BISMARCK – Done deal. Almost. The signature of Governor Doug Burgum is all that is needed for a new legislative map to be adopted in North Dakota.
Meeting in special session Wednesday, the North Dakota Senate passed a redistricting map by a 40-7 margin. The House had approved the bill on Tuesday, paving the way for it to be advanced to the Senate. Redistricting was a priority for the special session of the legislature that got underway Monday.
Wednesday’s vote was preceded by several senators speaking both for and against the issue of sub-districts in District 4 and District 9. Those districts include the Fort Berthold Reservation at New Town and the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa at Belcourt. It is those two districts that were divided into sub-districts by a specially appointed legislative Redistricting Committee, with the boundaries of a sub-district to be within reservation boundaries. That means one representative would be elected within each sub-district and a senator chosen by the combined vote of both sub-districts. A proposed amendment to eliminate the sub-districts failed to pass, as did another to provide sub-districts in all 47 districts of the state.
By early afternoon Wednesday the vote was taken and the redistricting plan, which had only minor alterations as originally proposed by the special committee, now needs only Burgum’s signature to become law.
The drawing up of new district boundaries means a few legislators will find themselves no long living with their district and therefore lose their current seat in the legislature. However, they can run for election in the new alignment in 2022.
In other action Wednesday, the Senate approved Senate Bill 2345 by a margin of 41-6. SB 2345 is a significant spending bill requested by Burgum during his opening address to the special session. The bill includes $150-million for pipeline infrastructure to carry natural gas to the eastern part of the state. Money for the expenditures in the bill is to come from federal funding through the American Recovery Plan. The bill now crosses the aisle to the House.
