2021 Legislative Review by The FMWF Chamber of Commerce

2021

Legislative Review

A review of the key business legislation and votes from 2021 legislative sessions.

#FMWFAdvocacy

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ND North Dakota State Capitol

Photo taken by Bobak Ha’Eri

MN Minnesota State Capitol

Photo taken by McGhiever

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From our President and Chair It is The Chamber’s mission to actively serve as the voice of business, and to promote a prosperous and vibrant Fargo Moorhead West Fargo metropolitan area for generations to come. We are proud to publish this 2021 Legislative Review to serve as a new resource for our business community. As one of the largest chambers in both Minnesota and North Dakota, representing more than 1,900 member businesses, 109,000 employees, and the greater community, we understand the importance and power of public policy and advocacy work. The Chamber has been a long-standing leader in policy and advocacy, serving as a fair and balanced voice that has earned the respect and trust of public officials and community leaders. This new publication will bring attention to results of The Chamber’s top legislative priorities in both Minnesota and North Dakota, along with the corresponding voting record of our local legislators. As we more publicly hold our elected officials accountable for their votes through this resource, we also intend for it to serve as public appreciation for those who were aligned on so many critical business issues. The Chamber’s public policy capabilities continue to grow, allowing us to increase local, state and federal advocacy for our region. A new partnership with Primacy Strategy Group, a government affairs and advocacy firm, has enabled our team to more effectively and efficiently advocate on behalf of our members. Providing a collective voice in Bismarck, St. Paul and Washington D.C. is an enormous benefit to Chamber members of all sizes. In addition to our overall advocacy efforts, we provide the community with education and engagement opportunities to strengthen their voices and understanding of government. With a bi-state, multi-city presence, we have an extraordinary opportunity to leverage support for our metro region. A strong business-friendly climate is essential for economic growth and prosperity. The Chamber remains committed to advocating for policy, convening public officials and business leaders, and representing our members’ interests at all levels of government.

SHANNON FULL President/CEO The Chamber

SANDI PIATZ 2021 Chair Microsoft

Taking a stance LEFT: Shannon Full, Chamber President/CEO, pictured alongside Tom Shorma, CEO and President of WCCO Belting and Cory Steiner, Superintendent for Northern Cass School District. All three spoke in support of Career Workforce Academy funding.

BELOW: Shannon Full, Chamber President/CEO, testifies in front of the House Appropriations Committee on HB 1431, the Bonding Bill, as it included critical funding for the FM Diversion Project, Ag Productions Development Center on NDSU’s campus and Career Workforce Academies.

BELOW: Shannon Full, Chamber President/CEO and Katherine Grindberg, Chamber Vice President of Public Policy pictured at the North Dakota State Capitol while advocating for pro-business policies.

PUBLIC POLICY COMMITTEE

RECOMMENDATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS

BOARD VOTE THE CHAMBER’S STANCE

Made up of business and community leaders from across the region, the Public Policy Committee serves as The Chamber’s advocacy arm. The committee is dedicated to advancing sound policies that foster a stable regulatory environment for the business community to thrive. The group routinely drafts overarching stances and legislative priorities, as well as takes action on individual policies as they become relevant. These stances are all recommendations for the board to consider. Action by the board is necessary for them to become official Chamber stances.

The Board of Directors, comprised of 16 leaders in our local business community, is the policy-making body for The Chamber. They help set and carry out the vision of the organization. Once the Public Policy Committee makes a recommendation for a policy stance, the board reviews the information, and considers action on an official Chamber stance. In the policy world, things can move very quickly. In the case that a policy stance is needed in short time, the board may take the issue up without formal recommendation from the Public Policy Committee.

Once the Board of Directors has voted on an official stance, we get to work. The Chamber engages with public officials to educate them on the business community’s thoughts as well as coalition builds with other entities to make a bigger impact. Additionally, The Chamber encourages local businesses to use their voice by disseminating helpful resources such as policy briefs, talking points, legislative contacts and bill updates.

