Education Committee advances financial‑literacy, child‑protection and transparency measures; human‑trafficking curriculum fails

The Education Committee reconvened online and voted on multiple bills affecting K‑12 and higher education policy, approving amended measures on university clearinghouse rules, university finance reporting, a child‑protection liaison and a study of a government‑spending database, and advancing an updated financial‑literacy requirement for schools. A proposal to require human‑trafficking instruction as part of the curriculum failed in committee and the committee adopted a do‑not‑pass recommendation.

Why it matters: The committee’s actions would change how some online universities are treated for clearinghouse/accreditation purposes, how university funds are reported, and how schools teach personal finance. They would also fund a short study on a state government spending database and add statutory language on child‑protection liaisons. The human‑trafficking curriculum language drew concerns about placing curriculum requirements in statute and was rejected by the committee.

House Bill 10‑64 (universities and clearinghouse): Representative Kyle Novak moved to adopt amendments to HB 10‑64 that address a gap the committee members said had excluded two online universities from a clearinghouse requirement. Novak summarized the change: “it basically required all universities to go through a clearing house … and it left out 2 online universities and that impacts the nursing field and there are a couple hundred students in North Dakota that are going through this.” Committee members said the amendment emerged from negotiations between the institutions and the university system and would allow those institutions to continue operating in the state. The committee adopted the amendment (reported in the session as passing 11‑0‑2) and later voted a due‑pass on the amended bill (committee tally reported as 12‑1‑1). Representative Novak was named as bill carrier.

House Bill 11‑61 (university internal funds/pools): The committee considered an amendment presented by Representative Murphy and adopted it by voice/roll call. Debate focused on whether shifting internal pools of funds to institution‑level control would duplicate reporting already provided to the Board of Higher Education and the Budget Section. Representative Schreiberbeck summarized the amendment’s…