House Agriculture committee gives due-pass to cleanup bill for authorized livestock farm reporting

Senator Paul Thomas, sponsor of Senate Bill 2,150, told the House Agriculture Committee the bill is a technical cleanup to last session's corporate farming changes and asked for support. “Senate Bill 2,150 is essentially a cleanup bill,” Thomas said.

The bill clarifies reporting requirements for authorized livestock farm entities created last session, adjusts wording so ranchers are included in the definition of farming and ranching, and aligns LLC membership-interest reporting with corporate share reporting used elsewhere in statute. Mike Monroe, business services director for the Office of the Secretary of State, told the panel that the changes do not alter the law's intent but will reduce confusion for filers, particularly around how limited liability companies must report membership interests and aggregate numbers of membership interest.

The bill emerged from last session's changes to the corporate farming act and adjusts cross-references to other Century Code sections. Monroe summarized changes that include replacing the word "individual" with "person" to match property ownership definitions and replacing "entity" with "organization" to align with statutory definitions. He said the changes "in no way change the intent nor does it expand to reduce the scope of the corporate farming law as it was passed last session." Matt Perdue of the North Dakota Farmers Union and Pete Hanabit of the North Dakota Farm Bureau testified in support, calling the measure a technical clarification that preserves family-farm ownership limits and acreage caps established in prior legislation.

Committee members asked clarifying questions about the legal meaning of "person" versus "individual," the impact on partnerships and limited liability partnerships, and how the revised reporting would mirror corporate share reporting. Monroe and other supporters explained the revisions are intended to mirror existing statutory definitions (for example, property ownership references under Century Code chapter 47) and to let LLCs report membership interests consistent with their operating agreements rather than forcing a corporate-style share-class accounting that does not fit all entity types.

After public testimony limited to proponents, Representative Anderson moved a due-pass recommendation; Representative Volmer seconded. The committee approved the motion on a roll-call vote and transmitted a due-pass recommendation to the next House panel. The committee recorded one "No" vote during roll call; the motion passed.

The bill does not change acreage limits or the requirement that authorized livestock feeding operations be limited to animal agriculture uses, supporters said; it only clarifies and standardizes reporting language and cross-references to other Century Code provisions.

Supporters asked that the committee advance the measure so agencies that administer reporting obligations can implement the clarified language before the next filing cycle.