Senate bill seeking independent audit of Commerce, Development Fund draws testimony on loans, transparency and cost

Senate Bill 2396, which asks the Legislative Management to contract with an independent third party to perform a performance audit of the North Dakota Development Fund and the Department of Commerce for activity covering 2020–2024, drew extended testimony and questions on scope, cost and access to records during a committee hearing Wednesday.

Senator Kent Weston, R-District 15, sponsored the measure, saying concerns about the handling of funds by Department of Commerce programs arose after a specific company’s matter and subsequent media statements. Weston told the committee he wants transparency and recommended increasing an appropriation that had been reduced from $350,000 to $200,000 for the audit; he said an audit performed for the state auditor had a budget near $500,000 and used $285,000, and he argued a fuller scope might warrant a higher appropriation.

Kurt Swenson, an engineer and business owner testifying as a private citizen, urged a thorough performance and conflict-of-interest audit focused on the North Dakota Development Fund. Swenson said he reviewed the fund's audited financial statements and flagged several figures he called troubling: he testified that the development fund recorded a $2,609,453 charge-off in 2023, converted…