The Appropriations Committee voted to give a due-pass recommendation on Senate Bill 2014 as amended, approving budgets and policy provisions affecting the Industrial Commission, the Bank of North Dakota, the Housing Finance Agency and several state programs.

Senator Shibley presented the bill and the committee adopted multiple section-level changes. The committee's package approves staffing additions across several entities, new grant and program funding, and two policy changes requested by the Bank of North Dakota around loan confidentiality and expanded flexibility for certain loan buy-downs. A committee roll call recorded a final due-pass vote of 15-0 with one senator excused from voting (Senator Dwyer declared a conflict and was excused from voting on this budget item).

Major budget and program items included in the adopted amendment excerpts:

- Bank of North Dakota transfers: The budget includes a $140,000,000 transfer from Bank of North Dakota profits to the general fund (section 8). The bank also funds multiple programs including PACE, AG-PACE, Biofuels PACE and beginning farmer loans described during the hearing.

- Housing: The committee increased the housing-incentive fund to $10,000,000 for homeless-related grants and added $25,000,000 for housing-support programs (together the transcript notes these as $35,000,000 of support administered through the Housing Incentive Fund). The Bank's proposed state funding for Small Business Development Centers at the University of North Dakota is included at $1,900,000 to support federal matching funds.

- Secondary oil recovery and energy: The amendment sets aside $25,000,000 for secondary oil-recovery grants, funded by adjustments including a partial reallocation from an energy research salt-cavern appropriation.

- One-time grants, studies and litigation funds: The bill includes one-time, mostly federal-matching grants tied to a grid-resilience grant (matching general-fund share ~15%), a $400,000 rare-earth elements study, $150,000 for an archaeology excavation project, and a $3,000,000 oil-and-gas litigation fund.

- Staffing and agency adjustments: The committee approved multiple FTE additions across the Housing Finance Agency (3 FTE, special funds), Department of Mineral Resources (3 FTE, general and federal funds), and mill-and-elevator operations (two rail-car inspector FTEs). Several operating and IT adjustments were also included.

Two policy changes requested by the bank were adopted: confidentiality for participation-loan details while the loans remain active (with net write-offs and other statutorily listed items remaining public when the Industrial Commission writes them off), and authority to increase certain loan buy-downs by up to $1,000,000 without a local match when the bank deems a project qualifies as a primary-sector business.

Committee members noted a sunset and review provision applies to some policy shifts and emphasized that the bank's participation loans would still produce public records in specific circumstances (for example, net write-offs taken to the Industrial Commission become public when the commission acts). Senator Dwyer acknowledged and declared a conflict and was excused from voting on the item. The committee moved the amended bill forward with a 15-0-1 vote.