Approved March 17, 2018

Preamble

Members of the Dem-NPL Party of North Dakota join together to build an ethical government that helps create a better tomorrow.

Values

Economy Serving the People

The Dem-NPL has consistently been the leader of sound economic policy. It has long been the ally for families, organized labor, and agriculture; developing policies reflective of a living wage for a healthy lifestyle. Together, we will build North Dakota’s future.

Justice for All

The Dem-NPL believes in freedom, equality, and justice for all North Dakotans. We must afford every individual the right to freely pursue their path to the future and to be treated with fair and equitable treatment.

Community

The Dem-NPL has always been a leader in building strong and safe communities, with quality education, affordable healthcare and elder care, adequate emergency services, and respect for our veterans.

Family

The Dem-NPL works to provide opportunities for the future generations through quality education and sound economic development, while ensuring a healthy lifestyle for all members of the family as it grows and matures.

Platform

Agriculture

Bread Basket – North Dakota Dem-NPL supports all farmers and ranchers of ND, and programs that provide economic stability for their livelihood.
Local, Sustainable Farming – The Dem-NPL supports food movements, CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture), locally grown, organic farming, and regenerative, sustainable farming projects.
Seed Availability for the Future – The Dem-NPL Party supports the protection of crop diversity through research and development in our land grant colleges of GMO and non-GMO crops to assure seed availability for the future.
Anti-Corporate Farming – The Dem-NPL Party supports family farms by upholding North Dakota’s current anti-Corporate farming law.
Agricultural Products Utilization Commission – The Dem-NPL Party supports the work of the Agricultural Products Utilization Commission.
State Mill and Elevator – The Dem-NPL Party supports the State Mill and Elevator buying only domestic grain when possible.
Local Control – The Dem-NPL Party supports local control measures that allow local political subdivisions with inputs from affected citizens to establish zoning ordinances providing setbacks, odor limits, and other environmental impacts.

Business, Labor and Economic Development

Small Business – The Dem-NPL supports initiatives for the development of entrepreneurial small business in rural and urban areas.
Fully-Funded TFFR/PERS – The Dem-NPL supports fully funding state retirement and pension funds of a defined benefit plan for teachers and public employees, and maintaining separate retirement systems for public employees (PERS) and educators (TFFR), in addition to keeping them as a defined benefit plan.
Training Expansion – The Dem-NPL supports expanding education and training programs of workforce development and career transition for both Union and non-Union blue collar and white collar workers to meet the needs of the marketplace.
Right to Work – The Dem-NPL supports repealing the constitutional provision “Right to Work” laws and supports education to explain the dangerous and disingenuous use of the phrase “right to work”.
Undocumented Workers – The Dem-NPL supports Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and supports enforcement of legislation that penalizes employers who exploit undocumented workers and their situation.
Injured Workers – The Dem-NPL supports passage of an Injured Workers Bill of Rights, which would include support wrap around services (mental and physical needs of the injured worker)
Workers’ Rights – The Dem-NPL supports fair labor policies for all workers’ rights including a living wage, a safe workplace, and quality affordable healthcare for their families.
Income Equality – The Dem-NPL Party supports local, state and federal policies that will eliminate the income inequality gap.
Compensation to Care Providers – The Dem-NPL Party supports reimbursing the providers the full cost of providing care to people with disabilities, behavioral health needs, foster care, and other care needs.
Minimum Wage – The Dem-NPL Party supports the increase of minimum wage to $15.00 per hour with an annual cost of living adjustments that is indexed to actual inflation by 2021.
Internet Blocking – The Dem-NPL supports broadband equality for all and the reinstatement of a free and open internet through net neutrality.
WSI for Volunteer First Responders – The Dem-NPL supports the revision of Workforce Safety and Insurance (WSI) to include volunteer first responders and firefighters. Our rural areas rely on these volunteers to protect the health and safety of the citizens and community.
Locked Out Workers Revision – The ND Dem-NPL understands the term “Locked-Out Workers” and supports a change in the ND Century Code that specifies, when a worker is barred from the premises preventing the employee from performing the tasks that they were hired to do, the worker will be eligible for unemployment compensation.
State Tribal Partnership – The Dem-NPL supports a partnership between the state and the five Tribal Governments in the development of a Tribal Economic Development Plan.
Rural Infrastructure – The Dem-NPL supports funding and infrastructure for Economic Development of small businesses in smaller towns and cities.
Project Labor Agreements – The Dem-NPL supports bringing back Project Labor Agreement agreements, prevailing wage in State Projects; Davis-Bacon.
Pension Reform – The Dem-NPL supports pension reform such as Butch Lewis Act of 2017.
Taxing Health Plans – The Dem-NPL supports the exclusion of any tax on so-called “Cadillac” health plans (i.e.-UPS)
Restore Postal Service – The Dem-NPL Party supports our Congressional delegation doing all it can to restore a reliable and viable postal service, which includes Saturday delivery.
Rescind Postal Full Pre-funding – The Dem-NPL Party supports urging Congress to rescind the requirement for full pre-funding of future retirement benefits of postal workers.
Reverse Income Inequality Gap – The Dem-NPL Party supports reversing the income inequality gap that has been widening for the past three decades and supports local, state and federal policies that will reverse this trend.

