State Historical Society outlines $78 million military gallery plan, seeks staff and NAGPRA funding

Bill Peterson, director of the North Dakota State Historical Society, told the Appropriations - Education and Environment Division committee that the agency is requesting multiple budget increases for the next biennium, led by a $78 million military gallery project and staffing to comply with new federal repatriation rules.

Peterson said the 20,000-square-foot military gallery will “walk people through military history in North Dakota” and is under active design and fundraising. He told the committee the 68th Legislative Assembly extended a $20,000,000 line of credit from the Bank of North Dakota to the society for construction costs; the agency’s supplemental budget asks for $4,200,000 to repay that line of credit. Peterson described the military gallery as a $78,000,000 project and said private fundraising is ongoing.

The request packet that Peterson presented lists 11 decision packages covering cost-to-continue items, museum expansion projects, upgrades to archives and collections storage, and compliance work related to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Peterson said the North Dakota Heritage Center State Museum attracts roughly 200,000 visitors a year and that the addition is expected to draw more guests.

Why it matters: the society’s capital and operating requests would affect museum visitors, school programming and tribal communities with collections held by the state. Committee members asked for clarification on project costs, staffing and how the state and private fundraising would share expenses.

Peterson said the agency needs additional staff to meet new federal NAGPRA regulations issued in 2024. He told the committee the new Department of the Interior rules shift some responsibilities to tribal communities and that the state must update and share collection inventories with tribes and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The agency asked for three full-time employees to help complete an agency-wide inventory; Peterson said that inventory could affect about 11,000,000 archaeological objects in the State Historical Society collections and will be the first agency-wide inventory since the early 1990s.

On archives and storage, the society informed the committee that its records holdings are reaching capacity. Shane Molander, state archivist, was cited by Peterson as seeking funding for upgraded storage, more processing staff and analysis of current collections to extend storage life. Peterson said the agency currently employs 83.5 full‑time equivalents and up to about 119 temporary seasonal staff in a calendar year, and that 11 FTEs separated employment in the current biennium; the agency reported it filled 10 of those positions within about 2.5 months and expected one remaining vacancy to be filled by February 2025.

Peterson also reviewed other priority requests: a $40,000,000 request to begin schematic and early construction for an agricultural gallery; $700,000 for supplies and technology tied to the military gallery and inspiration gallery upgrades; continued funding for Cultural Heritage Trust grants (the agency typically awards $500,000 but received nearly $1,000,000 in requests this cycle), and a proposal to provide about $6,000,000 in grants to communities for the North Dakota 250 commemoration. He said some grant requests exceeded available funds and that demand across the state has risen.

Committee members asked practical questions about contracting and preservation work at historic sites, to which Peterson responded that larger historic-structure work usually uses outside contractors with appropriate expertise while the agency’s in‑house staff handle routine maintenance when possible. He said the agency has architectural historians on staff to oversee contracted work.

Peterson described several recent and planned capital projects funded from carryover and one-time sources: stabilization and roof work at the Chateau de Madora, interior repairs at the Welk Homestead Historic Site, HVAC work at the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center, environmental surveys at Fort Totten, and the planned transport and display of an HH‑1 Huey helicopter for the Ronald Reagan Minuteman Missile site in Cooperstown. He also said the agency is replacing on-site portable toilets with three permanent restroom installations at historic sites.

Peterson provided the committee with basic revenue and fund information, saying the agency’s current biennium total is about $49,300,000 and describing multiple funding streams: general fund and mineral royalties, licensing fees set by the director, donation and foundation funds, earned revenues from museum stores and concessions, and federal/state relief funds. He reported a $709,000 carryover from the 2021–23 biennium into 2023–25, mostly dedicated to historic-site needs.

Where discussion stood: the presentation was an overview. Committee members indicated they wanted deeper follow-up on repatriation workload, details on the military gallery financing and the agency’s fee structure. Representative Hansen asked for a future briefing with more details on repatriation compliance and the role of the proposed FTEs. Peterson said he would provide additional information and that the committee would have opportunities for follow-up hearings.

Ending: Peterson closed by saying he had brought backup materials and that staff would appear in future hearings focused on specific bills, including House Bill 1018. The committee recessed and scheduled subsequent hearings on other agencies.