MN Legislative Review SSHF9/SSSF26 • OMB TAX BILL (TAX CONFORMITY)

PASSED AND SIGNED BY GOVERNOR WALZ

The omnibus1 (OMB) tax bill would produce $49.1 billion in revenue in the 202223 biennium that started on July 1. It provided $4.2 billion in refunds, aids and credits, including $761 million in new tax cuts and credits. The bill would bring state tax law into conformity with the federal government on tax exempt status to forgive the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and unemployment benefits up to $10,200.

THE CHAMBER SUPPORTED THIS BILL

The Chamber supported this bill, allowing Minnesota businesses to receive a state tax exemption for participating in the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

SSHF1/SSSF9 • OMB EMPLOYMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BILL

PASSED AND SIGNED BY GOVERNOR WALZ

The omnibus employment and economic development bill will spend $1.6 billion on programs ranging from helping businesses recover from COVID-19 restrictions and civil unrest, to subsidizing child care so new parents can work. The two-year budget bill will spend 11.3% above the base amount in the 2022-23 biennium. The bill establishes a three-step process to end nearly all state COVID-19 restrictions

THE CHAMBER SUPPORTED THIS BILL

The Chamber supported the omnibus employment and economic development bill as it provides funding for COVID-19 relief, child care development, and workforce solutions.

PROVISION • FROST FOOTING DEPTH

FAILED

The provision addressed a disparity between boarder city construction regulation, specifically the frost footing depth between Fargo, ND and Moorhead/ Dilworth, MN. New homes in Moorhead and Dilworth must have a frost footing depth of at least five (5) feet, whereas new homes in Fargo must have a frost footing depth of 4-1/2 feet.

THE CHAMBER SUPPORTED THIS PROVISION

The Chamber supported this provision as it reduces regulatory disparities between cities in our metro and reduces the cost of new homes in our community.

DIST.

POSITION

NAME

Senator

Kent Eken

Representative

Heather Keeler

Representative

Paul Marquart

SSHF9/ SSSF26

SSHF1/ SSSF9

FROST FOOTING PROVISION2

(Voting records reflect final passage of the bill, previous bill versions can be found at leg.mn.gov) = Aligned with the Chamber’s Stance = Unaligned with the Chamber’s Stance

LEFT: Senator Kent Eken, MN District 4, speaks to a business constituent after The Chamber’s 2021 Minnesota Legislative Wrap-Up event.

RIGHT: Representative Paul Marquart, MN District 4B, speaks to business members at The Chamber’s 2021 Minnesota Legislative Wrap-Up event. Also pictured are Senator Kent Eken, MN District 4 and Representative Heather Keeler, MN District 4A.

An omnibus bill covers a wide variety of topics, but includes them all into one bill. For example, an omnibus tax bill would include changes to a variety of different tax laws (not just one specific tax law).

The frost footing provision was never voted upon, but was a pivotal issue for the Chamber. The District 4 delegation actively supported this revision to the frost footing depth requirement.

**This does not constitute an endorsement of any political candidate, party, or organization.

ND Legislative Review HB 1015 • OMB BILL (WORKFORCE ACADEMY FUNDING)

PASSED AND SIGNED BY GOVERNOR BURGUM

The bill includes $70 million directed to career and technical education centers. The Cass County Career Workforce Academy has the potential to qualify for some of this grant funding.

THE CHAMBER SUPPORTED THIS BILL

The Chamber supported this bill as it included funding for workforce solutions, which is one of our top priorities.

SB 2272 • CAREER BUILDERS FUNDING

PASSED AND SIGNED BY GOVERNOR BURGUM

The bill provides funding for skilled workforce scholarships and loan repayment programs, encouraging students to stay in state and enter in-demand fields.

THE CHAMBER SUPPORTED THIS BILL

As workforce solutions are a top priority of The Chamber, we supported this bill as a tool to recruit and retain an educated workforce.

