North Dakota Senate advances dozens of bills including caregiver pilot expansion, juvenile remediation, and insurance updates

The North Dakota Senate on Feb. 19–20, 2025 debated and voted on a wide slate of bills, passing most and rejecting a handful after extended floor discussion.

The session opened with a memorial for Representative Josh Christie and proceeded through amendments and final passage votes on bills ranging from a paid family caregiver pilot expansion to changes in insurance regulation and a one‑time grant for an NDSU research park. Several bills drew extended floor debate before final tallies, and two notable policy proposals—reclamation standards for oil and gas sites and a presumption-of-fitness shared‑parenting bill—failed to pass.

Why it matters: the package includes measures that affect state spending, service delivery and oversight (paid caregiver pilot, adult residential facility reimbursement, a research-park grant and a Department of Commerce performance audit), health‑care access (prior authorization reform and an expansion of Medicaid-covered dental services), and regulatory change for insurers and certain internet age‑verification mandates. Several measures include explicit appropriations or fiscal notes that will affect the state budget and program operations.

Key floor debate highlights

- Paid family caregiving pilot (Senate Bill 2305): Sponsor Senator Hogan said the pilot began in April 2023, received 444 applications but could only serve 50 families because of funding limits. The bill passed on a final tally of 47 ayes, 0 nays. The sponsor told the Senate the pilot will end when a cross‑disability waiver system is implemented (anticipated by 06/30/2027).

- Juvenile fitness and remediation (Senate Bill 2036): Senator Mathern described amendments that reduced certification requirements, narrowed affected populations, and proposed roaming specialists rather than many staff at each human services center. The bill passed, 46 ayes, 1 nay.

- Adult residential facility payment rates (Senate Bill 2271): Senator Cleary explained the bill requires cost reporting by adult residential care facilities to the Department of Health and Human Services, and the amended appropriation is $1,700,000 state funds (with matching federal funds described in committee). The bill passed, 46 ayes, 1 nay.

- School personal electronic device policies (Senate Bill 2354): After the Appropriations Committee removed a $300,000 appropriation for Department of Public Instruction grants for device storage, sponsor Senator Axeman described the bill as a local‑control framework requiring districts to adopt and annually review policies. The bill passed, 47 ayes, 0 nays.

- Department of Commerce performance audit (Senate Bill 2396): Sponsor Senator Dwyer said the appropriation was reduced in committee from $350,000 to $200,000 and noted the state auditor indicated the audit might be done at no additional cost. The bill passed, 46 ayes, 1 nay.

- Age verification for explicit material (Senate Bill 2380): The Industry and Business Committee substituted an ID‑based verification standard (government ID, commercial verification database or similar transactional data) after testimony opposed device- and app‑based methods. Sponsor described the measure as focused on minors’ protection; the bill passed, 47 ayes, 0 nays.

- Reclamation standards (Senate Bill 2313): The bill, which would have tightened requirements for stripping and replacing topsoil and added pre‑disturbance meeting and plan‑approval steps, drew opposition arguing existing administrative code covers reclamation and that the measure would impose unnecessary burdens. Final tally: 7 ayes, 40 nays (bill lost).

- Charitable gaming location definitions (Senate Bill 2373): The bill clarifies that certain charitable gaming may occur only within alcoholic-beverage establishments or qualifying bingo halls and exempts three existing bingo halls without on‑sale liquor licenses; it passed, 47 ayes, 0 nays.

- Shared parenting/equal residential responsibility (Senate Bill 2383): The bill would have created a presumption of parental fitness and equal parenting time unless a parent is found unfit; several senators expressed concern that the change could reduce focus on children’s best interests. Final tally: 12 ayes, 35 nays (bill lost).

- Preferred provider dental arrangements (Senate Bill 2377): The bill clarifies a preferred provider may not restrict a covered person from paying for additional covered services from that provider under the provider’s contracted rate; passed 47 ayes, 0 nays.

- Rural Community Endowment Fund (Senate Bill 2097): Committee amendments reduced an initial funding ask from $50,000,000 to $5,000,000 and created a 9‑member advisory committee; the bill passed, 31 ayes, 16 nays.

- NDSU Research and Technology Park grant (Senate Bill 2256): The one‑time grant was amended downward from $20,000,000 to $15,000,000. Sponsors said funds are planned for industry expertise, product development, infrastructure and facility improvements and to seed a revenue‑generating research‑to‑production effort focused on robotics and autonomy; passed 33 ayes, 14 nays.

- Decision‑maker of last resort / informed‑consent clarification (Senate Bill 2297): Sponsor described amendments that separate incapacitated adults from minors in the consent statute and add an interdisciplinary team review requirement; passed 46 ayes, 1 nay.