Education

Higher Education/Student Support – The Dem-NPL Party supports the state legislature providing more funding to students attending our universities to mitigate escalating costs of a college education and make higher education more affordable for all. The Dem-NPL Party further supports the creation of a low interest student loan program for all students who can get a student loan from the Bank of North Dakota at BND base-rate. The Dem-NPL Party supports two years of tuition free in-state post-secondary education to North Dakota high school graduates to a North Dakota University System institution.
Pre-K – The Dem-NPL Party supports allowing local school districts to offer approved Pre-K programs, with state assistance and coordination, along with universal early childhood education and the expansion of Head Start.
Before and After School Programs – The Dem-NPL Party is committed to providing before and after school learning programs.
Special Education Funding – The Dem-NPL Party supports the state fully providing the local portion of funding for special education.
Health Services – The Dem-NPL Party supports all children having consistent access to qualified school nurses and social workers.
Educator and Staff Compensation – The Dem-NPL Party supports state funding so that compensation for all educators and support educational staff are regionally and nationally competitive.
Educators Collective Bargaining – The Dem-NPL supports collective bargaining rights for all Educators and Educational Support Professionals.
New Americans and All Ethnicities – The Dem-NPL supports ESL classes, educational opportunities, and job training for adult immigrants, and for Pre-K-12.
Loan Forgiveness – The Dem-NPL Party supports full forgiveness of student loans for citizens making regular loan payments for 60 months and living in the state.
Vocational Education – The Dem-NPL supports the development of additional Vocational and Technical programs in all education facilities.
Summer School – The Dem-NPL supports Summer School Programs for all students.
Libraries – The Dem-NPL supports resources for libraries and their staffing.
Non-traditional education – The Dem-NPL supports development of non-traditional approaches to education in higher education.
Lifelong learning and critical thinking skills – The Dem-NPL supports lifelong learning and critical thinking skills development in preK-12 public schools.
Higher Education Funding – The Dem-NPL supports equitable treatment of all State Higher Education Institutions in the funding formula, additional funding for institutions of higher education, and additional Career and Technical Education internships
Pupil Payments and Transportation Fees – The Dem NPL supports free transportation for all students and increase in per-pupil payments to local schools.

