Latest news with #LegacyFund
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
North Dakota Legislature adopts ‘historic' property tax bill on final day of session
Rep. Craig Headland, R-Montpelier, speaks on the House floor during debate on a property tax bill on May 2, 2025. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor) The North Dakota House and Senate compromised on a property tax package Friday amounting to a $1,600 primary residence credit, more than triple the amount homeowners receive now. But one House member said he plans to promote an initiated measure for the November 2026 ballot that would aim to cut taxes for other property types. House Bill 1176, sponsored by Rep. Mike Nathe, R-Bismarck, and backed by Gov. Kelly Armstrong, passed on the final day of the session with a unanimous vote in the Senate and 86-4 vote in the House. Lawmakers identified property tax reform as a top priority for the session after voters initiated a ballot measure last year that sought to eliminate property taxes based on assessed value. Although the measure failed, lawmakers said they heard from voters that they expect property tax cuts in the future. The bill uses earnings from the state Legacy Fund to pay for the program, with the idea that lawmakers could consider even greater property tax relief in the future as the fund grows. Armstrong's vision is that eventually most homeowners would be on a path to paying zero property taxes. 'This bill provides real relief and real reform for taxpayers,' Armstrong said in a statement Friday. 'It's responsible, affordable and durable. It creates Legacy Fund buy-in, and it's the single most impactful thing we could do for North Dakota citizens this session.' The legislation also seeks to slow the growth of property tax increases with a 3% cap on how much local governments can increase the taxes annually. The total amount of property tax relief in the package is estimated at $473 million for 2025-27, Tax Commissioner Brian Kroshus said. The bill also includes more money for a disabled veterans tax credit and a renters refund. 'This is truly a landmark bill when it comes to property taxes,' Nathe said after the conference committee agreed on a final version of the bill. 'Probably historic.' Donnell Preskey, government and public affairs specialist for the North Dakota Association of Counties, said counties were not in favor of the caps, but the bill includes an opt-out provision that would allow residents in a taxing district to vote to be exempted from the caps for four years. 'That's one of the elements we worked really hard to get in there,' Preskey said. She added there are still concerns about what local budgets will look like with 3% caps over the next two years. She said the association hopes to educate counties on the new property tax rules, how it will impact their budgets and some of the flexibility options available. The bill also caps how much school districts can raise property taxes. It contains a provision that if the cap on schools forces some districts to drop below the state-mandated local education contribution level, the Department of Public Instruction would administer gap funding to make the districts whole. An additional $30 million is set aside for that gap funding. Lawmakers removed a so-called 'skin-in-the-game' provision the Senate advanced that would have required homeowners to pay at least 25% of their property tax bill. The Legislature defeated two other property tax proposals that also would have benefited owners of agricultural land, commercial property and centrally assessed properties. Rep. Scott Louser, R-Minot, sponsored House Bill 1168, a competing property tax bill that would have had the state pay 100% of public school funding as a way to deliver property tax relief. Louser said he plans to advance that proposal through an initiated measure. He said he plans to gather signatures with the goal of getting it on the November ballot. 'I was taught to always fight for what I believe in and, members of the assembly, this may be something you believe in, too,' Louser said. Rep. Craig Headland, R-Montpelier, chairman of the House Finance and Taxation Committee, expressed frustration with the potential ballot measure. 'For a legislator to come on and talk about how he's going to lead a petition because he doesn't like the outcome of the property tax relief that the majority of the assembly decided was the way to go is a bit over the top,' Headland said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
ND Senate fails bill to divest Legacy Fund from China