- Insurance market modernization (Senate Bill 2374): The bill package includes targeted regulatory flexibility for large commercial risks, clarifications for risk retention groups and purchasing groups, surplus‑lines and arbitration/claim‑reopening language; sponsors removed a section that risked NAIC accreditation. The bill passed, 45 ayes, 2 nays.

- Prior authorization reform for health care (Senate Bill 2280): The bill establishes standardized timelines (72 hours urgent, 7 days nonurgent), requires prior authorization reviews be conducted by a physician or licensed medical professional, delays implementation until 01/01/2026, and includes a legislative study provision on Public Employees Retirement System impacts. It passed, 43 ayes, 4 nays.

- Military Compatibility Commission (Senate Bill 2398): Sponsors and a floor amendment reworked membership selection for county, township and city representatives; as amended the bill passed, 47 ayes, 0 nays.

- Backup online publication for statutory notices (Senate Bill 2069): The bill allows use of a secretary‑of‑state website as a supplemental option when a newspaper inadvertently fails to publish a required notice; final tally 25 ayes, 22 nays (bill passed).

- Medicaid covered medically necessary dental services (Senate Bill 2231): Sponsor framed oral health as part of physical health and told the Senate Medicaid will handle dental claims like other program claims; final tally 44 ayes, 3 nays (bill passed).

Votes at a glance (bill — floor outcome — vote tally — noted appropriation/fiscal detail)

- SB 2305 (paid family caregiving pilot) — passed — 47 ayes, 0 nays — pilot limited by fiscal note; integration planned when cross‑disability waiver implemented (anticipated 06/30/2027). - SB 2036 (juvenile fitness/remediation) — passed — 46 ayes, 1 nay — fiscal note reduced via amendments. - SB 2271 (adult residential facility payment rates) — passed — 46 ayes, 1 nay — amended appropriation $1,700,000 general fund (matching federal funds noted in committee). - SB 2354 (school personal electronic device policy) — passed — 47 ayes, 0 nays — appropriation for DPI grants removed by amendment. - SB 2396 (Dept. of Commerce performance audit) — passed — 46 ayes, 1 nay — appropriation reduced to $200,000 in committee; state auditor may perform audit within existing duties. - SB 2380 (age verification for explicit material) — passed — 47 ayes, 0 nays — committee replaced device/app methods with ID‑based verification. - SB 2313 (reclamation standards for oil & gas) — failed — 7 ayes, 40 nays. - SB 2373 (charitable gaming locations) — passed — 47 ayes, 0 nays. - SB 2383 (shared parenting) — failed — 12 ayes, 35 nays. - SB 2377 (preferred provider dental arrangements) — passed — 47 ayes, 0 nays. - SB 2097 (rural community endowment fund) — passed — 31 ayes, 16 nays — initial appropriation reduced from $50M to $5M. - SB 2256 (NDSU Research & Technology Park fund) — passed — 33 ayes, 14 nays — one‑time grant amended to $15,000,000 (breakdown discussed in committee: industry experts, product development, infrastructure, facility improvements). - SB 2297 (informed consent of incapacitated patients/minors) — passed — 46 ayes, 1 nay — creates interdisciplinary team review language. - SB 2374 (insurance modernization) — passed — 45 ayes, 2 nays — extensive changes to surplus lines, purchasing groups, arbitration, and clarifications to preserve NAIC accreditation. - SB 2280 (prior authorization reform) — passed — 43 ayes, 4 nays — implementation delayed to 01/01/2026; timelines and licensed‑professional review requirements included; study of PERS impacts included. - SB 2398 (Military Compatibility Commission, as amended) — passed — 47 ayes, 0 nays — floor amendment adjusted representative selection and limited township representation. - SB 2069 (publication backup online) — passed — 25 ayes, 22 nays — provides option to use a secretary‑of‑state website as a backup when a newspaper fails to timely publish a required notice. - SB 2231 (Medicaid dental services) — passed — 44 ayes, 3 nays — fiscal note shown in committee; bill expands covered medically necessary dental services.

What comes next: Many passed measures carry appropriations, effective‑date language, or legislative‑management study requirements that will affect implementation schedules. Several bills include further committee or executive branch work (waiver design for the cross‑disability approach in SB 2305; insurer and PBM implementation plans for SB 2280). The Senate recessed to reconvene on Feb. 20, 2025, at 12:30 p.m.

Sources: Floor debate and roll‑call tallies recorded in the North Dakota Senate floor transcript for Feb. 19–20, 2025.