The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.North Dakota House Bill 1389 Authorizes Cities and Counties to Levy Infrastructure Fees via Utility Bills
Last action · March 26, 2025: Second reading, failed to pass, yeas 3 nays 44Sponsors: Jason Dockter and 3 others
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What This Bill Proposed
North Dakota House Bill 1389 allows counties and municipalities to levy and collect monthly infrastructure fees on utility bills in lieu of , subject to a public hearing and a majority-protest veto by account holders. The measure also exempts tax levies for infrastructure fees from statutory tax levy limitations for political subdivisions.
Utility account holders in participating counties and municipalities face potential new monthly infrastructure fees on their utility bills, balanced by the right to halt proposed projects if a majority of account holders submit formal protests within a window of at least thirty days.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Utility account holders
Utility account holders receive notices of proposed infrastructure zones, gain the ability to protest proposed fees, and may be assessed monthly infrastructure fees on their utility bills.
Counties and municipalities
Counties and municipalities are granted the authority to establish infrastructure zones, levy utility-bill infrastructure fees, and collect green field special assessments.
Commercial property owners
Commercial property owners are subject to infrastructure fees at a rate capped at no more than two times the residential rate.
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 can utility account holders stop a proposed infrastructure fee project?
Can commercial properties be charged a higher infrastructure fee than residential properties?
What are the funds collected from the infrastructure fee allowed to be used for?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Failed in the Senate.
Procedural history
10 actions- Mar 26, 2025SenateSecond reading, failed to pass, yeas 3 nays 44
- Mar 25, 2025SenateCommitteeReported back, do not pass, placed on calendar 5 1 0
- Mar 12, 2025SenateCommitteeCommittee Hearing 09:00
- Feb 17, 2025SenateIntroducedIntroduced, first reading, referred Finance and Taxation Committee
- Feb 13, 2025SenateReceived from House
- Feb 12, 2025HouseFloorSecond reading, passed, yeas 91 nays 0
Show 4 earlier actions
- Feb 11, 2025HouseCommitteeAmendment adopted, placed on calendar
- Feb 10, 2025HouseCommitteeReported back amended, do pass, amendment placed on calendar 11 2 1
- Jan 29, 2025HouseCommitteeCommittee Hearing 09:30
- Jan 13, 2025HouseIntroducedIntroduced, first reading, referred Finance and Taxation 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.
View official text →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.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Alternative to General Special Assessments
The legislation establishes an alternative mechanism for funding local infrastructure through utility bill fees rather than traditional property-based special assessments.
Connected Entities
Sources
ndlegis.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 65)
- Controversy50Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
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