2005 North Dakota Legislative Council Bill And Resolution Summaries
HOUSE
House Bill No. 1025 - County Mill Levy Consolidation. This bill revises the consolidated county general fund levy option by removing from the consolidated general fund the specific mill levies for the industrial development organization, county parks and recreation, library fund, weed board and weed control, and weather modification; decreasing the maximum general fund levy from 134 to 118 mills; and removing the general fund levy increase limitations that are based on the consumer price index. (Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations)
House Bill No. 1026 - Delinquent Property Tax Foreclosure. This bill decreases from approximately five years to approximately three years the period of time in which foreclosure will take place for delinquent property taxes. In order to assist with the transition to the shorter foreclosure period, the bill also allows a board of county commissioners to waive all or part of the penalties and interest on delinquent real estate taxes if the board determines the reduced period for foreclosure creates a hardship for similarly situated taxpayers. (Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations)
House Bill No. 1027 - Unemployment Compensation Tax Rate. This bill revises the formula for determining unemployment compensation tax rates so that a proportionately greater responsibility is shifted to negative balance employers for that portion of the unemployment insurance tax burden which represents the amount of revenue necessary to make due progress toward the unemployment insurance reserve fund solvency target. (Commerce Committee)
House Bill No. 1028 - Job Service North Dakota Advisory Council. This bill establishes a seven-member Job Service North Dakota Advisory Council, appointed by the Governor, for the purpose of advising Job Service North Dakota regarding issues relating to the operations, effectiveness, fairness, and efficiency of the unemployment insurance program. (Commerce Committee)
House Bill No. 1029 - Vulnerable Adult Abuse and Neglect Education and Awareness Campaign. This bill provides an appropriation to the Department of Human Services for the purpose of implementing an education and awareness campaign to inform the public about vulnerable adult abuse and neglect, including the manner in which incidents of adult abuse, neglect, and exploitation may be reported. (Criminal Justice Committee)
House Bill No. 1030 - Smoking Restrictions in Public Places and Nonpublic Workplaces. This bill, with certain exceptions, prohibits smoking in places of public access, publicly owned buildings or offices, and nonpublic workplaces and provides for a $100 penalty for violations with a maximum of $500 for second and subsequent offenses. (Criminal Justice Committee)
House Bill No. 1031 - New and Expanding Business Tax Exemption. This bill extends from 5 to 10 years the maximum length of the tax exemption a municipality may grant to a new and expanding business and allows a new and expanding business to receive the tax exemption granted by the municipality regardless of whether the new and expanding business is located within an urban renewal development or renewal area. (Economic Development Committee)
House Bill No. 1032 - Supplemental Payments. This bill removes unrestricted federal revenue from the supplemental payment formula. (Education Committee)
House Bill No. 1033 - School District Transportation Payments. This bill requires that school district transportation payments be calculated using data envelopment analysis. (Education Committee)
House Bill No. 1034 - Attorney General - Counsel to Boards of Health. This bill authorizes the Attorney General to provide legal counsel and legal opinions to local boards of health. (Emergency Services Committee)
House Bill No. 1035 - Government Performance and Accountability System. This bill creates a government performance and accountability system to be established and maintained by the Office of Management and Budget subject to review of the Government Performance and Accountability Committee. The system is to focus on results of major agency activities and is to provide agency managers, the Governor, the Legislative Assembly, and the public with the information necessary to evaluate and assess agency performance and accountability for the purpose of ensuring that state government services are effective and state resources are used efficiently. The bill also provides an appropriation for administering the government performance and accountability system. (Government Performance and Accountability Committee)
House Bill No. 1036 - Penalties for Release of Confidential Records. This bill makes the penalty for the release of any confidential information consistent throughout the North Dakota Century Code by changing those sections of the Century Code which provide for a penalty that is different from the general penalty contained in North Dakota Century Code Section 12.1-13-01, a Class C felony. (Judicial Process Committee)
House Bill No. 1037 - Technical Corrections Act. This bill eliminates inaccurate or obsolete name and statutory references or superfluous language in the Century Code. (Judicial Process Committee)
House Bill No. 1038 - Advisory Commission on the No Child Left Behind Act. This bill creates a 13-member Advisory Commission on the No Child Left Behind Act and continues the interim No Child Left Behind Committee through the 2005-06 interim. (No Child Left Behind Committee)
House Bill No. 1039 - Auctioneer Bonds. This bill allows auctioneers and auction clerks the option of providing errors and omissions and liability insurance instead of a bond. (Public Services Committee)
House Bill No. 1040 - Income Tax on Out-of-State Bonds' Interest. This bill requires adding back out-of-state bonds' interest earnings to individual taxable income on Form ND-1, for those bonds purchased after December 31, 2005. (Taxation Committee)
