Job Service North Dakota urges state funding for IT, wages and H-2A staffing as modernization proceeds

Job Service North Dakota asked the House Appropriations Committee’s Education and Environment (E&E) division for additional state funding to cover information-technology cost increases, salary and benefits, and an extra staff position for the H‑2A foreign labor program as it implements a federally funded system modernization.

Patrick Bertinelli, executive director of Job Service North Dakota, told the committee the agency is "93.64% federally funded" and that the state-level increases for wages and technology are not covered by those federal dollars.

Why it matters: Bertinelli said the agency relies on timely IT and staffing to operate unemployment insurance, workforce centers and federal programs that serve employers and job seekers across the state. He warned that, without additional general funds, service timeliness and program performance could be affected.

Job Service requested three main appropriations. First, $950,000 in general funds to cover inflationary increases in the cost of information-technology services and hosting charged by the North Dakota Department of Information Technology (NDIT). Second, a one-time general fund appropriation of $2.1 million to cover salary and benefit increases that federal grants do not allow. Third, $233,672 in general funds to add one…