Effective Government

Social Security – The Dem-NPL Party opposes any and all efforts to privatize Social Security or weaken Medicare. The Dem-NPL Party supports efforts to eliminate the cap on taxable earnings for Social Security taxes.
Voter Rights – The Dem-NPL Party is committed to an election process free of procedural barriers that disenfranchise and discourage voters. We endorse all voting methods to require a paper trail to facilitate a transparent canvassing and recount process.
Ethics Commission – The Dem-NPL Party supports an initiated measure to provide an Ethics Commission to foster integrity in public service in state government, to promote the public’s trust and confidence, and to prevent conflicts between private interests and public duties. As such, we support strong candidate financial disclosure requirements.
Infrastructure Funding – The Dem-NPL Party urges the North Dakota legislature to support proposals that will fund the infrastructure needs of all political subdivisions.
Flood Impact Funding – The Dem-NPL Party supports adequate infrastructure funding for all areas impacted by flooding, provided all such infrastructure fully complies with state and local laws and adequate funding is also provided for those impacted by flood mitigation measures.
Annual Legislative Sessions – The Dem-NPL Party supports annual legislative sessions within the 80-day biennial limit to allow for more timely legislative action and make it easier for working people and persons with young or school age children to serve as legislators.
Redistricting Commission – The Dem-NPL Party calls for a constitutional amendment to create a non-partisan redistricting commission that shall be responsible for drawing congressional and state legislative district.
House Sub-Districts – The Dem-NPL supports a legislative change to create individual House sub-districts of State Senate districts.
Reverse Citizens United The Dem-NPL Party supports a Constitutional Amendment to reverse the Citizens United Supreme Court Decision, in order to reduce the influence of money in politics and to strip “personhood” from corporations.
Money Influence on Politics The Dem-NPL Party supports efforts to reduce the influence of money in political campaigns and on our elected officials.
Immigration – The Dem-NPL supports a pathway to citizenship for DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) and DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans) recipients and supports the regulation of immigration through non-discriminatory criteria.

Energy, Environment and Natural Resources

State Policy on Resources – The Dem-NPL Party supports a more comprehensive state policy on oil and gas drilling with respect to impacts on land, water, housing, wild game hunting and other infrastructure.
Pipelines, Transmission Lines and Refinery – The Dem-NPL Party supports that the State ensures that any expansion or modernization of pipelines, transmission lines, and additional oil refining capacity be done in an environmentally and culturally responsible manner.
Investment in Energy Transmission – The Dem-NPL Party supports the State in investing in and development of the infrastructure necessary to have our own natural gas and crude oil refining facilities.
Investment in Renewable Energy – The Dem-NPL Party supports the State investing in and development of the infrastructure necessary to have our own wind power and solar power manufacturing facilities.
Funding for Renewable Energy – The Dem-NPL Party asks the state legislature and Congress to significantly increase funding for research and development of new and renewable fuels and supports incentives which would lead to increased energy efficiency in our homes and businesses to decrease our dependence on oil. This is to include the development and funding of wind and solar energy projects that are environmentally friendly and that can benefit our local communities.
Monitor Energy Portfolio – The Dem-NPL Party supports increased awareness and monitoring of our energy portfolio.
Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid Disclosure – The Dem-NPL Party supports state and/or federal legislation that would require oil companies using the technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to disclose the chemicals contained in the fracking fluid to the North Dakota Department of Health for public disclosure.
Environmentally Responsible Development – The Dem-NPL Party supports state and federal legislation that considers environmental responsibility first and foremost in all energy development. Consideration should be given to landowner rights, with damage and reclamation costs being borne by the energy companies.
