A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 52-08 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to workforce training center funding distribution.
Summary
SB 2131 would have created a new section of North Dakota law directing how the state board for career and technical education must distribute biennial workforce training appropriations among workforce training centers. The bill establishes a fixed formula for allocating the total workforce training funding: 60% would be divided equally among all workforce training centers, 20% would be distributed based on each center’s average training hours over a specified prior four-year period, and 20% would be distributed based on each center’s average number of unduplicated participants over the same period.
In practical terms, the bill would have replaced a more discretionary or unspecified distribution approach with a statutory formula tied partly to equal shares and partly to historical activity measures. The measure appears aimed at creating a predictable funding method that rewards both broad access and demonstrated training volume, while also ensuring every center receives a baseline share of state support.
Impact
If enacted, the bill would have amended North Dakota Century Code chapter 52-08 by adding a new funding distribution rule for workforce training centers. It would have constrained the state board for career and technical education’s discretion by requiring it to allocate appropriated workforce training funds according to the prescribed percentages and performance-based metrics. Workforce training centers would be the primary affected entities, with funding levels influenced by their prior training hours and participant counts.
Sentiment
The bill did not advance, failing on Senate second reading by a vote of 16 yeas to 29 nays on February 17, 2025. That vote suggests the proposal did not secure majority support in the Senate, although the available record does not include committee testimony or debate to show detailed arguments for or against it. Overall, the sentiment reflected in the vote was unfavorable to the bill’s adoption.
Contention
The main point of contention likely centered on whether the state should lock workforce training funding into a statutory formula versus allowing greater administrative flexibility. Supporters would likely favor the bill’s predictability and its attempt to balance equal funding with usage-based distribution, while opponents may have been concerned that the formula could disadvantage smaller, newer, or differently situated centers, or that it would reduce the board’s ability to respond to changing workforce needs. Because no committee transcripts are available, the specific objections and sponsors’ defenses are not documented in the provided record.
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