State Demands Feds Pay for DAPL Protest Costs
The State of North Dakota has filed a claim against the US Army Corps of Engineers seeking $38 million for the state’s expenses related to the Dakota Access Pipeline protest.
During an interview on the radio program
What’s On Your Mind, Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem said the state has submitted a bill to the federal government based on the
Federal Tort Claims Act.
Click
here to listen to Stenehjem’s comments.
Stenehjem said the Corps is to blame for facilitating the protest by allowing the illegal protest encampment on land controlled by the Corps.
Click
here to listen to Stenehjem’s comments.
Stenehjem said the federal government has six months to respond to the state’s claim. He feels the case is winnable because it’s clear the Corps didn’t enforce the law.
Click
here to listen to Stenehjem’s comments.
Click
here and advance to the 27:10 mark to listen to the full interview.
Click
here to read the Attorney General’s news release and read the 31-page claim.
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Fox Renews Call for Bigger Share of Oil Revenue
The Chairman of the MHA Nation told attendees at MHA’s Energy Expo this week that the Tribe will continue to pursue a greater share of oil tax revenue collected from production on the Fort Berthold Reservation.
Currently, the MHA Nation receives 50% of the taxes collected on tribal trust lands. But Chairman Mark Fox said the revenue is insufficient to meet expenses incurred as a result of oil industry development. Fox said as trustee of the tribal land, the federal government should not have allowed the state of North Dakota to retain half of the oil tax revenue.
Click
here to listen to Fox’s comments.
Fox said the tax split has been his biggest frustration during his four years as tribal chairman. He said the Tribe has received letters of support from the oil industry, which he says helps the MHA Nation continue its effort to renegotiate the tax sharing agreement.
Click
here to listen to Fox’s comments.
Fox said the Tribe will also remain actively engaged in the effort to resolve ownership of lakebed minerals underlying Lake Sakakawea.
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Recession May Help Meet ND Workforce Needs
As counter-intuitive as it sounds, the state of North Dakota could benefit from an economic recession in the United States.
That was the message from Dan White, director of government consulting and public finance research at Moody’s Analytics, during this week's meeting of the state’s Revenue Advisory Committee. The Office of Management and Budget contracts with Moody's to provide economic projections for the state of North Dakota.
White said the US is the ninth year of its current economic expansion, and history suggests a recession is likely in the next two or three years.
“It doesn’t take a Ph.D. in economics to see that once we’re at the top of the business cycle … the thing that comes next is the bottom of the business cycle, “White said. “There may not be any obvious bubbles forming in the US economy, but it’s clear to see that conditions are just about right in the US economy for people to start making bad decisions.”
White said a national recession could be “both a blessing and a curse” for North Dakota. He said there is downside risk because the state depends on national demand for its ag and energy products, but he said an economic downturn could also help address the state’s labor shortage.
“The biggest speed limit on the pace of growth in North Dakota today is the size of the state’s labor force,” White said. “And in a labor market as tight as North Dakota, you can only add jobs at the pace you can add workers.”
White said it’s difficult for North Dakota to recruit workers because there’s little difference between the state’s unemployment rate and the national unemployment rate. But with North Dakota’s economy on the upswing, a nationwide downturn could benefit the state.
“If the US falls into a recession, as North Dakota is moving out of its most recent oil-induced recession, that could be a very good thing for adding some new workers and adding to the labor force,” White said. “After that next turn in the business cycle from a national perspective, we do see a lot of upside for North Dakota to add workers and add more activity.”
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Economic Stats Support Watford City Sense of Growth
Year-to-date
figures from the McKenzie Job Development Authority show the feeling of expansion and growth in the county is accurate.
“The Year to Date figures all point to improvements," said Daniel Stenberg, Executive Director of the McKenzie County Job Development Authority. "Building permits are up, so are sales tax collections. Even visits to the National Park are up.”
The monthly economic report shows comparisons to one year ago:
- Unemployment down from 2.2% to 1.5%
- Oil production up from 12.5 million barrels to 14.1 million barrels
- Year-to-date value of Watford City building permits up from $6.7 million to $17.9 million
- McKenzie County First Quarter Taxable sales up from $41.6 million to $57.2 million
Massive improvements in the infrastructure of the region such as bypasses around Watford City and other towns have made growth easier to handle so it has less of a feeling of a “boom,” Stenberg said.
“It’s very much a family growth situation. School enrollments are up, churches are adding to their facilities and adding additional Sunday services,” he said.
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Crowds Feast at Bakken Rocks Cookfests
Summer weather and the promise of good barbeque food -- for free -- attracted hundreds of people to the North Dakota Petroleum Council Bakken Rocks Cookfests Events were held this week in Grenora and Twin Buttes.
"The best estimate (of crowd size) we have is a minimum of 600 and max of probably 800 for each," said ND Petroleum Council Communications Director Tessa Sandstrom. "We had about 120-150 at the education session in Grenora and 85 attended in Twin Buttes."
Twice each summer, the Bakken Rocks CookFest attracts residents to learn more about the ins and outs of the oil and gas industry, attend an info session where they can listen to and visit with the experts of the industry, and eat some of the best BBQ available in western North Dakota. At the end of the Grenora and Twin Buttes events, attendees voted for their favorite company's cooking team.
