[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6325128,"mediaKeyId","2334572-2f788949adc1b50cb3427338e69802e3","parentId",2334572,"title","Senate panel amends grocery grant language, cuts appropriation to $5 million and advances bill","audioSeconds",367,"startMs",101000,"endMs",468000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2334572-2f788949adc1b50cb3427338e69802e3&start=101&end=468","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2334572-2f788949adc1b50cb3427338e69802e3/thumbnail_101000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6325128/North-Dakota/Senate-panel-amends-grocery-grant-language-cuts-appropriation-to-5-million-and-advances-bill","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6325128-d5e0e4738fec8a728ee2fcde29a4122d/orig.mp4?Expires=1771194559&Signature=AO2sqYFILAbPlVw8o13lygBR5~GGwfcct54SiD3ylGokMEGlQ5sQ0JK6HHOA70FTn44RJyPjk0I-Nce~2KJXb9FcdtaBgDoxxi3qJuHipFTBHCUKt8zXbpRec5NdEIQcCDCxOKiBGDFuK6guaalm7UIax5AIXHN94o03mL-q5LdfYdQXp9hayjclQLyFVpypQdm95TjD1Bn5MoqgQFBZVF0EfSulLt9KSxaBLQqb31Yrtc6YFgAsqztsqb7w1qpfo8G7-iQ51C3dqDdH6rMxFzjKl2uOiDBj31e5l~Ke6AEBMpMNokFrqMdlaEv0doulTlpRJF2dJPNELgb8qG5cxw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","North Dakota State Legislature","date","2025-02-18T00:00:00Z","article","The Senate appropriations Government Operations Division amended Senate Bill 2390 on changes to regional grant authority, adding language to allow grants “for the purpose of preserving or reopening rural grocery stores in a rural community,” capping individual awards at $500,000 and reducing the bill’s appropriation from $30,000,000 to $5,000,000. Committee members also approved language requiring 50 percent of available monies be allocated to communities with populations under 1,000.

The changes were presented and moved by Senator Dwyer, who said he would \"make a motion to amend and then a motion to further amend,\" and were explained in detail by Levi, staff, who told the committee: \"When the bill was introduced, that was after the introduction deadline for appropriations. So the only thing that could be added to the bill at that time was a transfer section. If the bill is to continue an appropriation would need to be added.\" Carol, the committee clerk, conducted the roll calls during the recorded votes.

Why it matters: The amendments narrow the grant program to explicitly include rural grocery preservation and change the program’s size and distribution. The reduction in the appropriation and the requirement that half of funds go to communities under 1,000 materially change how and where the grants could be awarded if the bill becomes law.

Details of the amendments and process: The committee removed a statutory definition of “minority group” from the bill on grounds it did not fit the regional councils’ mission; added the rural grocery-store purpose; set individual grant maximums at $500,000; and limited allowable expenses for certain line items to travel, per diem and related expenses. A further amendment removed a sentence on page 4 that committee members said was redundant after other expense limits were inserted. Senator Brookhart seconded the motion to remove that sentence.

The chair asked for a motion for a \"due pass as amended,\" which was moved by Senator Dwyer and seconded by Senator Eberly. The committee then recorded its vote and the bill was advanced from the subcommittee as amended.

Votes and formal actions taken (in committee):
- Motion to adopt amendments (LC 02/2002) — mover: Senator Dwyer; second: Senator Eberly. Motion approved by roll call; the bill was left in amended form.
- Motion to further amend (LC 02/2003) — mover: Senator Dwyer; second: Senator Brookhart. Motion carries on recorded roll call.
- Motion for due pass as amended — mover: Senator Dwyer; second: Senator Eberly. Committee gave the bill a favorable recommendation and advanced it.

Next steps: With the subcommittee’s recommendation, the amended bill will appear before the full appropriations committee. Committee discussion noted the bill’s relationship to other pending rural-development proposals and that duplicative funding lines (if present elsewhere) will need to be reconciled before final passage.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Senate Appropriations - Government Operations Division Tuesday, Feb 18, 2025 3:27 PM - 5:06 PM","oneSentenceSummary","The Senate appropriations subcommittee amended Senate Bill 2390 to add an explicit rural grocery-store purpose, cap grants at $500,000, require 50 percent of funds for communities with fewer than 1,000 residents, reduce the appropriation from $30 million to $5 million, and advanced the bill to the next committee step.","taxTitle","Appropriations - Government Operations Division, Senate, Legislative, North Dakota","taxId",28900,"location","North Dakota","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6325123,"Senate subcommittee reviews Department of Commerce budget; discusses internships, immigration grants, tourism and SIF-funded programs",670,780000,1450000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2334572-2f788949adc1b50cb3427338e69802e3&start=780&end=1450","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2334572-2f788949adc1b50cb3427338e69802e3/thumbnail_780000.jpg","/articles/6325123/North-Dakota/Senate-subcommittee-reviews-Department-of-Commerce-budget-discusses-internships-immigration-grants-tourism-and-SIF-funded-programs","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6325123-7cd74829293271780e11258834ebeedc/orig.mp4?Expires=1771194559&Signature=MHqQT7AISbX3uiqeL19qLuHPtSUnpK-skX9-Q-iGcyePOD6gUM7uV4cRfrhYCnKFZgIU12XZoSjdGsLVo127-tEjM1YmUmRb59vmhHPw~1t6IyRHYxcQ6YhaX0LRDmNRdOn969~eCpG4rIwqcG9JnKt-V0enMHOtakX67Lc5-VITMgCBJaxmDmxNMvS2gu1BC9J-uqhq4Lkq8vLRqzhdMYeHWJ~jAn99-jIpsVNGcT1ui6EQb5pjwzxXitjt1hnlc9rZkI7aUrSGodZz-hAcZcJAEgb5iFrKt1yPI3D-Ltxht4w6F8lWomnCsGl0nS~IoNuHGCACIU03wHR0kh1AdQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Senate appropriations Government Operations Division spent the bulk of the session reviewing the Department of Commerce budget and a set of SIF (special investment fund) and general-fund proposals that would affect workforce recruitment, tourism marketing and several grant programs.

