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During the 69th Legislative Assembly, North Dakota Democratic-NPL Insider will provide updates and calls to action each day of the regular session. If you would like to have something added to the newsletter, email us at [email protected]. Spread the word of our newsletter by sharing our sign-up link today: https://demnpl.com/join-our-newsletter/.
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What happened today?
Sen. Tim Mathern’s (D-11) called for a Special Hearing on the impact of Federal Cuts on ND. His bill SB 2171 to extend the amount of time allowed for an emergency mental health petition hold to be similar to neighboring states and his bill SB 2096 to provide funding for regional acute psychiatric treatment and residential supportive housing services had hearings.
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Rep. Gretchen Dobervich’s (D-11) bill HB 1252 to create a tribal health care coordination fund, and her bill HB 1464 which would establish a postpartum doula certification program were heard today.
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What's Coming Up?
Rep. Jorin Johnson’s (R-41) bill HB 1255 to DEFUND Prairie Public has a hearing in the Senate State and Local Government committee on Friday, March 7 at 10:00 AM!
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Tell the Committee Members to give this bill a DO NOT PASS recommendation:
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Democratic-NPL Bills
Sen. Josh Boschee’s (D-44) bill SB 2254 to provide funding for city and paratransit bus services has a hearing in the House Transportation committee at 2:15 PM. His resolution SCR 4018 to create a memorial dedicated to volunteer and career Emergency Medical Service resonders who died in the line of duty will have a hearing in the House Government and Veterans Affairs committee at 4:00 PM.
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Rep. Zac Ista’s (D-43) bill HB 1238 to lower the number of years a teacher is required to serve before they can recieve a lifetime teaching license has a hearing in the Senate Workforce Development committee at 9:00 AM.
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Three Democratic-NPL bills are on the Senate Floor Calendar. Rep. Mary Schneider's (D-21) bill (HB 1403) designation of Prisoner of War and Missing in Action Day as a state holiday, her resolution (HCR 3005) to urge Congress to include the names of the lost crew members of the U.S.S. Frank E. Evans on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, and Rep. Jayme Davis' (D-9) bill (HB 1563) which calls for a legislative management study on tribal land taxation all received UNANIMOUS "DO PASS" recommendations from their respective committees.
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Help us spread our message—share these recent posts!
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North Dakota Republicans, Democrats have different takes on Trump speech
North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party Chair Adam Goldwyn said “Whether it’s the price of eggs to housing, Trump’s policies are already making life more unaffordable for North Dakotans, and this will only get worse. Medicaid, which covers 2 out of 3 people in nursing homes, is first on the chopping block, and Elon Musk just called Social Security a ‘Ponzi scheme’ -- they’re going to steal from you and your grandma to pay for tax cuts for out-of-state billionaires.”
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Trump Tariffs and Retaliatory Tariffs
Olivia Rinaldi, White House reporter at CBS News, is on Afternoons Live with Tyler Axness to discuss the implementation of new tariffs and the response of Canada, Mexico, and China.
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Letter: Broken-hearted educator
As I became an educator, the first graduate credits I took toward a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction at Kansas State University were in multi-cultural education. In the context of desegregation, it was necessary for educators to become more familiar with the cultures, traditions and history of all learners we taught. Today such training and perspective is derisively labeled, condemned and now virtually outlawed as “woke.” Teaching our history is now seen as a threat to a fragile majority ego, rather than as a means to advance from, rather than repeat, our darker moments as a nation.
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Letter: Prioritize funding for teachers, public schools
For starters, a point of clarification: K-12 budget increases are not teacher salary increases. Since the costs of running a school increase as inflation increases, the budget increases will likely not be reflected in teacher salaries. This is a huge issue for teacher recruitment and retention. In 2023, in response to unfilled teacher positions, then-Gov. Doug Burgum created a teacher retention and recruitment task force.
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Federal Building in downtown Fargo appears on ‘non-core property’ list, could be sold
The Federal Building in downtown Fargo that houses a U.S. Post Office appeared Tuesday on a list of “non-core” government properties, indicating it could be sold.
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Fargo Democrat wants minimum wage increase on the 2026 ballot
“If even one person is only earning minimum wage in our state, that’s one person too many. If there is even one employer out there in the state that is still paying minimum wage, I encourage them to do the math and see what they are living on per year, and let’s do something,” said Hager.
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Port: Pro-Trump agriculture leaders squirm
Will there be enough pain to crack through the dogmatic loyalty Trump enjoys from rural America? It's hard to say. We're talking about a guy who inspired people to violently attack Congress after the 2020 election and then pardoned them when he was reelected in 2024. All bets are off.
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But there's no question, his policies are going to hurt, and rural America is going to feel a great deal of the pain.
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Tribal communities see wins in Legislature
With HB 1535, the House voted to create a new “Feather Alert” that provides public notice of a missing Indigenous person just like current Silver and Amber Alerts already provide notice of a missing senior citizen or child. HB 1199 was also adopted to ensure tribal leaders are represented on the statewide commission working to solve the MMIP (Missing and Missing Indigenous Person) crisis.
