Senate committee recommends $500,000 grant to North Dakota Firefighters Association for training facility purchase

The Senate Industry and Business Committee recommended advancing Senate Bill 2218, which would appropriate $500,000 from the Strategic Investment Improvement Fund to the Insurance Commissioner as a one-time grant to the North Dakota Firefighters Association to help the nonprofit purchase a building that would house offices, training space and equipment storage.

Senator Jerry Klein, District 14, introduced the bill and described the request as a 20 percent down-payment to leverage an 80 percent lender commitment: "They have found the building, it's about $2,000,000. The lender will go 80%. We're looking for that boost to get them at 20%." Klein said the association is actively fundraising and the appropriation is intended as one-time seed money to complete the purchase and preserve the current purchase price.

Robert (Rob) Knuth, identified as the training director for the North Dakota Firefighters Association…