Natural Gas Distribution to More Communities – The Dem-NPL Party supports the state legislature providing cost sharing and incentives to build and extend natural gas supply and distribution lines to every community in our state.
Oil Siting – The Dem-NPL Party supports the protection of Special Places in ND. Appropriate state and federal agencies must review every drilling permit application for areas within two miles of National and State Parks, National and Historic Sites, US Forest Service Backcountry Recreation Areas, The Missouri, Yellowstone, and Little Missouri Rivers, State Game Management Area and Federal Waterfowl Production Areas and National Wildlife Refuges, and similarly designated areas, to ensure best possible siting of well pads and roads leading to them.
Coal Research – The Dem-NPL supports research into providing coal as more environmentally responsible.
Unitization Secondary Recovery – The Dem-NPL Party urges the legislature to undertake a study and change the unitization law to protect the mineral owners including that state’s mineral interests by making unitization for secondary recovery only.
30 Day Flaring Limit – The Dem-NPL Party supports legislation allowing for flaring of natural gas for only the first 30 days after a well begins producing, with significant, binding penalties for non-compliance.
Oversight Toxic Waste – The Dem-NPL Party supports increased oversight and enforcement of the dumping of toxic and radioactive waste. Furthermore, we support the study of additional means of cataloguing, tracking, disposal, and containment of toxic and radioactive materials.
Water Policy – The Dem-NPL Party supports developing a plan that addresses the short and long-term needs for safe drinking water.
Mineral Leases – The Dem-NPL Party urges the North Dakota Legislature to enact measures that would require forfeiture of leases on the part of oil and gas companies that do not meet the bonus payment terms of a mineral lease.
Enforcement of Regulations – The Dem-NPL supports stricter enforcement of existing rules and regulations on current energy development industries, with an oversight agency that is non-partisan.
Pre-Bonding Insurance – The Dem-NPL supports actual pre-bonding and insurance of oil companies, and their activities, rather than “self-bonding” for spills and incidents.
Salt Water Well Inspections – The Dem-NPL supports frequent inspections of salt water disposal wells for pressure tests, and immediately shut down wells that do not meet the standards.
Pre-testing Refinery Sites – The Dem-NPL supports pre-testing of the air, land and water prior to the development of any new oil refineries or processing structures (to develop a baseline for tests after the facility is in operation); any new construction of an oil refinery should require a full site review and public hearings by the Public Service Commission.
Separation of Marketing and Regulation – The Dem-NPL supports the separation of the marketing and regulation of mineral interests.
Climate Change – The Dem-NPL Party supports taking science-based actions to reduce the threat of climate change and address the economic, social, and environmental impact on North Dakotans and future generations, and in making ethical policy decisions to remediate the environmental and economic effects of climate change.
Climate Change Action – The Dem-NPL supports the creation of a state-funded study commission to identify and evaluate fiscal impacts from climate change and suggest mitigating policies.
Hunting and Fishing – The Dem-NPL supports Legislation to protect hunting, fishing areas for public access. P.L.O.T.S. program is too restrictive.
Aquifers – The Dem-NPL should promote and support changing the law back to its original status to not allow oilfield fracking companies to purchase water from commercial aquifers (aquifer water must be preserved for farming and ranching).
Job Protection and Transition in the Industries – The Dem-NPL recognizes the laws of physics, new technologies, and economic market forces will be challenging the recovery of fossil fuels which will ultimately strip North Dakota of many high paying jobs. We call upon the State of North Dakota to expand its workforce development and career transition programs in all areas.
EPA – The Dem-NPL supports the continuation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and opposes any attempt to de-fund its operational budget to a level that it cannot function.

