Stutzman County seeks state takeover of 18-mile County Road 62 serving Spiritwood industrial park

Stutzman County Commissioners and local industry representatives urged the Senate Transportation Committee to give a do-pass recommendation to Senate Bill 2391, which would designate 18 miles of Stutzman County Road 62 as part of the State Highway System.

Local testimony: Senator Wozak introduced the bill as a straightforward request to add the county-owned road south of Spiritwood to the state system so the state can provide long-term upkeep. "The road is about 18 miles, and roughly about half of it's gravel and half is asphalt," Wozak said.

Stutzman County Vice Chair Levi Taylor testified that the route serves a growing industrial cluster that includes Dakota Spirit Ag Energy (an ethanol plant) and Green Bison (a soybean crush facility). He told the committee the county spent $330,000 on emergency gravel repairs from 2019 to 2024, and that Stutzman applied for a flexible transportation grant for roughly $35 million to rebuild and resurface the 10-mile gravel portion; the grant was not awarded because of the high dollar amount. "When County Road 62 becomes impassable or closed, all traffic is diverted to alternate routes on township roads," Taylor said, describing safety and service impacts.

DOT response and statutory limits: Ron Henke, DOT director, opposed the bill as drafted, not on the merits of road condition, but because the department follows a statutory process for adding miles to the state system. Henke said the law caps the state highway system at 7 percent of the entire network (a provision the DOT has asked the Legislature to remove) and separately caps state highway mileage at 7,700 miles. "Currently, we have 7,446 miles on the state highway system. So there's a gap there yet of 250 miles that could still be added," Henke said, adding another statutory constraint limits additions to no more than 50 miles in any one year. He also said he was not aware the county had submitted a formal application to the director for consideration under existing law.

Why it matters: The route funnels grain to value-added facilities that run year-round; witnesses told the committee the road's condition causes expensive detours and temporary closures that complicate supply chains and place extra wear on township roads.

Outcome: The committee took testimony and closed the hearing on SB 2391; no committee vote to add the road to the state system occurred during the hearing. DOT advised the committee about the formal application process and statutory limits on adding miles.