Apr. 16—BISMARCK — The North Dakota Senate failed a bill on a 20-26 vote Tuesday, April 15, that would have allowed the State Investment Board to divest Legacy Fund investments from Chinese companies. Sens. Cole Conley and Terry Wanzek, both R-Jamestown, voted in favor of House Bill 1330. HB 1330 would have added language to the prudent investor rule to define a Chinese company as a company domiciled in China. Sen. Sean Cleary, R-Bismarck, a supporter of the bill, said HB 1330 allows but does not require the State Investment Board to divest Legacy Fund holdings from Chinese companies. "I think there's circumstances where it's appropriate for the SIB (State Investment Board) to take a look at all the factors that are surrounding where our Legacy Fund is invested and make a decision based on those factors," he said. "I think a green vote on this bill positions them to do that. It gives them the flexibility to divest from direct investments in China." Sen. Cole Conley, R-Jamestown, a sponsor of the bill, said the Legacy Fund is being used to invest in China's sovereign wealth fund. "I'm not sure why we are doing that," he said. Sen. Jeffery Magrum, R-Hazelton, said the state could lose money on its Legacy Fund investments in Chinese companies if the U.S. goes to war with China. "I think divesting would have been great, but if the state investment board has the option to say, we need to pull the plug on our investments over there, it does give them the option," he said. In 2010, North Dakota voters approved a measure that created the Legacy Fund, which is a perpetual source of state revenue from the finite national resources of oil and natural gas, according to the Office of State Treasurer's website. Thirty percent of the taxes on petroleum produced and extracted in North Dakota are transferred to the Legacy Fund monthly, according to the North Dakota Retirement and Investment Office's website. The Legacy Fund has over $12 billion as of Jan. 31. It has earned over $600 million for the 2023-25 biennium. The State Investment Board has statutory responsibility for the administration of the investment programs of several funds including the Legacy Fund, according to the Retirement and Investment Office's website. Sen. Michael Dwyer, R-Bismarck, who opposed the bill, said about $22 million of the Legacy Fund is in direct holdings in Chinese companies. "The State Investment Board operates under a prudent investment rule and there might be one of those investments that is an excellent investment," he said. "They would need the authority to divest themselves from that if they were going to violate the prudent investor rule." Sen. Jerry Klein, R-Fessenden, who opposed the bill, said it would be the first time a specific nation was listed in the North Dakota Century Code if the bill were to pass. "We've got investments around the country, and the federal government allows us to invest there," he said. "They have a list of countries where we can't invest, so that provides some of that comfort that we were looking for."
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
North Dakota Senate defeats bill that aimed to divest Legacy Fund from China
Sen. Jerry Klein, R-Fessenden, testifies against a bill that sought to authorize the State Investment Board to divest the Legacy Fund from Chinese investments. (Jeff Beach / North Dakota Monitor) The North Dakota Senate on Tuesday sank a bill that would have authorized the State Investment Board to divest from Legacy Fund holdings in companies headquartered in China. Under the 'prudent investor rule,' which governs trustees of investment portfolios, the board must prefer 'qualified investment firms and financial institutions with a presence in the state.' It cannot choose not to favor a company purely based on its home country. The bill, which failed by a 20-26 vote, would have updated this language to let the board voluntarily cut ties with Chinese businesses. Bill requiring Legacy Fund disclosure website sees support in North Dakota Legislature According to the North Dakota Retirement and Investment Office, that applies to only about $246 million of the $12 billion in the fund. That equates to about 2.1% Primary sponsor Rep. Bernie Satrom, R-Jamestown, has said North Dakota should do away with holdings in Chinese companies due to human rights abuses committed by the Chinese Communist Party, as well as concerns that China's government is a national security threat to the United States. Sen. Sean Cleary, R-Bismarck, said he supported the bill because it addresses these problems while still giving the State Investment Board flexibility over the fund's investments. 'Our own intelligence agency has identified that there are significant threats that come from the Chinese Communist Party,' he said on the Senate floor. North Dakota Legacy Fund takes big hit amid stock market volatility Critics of the bill said it would hamper growth of the Legacy Fund by discouraging investment in an entire country's market. Sen. Jerry Klein, R-Fessenden, said it's unusual for North Dakota to single out countries in state law. The closest comparison may be a 2023 law the North Dakota Legislature adopted prohibiting investment practices that would result in a boycott of Israel. Klein said many Chinese companies are good-faith business partners to the United States and shouldn't be penalized just because of where they're located. The Retirement and Investment Board took a neutral stance on the bill. Earlier this month, the Senate passed another Legacy Fund-related policy, House Bill 1319, which requires the Retirement and Investment Office to create a website detailing Legacy Fund holdings. Gov. Kelly Armstrong signed the bill into law last week. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bill requiring Legacy Fund disclosure website sees support in North Dakota Legislature
