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Appropriations committee hears $500,000 request for firefighters association headquarters; lawmakers ask for lease and funding details
Summary
Representatives heard testimony on Senate Bill 22‑18, a request for a $500,000 appropriation to help the North Dakota Firefighters Association secure a building for training and storage. Committee members asked for more detailed lease and funding information and agreed to hold the item for further review.
Representatives in the House Appropriations Committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 22‑18, which would appropriate $500,000 to the North Dakota Firefighters Association to assist with acquisition of a new headquarters and training site intended to consolidate mobile training props and protected storage.
Representative Don Longer, presenting the bill as chairman of the House political subdivision committee, said the appropriation would be a one‑time investment intended to secure property for future construction and storage. "The overall goal of our project is actually in 3 phases," Robert Knuth, training director for the North Dakota Firefighters Association, told the committee, describing a plan that includes purchase of a building, a 15,000‑square‑foot storage addition and subsequent first‑floor renovation to support year‑round training.
Knuth said the association counts about 9,000 firefighters statewide and that 96% are volunteers. He told members the organization would use the requested funds as a 20% down payment toward a roughly $1.9 million purchase price and planned to leverage additional fundraising and PACE financing for the remainder.
Committee members pressed for more specifics about the landlord relationship, lease terms, and other funders. Representative Bosch asked whether the landlord was offering incentives for vacating the association’s current leased space; Knuth said the owner offered a four‑month extension at the current rent and an option to transfer the lease and include a purchase option. Representative Lausser asked whether the association could occupy the property under the transfer without a state appropriation; Lausser said she wanted additional documentation before the committee acted.
The political subdivision committee had previously recommended a due pass by unanimous vote (12‑0), but members of the Appropriations Committee did not take a final vote Friday; Representative Lausser agreed to gather additional details about the lease and financing. Committee members noted the association also receives funding from an insurance regulatory trust fund (about $1.2 million per year), and asked how that funding interacts with the requested appropriation.
No formal appropriation vote was recorded in the Appropriations Committee transcript; members agreed to pause action until the committee can review lease documents and confirm private financing commitments.
Discussion points included whether the appropriation duplicates existing insurance‑fund revenue, whether the landlord stands to benefit from early lease termination, and whether the association intends to return for additional state support for later phases. The committee recorded the exchange and set the item for additional review rather than advancing it.