House Bill No. 1041 - Nonresident Military Income Tax Refunds. This bill allows individuals to claim an income tax refund for taxable years 2001 and 2002 if nonresident military income was used to determine the initial tax on North Dakota taxable income. The bill allows refund claims to be filed until April 15, 2006. (Taxation Committee)
House Bill No. 1042 - Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board Membership. This bill provides for North Dakota membership on the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, consisting of two members of the House of Representatives and two members of the Senate appointed by the Legislative Council chairman. (Taxation Committee)
House Bill No. 1043 - Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement Compliance. This bill brings North Dakota into full compliance with the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement effective January 1, 2006. The bill inserts appropriate statutory references to farm machinery and alcoholic beverage gross receipts taxes to allow those taxes to continue to be collected by cities and counties at the current rate. The bill provides that a cap provided by city or county home rule for sales taxes on a single purchase will be replaced in 2006 with a refund provision requiring the retailer to collect the full amount of city or county sales taxes and allowing the purchaser to claim a refund from the Tax Commissioner as if the cap remained in place. The bill changes the 1 percent lodging tax for Lewis and Clark Bicentennial funding into a gross receipts tax but does not change uses of the revenue from the tax. (Taxation Committee)
House Bill No. 1044 - Electronic Lien Notification Procedures. This bill creates an electronic lien notification procedure for motor vehicles. (Transportation Committee)
House Concurrent Resolution No. 3001 - Child Support Study. This resolution provides for a Legislative Council study of the legal and enforcement issues relating to child support collections on Indian reservations, including state and tribal court jurisdictions, recognition of income-withholding orders, and logistics involved in transferring child support collected to custodial parents. (Budget Committee on Human Services)
SENATE
Senate Bill No. 2024 - Document Preservation Fund. This bill removes the June 30, 2005, expiration date for the document preservation fund and continues the additional fees imposed for the purpose of funding the document preservation fund. (Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations)
Senate Bill No. 2025 - Legislative Approval of Tribal-State Gaming Compacts. This bill requires the Governor to obtain legislative approval before entering, renewing, amending, or extending any tribal-state gaming compact. (Budget Committee on Human Services)
Senate Bill No. 2026 - Contractor Licensing and Regulation. This bill authorizes the Secretary of State to request criminal history record information regarding an applicant for a contractor's license or contractor seeking to renew a license; authorizes the Attorney General to bring a complaint against a contractor under consumer fraud laws; and specifies additional grounds upon which the Secretary of State may deny an application for a contractor's license, refuse to renew a license, or revoke a license. (Commerce Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2027 - Commission on Legal Counsel for Indigents. This bill establishes the Commission on Legal Counsel for Indigents, provides for the powers and duties of the commission, provides for a transition of indigent defense services from the Supreme Court to the commission, and provides for an appropriation to fund the establishment of the commission. (Criminal Justice Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2028 - Guardianship Services. This bill requires the Department of Human Services to contract with an entity to create and coordinate a unified system for the provision of guardianship services to vulnerable adults who are ineligible for developmental disabilities case management services. The bill also provides an appropriation for the program. (Criminal Justice Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2029 - Successor Guardian Appointments. This bill establishes a procedure for the current guardian or any interested person to file a motion with the court for the appointment of a successor guardian. (Criminal Justice Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2030 - Guardian and Conservator Annual Reports. This bill provides for an annual reporting requirement for guardians and conservators and requires the State Court Administrator's office to develop and provide a form that may be used to fulfill reporting requirements. (Criminal Justice Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2031 - Law Enforcement Training. This bill provides an appropriation to the Highway Patrol for the purpose of providing training for law enforcement officers and other emergency services providers. (Criminal Justice Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2032 - Business Initiative. This bill addresses a broad range of economic development and business climate issues, such as a business hotline pilot program, a Department of Commerce Division of International Trade, a local economic developer training program, a Dakota manufacturing initiative, and various studies relating to corporate taxes and economic development tax incentives, technology commercialization, economic development incentives, risk capital, intellectual property, liability insurance, and transportation. (Economic Development Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2033 - School District Residency Determinations. This bill requires an annual determination regarding the school district of residence for those students who are placed for noneducational reasons. (Education Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2034 - Higher Education Special Funds Continuing Appropriation. This bill continues the continuing appropriation of higher education institutions' special revenue funds, including tuition, through June 30, 2007. (Higher Education Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2035 - North Dakota University System Budget Request and