Foreign Policy

Drone Strikes – The Dem-NPL Party opposes the use of drone strikes without the support of Congress.
Preemptive Military Action – The Dem-NPL Party opposes preemptive military action and when or if war becomes necessary, our troops should only be deployed in adequate numbers and with adequate training and equipment.
Geneva Conventions – The Dem-NPL Party opposes the use of torture under any circumstances and supports the U.S. government following the Geneva Conventions.
Paris Climate Accord – The Dem-NPL supports the Federal Government remaining in the Paris Climate Accord.
Trade with Cuba – The Dem-NPL supports increasing opportunities for farmers to increase free trade with Cuba.

Health and Human Services

Single Payer Health Insurance – The Dem-NPL Party supports implementation of a universal single-payer healthcare system, beginning with the Medicare at 55 Act.
Medical Marijuana – The Dem-NPL supports the implementation of the medical marijuana legislation.
Reproductive Medical Care – The Dem-NPL Party supports policies that provide people with access to needed reproductive medical care, including pre- and post-natal care. The Dem-NPL Party further supports accurate sexual health education in schools.
Regional Substance Abuse Programs – The Dem-NPL Party is committed to increasing support for regional and tribal addiction treatment centers, especially with the current opioid crisis.
Vouchers for mental health and substance abuse treatment – The Dem-NPL Party supports the use of vouchers to secure all mental health and substance abuse treatment in the Medicaid program, including treatment at human service centers.
Psychiatric Services – The Dem-NPL Party supports increased statewide access to regional medically- based psychiatric services.
Services to pregnant minors – The Dem-NPL Party supports comprehensive support services to pregnant minors and a review of laws related to consent for pregnancy testing, prenatal care, and pain management.
Affordable Care Act – The Dem-NPL Party opposes any attempts to repeal the federal Affordable Care Act including Medicaid Expansion.
Veterans’ Health Care – The Dem-NPL Party strongly urges that all steps be taken to ensure that all veterans receive the health care, vision care, dental care, and related services required, using the most modern equipment, procedures, and techniques available. We support combating suicide and adverse behavioral and mental health issues our veterans and their families endure. The veteran should be able to access necessary services at the facility as close as possible to their home of record or be referred to the nearest medical facility, and we ask the North Dakota Congressional delegation to support this request at the national level.
Children’s Health Insurance – The Dem-NPL Party support ways to expand coverage for uninsured and underinsured children to ensure that all children in North Dakota have access to health care coverage, including raising the eligibility for North Dakota Healthy Steps and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIPS).
Stroke Registry, Training and Public Education – The Dem-NPL Party supports continued state funding for stroke registry, training and public education.
Emergency Medical Care – The Dem-NPL Party supports expansion of the Division of EMS administrative support and local matching grant program, in addition to partial loan forgiveness for those who serve in rural communities.
EMT Benefits – The Dem-NPL Party supports providing health benefits and Workman Compensation Insurance to volunteer firefighter and emergency responders.
Continuum of behavioral health services – The Dem-NPL Party supports the development of the full continuum of behavioral health services including: prevention, early intervention, crisis services, treatment services, support services and recovery supports that helps people of all ages receive needed supports in the least restrictive environments by use of evidence based practices.
Parity – The Dem-NPL Party supports full implementation of Mental Health parity for both public and private insurance.
Individuals with disabilities – The Dem-NPL Party supports continuing programs specifically targeting the employment, education, housing, transportation, and access to assistive technology for individuals with disabilities.
Waivers – The Dem-NPL supports Medicaid waivers for permission to do “creative things” that meet client’s unique issues and needs.
Critical Direct Services – The Dem-NPL supports direct services for critical needs of workers, including farmers, in difficult times of the economy/job stress.
Improve Health – The Dem-NPL Party supports improving the physical and behavioral health of North Dakotans through public and private programs and legislation that will prevent disease, reduce the disparities that exist due to where people live and their economic status, increase access to healthcare, and increase affordability of healthcare.
Medicare – The Dem-NPL Party supports retention of Medicare’s guaranteed benefits and preventing the shifting of costs to Medicare beneficiaries.
Indian Health Services (IHS) – The Dem-NPL Party supports full funding of IHS in fulfillment of the federal obligation to provide health care to American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Training of Health care workers – The Dem-NPL should promote and support an ongoing fund for the training/re-training of healthcare professionals in critical need areas.
Reciprocity – The Dem-NPL should promote and support reciprocity of healthcare professional’s licensure from other states.
Family Leave – The Dem-NPL supports paid maternal, paternal, and family leave for all full-time and part-time employees.
Tobacco – Dem-NPL supports the Center for Disease Control guidelines in tobacco reduction programs, and continuation of North Dakota Tobacco Settlement funding of prevention/cessation programs.
CPR-Defibrillator Training – The Dem-NPL supports training of CPR and the use of the emergency defibrillators now in many public locations, especially the employees in those locations.
Help Lines – The Dem-NPL supports call-in “Help Lines” for parents who have concerns with overly abusive or violent children.

