March 6, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #16
There is nothing like a Monday drive to Bismarck through alternating whiteouts to make one appreciate being back in the Capitol. These last two days for your legislative crew has centered around the farm home exemption bills which, having passed the Senate, were up for their House hearing Wednesday in Finance and Tax committee.
There are two bills appearing back to back in...
March 1, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #15
Welcome to March 1. This was a short week as the session grinds back into action like a semi-frozen combine in December. Today I spent all morning in House Energy and Natural Resources listening and eventually testifying on 2139 which seeks to reinstate the State Water Commission cost-share for snagging and clearing. That bill is all about roads and bridges and I testified...
February 21, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #14
Legislative sessions in our state are comprised of two halves and overtime. We just finished the first half on the 33rd day and rather than turnovers, it is Crossover. We will start again Wednesday of next week, probably go another 33 or so and the last possible or 80th day is April 30. How long the Conference Committee (overtime) goes is something many people get into a...
February 14, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #13
It seems that many are curious about the status of the Spiritwood soybean crush plant and today I was one of a dozen people in the Commerce Department building for an update. There were representatives from Great River Energy (GRE), Jamestown EDC, the Lieutenant Governor, the Bank of ND, MNSP (Minnesota Soybean Processors)/NDSP, three state farmer-legislators comprised of a...
February 13, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #12
Hey! It is the middle of the week after the Corn and Soybean Expo and I just want to thank the many folks who mentioned that they appreciate the blog. Good to know that it is read.
Today we had committee action taken on the farm home exemption bill (2360) that would get rid of the current tests and use the federal IRS definition which is that 66 percent or more of gross...
February 6, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #11
One of the biggest bills moneywise this session is connected with Agriculture. It is #2297 and has a nearly $152 million total. It includes NDSU’s #1 priority on its capital improvements list (Dunbar Hall) for $51 million as well as a communications and arts building ($32 million) in Valley City State which is on the wrong side of the dike. The big item for Agriculture is...
January 31, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #10
Warehouse, grain buyer licensing and grain inspection is a hot topic again this session. With a big insolvency issue out there – this time involving a roving grain buyer – there are a couple of bills looking to make some changes. Senator Wanzek is trying to find fixes with 2346 by talking about the indemnity fund taking a small cut from the sale of all grain and oilseed...
January 30, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #9
On Tuesday bill # 1476 was heard in House Finance and Tax. This would give farmers who are looking at getting out or retiring an incentive through an income tax credit if they sell their land to someone who qualifies as a beginning farmer. It was presented as something that would help the beginning farmer and was looked upon favorably by the committee in that regard, but...
January 28, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #8
There has been discussion on legislation that would authorize the transfer of APUC, the Agricultural Products Utilization Commission, to the North Dakota Department of Agriculture (NDDA). It is currently under the umbrella of the Department of Commerce where it has resided the past 20 years or so after being taken out of the NDDA. The Ag Commissioner is on the APUC board so...
January 25, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #7
As usual, Thursday and Friday contained bills that have us hopping the halls, including an energy mitigation bill (2261) from Senator Unruh that would eliminate consideration of indirect impacts when siting an oil well or wind tower. Direct impacts are tangible, such as if you destroy a tree, plant another one. Indirect impacts were portrayed in testimony as being...
January 22, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #6
On Friday I listened in to Senate Energy and Natural Resources as they entertained discussion on #2174. That is the bill that calls for Water Resource District (WRD) board members to be elected rather than appointed by County Commissioners as they are now. Having experience both as a township officer and senator with assessment drain hearings, I recognize how intense...
January 18, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #5
Well, its Friday with both bills and snow coming down here in Bismarck. Yesterday I heard a bill – 1291- on permanently registering trailers. The farmers I spoke with afterwards that had been listening in were very receptive to the $120 proposed fee. The bill was brought by the Motor Carriers because many individuals and fleets were licensing their trailers in other states...
January 16, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #4
This is the second full week of the 16 week session and about 750 bills have entered the process. We have sorted them into a 70-some active Agricultural watch list and 130 or so on a list which is less directly affecting Ag but still of some import such as some transportation, tax or financial bills, etc. There are expected to be at least another 250 by next week when the...
