williston Herald
- Talk of excluding students from Williston High Schools surprises District 8 -- Williston Herald
- MDU Resources subsidiary plans to construct Bakken natural gas pipeline -- MDU News
- Theodore Roosevelt V sees fitting placement of library in Badlands -- Bismarck Tribune
- Volume of brine spills on the increase in Divide and Williams Counties -- Crosby Journal
- DSU and Dickinson School District discuss possibility of shared building -- Dickinson Press
- Williams County asks ND Supreme Court to reinstate mineral leases -- Williston Herald
- North Dakota legislators renew efforts to bring whole state into Central time -- Dickinson Press
- Minot legislator seeks study on privatization of MSU and other institutions -- Minot Daily News
- Survey finds oil and gas executives expect to boost spending this year -- Reuters News
- New report reveals oil/gas industry safety record outpaces private sector -- Energy In Depth
- DOE Report: Surging oil output will push US towards energy independence in 2020 -- CNBC
- Op-ed: Shocker, partisans behind Measure One don't like Republican bill -- SayAnything Blog
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Factoid of the Week
North Dakota oil producers have paid nearly $18 billion in taxes since 2008. The revenue has been used to pay for many things including $1.2 billion dollars for water projects and $875 for local transportation projects. More than $4.5 billion has gone into the Legacy fund and more than $7.3 billion has been invested in communities and infrastructure across the state.
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January 27 - 29
Bismarck
January 28
Capitol
January 28
Bismarck
January 29-31
Grand Forks
January 29 - 31
Bismarck
January 30 - February 1
Minot
February 5
Williston
February 9
Williston
February 12-13
Bismarck
February 16
Dickinson
February 25-26
Dickinson
March 5
ND Petroleum Council "Energy Day"
Capitol
March 14
Fargo
March 27
Watford City
July 16-17
Bismarck
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Oil prices and rig count
January 25, 2019
WTI Crude: $53.59
Brent Crude: $61.64
Natural Gas: $3.18
North Dakota Active Rigs: 65 (down 3)
1/25
/2018
-- 56 rigs
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Geoff Simon
Editor/Executive Director
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