Bismarck — The North Dakota Senate on the floor in Bismarck passed a series of bills affecting jury selection, probation start dates, juvenile-record citations, tribal-warrant procedures, tax disclosure language, municipal reporting requirements for small cities, military pay withholding, bar application fees, state agency contracting limits and the employment classification of the state crime laboratory director. Most bills passed unanimously or by lopsided margins; vote tallies are listed below.

The measures addressed procedural and administrative changes across state government. Senators and committee sponsors described the bills as fixes to statutory language, clarifications of administrative practice, or adjustments to reporting and fee rules. Committee sponsors reported committee recommendations for passage and provided brief explanations on the floor before roll-call votes.

Senate bills passed and key points

- Senate Bill 2054: Would expand the states master jury list to include people receiving unemployment compensation, public assistance and childcare assistance and make the master list confidential because of some source confidentiality. Committee sponsor: Senator Lueck. Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2067: Clarifies when supervised probation begins when a court orders an alternative to incarceration (for example, house arrest, electronic monitoring or completion of an inpatient treatment program) so probation starts at the end of that alternative event. Committee sponsor: Senator Bridal. Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2055: Corrects a citation in the juvenile-records statute so the text references the proper transfer-to-other-courts provision rather than restitution. Committee sponsor: Sarah Castaneda (committee representative). Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2056: Establishes a procedure related to waiver of appearance when a person is arrested on a tribal warrant, intended to reduce county custody time awaiting extradition and the associated county expense. Committee sponsor: Senator Lueck. Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2038: Changes statutory language in section 57-01-02 from "deduction or credit" to a broader "incentive" and adds the term "exemption" to the definition so the Tax Commissioner can provide information about exemptions on request; effective date provided after July 31, 2025. Committee sponsor: Senator Wallin. Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2074: Removes a municipal-infrastructure reporting requirement to the state treasurer for cities with populations under 1,000, responding to duplicate reporting burdens for very small cities. Committee sponsor: Senator Weber. Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2047: Eliminates language that required withholding state income tax from military pay after the 2023 exemption for active-duty National Guard and reserve members, so exempt pay will not be withheld by default; effective date December 31, 2025. Committee sponsor: Senator Powers. Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2053: Allows the state board of law examiners to increase the bar application fee from $150 to $200 to cover exam administration costs. Committee sponsor: Senator Cory. Final tally: 45 ayes, 1 nay, 0 abstain, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2072: Modifies contract language and raises a threshold for off-the-shelf purchases from $1,000 to $20,000 to help agencies use standard vendor agreements; presented by the Office of Management and Budget. Committee sponsor: Senator Brownberger. Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

- Senate Bill 2050: Removes language that the director of the state crime laboratory "serves at the pleasure of the attorney general," moving the position into classified service and subjecting it to the state human resources process. Committee sponsor: Senator Barter. Final tally: 46 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent; passed.

Committee action and floor process

Committee sponsors stated each bill passed its originating committee with unanimous votes in most cases and recommended final passage. On the floor, sponsors briefly summarized statutory changes or administrative reasons for the bills; there were few extended debates. Roll-call votes were conducted by the secretary after floor discussion and closed with tallies recorded for each measure.

Next steps and scheduling

The Senate concluded the day's business and adjourned until 1 p.m. Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, at which time additional committee meetings and bill hearings are scheduled.

Votes at a glance: See the article's actions array for each bill's formal motion text, committee sponsor and final roll-call tally.