January 11, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #3
All Agricultural producers know too well the many factors out of their control. Today the NDSGA testified in favor of a couple of institutions to exercise as much control as possible affecting our roads, research and marketing. Those entities were the Northern Crop Institute (NI) and Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute (UGPTI). If you have never visited or heard...
January 10, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #2
During this first full week there have been bills being drafted and dropped into the system as quickly as possible. There are now around 500 and we expect it to roughly double. Today was a big day for Agriculture kicked off by the Ag Coalition breakfast in the Capital cafeteria at 7:00 a.m. as it does each Thursday during session. This morning the NDSGA testified in support...
January 7, 2019
Murphy’s Law Blog 2019 | #1
2019 kicks off the third year and second legislative session for this blog. And we have taken the liberty of starting the numbering with 1. During these four months the idea is to give you growers a brief look at what is happening in Bismarck. Right now we are in the first full week and on Friday I listened in on Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee as they heard...
October 12, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #64
It is difficult to write about the work the NDSGA does for the long term while our producers face the immediacy of terrible harvest conditions and prices, but these are a few things that Scott and I have worked this week: We were honored by the ND Association of General Contractors when asked to be the voice of Agriculture for the Tuesday media rollout (in both Fargo and...
August 27, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #63
Corn was there in force. So were the Grain Growers, Canola, Stockmen, Sugar Beets, the North Dakota Association of Counties, the Township Officers Assoc, the Soy Transportation Coalition the Soybean Growers and others. Hosted by the North Dakota Soybean Council, it was called the Rural Transportation Summit with featured speakers such as Tom Sorel, the director of ND...
August 20, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #62
Last week I covered the Energy Development and Transmission committee, then the Legislative Revenue Forecast followed by the Policy Summit hosted by the Greater North Dakota Chamber of Commerce. Here is the quick and dirty:
EDTC heard some proposals about how to tax wind so that instead of all going to local governments as it does now, some of that tax will be given to the...
August 16, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #61
The newest employee of the North Dakota Soybean Council, Harrison Weber (way tall) and I (way short) trundled across the state on Monday, August 13th to make an appearance at the open house for the Dickinson Refinery Renewable Diesel Project which is being undertaken by Andeavor. This is the company that also bought and operates the larger and older oil refinery in Mandan...
June 20, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #58
There was a recent meeting of the Water Topics Overview Committee in Bismarck that was comprised of 16 different presentations. Some observations include:
Water use in the Bakken shale oil play is at an all-time high. Jon Patch, Director of Water Appropriations at the State Water Commission, typified the typical frac job in 2012 at 12 acre feet and stated that with...
June 13, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #57
This is an update on the activities of the Interim Natural Resources committee whose activities, so as not to rehash, were last explained in blog #53. This meeting was mostly about the collaboration (and lack of) between the wind power industry, the Public Service Commission (PSC), the North Dakota Game and Fish Department and agricultural interests. Also testifying on wind...
May 2, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #55
Public input is still being taken by the North Dakota Department of Health (DoH) on their Nutrient Management Plan, include at a meeting at the Fargodome on the first of May. There were people interested in municipal, livestock and general agricultural sources as well as septic system problems. We listened to reports from DoH officials on the status of the Plan and then...
April 16, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #54
Last week, I attended the third interim Agriculture Committee meeting. All four of their study topics for the 20 months between legislative sessions were included. First up was the State Soil Conservation Committee, a group which had been under scrutiny when cutting budgets last session. Bruce Schmidt is the new (6 months or so on the job now) Program Coordinator, Watershed...
April 5, 2018
Murphy’s Law Blog 2018 | #53
This is a recap of the Natural Resources Interim committee of Thursday, March 29 in Bismarck. First on the agenda was testimony considering the efficacy of a new law from SB2286 last session which is about the Public Service Commission (PSC) taking control from local subdivisions of energy siting. That includes things like pipelines, transmission lines and wind farms. They...
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...