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SB 2012NORTH DAKOTASession 69State BillSigned into law
Enacted

North Dakota Appropriations Act funds Department of Transportation operations and infrastructure

Original title: AN ACT to provide an appropriation for defraying the expenses of the department of transportation; to create and enact a new section to chapter 24-02 and a new section to chapter 54-27 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to rail passenger authority agreements and a legacy earnings fund; to amend and reenact section 6-09.4-10.1, subsection 1 of section 21-10-06, and sections 24-02-37.3, 54-27-19, and 57-40.3-10, section 57-51.1-07.5 as amended by Senate Bill No. 2323 as approved by the sixty-ninth legislative assembly, and sections 57-51.1-07.7 and 57-51.1-07.8 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to funds invested by the state investment board, the flexible transportation fund, the highway tax distribution fund, motor vehicle excise tax collections, the state share of oil and gas taxes, the municipal infrastructure fund, and the county and township infrastructure fund; to repeal sections 21-10-12, 21-10-13, 54-27-19.3, and 54-27-19.4 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to legacy fund definitions, a legacy earnings fund, the legacy earnings highway distribution fund, and legacy earnings township highway aid fund; to provide for a legislative management report; to provide for application; to provide an effective date; and to provide an exemption.

Last action · June 11, 2025: Filed with Secretary Of State 05/13

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓
Introduced
Committee
Floor Vote
Passed
Law

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What This Bill Does

North Dakota enacts a $2.72 billion for the Department of Transportation for the 2025-2027 , revises state infrastructure and highway fund distributions, and authorizes passenger rail authority agreements.

Why it matters

Changes how state oil tax revenues, motor vehicle excise taxes, and legacy fund earnings are distributed to county, city, and township road and bridge projects while funding state transportation operations and capital assets.

Background
  • The North Dakota Legislative Assembly meets in regular session biennially to pass appropriations acts and statutory amendments governing state agencies and funds. context

Who It Affects

Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

Department of Transportation

Receives its biennial appropriation, authorizes staffing levels, and manages highway and infrastructure construction projects.

Directly affected

non-oil-producing counties

Receive allocations and grants for road, bridge, and infrastructure projects from state funds.

Directly affected

cities and townships

Eligible for infrastructure grant allocations and highway fund distributions based on statutory formulas.

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much funding is appropriated for the Department of Transportation for the 2025-2027 biennium?
The Act appropriates $2,722,092,265 in other funds (special and federal funds) to the department for the .
What is the legacy earnings fund?
It is a newly created fund in the state treasury consisting of moneys distributed from the legacy fund (equal to 8% of the five-year average value of the legacy fund balance), allocated toward debt service, the highway fund, and the legacy property tax relief fund.
What requirements apply to the US Highway 85 project in this legislation?
The department of transportation must construct and complete the remaining portions of the US highway 85 four-lane project between highway 200 and the long x bridge, and prepare an environmental impact statement for a four-lane highway on remaining sections of the Theodore Roosevelt expressway when bidding on the last segment commences.

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

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Where This Stands

Current status: Signed into law.

Procedural history

32 actions
  1. Jun 11, 2025
    Filed with Secretary Of State 05/13
  2. May 17, 2025SenateEnrolled
    Signed by Governor 05/12
  3. May 2, 2025SenateEnrolled
    Sent to Governor
  4. May 2, 2025Senate
    Signed by President
  5. May 2, 2025House
    Signed by Speaker
  6. May 2, 2025HouseFloor
    Second reading, passed as amended, yeas 86 nays 2
Show 26 earlier actions
  1. May 2, 2025HouseCommittee
    Conference committee report adopted
  2. May 2, 2025HouseCommittee
    Reported back from conference committee, in place of, placed on calendar
  3. May 2, 2025SenateFloor
    Second reading, passed, yeas 46 nays 0
  4. May 2, 2025SenateCommittee
    Conference committee report adopted
  5. May 2, 2025SenateCommittee
    Reported back from conference committee, in place of, placed on calendar
  6. Apr 25, 2025HouseCommittee
    Conference committee appointed Brandenburg Bosch Weisz
  7. Apr 25, 2025SenateCommittee
    Conference committee appointed Wanzek Dwyer Erbele
  8. Apr 25, 2025Senate
    Refused to concur
  9. Apr 25, 2025Senate
    Returned to Senate (12)
  10. Apr 25, 2025HouseFloor
    Second reading, passed as amended, yeas 61 nays 31
  11. Apr 25, 2025HouseCommittee
    Amendment adopted, placed on calendar
  12. Apr 25, 2025House
    Division B adopted
  13. Apr 25, 2025House
    Division A adopted
  14. Apr 25, 2025HouseCommittee
    Division of amendment
  15. Apr 24, 2025HouseCommittee
    Reported back amended, do pass, amendment placed on calendar 22 0 1
  16. Mar 25, 2025HouseCommittee
    Committee Hearing 08:30
  17. Mar 18, 2025HouseCommittee
    Committee Hearing 02:30
  18. Mar 10, 2025HouseCommittee
    Committee Hearing 02:30
  19. Mar 10, 2025HouseCommittee
    Committee Hearing 08:30
  20. Mar 7, 2025HouseIntroduced
    Introduced, first reading, referred Appropriations Committee
  21. Feb 25, 2025House
    Received from Senate
  22. Feb 24, 2025SenateFloor
    Second reading, passed, yeas 47 nays 0
  23. Feb 24, 2025SenateCommittee
    Amendment adopted, placed on calendar
  24. Feb 21, 2025SenateCommittee
    Reported back amended, do pass, amendment placed on calendar 16 0 0
  25. Jan 14, 2025SenateCommittee
    Committee Hearing 02:00
  26. Jan 7, 2025SenateIntroduced
    Introduced, first reading, referred Appropriations Committee

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

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Lobbying Activity

No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.

Full breakdown

Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.

Discoveries

1 pattern noticed across the record

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift95% confidence

Restructuring of Legacy Fund Earnings and Infrastructure Distributions

The bill repeals several legacy fund definition and earnings sections while establishing a new legacy earnings fund to systematically route oil-derived revenues into highway, debt service, and property tax relief funds.

State Investment BoardState Treasurer

Connected Entities

Industrial Commission, Department of Transportation, Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute and 6 more
OrganizationIndustrial Commission“Compiles historical barrels of oil produced by county.”Map →
OrganizationDepartment of Transportation“Recipient of biennial appropriations and administrator of transportation program”Map →
OrganizationUpper Great Plains Transportation Institute“Compiles data regarding county, township, and tribal road and bridge infrastruct”Map →
OrganizationLegislative Council“Notified of certain appropriation line item transfers.”Map →
OrganizationBig Sky Passenger Rail Authority“Authority eligible to enter a service development plan agreement with the transp”Map →
OrganizationUnited States Census Bureau“Publishes census data used for determining city population distributions.”Map →
OrganizationOffice of Management and Budget“Handles fund transfers and budget adjustments.”Map →
OrganizationState Investment Board“Invests state funds including the legacy fund.”Map →
OrganizationBank of North Dakota“Recipient of fund transfers for infrastructure allocations.”Map →

Sources

Open source document

ndlegis.gov

Analysis Score

0–100
  • Significance90
    How much this matters to a regular citizen
  • Controversy20
    Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
  • Entertainment5
    Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
  • Buzz30
    Current news / social attention level

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