Housing, Childcare and Quality of Life

Childcare – The Dem-NPL Party supports making North Dakota’s childcare quality rating and improvement system available to all early care and learning settings ensuring children have optimal opportunities, to include developmental optical and psychological support, more than the 20-20 Assessment they have today.
Rent Subsidy – The Dem-NPL Party urges the state legislature to develop a needs-based formula to assist with rental costs, with an emphasis on the elderly, veterans, young families and people with disabilities.
Housing – The Dem-NPL Party supports providing Bank of North Dakota loan guarantees available to cover the housing appraisal gap (the gap between purchase price and resale value) especially in rural and oil patch regions and to assisting localities in fighting homelessness and provide housing affordability for all.
Childcare Services – The Dem-NPL Party supports funding for developing professional childcare services throughout North Dakota, especially in areas where services are lacking.
Childcare Training – The Dem-NPL Party supports providing educational and training opportunities to child care workers, grants to licensed childcare providers to assist with facilities and equipment, childcare tax credits, and business government partnerships.
Childcare Review Staffing – The Dem-NPL supports adequately funding of State staffing for on-site visits to childcare facilities and to review and investigate any concerns.
Childcare Costs Incentives – The Dem-NPL recognizes the inherent rising costs of childcare and to combat those rising costs, supports restoring the childcare assistance program funding level to rates prior to the 2016 Legislative Session; and creating tax incentives for businesses who pay all or a portion of their employees childcare expenses.
Homeless Family Daycare – The Dem-NPL supports assistance to the poor or homeless families who have no access to daycare.The Dem-NPL supports the passage of the Childcare for Working Families Act.
Homeless – The Dem-NPL supports the Legislature taking action toward the plight of the homeless; recognizing that despite the closure of shelters, every North Dakotan should have a guaranteed right to shelter.
Childcare – The Dem-NPL supports the Murray-Scott “Childcare for Working Families Act” of 2013.
Support of the Arts – The Dem-NPL is committed to the vitality of the arts as essential to life in our state.

Human Rights

Protecting Peace on our Prairie by Promoting the Value of People – The Dem-NPL supports defending the rights of each individual to live up to their natural potential, promoting peace-building, protecting democracy, championing human rights defenders, and safeguarding each vulnerable minority and marginalized community without abandoning and thereby strengthening who we are as North Dakotans. We support the development of and will promote a stand-alone Commission on Human Rights to nurture respect and dignity.
People of Color – The Dem-NPL supports affirming the value of people of color and Native Americans, promoting civility, addressing the physical, political, legal, economic, and environmental violence perpetuated, and confronting bigotry and other forms of intolerance – whether veiled or visible.
Senior Citizens and Elders – The Dem-NPL supports programs helping seniors reside independently in their own homes and communities. We support affordable housing for our senior citizens, health care and prescriptions, voting rights, and fighting the problems of elder abuse and neglect, and exploitation of our senior generation.
Indigenous People and Native Americans – The Dem-NPL supports our sacred obligation to our Native American nations and peoples who hold the strongest ancestral ties in North Dakota, endorsing Tribal Sovereignty and Tribal Jurisdiction, honoring the treaties and federal statutes, and acknowledging past injustices which destroyed Native American economies, social and religious systems, enabled the taking of their lands, and created intergenerational trauma.
New Americans, Immigrants, and Refugees – The Dem-NPL supports policies strengthening relationships between immigrants, community members, and law enforcement, respecting the constitutional rights of immigrants, and ending racial or ethnic profiling. We support expanding efforts to provide refugees fleeing violence with the opportunity for a new life and exploring ways to address humanitarian crises, and support that federal funding should follow these refugees as being in the national interest.
Religious Freedom – The Dem-NPL supports religious freedom, protecting religious minorities, and a progressive vision of religious freedom respecting pluralism and rejecting the misuse of religion to discriminate.
People with Disabilities – The Dem-NPL supports ending discrimination based on disability status, whether physical, mental, developmental, or behavioral, ensuring people with disabilities can live full and productive lives, and complete access to quality health care and programs.
Sexual Assault, Violence and Human Trafficking – The Dem-NPL supports resolving the scourge of adult and youth sexual assault, gender-based violence, and human trafficking, most notably against our Native American women and children. WE further support measures to stop human trafficking in North Dakota.
LGBTQ+ People – The Dem-NPL opposes discrimination in housing, employment, and public accommodations based on sexual orientation or gender identity. We support adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the ND Human Rights Act and ND Fair Housing Act, and enabling the rights of transgender people to access public spaces.