HB 1431 – BONDING BILL

PASSED AND SIGNED BY GOVERNOR BURGUM

The bill provides critical funding from the bonding bill1 to fund projects: Cass County Career Workforce Academy, FM Diversion Project and the Ag Productions Development Center on NDSU’s campus.

THE CHAMBER SUPPORTED THIS BILL

The Chamber supported this bonding bill as a funding mechanism for large scale infrastructure projects like the FM Diversion Project and Ag Production Development Center on NDSU’s Campus. The FM Diversion Project, providing permanent flood protection for the region, has long been a Chamber priority to protect the citizens, businesses, properties, and economic vitality of our region.

HB 1425 • LEGACY FUND IN-STATE INVESTMENTS

PASSED AND SIGNED BY GOVERNOR BURGUM

The bill calls for 20% investment of the $7 billion Legacy Fund2, which totals $1.4 billion, for important projects like the Red River Valley Water Supply project, as well as investment in emerging or expanding businesses in the State of North Dakota.

THE CHAMBER SUPPORTED THIS BILL

The Chamber supported this legislation as we realize that retaining and supporting in-state businesses will generate job creation and economic stimulation. Investing in our local businesses is good for our overall economy.

HB 1175 • COVID BUSINESS LIABILITY PROTECTION

PASSED AND SIGNED BY GOVERNOR BURGUM

The bill provides liability protection for North Dakota businesses who operated in good faith during the COVID-19 pandemic from frivolous lawsuits that would result in damaging revenue losses or in some cases closure.

THE CHAMBER SUPPORTED THIS BILL

The Chamber supported this legislation as it protects the majority of businesses in our region who operated in good faith during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This session, the ND Legislature considered several bonding bill proposals to finance infrastructure projects. Bonding is a funding method much like a low interest loan for government entities (i.e. Cities, Counties, and State Agencies). The entities that borrowed the fund must repay those funds in addition to interest that accrued during the borrowing period.

The Legacy Fund is a ND state fund derived from taxes on oil and gas production or extraction, similar to a savings account. In 2010, North Dakota voters approved the creation of the fund through a ballot initiative.

ND Legislative Review Dist.

Position

Name

Representative

Gretchen Dobervich

Representative

Ron Guggisberg

Senator

Tim Mathern

Representative

Kim Koppelman

Representative

Austen Schauer

Senator

Judy Lee

Representative

Ben Koppelman

Representative

Andrew Marschall

Senator

David Clemens

Representative

LaurieBeth Hager

Representative

Mary Schneider

Senator

Kathy Hogan

Representative

Michael Howe

Representative

Brandy Pyle

Senator

Mark Weber

HB 1015

HB 1175

HB 1425

HB 1431

SB 2272

(Voting records reflect final passage of the bill, previous bill versions can be found at legis.nd.gov)

Dist.

Position

Name

Representative

Ruth Buffalo

Representative

Greg Stemen

Senator

Kristen Roers

Representative

Pamela Anderson

Representative

Michelle Strinden

Senator

Kyle Davison

Representative

Josh Boschee

Representative

Karla Rose Hanson

Senator

Merrill Piepkorn

Representative

Mary Johnson

Representative

Tom Kading

Senator

Ron Sorvaag

Representative

Jim Kasper

Representative

Shannon Roers-Jones

Senator

Jim Roers

HB 1015

HB 1175

HB 1425

HB 1431

SB 2272

(Voting records reflect final passage of the bill, previous bill versions can be found at legis.nd.gov)

= Aligned with the Chamber’s Stance = Unaligned with the Chamber’s Stance = NOT PRESENT FOR VOTE **This does not constitute an endorsement of any political candidate, party, or organization.

Public Policy Staff KATHERINE GRINDBERG Vice President of Public Policy 701.516.2114 kgrindberg@fmwfchamber.com CALE DUNWOODY Public Policy Specialist 701.306.2235 cdunwoody@fmwfchamber.com

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