UPDATE: Comments from the League included below. Senator Judy Lee, a Republican lawmaker from Fargo, is disputing what she says are claims from the League of Women Voters that she urged a boycott of their upcoming candidate forums. She wrote about it in a Facebook post last night, describing the League’s forums as “poorly run” and…
Fargo Republican Named the 4th Most Productive Lawmaker in America
Fargo Republican state Senator Judy Lee is ranked #4 in the nation when it comes to productive state lawmakers. That’s according to the folks at FiscalNote which arrived at the ranking by looking at the number of bills each lawmaker introduced and the percentage of those bills which passed and running the numbers through an…
North Dakota Needs Fewer Elected Offices
In Cass County last night a proposal to elect fewer county officials was heard by the County Commission with no opposition from the public. Though at least one commissioner was skeptical per this report from Helmut Schmidt. “I struggle with this, because you know the citizens are smart enough to elect me, but they’re not…
Senator Judy Lee: North Dakota Can Have Effective Tobacco Policies Without BreatheND
BreatheND has been the source of a great deal of misinformation. A 2008 initiated measure resulted in establishment of BreatheND to utilize the additional money given to states who had participated in the lawsuit against tobacco companies. Those extra funds end in 2017. That does not, however, mean that the programs have been eliminated. ND…
Video: Senate Votes Down Second Bill Requiring Drug Testing for Welfare Recipients
Earlier this session the state Senate voted down SB2279, introduced by Senator Tom Campbell, which would have implemented drug testing for welfare recipients. Today the Senate took up a version of this same bill, though this one originated in the House and passed there last month. HB1308 would require that TANF (welfare) recipients participating in…
Video: With Strong Bipartisan Support, Senate Passes Changes to Medical Marijuana Measure
One of the most contentious topics in the North Dakota legislature so far has been the issue of medical marijuana. Much of that contention focused on what is and is not the will of the people. Opponents to SB2344, legislation backed by the bi-partisan leadership of the House and Senate chambers, say that the Legislature…
Video: Senate Votes Down Legislation Capping Number of Bills Lawmakers Can Introduce
SB2255, introduced by Senator Tom Campbell of Grafton, isn’t a complicated piece of policy. It’s quite short, in fact. It limits the number of bills any given lawmaker can introduce per session to seven: This idea is popular with some in the public who complain about the amount of time lawmakers waste on this or that…
Video: Lawmakers Have an Uncomfortable Debate About Exempting Tampons From the Sales Tax
Today the state Senate took up SB2254, which is a pretty simple bill. It’s basically one sentence exempting “tampons and sanitary napkins” from the state’s sales tax. It was defeated by a wide margin, with just three of the state Senate’s most far-left members giving a green vote: Senator Erin Oban of Bismarck, Senator Tim…
Senate Kills Bill Which Would Have Given Representation to Citizens in Extra-Territorial Zoning Areas
Extra-territorial zoning has been a controversial area of policy in North Dakota for some time now. Essentially it’s state law which allows municipalities to regulate areas outside of their jurisdiction. Depending on the size of the community, they can implement zoning regulations up to four miles outside of their city limits. The problem? The citizens…
Lawmakers Need To Stop Trusting Everything Cops Tell Them
Today the state Senate debated HB1297 which would have repealed state law requiring the involvement of a judge in settling ownership claims on disputed property held by law enforcement. Cops wanted the change because they think it takes too long for a judge to review the property, but the Senate killed with opponents arguing that…