Veterans and their Families – The Dem-NPL supports veterans receiving the care and benefits they have earned, increasing veteran educational benefits and job training, fighting to end chronic homelessness, and forming an outreach program to provide pre-deployment and post-deployment support to family members and service members.
DREAM Act – The Dem-NPL supports the DREAM Act.
Hate Crime Legislation – The Dem-NPL supports enactment of hate crime legislation. While freedom of expression is a fundamental constitutional principle, we condemn the hate speech, violence, and illegal activities of hate groups and supremacists, and condemn the promotion and growth of such groups and individuals.

Infrastructure

Roads and Bridge Funding – The Dem-NPL Party supports a significant increase in funding for transportation infrastructure.
Public Transportation – The Dem-NPL Party supports increased public transportation with a focus on providing to seniors, the disabled, and healthcare needs.
Passenger rail – The Dem-NPL Party supports establishment of passenger rail, with high-speed rail wherever and whenever feasible.
Clean Safe Drinking Water – The Dem-NPL Party supports the belief that it is mandatory for all North Dakota communities to have clean, affordable, and safe drinking water, and maintains the premise that that clean water is a human right.Communities are encouraged to have income-based lifeline rates.
Electric Charging Stations – The Dem-NPL Party supports efforts to prepare for the modernization of personal transition to include the development of a network of electric charging stations, updating vehicle and traffic codes to safely incorporate driverless vehicles and the removal of other physical and legal impediments to adaptation of alternative fueled vehicles.
Biking – The Dem-NPL supports funding and promotion of biking trails, and protects cyclists’ right to the road.
Airports– Dem-NPL supports the subsidy of small regional airports.

Public Safety

Use of Alcohol/Drug Testing Devices – The Dem-NPL Party is committed to enhancing public safety while diminishing prison costs by expanding at state expense the use of devices that sense when offenders are using alcohol and drugs.
Alternatives to Incarceration – The Dem-NPL Party supports state funded regional substance abuse treatment programs that are available to the public and as an alternative to incarceration for those convicted of non-violent drug use violations.
Prescription Drug Abuse – The Dem-NPL Party is committed to making changes needed to reduce prescription drug abuse in the state including increased support for regional and tribal addiction treatment centers.
Marijuana – The Dem-NPL supports the legalization, regulation and taxation of cannabis, and expungement of non-violent charges.
Detection of impairment due to an excessive use of marijuana – The Dem-NPL Party supports the funding in research needed to develop a usable test for law enforcement and others to detect impairment due to an excessive use of marijuana.
Supplementary Law Enforcement Support in Rural North Dakota – The Dem-NPL supports additional funding for large rural Law Enforcement districts, i.e.-one Deputy to cover all of Golden Valley County at night.
Firearm Safety – The Dem-NPL Party supports common sense regulations regarding the safe use of firearms for North Dakotans.
1. The Dem-NPL supports legislation to close the loophole stating that it’s legal to sell and buy modification kits that can convert semi-automatic weapons into automatic ones.
2. The Dem-NPL supports requiring North Dakota unlicensed gun sellers at gun shows, and private gun dealers to conduct the same instant background checks that licensed dealers need to conduct, using the National Criminal Instant Background Check System.
3. The Dem-NPL Supports school Resource Officers who are trained in law enforcement, and in adolescent behavior.
4. The Dem-NPL supports secure processes for students and adults to anonymously report suspected gun violence behavior, along with organized community forums where groups can share ideas, parents and kids can learn where to turn for help, and training is provided in the community to learn the signs of potential danger, and provides information on how to seek out interventions.
5. The Dem-NPL supports a mandatory Certified Firearm safety training for any first time purchaser of a firearm.
6. The Dem-NPL supports increasing the age to purchase a semi-automatic weapon from 18 to 21, and require a 3-day waiting period to purchase.
Railroad Safety – The Dem-NPL supports RR safety and will fight any possible legislation to require only one person in the RR engine area.
EMS Protections – The Dem-NPL supports protections, safety measures and long term planning for EMS workers and law enforcement
24/7 Drug Sobriety Program – The Dem-NPL supports expanding the 24/7 sobriety program.

