April 3, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #52
Last week, I attended my first Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) State Technical Committee Meeting in Bismarck. I failed to see what was technical about it, but it lasted only 3 hours or so and a very diverse group was there to listen to the speakers. Here is a partial list starting with interested agricultural organizations; Farmer’s Union, Farm Bureau, Grain...
March 11, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #51
This week had me driving to Bismarck for two birds with one stone; the ND Water Quality Monitoring Conference at BSC on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday along with sitting in on the Energy Development and Transmission Legislative Committee’s meeting on Thursday in the Capitol. Mother Nature cancelled the Tuesday portion, so they jammed it into Wednesday and half of Thursday....
January 19, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #49
On January 17 I drove to Jamestown to attend the ND Grazing Lands Coalition’s (NDGLC) Winter Conference. Like a couple of the many folks I spoke with, you may be wondering what a NDSGA representative was doing there. I explained to them that the Soybean Growers are interested in knowing what is going on in ND Agriculture and that the paramount interests of this winter...
December 24, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #48
This week, I attended the Interim Agriculture Committee in Bismarck. This was their second meeting, the first one months back discussed if anything should or could be done to improve the accuracy of grain testing (see blog entry #42 for more detail). That topic came up at the end of this meeting and it looks like the committee may be looking at it again next time they meet...
December 15, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #47
This Wednesday I attended the Natural Resources committee meeting – their second of this interim session. In #43 of this blog, I laid out the goals of the committee and what they did their first meeting. Wind occupied the entire morning, with presentations from Public Service Commission Commissioner Fedorchak explaining their siting and decommissioning process. She also...
December 9, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #46
Since I last wrote to you, I have worked a couple of days each in October (Dickinson tour) and November (Minot). Both were efforts to track the Interim Legislative committee known as Energy Development and Transmission (EDTC). Chaired by Senator Wardner of Dickinson, this is the most active of all interim Committees as it has met nearly every month and often for two days at...
October 13, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #45
This is the second filing from my recent trip to Bismarck covering the Energy Development and Transmission Committee (EDTC) and having encapsulated the first day, what follows is the gist of the second. Each year, the EDTC attends the EmPower ND Energy Conference and this was it. It pulls in the Who’s Who of ND Government and Energy related people. Senator Hoeven kicked it...
October 11, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #44
This is about the two days just spent in Bismarck covering the Energy Development and Transmission Committee (EDTC), which is one of the North Dakota Legislature’s Interim committees that I follow. It is the most active of all interim committees and they are charged with some issues that could change our taxes as well as determine where our dollars go. Of the three issues...
October 9, 2017
Contact the EPA about the RFS
We want to let you know about the EPA’s Notice of Data Availability (NODA) that may lead to a roll back of biomass diesel volumes in the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). Please submit comments to the EPA asking them to not only not to cut biodiesel volumes but grow the volumes in the RFS as Congress intended to help make America energy independent and support economic...
October 5, 2017
Follow up on Herbicide Damage Claims Before Harvest
North Dakota farmers who have made herbicide damage liability claims are encouraged to make sure their claims have been fully investigated before harvesting crops on those affected fields. Once more than 20 percent of fields with damage claims are harvested, farmers will not be able to pursue civil action to collect damages.
The North Dakota Soybean Growers Association is...
September 29, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #43
Last week I was in Bismarck to cover interim committees (see #42 for Ag) and on Wednesday it was the first meeting for Natural Resources. Its directives for next year or so include:
1. Study whether state and local level regulation of high-level radioactive waste disposal is consistent with applicable federal regulations and to ensure ND has proper input into federal...
September 27, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #42
Early last week, the interim Agriculture Committee spent the morning listening to Karl Rockeman, director of water quality at the state Dept. of Health give a presentation on nutrient management. For this presentation, nutrient meant both nitrogen and phosphorous. Based on 2009 numbers, of our state’s 168 lakes and reservoirs, 47 were judged to be impaired or threatened due...
September 7, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #41
Right now, the Superintendent of Williston Public Schools is testifying in front of the ND Legislature’s Energy Development and Transmission Committee as they have traveled to the Bakken oil field for hearings. The committee wants to see what is happening with the money North Dakota has sent out to the West and Williston is their first stop. In months to come, the committee...