At Grenora the People’s Choice winner was Continental Resources, Balon Valves, KLJ, Nuverra. The Judges’ Choice went to Crescent Point and Wyoming Casing
At Twin Buttes, the People’s Choice award went to WPX Energy. The Judges’ Choice award went to Hess Corporation and MBI Energy Services.
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NHTSA Ramps Up Heat Danger Warnings
The summer sun is heating up America, and it could get hotter. With the sun comes heat, which can be a killer, especially for a child left alone or trapped inside a vehicle.
In the United States, every 10 days a child dies as a result of vehicular heatstroke. Since 1998, there have been 761 deaths,18 of which happened this year. These deaths were 100% preventable.
The Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute and the North Dakota Local Technical Assistance Program are advising people that education is the first step in prevention. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is leading the charge to educate about the dangers.
Heatstroke Prevention Day is July 31, and NHTSA will be tweeting from 7 AM to 7 PM ET about the dangers of heatstroke and sharing prevention tips.
For more information about this training, click
here.
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Road Work Planned on I-94 at Beach & Dickinson
Construction will begin on Monday on I-94 near Beach and Dickinson. Crews will be applying a slurry seal, which is similar to a chip seal but does not have the loose rocks.
Work will be taking place in the following locations:
- Westbound and eastbound I-94 from the Montana State Line east 12 miles
- Eastbound I-94 from west Dickinson's Exit 59 east 11 miles
During the project, speeds will be reduced, traffic will be reduced to one lane and a width restriction will be in place. Click
here for more information about DOT construction projects.
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The View from the Director’s Chair
This is the debut edition of what we plan to make a regular feature of WDEA’s weekly newsletter – a quick recap of the week’s events from the perspective of your executive director.
My Monday highlight was a meeting of the state’s Revenue Advisory Committee. It’s an informal group of private sector leaders put together by the Office of Management and Budget to review the economy and state tax revenue forecasts. The discussion was generally positive with the consensus that oil prices would remain at least around the $60/barrel mark, with potential “upside risk” in the forecast.
Tuesday I hit the road for New Town, and spent three days visiting with folks at the MHA Nation’s Energy Expo, the CookFest in Twin Buttes, and other stops in and around Dunn and Mountrail Counties. MHA put together an informative and entertaining event that included presentations from Ft. Berthold’s major oil producers and MHA’s Energy Division, and mixed in some enjoyable Native singing and dancing.
I received some education this week from a couple WDEA board members. After the MHA event wrapped up Wednesday, I drove south and dropped in on Killdeer School Superintendent Gary Wilz, who is the current acting president of WDEA. In addition to discussing a little association business, I received an update from Gary on Killdeer’s growing school enrollment figures and the need to expand school facilities to accommodate that growth. I stayed in Killdeer that evening and sat in on the school board’s annual budget meeting, which featured more discussion of the district’s building needs.
Thursday morning began with a stop at Daryl Dukart’s ranch just east of Dunn Center. Daryl, who is a Dunn County Commissioner and past president of WDEA, was kind enough to provide a tour of his ranching operation and the abundant oil industry activity in northern Dunn County. Marathon Oil owns a lot of production in the area, and I was impressed by the company’s diligent efforts to control dust from truck traffic on rural roads. Daryl told me the local folks really appreciate it, and I’m sure their livestock do as well. The highlight of Daryl’s tour took us to Little Missouri Bay recreation area, which is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful spots in North Dakota. We’ll have more news in next week’s newsletter about plans to improve access to the site.
I left Daryl’s place and headed toward Twin Buttes, stopping along the way for lunch at Jodeo’s in Halliday. I enjoyed a delicious burger and fries, and had a delightful conversation with local resident Harvey Schmidt, who worked many years for the National Weather Service. The Cookfest was the first I’d ever attended, and I must say everything about it was spectacular – the food, the entertainment and the industry information that was shared. I will definitely have the NDPC CookFests on my 2019 calendar.
-- Geoff Simon, WDEA Executive Director
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Quick Connect
- U.S. oil and gas production is spreading -- Forbes
- Texas to pass Iraq and Iran as #3 oil producer -- CNN Money
- Williston talks about changes oil boom, resurgence is bringing about -- Williston Herald
- Self-service vehicle registration kiosk in Dickinson and Williston -- NDDOT
- Crossover utility vehicles overtake cars as the most popular light-duty vehicle -- EIA
- Shale sends U.S. oil production past 11 million barrels/day for first time -- Energy in Depth
- Report challenges benefit of federal methane flaring rule -- Inside Sources
- State hires Amazon exec to be North Dakota's first "chief reinvention officer" -- State Scoop
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Factoid of the Week
The word “barbecue” is from the word "barabicu" found in the language of both the Timucua of Florida and the Taíno people of the Caribbean. The word translates as “sacred fire pit,” and describes a grill for cooking meat, consisting of a wooden platform resting on sticks
.
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July 25
Bismarck
July 26
Hazen
July 27
Bismarck
July 31
Bismarck
July 31
Online
August 13,14
Bismarck
August 14
Bismarck
September 12
Williston
September
24-26
Fargo
October 3
Bismarck
October 3,4
Williston
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Oil prices and rig count
July 20, 2018
WTI Crude: $70.46
Brent Crude: $73.02
Natural Gas: $2.76
North Dakota Active Rigs: 68 (up 1)
7/20/2017 -- 59 rigs
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Geoff Simon
Editor/Executive Director
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