Tax Structure

Property Taxes – The Dem-NPL Party strongly urges the State Legislature to address inequities and deficiencies in the current property tax system.
Tax Cuts Reversal – The Dem-NPL supports a full reversal of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act Tax Reform as it significantly adds to the national deficit and to reverse the tax cuts for the top 1% income earners.
Earned Income Tax Credit – The Dem-NPL Party supports a state Earned Income Tax Credit.
Renters tax relief – The Dem-NPL Party is committed to providing tax relief to residential renters through income tax credits.
School Support – The Dem-NPL Party is committed to strong state financial support resulting in a reduction in school property tax while at the same time allowing local school boards adequate authority to fund an essential education program.
Homestead Tax Exemption – The Dem-NPL Party supports expanding the homestead tax exemption to more North Dakota residents.
Natural Disaster Relief – The Dem-NPL Party believes the State of North Dakota should not profit from the property losses suffered when declared natural disasters strike our citizens. To meet this goal, the State of North Dakota should provide, with the approval of the local government, sales tax reductions, property tax reductions, and North Dakota income tax credits for the uninsured losses, to the original property owners, in the event of a governmentally-declared natural disaster.
Production Tax % Stay at Counties – The Dem-NPL supports committing more of the state collected oil production tax to the oil producing counties for support services and infrastructure needs.
State Aid Distribution Fund – The Dem-NPL supports an enhancement of the formula used to fund State Aid Distributions Fund.
Business Tuition Assistance -The Dem-NPL supports providing tax incentives to ND businesses to provide tuition assistance to North Dakota students in return for job placement with that company.
Sales Tax Exemption – The Dem-NPL supports a sales tax exemption on clothing, feminine hygiene products, prescription, and OTC medications.
Oil Extraction Tax – The Dem-NPL Party supports the flat, workable oil extraction tax of 6.5%.
Review of Fund Balances – The Dem-NPL supports a systematic review of specific State created fund categories which have a significant fund balance.
Increase Cigarette and Alcohol Taxes – The Dem-NPL supports an increase cigarette and alcohol taxes, must add electronic cigarettes as taxable.
Taxes for Opioid Treatment – The Dem-NPL supports a tax of $1 per pack of cigarettes to be used for opioid and other drug treatment, with a sunset date of five years after adoption.
Increase in Gas Tax – The Dem-NPL supports an increase in the gas tax to help road maintenance, which would be equitably distributed between rural and urban bridge and highway needs.
Infrastructure Damages – The Dem-NPL supports oil companies paying for infrastructure damages.
Township Refinery Roads – The Dem-NPL supports the adequate funding paid for by refiners of rural roads leading to and from refineries to relieve the burden on townships.
Taxes Allocation to Fund – The Dem-NPL supports legislation that all allocated taxes, such as gas tax, smoking cessation, etc. are assured by law to go to that department (rather than the general fund).
Online Tax Filing – The Dem-NPL supports the ability to file taxes online, and the government notifying people what is owed (similar to what is done in the United Kingdom).
Legacy Fund – The Dem-NPL supports the continued Legacy Fund collections to supplement State priorities in periods of need by keeping the Oil Extraction Tax at the 6.5% flat rate.

Resolutions

The North Dakota Dem-NPL Party believes the national Democratic Party is ready for Democracy. We believe that all national convention delegates should be elected by a democratic process within the presidential election calendar year. There should be no votes awarded to automatic delegates, ex-officio or super delegates at any level in the process. We hereby request our Democratic National Committee (DNC) representatives and State Party Chair to communicate this position to the DNC and its delegate selection committee(s).
The Dem-NPL Party supports efforts to reduce the influence of money in political campaigns and on our elected officials.
The Dem-NPL Party supports state funding for EMS training grants and paramedic student loan forgiveness for citizens willing to serve in rural communities and oil producing counties in North Dakota.
The Dem-NPL opposes the repeal of the Dodd-Frank Banking Act.
The Dem-NPL supports investment in renewable energy to retain energy jobs in the state on a long-term, sustainable basis.

Preamble

Values

Resolutions

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