Senate panel hears plan to move bioscience grants under Industrial Commission; amendment on council makeup passes

Senate Education Committee members heard testimony on Senate Bill 2328, which would replace the existing Bioscience Innovation Grant Program with a Life Science Research Council under the Industrial Commission and request funding to continue grant awards to life‑science projects.

The bill, offered by Sen. Brad Wozniak, establishes a Life Science Development Fund and sets the Industrial Commission as the oversight authority. Supporters told the committee the program has produced economic benefits for North Dakota, and the bill would broaden governance and add scientific advisory capacity.

The legislation would create a new chapter (proposed chapter 54) to set membership and duties for a Life Science Research Council and authorize an appropriation of $12,000,000, the same amount previously appropriated for the bioscience grants, according to testimony from the Department of Agriculture and others.

“I believe our state, our communities, our nation, and the global population have certainly benefited from this program,” Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goering said. He told the committee the proposal would move oversight to the Industrial Commission, which has staff and processes to manage similar grant programs.

Randy Schneider, president of the North Dakota Bioscience Association and a current Bioinnovation Grant Program board member, said the grants have helped recruit companies to the state and cited Corvent Medical, which he said moved operations to Fargo after receiving earlier grant support. Schneider described the program as tightly managed and said the proposed council would add scientific advisors to evaluate the front‑end research.

Deputy Director Jordan (Industrial Commission) testified in a neutral capacity and described the Industrial Commission’s existing grant administration model: technical reviewers score applications, an advisory board (in this case the proposed Life Science Research Council) weighs those reviews and applicant presentations, and finally the three Industrial Commissioners (governor, attorney general, agriculture commissioner) act on recommendations. He said awards are typically reimbursement‑based and that most existing energy and research funds require a 50/50 match, though the commission can set matching levels.

Committee action: members adopted an amendment that expands the bill’s definition of “biotechnology” to list specific areas (crop genetics, biofuels, biomaterials, biosensors, biotechnology related to food, nutrition, animals and humans, equipment, medical and health products and services, diagnostics and therapeutics, and farm‑based pharmaceuticals) and adjusted appointment language so some appointees come from the attorney general’s and agriculture commissioner’s offices. The committee recorded a roll call of 6 ayes, 0 nays on the amendment.

Sen. Wozniak and Commissioner Goering told the committee the change is intended to tighten governance and broaden expertise after earlier operational concerns with the prior program. Goering said the Industrial Commission could provide more efficient contract oversight and technical review capacity than the prior structure.

The committee asked that the amendment be drafted by legislative counsel and return to the committee for final consideration; members also discussed that the requested appropriation matches prior biennial funding for the Bioscience Innovation Grant Program.

Next steps: the committee approved the amendment and requested a formal legislative‑counsel version; members expect to revisit the bill later when the amended draft is returned.

Ending: With proponents and neutral staff describing the proposed governance and oversight changes, the committee closed the hearing and said it will consider the formally drafted amendment and the bill on return from recess.