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Check out these posts from the national Democratic Party
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Trump administration plans to cut 80,000 employees from Veterans Affairs, according to internal memo
The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning a reorganization that includes cutting over 80,000 jobs from the sprawling agency that provides health care and other services for millions of veterans, according to an internal memo obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press.
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Map Shows States That Would Be Impacted Most if Canada Cuts Off Electricity
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According to a report from the Canadian Energy Centre, Canada's electricity exports to the U.S. were north of $54 billion between 2000 and 2019. According to the data, Vermont was considered the "top recipient" of electricity exports from Canada in 2019 at $585 million.
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Joseph Webster, a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center, told Newsweek that Canada electricity exports to the U.S. peaked in 2020 and have declined since. However, several cities still benefit significantly from Canadian electricity, including Buffalo, New York; Ogdensburg, New York; Pembina, North Dakota; Seattle, Washington; Great Falls, Montana; and Portland, Maine.
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Trump’s Rage Over “Low” Deportations Suddenly Gets More Unnerving
For weeks now, President Donald Trump’s propagandists have relentlessly glorified his mass deportations, even posting images of defeated-looking migrants getting frog-marched onto shiny military planes. If this is supposed to make the Audience of One feel strong and powerful, it has failed. Trump has privately raged about the supposedly inadequate pace of expulsions, and last month, that prompted officials to demand that officers hit wildly inflated arrest quotas. Yet deportations continue to remain stubbornly below what he hopes for.
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China says it is ready for 'any type of war' with US
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The world's top two economies have edged closer to a trade war after Trump slapped more tariffs on all Chinese goods. China quickly retaliated imposing 10-15% tariffs on US farm products.
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"If war is what the US wants, be it a tariff war, a trade war or any other type of war, we're ready to fight till the end," China's embassy said on X, reposting a line from a government statement on Tuesday.
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It is some of the strongest rhetoric so far from China since Trump became president and comes as leaders gathered in Beijing for the annual National People's Congress.
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Even Fox News is spooked, Trump begins to grant temporarily exemptions after backlash to tariffs
Mara Gay, New York Times Editorial Board Member and Tim Miller, Host of The Bulwark Podcast join Nicolle Wallace on Deadline White House with reaction to the backlash to many of the tariffs set to go into place by Donald Trump with some of our closest trading partners, with members of his administration floating the idea of rolling back the tariffs after some of the most conservative media outlets voiced concern about the policies hurting the American economy.
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What YOU Can Do To DEFEND DEMOCRACY Right Now (w/ Amanda Litman)
Democrats need to show voters they are genuinely furious. And if you've thought about running for office, now is the time to jump in—particularly in districts the Dems have tended to ignore. Amanda Litman joins Tim Miller.
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Map Shows States With Most Social Security Office Closures After DOGE Cuts
The recent closures of SSA offices due to DOGE's budget cuts may leave many beneficiaries, particularly the elderly and disabled, with limited access to essential services. This reduction in service points could lead to increased wait times and challenges in obtaining necessary support. Notably, Georgia has been significantly affected, with five SSA offices permanently closed, the highest number for any state so far.
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Committees
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Every bill is voted on in the North Dakota legislature, but first, it must go through a committee hearing. The committee will vote to give the bill a "Do Pass" or a "Do Not Pass" recommendation. Below is a list of Standing Committees this legislative session.
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Senate Standing Committee Members
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Meets Monday through Friday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Desiree Van Oosting (R-36)
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Desiree Van Oosting (R-36)
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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House Standing Committee Members
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Gretchen Dobervich (D-11)
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Cynthia Schreiber-Beck (R-25)
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Meets Monday through Friday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Cynthia Schreiber-Beck (R-25)
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Patrick R. Hatlestad (R-1)
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Mike Motschenbacher (R-47)
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Gretchen Dobervich (D-11)
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Lisa Finley-DeVille (D-4A)
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Meets Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
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Lawrence R. Klemin (R-47)
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Patrick R. Hatlestad (R-1)
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Lawrence R. Klemin (R-47)
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Mike Motschenbacher (R-47)
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Meets Thursday and Friday
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Lisa Finley-DeVille (D-4A)
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The Century Club supports our year-round work to build party infrastructure supporting candidate recruitment, local district and regional leadership, issue-based education, and tools for Dem-NPL success.
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Help us elect great Democrats up and down the ballot!
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The North Dakota Democratic-NPL is launching a new grassroots program called “Neighbor to Neighbor” where volunteers will connect with voters in your community to elect Democrats up and down the ballot. As a volunteer, you will be responsible for connecting with voters in 25 homes in your neighborhood or friends and family to help elect Democrats up and down the ballot about 3-4 times this year.
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Grassroots organizers are the lifeblood of the Dem-NPL! Sign up to volunteer with the Dem-NPL!
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