May 1, 2023 - Update

Posted: May 01 2023

Last Week at the Legislature

North Dakota’s 68th Legislative Assembly adjourned sine die shortly before 3 am on Sunday, April 30.

All in all, the Legislature used 75 of the 80 days allowed by the state constitution every two years. That leaves 5 days for the Legislature to reconvene on its own volition during the interim. The Legislature passed approximately 2/3 of the 990 bills and resolutions introduced this session.

The total biennial budget for the state grew to a record $19.6 billion, including $6.3 billion in general fund spending. Highlights from the budget include the following:

Tax Relief: $358 million in income tax relief and $156.7 million in property tax relief;
Pension Plan: $219.2 million to unfunded pension liability – this coincides with closing the state’s defined-benefit plan for new hires and putting them in a defined-contribution plan;
Child Care: $65.6 million, including $22 million for families to help with childcare assistance, $15 million to assist with infant and toddler care, $7 million in grants for providers, and $2million in stipends for childcare workers; and
State Employee Pay: $211 million, providing 6% and 4% pay increases for state employees.

NDBA will be providing a 2023 Legislative Summary later this month summarizing specific legislation that may be of interest to bankers.

NDBA’s 2023 Legislative Tracking List

Bill	Status	Title
HB 1008	House: PASSED House 87 – 3 Senate: PASSED Senate 46 – 1 House: PASSED House 85 – 5 Senate: PASSED Senate 46 – 1 Sent to Governor NDBA Supports	A BILL for an Act to provide an appropriation for defraying the expenses of the department of financial institutions.
HB 1014	House: PASSED House 84 – 9 Senate: PASSED Senate 44 – 2 House: PASSED House 77 – 9 Senate: PASSED Senate 46 – 0 Sent to Governor NDBA Supports	A BILL for an Act to provide an appropriation for defraying the expenses of the industrial commission and the agencies under its control (BND & Housing Finance); to provide for a transfer; and to provide an exemption.
HB 1082	House: PASSED House 84 – 9 Senate: PASSED Senate 34 – 12 Governor: SIGNED NDBA Supports	Relating to the adoption of the Uniform Commercial Code amendments (2022) relating transactions involving digital assets especially relating to (a) negotiability for virtual (non-fiat) currencies, (b) certain electronic payment rights, (c) secured lending against virtual (non-fiat) currencies, and (d) security interests in electronic (fiat) money, such as central bank digital currencies. The amendments also address other technological developments affecting electronic chattel paper, negotiable instruments, payment systems, electronic documents of title, and sales and leases of goods.
HB 1083	House: PASSED House 92 – 0 Senate: PASSED Senate 46 – 0 Governor: SIGNED NDBA Supports	Relating to the adoption of the Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts (2021).
HB 1106	House: FAILED House 6 – 87 NDBA Neutral	Relating to appraisal management companies.
HB 1107	House: PASSED House 90 – 3 Senate: PASSED Senate 46 – 0 House: PASSED House: 88 – 2 Governor: SIGNED NDBA Neutral	Relating to the regulation of real estate appraisers; and to provide a penalty.
HB 1228	House: PASSED House 90 – 0 Senate: PASSED Senate 47 – 0 House: PASSED House: 91 – 0 Governor: SIGNED	Relating to the use of certain marketing practices involving an agreement containing a provision for automatic renewal; and to provide for application.
HB 1278	House: PASSED House 92 – 1 Senate: FAILED Senate 10 – 36	Relating to the prudent investor rule; and to amend and reenact section 21-10-02, subsection 1 of section 21-10-08.1, and subsection 2 of section 21-10-11 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the state investment board and the legacy fund.
HB 1283	House: FAILED House 8 – 85 NDBA Opposes!	Relating to fair access to financial products and services; and to provide a penalty.
HB 1345	House: PASSED House 85 – 8 Senate: FAILED Senate 12 – 34 NDBA Opposes!	Relating to state purchasing contracts.
HB 1347	House: FAILED House 3 – 90 NDBA Opposes!	Relating to the state treasurer and financial institutions engaged in boycotts of energy companies; and to amend and reenact section 6-01-02 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to definitions.