July 27, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #39
On July 25 the NDSGA held their first of two golf tournaments for 2017. This one was at the Jamestown Country Club on a beautiful day which had just a spit of rain at the beginning. Most of the growers were saying they would pay double golfing fees if the tournament was rained out as the reports from nearly everyone outside of the Red River Valley was hoping for moisture....
July 5, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #38
EPA Tour
On the last Wednesday of June I joined eight members of the Environmental Protection Agency (7 from DC, one from the regional office in Denver), Rep. Mike Howe of Casselton, staffers and members of ND Corn, ND Grain Growers, ND Soybean Growers, Senator Heitkamp’s representative, Farmer’s Union rep and maybe a few others on a tour of the central region of the Red...
June 29, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #37
A Quick Canadian Trip
Monday I drove up to Winnipeg against a north wind for the annual International Legislator’s Forum. This is a gathering which includes select lawmakers from Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota and Manitoba. Originally it was about managing flood waters but lately has expanded to transportation, sex trafficking, invasive species and other topics. The...
June 23, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #36
Last week we had an hour or so at the Clemens/Ericson farm outside of Wimbledon. The idea was to gather interested growers in the shop and discuss what happened in the ND Legislature concerning agricultural issues. We did have 10 or so producers show up at 8 in the morning and besides a short presentation from Scott Rising and me, it was mostly answering questions about a...
June 7, 2017
Shop Talk
If you are anywhere near enough to Wimbledon to get to the Clemens/Ericson farm at 10020 19th St. SE Wimbledon next Wednesday, June 14 at 8 a.m., there will be a few people gathered to discuss the legislative session which ended last month. Topics will cover transportation, water, PSC elevator regulation and a few other issues/controversies including whatever the growers...
May 5, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #35
Okay, here it is one week after the session ended and there has been a change brought on by the Governor. He vetoed the $10,000 that was going to go to every township outside of the oil producing counties. You may recall that it was to arrive August 1st but for one year only and the money was to have come from the Strategic Investment and Improvements fund as well as the...
April 27, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #34
Today is the 77th Legislative Day of this session. There were at least 2 other days that everyone worked but were not counted due to a sleight of hand in technical parliamentary rules. In other words, it would be right up against the 80 day limit were if straightforward. Anyway, this looks like the last day.
I just walked out on discussion of the last of 19 amendments that...
April 26, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #33
The SWC (State Water Commission budget, HB1020) was pretty much settled Monday in Conference Committee about 5 p.m. They need to approve the settled language after it is typed up by attorneys this morning. Rural Water was put in its own bucket or category of funding which presumably makes them happy. The big deal is that the Red River Water Supply Project appears to be on...
April 21, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #32
The bill that dealt with NDSU Research and Extension has been contentious in the area of the Extension Service Soil Conservation committee because the House saw an administrative position as too rich for the function. They removed $213,000 for that and the conference committee put back all but $21,788 of that just minutes ago this Friday afternoon. The Senate had taken out...
April 21, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #31
Township road money is a bone of contention in bill SB2013 which is the budget for Trust Lands. Oil country townships get 3 percent of the oil extraction tax in their county. Another 3 percent of the extraction tax is pooled from the nine biggest oil producing counties and then distributed per township in those counties depending on maintained miles. Of course, most...
April 19, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #30
Bills and the ideas that spawn them begin to pop up in unlikely places when legislative sessions get to the later stages such as we are now in. These are ideas championed by lawmakers who will not give up, the ones that keep watchers hoping and hopping. There are supposed standards for germane-ness, like that an item introduced as an amendment onto a budget bill should be...
April 15, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #29
The House killed SB2263 the other day. That was the Senate tiling bill. HB1390 is on the way to the governor and the tiling equipment should be ready to roll.
Friday morning in the Conference Committee that deals with the DOT budget, an amendment was approved that deals with the highway maintenance sites that were to be consolidated. There are eight sections to the...
April 13, 2017
Murphy’s Law Blog 2017 | #28
A big part of the whole scheme with making laws is relationships. Lawmaker to Lawmaker, Lobbyist to Lawmaker and Lobbyist to Lobbyist are amongst them. Throw in those from the Executive branch and staff and pretty soon there are a lot of people to know and get along with if one is determined to be friendly. Not all take that path, but generally it is acknowledged that one...