President Donald Trump declared a national emergency to put more money behind his border wall after Congress agreed bipartisan to a lesser amount. The declaration can be seen as subverting Congress and diminishing its role in appropriating. Typically, members of the Legislative branch would be furious and attempt to uphold their authority against Executive branch […]
On February 5th, Governor Burgum called a press conference to highlight what he called a “historic” measure to address the oil tax sharing between the Fort Berthold Reservation and the State of North Dakota. One week later, the measure is in jeopardy and may be defeated in the Legislature. An amendment and alleged other demands […]
It is time to remove partisan politics from the election map-making process. What better time than now while the census is being undertaken and before the next lines are drawn? Other states have worked on this issue and courts have agreed with some of their solutions. In North Dakota, the latest attempt to create a […]
At 9:00 am on February 5th, the House Finance and Tax Committee heard HB 1530 which would create a “legacy income tax reduction fund” using the voter-approved Legacy Fund to lower and eventually eliminate state corporate and personal income taxes. That afternoon, after a minute and a half of discussion, the committee rushed and approved the […]
How North Dakota is artistically presented has been a point of contention over recent years. Remember the uproar when the new design for the license plates was revealed? The latest dispute over design comes because of the new North Dakota logo. What at first seemed like a battle over artistic differences may have spilled into […]
The special committees on ethics to implement Article XIV of the North Dakota Constitution met for the first time on January 30th. Though no action was taken, it is clear the desired direction of lawmakers and certain lobbyists. Water down what voters passed in an attempt to keep business as usual in Bismarck. The special […]
With lobbyists pulling back from buying legislators’ meals and drinks, lawmakers are turning to taxpayers to pick up the tab. HB 1505 is a bipartisan effort that would allow legislators to be reimbursed by taxpayers for their meals during session. The price tag is estimated to be $401,496 over two years. Not only is the […]
North Dakota Legislators are again looking to create a “provider assessment for nursing homes” to pay for services. The latest attempt in SB 2349 to create what is essentially a tax on nursing home patients comes after Governor Doug Burgum offered a 1% inflationary adjustment instead of the necessary 3% in his Executive budget. With […]
District: District 46 Political Party: Republican Email: jkasper@nd.gov
The partial government shutdown has officially become the longest in United States history. The shutdown has entered it’s 22nd day, just 24-hours after many federal workers received pay-stubs that were zeroed out in pay. Approximately 800,000 federal employees nationwide find themselves in economic uncertainty while many of them are required to continue to punch in […]