HB 1356	House: FAILED House 3 – 90 NDBA Opposes!	Relating to the state treasurer and financial institutions engaged in boycotts of energy companies; and to amend and reenact section 6-01-02 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to definitions.
HB 1368	House: PASSED House 86 – 7 Senate: PASSED Senate 43 – 3 House: PASSED House: 87 – 4 Governor: SIGNED	Relating to contracts with companies that boycott Israel and a prohibition on investments.
HB 1429	House: PASSED House 93 – 0 Senate: PASSED Senate 42 – 4 House: PASSED House 89 – 1 Senate: PASSED Senate 44 – 3 Governor: SIGNED	Relating to unfair discrimination in the business of insurance and the investment and management of public funds; to amend and reenact section 21-10-08.1 and subsection 10 of section 54-44.4-02 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the prohibition on social investments and restrictions on perpetual contracts; and to provide for a legislative management report..
HB 1469	House: FAILED House 6 – 87 NDBA Opposes!	Relating to the investment and management of public funds.
HB 1487	House: PASSED House 83 – 9 Senate: PASSED Senate 46 – 1 NDBA Neutral	Relating to financial entities use of merchant codes to track firearm and ammunition-related purchases; to provide a penalty; to provide a continuing appropriation; and to provide for a legislative management study.
HN 1499	House: PASSED House 76 – 14 Senate: FAILED Senate 13 – 34	Relating to an interest rate buydown program for homeowners with a primary residence mortgage.
SB 2111	Senate: PASSED Senate 44 – 3 House: PASSED House 74 – 11 Governor: SIGNED	Relating to certificate of title to be allowed in electronic form.
SB 2210	Senate: PASSED Senate 47 – 0 House: PASSED House 92 – 0 Governor: SIGNED	Relating to individual retirement and employee benefit trusts.
HB 2217	Senate: PASSED Senate 26 – 21 House: FAILED House 29 – 64 NDBA Opposes!	Relating to the calculation of interchange fees for electronic payment transactions; and to provide a penalty.
SB 2220	Senate: FAILED Senate 16 – 31	Relating to an allocation from the legacy earnings fund and eligible projects under the housing incentive fund; to provide an effective date; and to declare an emergency.
SB 2263	Senate: PASSED Senate 47 – 0 House: PASSED House 93 – 0 Senate: PASSED Senate: 47 – 0 Governor: SIGNED NDBA Supports	Relating to escrow accounts.
SB 2266	Senate: PASSED Senate 24 – 23 House: FAILED House 39 – 53 NDBA Opposes!	Relating to credit union field-of-membership.
SB 2300	Senate: FAILED Senate 0 – 47	Relating to notice to owner and law enforcement of abandoned vehicles.
SB 2392	Senate: PASSED Senate 42 – 5 House: PASSED House 82 – 8 Governor: SIGNED	Relating to the definition of deposit account.
HCR 3036	House: PASSED House 84 – 5 Senate: PASSED Senate: Voice Vote NDBA Supports	Relating to the adoption of a Central Bank Digital Currency in the United States.

How to Contact Your Legislators

During a legislative session, a legislator can be reached at the State Capitol through:

Contact My Legislators:
https://www.ndlegis.gov/legend/constituent/views/public/contact_legislator/
or by leaving a message with the legislative telephone message center at
1-888-NDLEGIS (635-3447) or 701-328-3373 (local).

Otherwise, a legislator can be reached by mail, telephone or email at the address listed in the legislator’s biography, or one of the lists provided below. Individual legislator contact information is listed here:

Senate
https://www.ndlegis.gov/sites/default/files/resource/miscellaneous/2023senateroster.pdf
House
https://www.ndlegis.gov/sites/default/files/resource/miscellaneous/2023houseroster.pdf

Over the course of the session, NDBA may ask you to call your Senator or Representative to talk to them about a particular bill or to ask them to support or oppose a particular bill.

Legislator contacts from local bankers are extremely important, so, please, if we ask, contact your legislators!

Also, local legislative forums are great to attend because they inform you about issues beyond banking and let you get to know your legislators at home where they are most responsive to your interests and concerns.

Don’t be a stranger; get to know your representatives in Bismarck!