Appropriation. This bill continues the requirement that the budget request for the North Dakota University System include budget estimates for block grants for a base funding component and for an initiative funding component and a budget estimate for an asset funding component and the requirement that the appropriation for the North Dakota University System include block grants for a base funding appropriation and for an initiative funding appropriation and an appropriation for asset funding through June 30, 2007. (Higher Education Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2036 - North Dakota University System Unspent General Fund Appropriations. This bill continues the North Dakota University System authority to carry over at the end of the biennium unspent general fund appropriations through June 30, 2007. (Higher Education Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2037 - Information Technology Statutory Provisions. This bill provides that the State Board of Higher Education is responsible for managing and regulating information technology planning and services for institutions under its control; excludes certain policies, standards, and guidelines of the Information Technology Department from the Administrative Agencies Practice Act; authorizes the Information Technology Committee to review information technology projects of the legislative branch in addition to major information technology projects of the executive and judicial branches; and requires the Information Technology Department to develop policies, standards, and guidelines using a process involving advice from state agencies and institutions. (Information Technology Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2038 - Statewide Information Technology Improvements Revolving Fund. This bill establishes a statewide information technology improvements revolving fund for information technology projects providing improvements in the efficiency of state government services or information technology projects involving multiple state agencies or institutions. (Information Technology Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2039 - Organizational Session Meeting. This bill provides for the organizational session to convene on the first Monday in December rather than the first Tuesday after the first Monday at a time designated by the Legislative Council, rather than at 9:00 a.m. (Legislative Management Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2040 - Surface Coal Mining Performance Bond Release Notification. This bill deletes the requirements that a request for bond release be published in other daily newspapers of general circulation in the locality of the surface coal mining operation in addition to the official newspaper of the county and that subsurface owners within the permit area proposed for bond release be notified. (Natural Resources Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2041 - Transportation of Game and Fish Taken on Indian Trust Lands. This bill provides that properly tagged game birds legally taken on Indian trust land may be possessed, transported, or shipped in state and that properly tagged big game legally taken on Indian trust land may be transported, shipped, or possessed within the state. (Natural Resources Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2042 - Penalty for Truancy. This bill penalizes parents who fail to ensure their children's attendance at school and allows for the cancellation of a truant student's driver's license. (No Child Left Behind Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2043 - State Bonding Fund Application Procedure. The bill creates an application procedure under the state bonding fund and requires the coverage applied for to be based on the amount of money and property handled and the opportunity for defalcation. The bill limits claims to two years before the filing of a claim. (Public Services Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2044 - State Seed Law. This bill clarifies state seed law and makes some substantive changes, including the provision of a per diem for Seed Commission members; specific creation of the power of the Seed Commissioner to employ, appoint, or contract with agents; and longer periods between germination tests for certain seed. (Public Services Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2045 - Passthrough Entity Income Tax Withholding. This bill requires passthrough entities such as S corporations, partnerships, trusts, limited liability companies, and limited liability partnerships to choose between the options of filing a combined report in North Dakota or withholding North Dakota income taxes on distributions to nonresident members of the passthrough entity. (Taxation Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2046 - Tax Haven Reporting. This bill requires inclusion of corporations in a unitary relationship and incorporated in a tax haven as part of a water's edge corporate income tax filing group. (Taxation Committee)
Senate Bill No. 2047 - Modification of No-Fault Automobile Insurance. This bill modifies no-fault automobile insurance by requiring the vehicle to be in motion or have the injury caused by another vehicle; removing work loss, replacement services loss, survivors' income loss, and survivors' replacement services; removing charges for nonprescription drugs and experimental and medically unproven treatment from coverage; and removing diagnostic testing from the medical expenses used to determine if there is a serious injury. (Transportation Committee)
Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 4001 - Block Grant Hearings. This resolution authorizes the Budget Section to hold legislative hearings required for receipt of federal block grant funds. (Budget Section)
Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 4002 - Performance and Accountability Report. This resolution directs the Legislative Council to study the State Board of Higher Education performance and accountability measures included in the report required by North Dakota Century Code Section 15-10-14.2. (Higher Education Committee)