Rep. Bernie Satrom, R-Jamestown, speaks on the House floor on March 25, 2025. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor) The state may soon start development on a new website detailing its Legacy Fund holdings after the North Dakota Senate last week unanimously passed an investment transparency bill. The Legacy Fund, worth more than $12 billion as of January, is a state trust fund supported by oil revenue. It was created by a ballot measure approved by voters in 2010 with the goal of being a source of perpetual revenue for the state. House Bill 1319, sponsored by Rep. Bernie Satrom, R-Jamestown, says the website must include all Legacy Fund 'companies, funds and other financial mechanisms in which the Legacy Fund is invested,' so long as the information may be disclosed under state and federal law. 'Some people don't care what they're invested in,' Satrom said in February testimony on the bill before the House Finance and Taxation Committee. 'To me, it matters.' The North Dakota Retirement and Investment Office estimated the cost for the website at about $421,000, according to a fiscal note attached to the bill. It said it would cost around $27,500 annually to maintain the website. The House in February approved the bill by a vote of 92-1. The Retirement and Investment Office also supports the bill. Interim Executive Director Jodi Smith said that the agency already shares a wealth of information online about the fund, but a new website could make it more straightforward for members of the public to digest. 'I feel like all that language and information is on our website, but if you've been on our website and try to find it all, it can be a bit cumbersome,' Smith said. 'It's not easy to navigate.' The office expects the website to save both state employees and members of the public a lot of time and effort. Smith said that about a third of records requests filed with the Retirement and Investment Office relate to the Legacy Fund. The agency has dedicated thousands of dollars worth of staff time to fulfilling the records requests, she said. Getting a website up and running will take a long time, Smith said. The agency hopes to have an interface similar to one that Norway uses for its sovereign wealth fund, which allows visitors to sort all of its investments by country. 'It might take us a couple of years to get there,' she said. The Retirement and Investment Office already discloses how much Legacy Fund money is invested in particular companies, Smith said. However, for a portion of the money invested in commingled funds, the agency does not disclose which investments are made by specific fund managers. Smith said this would violate the agency's contracts with those managers. About $3.1 billion of the Legacy Fund is in these commingled funds, also known as institutional funds. 'We can't reveal a fund manager's investment strategy,' she said. Bismarck attorney Tory Jackson last year asked for the North Dakota Attorney General's Office to weigh in on whether the Retirement and Investment Office violated public records laws by withholding this information. Gov. Kelly Armstrong during his campaign for governor advocated for more transparency with Legacy Fund investments. He is now chair of the State Investment Board. Another Legacy Fund-related bill sponsored by Satrom, House Bill 1330, would instruct the State Investment Board to divest from all Chinese companies. The Senate has yet to vote on the bill. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Axios
31-03-2025
- Business
- Axios
Fayetteville to host cyclo-cross championships
Yes, there will be more cowbell in 2025. Fayetteville's Centennial Park is hosting the USA National Championships for cyclo-cross in December, attracting a slate of elite athletes and their bell-gangling fans. Why it matters: USA Cycling events bring international attention to NWA as a cycling destination and squeeze more mileage out of the $3.3 million Centennial Park, built for such competitions. More than 17,000 spectators attended the 2022 cyclo-cross World Cup event. The city's hotel-motel-restaurant tax receipts jumped 144% that January, compared to a year earlier. Driving the news: Fayetteville's Advertising and Promotion Commission officially voted to sign the hosting agreement earlier this week. State of play: The city's budget for this year's event is $225,000, which comes from the Cycling Legacy Fund, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported. That fund was established to boost local cycling events. Context: Cyclo-cross is not to be confused with mountain bike racing, which was held at the park last week. What's next: The 2025 championships are scheduled to take place December 10-14 and the 2026 championships are planned for December 9-13.
