Trust Lands budget prompts debate over unclaimed property transfer, FTEs and new revenue officer

The Appropriations - Government Operations Division spent substantial time on the Department of Trust Lands budget, focusing on whether unclaimed property should remain at Trust Lands or move to the State Treasurer’s office, differences in full-time equivalents (FTEs) between executive budgets, and a request for staff to pursue diversified revenue sources on state trust lands.

Joseph Herringer, Trust Lands Commissioner for North Dakota, told the committee that in many states unclaimed property is housed in the treasurer’s office and that there is “a tie there to to leave it where it is,” noting the proceeds support the common schools trust fund. He said moving unclaimed property would require “a bigger package of legislation” beyond a budget change and recommended more planning before pursuing a statutory transfer.

Adam (committee fiscal staff) explained the comparison materials: the Bergum/Burgum budget proposal would have transferred unclaimed-property positions to the State Treasurer and removed those FTEs from Trust Lands, while the Armstrong budget left those positions in Trust Lands. The Armstrong version therefore shows a net increase of three FTEs compared with the Burgum proposal and roughly $526,000 higher total special-fund authority, driven by keeping those positions and related salary and benefit costs.

Specific line items discussed included a $3,000 one-time funding item included in Burgum’s proposal for a new FTE that Armstrong did not include, a transfer of approximately $53,998 from operating to salaries (described as covering the agency’s “cost to continue”), and a net reduction to operating expenses of about $177,000 after accounting for a 3% savings requirement and add‑backs such as IT and lease increases. Adam said the health‑insurance increase in the comparison equates to $6,005 per employee over the 24‑month biennium and that the $18,015 difference between budgets reflected three additional FTEs in the Armstrong version.

Herringer described two staffing requests he made to the Legislature: a diversified‑revenues officer to pursue non‑oil‑and‑gas revenue (he said “90 over 90 percent of our revenues are oil and gas related” and listed possible new revenue streams including carbon capture, soil carbon projects, wind, solar and minerals) and an unclaimed‑property auditor to improve audit coverage of local and regional businesses that national third‑party auditors may miss.

Senators including Dwyer and Sickliffe pressed for more information before choosing whether to adopt the Armstrong numbers. Several committee members asked staff to produce a “long sheet” that shows the base budget, the Armstrong proposal, and the committee’s working version so members can see how any pool of statewide FTEs or other adjustments would be handled. Adam agreed to prepare amendment language, an updated long sheet reflecting adoption of the Armstrong budget if the committee requests it, and the bill language and statement of purpose for committee review.

No final committee vote was taken on the Trust Lands budget during this meeting; the chair said he would consult leadership and return direction to staff. Committee members also discussed whether to solicit testimony from stakeholders on both sides of the transfer question before making a decision.

The committee’s request to prepare the Armstrong-based amendment and long sheet was recorded as committee direction to staff rather than a formal vote.