By: Michael Achterling (ND Monitor)
The North Dakota House advanced an amendment to the Department of Commerce budget Wednesday that would add $50 million in state funding and a $20 million Bank of North Dakota loan for the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library.
The 53-40 vote followed lengthy discussion, with some members questioning why the $50 million was first introduced last Friday and did not receive a full policy committee hearing. The funding proposed in Senate Bill 2018 would be in addition to $50 million in state funds the Legislature approved in 2019.
Rep. Mike Nathe, R-Bismarck, who proposed the additional library funding, said the $50 million would only be available if the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation matches it with private donations. The goal is to add to the library’s endowment so interest from the funds could help cover operational costs, he said.
“As we all know, museums just don’t make money,” Nathe said.
Construction of the library is on schedule near Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the tourist town of Medora, with a grand opening planned for July 4, 2026.
In 2019, then-Gov. Doug Burgum signed a bill authorizing a $50 million endowment for the library that was contingent on the library foundation raising $100 million in private donations.
Nathe said inflation and other impacts after the COVID-19 pandemic drove up the cost of multi-year projects like the presidential library.
Rep. Ben Koppelman, R-West Fargo, said he only supported the funding in 2019 because he was told that would be the only request for state dollars to support the presidential library.
Koppelman, who voted against the new funding, also took issue with the dollars being proposed to the House Appropriations Committee rather than a policy committee.
“We might as well not have policy committees if we’re just going to put policy in budget bills whenever we feel like it,” Koppelman said. “This is a pretty big policy shift to say we’re going to double what we did before after we were told that was it.”
Rep. Jared Hendrix, R-West Fargo, who also voted against the amendment, said he worries that taxpayers would be on the hook to fill funding gaps for the library.
“I think we would be kidding ourselves if we’re going to say that we’re not going to be coming back in the future for many years, and decades, to come to ask for more money because these libraries are not sustainable,” Hendrix said.
The bill also contains a $20 million line of credit from the state-owned Bank of North Dakota for the library to access during the 2025-27 biennium. The goal of the loan is to help fund construction if there are donations pledged that have yet to be received. Lawmakers approved a similar $70 million line of credit for the library in the 2023 session, which the library foundation has not accessed.
“That we haven’t touched our $70 million line of credit with the state shows that we are being responsible about this and trying to raise as much private funds as possible,” said Matt Briney, spokesperson for the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation.
To date, the foundation has raised $286 million in private donations for the library project, he said.
“If we get all the private funding for the library, that would essentially be $500 million for the library construction and the endowment contributions,” Briney said.
A $70 million line of credit for the library was included in the state Parks and Recreation budget. However, the latest amendment reduces it to $20 million. Sen. Brad Bekkedahl, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said lawmakers intend to only include the loan in one budget.
The bill states that if the loan is not repaid by June 30, 2027, lawmakers would be asked to consider repaying it.
Lawmakers also added a provision that would require admission to the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library to be free for children under 18.
Rep. Vicky Steiner, R-Dickinson, who voted in support of the library funding, said former President Theodore Roosevelt was “larger than life.” She said the library could inspire children for generations.
“This will put us on the map internationally,” Steiner said. She added the library will help tell the story of North Dakota and could influence more investment and people coming to the state.
The House is expected to vote on the overall bill Thursday. The library funding also would need to be considered by the Senate.
The presidential library endowment is managed by the state Department of Trust Lands. The balance was about $54.5 million as of Jan. 31, according to Land Commissioner Joe Heringer.
The presidential library also received $4 million in state funding through the Department of Commerce Destination Development grant program. The funding was designated for recreation trails, paths and pavilions around the library grounds to connect with nearby tourist and recreation sites.
In addition, the library received nearly $500,000 from the state Outdoor Heritage Fund for a native plant seeding project.
There’s also an effort to secure federal funding for up to $50 million for the library. The U.S. Senate passed the legislation last year but the House did not act on it. Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., reintroduced the legislation in February, with Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., as a co-sponsor.