Committee staff described a mix of base-level adjustments, new one-time requests and proposed transfers. Levi, committee fiscal staff, outlined line items including two newly added FTEs in the executive budget (one for the development fund and one procurement officer), temporary salary and operating requests for an internship program, and a request to continue a grant program supporting legal-immigration / global-talent initiatives. Levi summarized IT increases: while the recorded increase in committee materials was $68,000, he said the department’s operating budget includes multiple IT categories with larger totals (IT software about $60,000; IT data processing approximately $483,000; IT communications about $77,000; IT contractual services about $85,000), and the $68,000 figure represented the incremental operating increase.

Office of Legal Immigration / Global Talent: The committee heard a proposal to continue and expand the Office of Legal Immigration (also referred to as the Global Talent Office). Levi said the governor’s package proposed $250,000 in ongoing operating funds (added to the 485,000 base that supports two FTE) and $1,750,000 in one-time grants (split as $250,000 operating and $1,500,000 grants). Committee members asked for clarification about the program’s current use. Katie Ralston Howe, workforce director at Commerce, said the grants support employers and community organizations integrating foreign-born talent and that the department has awarded roughly $300,000 from the current appropriation to date.

Tourism and talent attraction: Sarah Ady Coleman, director of Tourism and Marketing, and Katie Ralston Howe described the relationship between the state’s tourism brands and the Find the Good Life talent-attraction program. The administration proposed $5,000,000 for tourism marketing awareness (SIF) and $5,000,000 for the Find the Good Life initiative. Committee members discussed combining the initiatives into a single marketing strategy, with some members proposing increasing the destination development fund and shifting how funds are allocated. Coleman cautioned that prior reductions in funding for Find the Good Life reduced traffic and that the marketing and workforce pieces “go hand in hand.” Howe said the relocation help-desk and workforce follow-up are the parts of the program that track inquiries and that, without sustained funding, the committee would lose the ability to report results in future biennia.

UAS, weatherization and other grant adjustments: Levi described multiple federal and special-fund adjustments: added federal funds for AmeriCorps and weatherization; a removal of duplicative appropriations for the UAS test site (about $1,000,000 removed from the bill while continuing appropriation authority remains in statute); a mix of increases and decreases in federal grants tied to actual award expectations; and several SIF-funded proposals that appear in other bills (e.g., state radar data pathfinder program, UAV replacement, autonomous agriculture grants, Enhanced Use Lease Grant Program).

Development fund, Lift fund and exemptions: The committee discussed whether to place new SIF money into continuing-appropriation funds (Lift and the development fund) or to appropriate general-fund dollars. Levi and Commerce staff explained that the Lift and development funds have continuing appropriation authority, so transfers from SIF do not require a separate appropriation in section 1 of the bill. The committee also reviewed a set of carry-forward exemptions (section 13 in the green sheets) that would allow unspent prior biennium appropriations to continue into the next biennium; staff estimated about $163,000,000 of the roughly $286,000,000 in listed prior authorizations could remain unspent and would require exemptions if the committee wishes to preserve spending authority.

Native American Business Development Center and discretionary funds: Committee members asked about a previously designated $350,000 for the Native American Business Development Center from the discretionary line in last session’s budget (House Bill 1018). Allison Widmer, Commerce administrative services director, confirmed the prior designation but said she had not seen the amendment proposal that was referenced; she offered to return with detail on how prior discretionary dollars were used. Members discussed the trade-off between leaving discretionary authority flexible and re-allocating specific earmarks.

Process and schedule: Members said they expect to finalize amendments and come back to the full committee soon; the subcommittee emphasized that some SIF items are also part of other bills and will need reconciliation. Several committee members asked for a short summary from Commerce and the development fund showing total money deposited, total spent and remaining balance for the development fund.

What the committee decided: The session recorded discussion and several formal votes on unrelated bills, but most Commerce line-item adjustments were discussed for direction and clarification; staff were asked to provide supplemental summaries and to prepare amendment language for committee consideration later this week.","Committee staff walked members through the Commerce budget, including FTE additions, IT cost increases, one-time grants for AmeriCorps and tourism, proposed funding for the Office of Legal Immigration (Global Talent) and options for SIF-funded programs such as a development fund and tourism destination grants.","actionData","errors"]

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Senate panel amends grocery grant language, cuts appropriation to $5 million and advances bill

Senate subcommittee reviews Department of Commerce budget; discusses internships, immigration grants, tourism and SIF-funded programs