A BILL for an Act to amend and reenact section 15.1-06-19 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to school counselor position requirements.
HB 1449 would amend North Dakota’s school counselor staffing law to expand the existing counselor-to-student expectation from grades 7-12 to also include kindergarten through grade 6 beginning with the 2022-23 school year. Under the bill, each school district would be required to make a reasonable effort to have one full-time equivalent school counselor for every 300 students in grades K-6, in addition to the existing standard for grades 7-12.
The bill also clarifies how districts may satisfy the requirement. Up to one-third of the counselor staffing ratio could be met by career advisors, and districts would be deemed compliant if they actively recruited qualified counselors or career advisors, explored alternatives such as shared services, contracted services, or virtual counseling, and documented those efforts. Districts would also have to provide that documentation upon request. In effect, the bill would broaden access to counseling services for younger students while preserving flexibility for districts facing staffing shortages.
HB 1449 would amend section 15.1-06-19 of the North Dakota Century Code, changing school counselor position requirements by adding an elementary-school counseling expectation and formalizing compliance options for districts. It would affect school districts statewide, especially elementary schools, by increasing pressure to recruit counselors and by allowing alternative service models and career advisors to count toward part of the staffing target. Because the bill failed, it did not become law and would not change current statutory requirements.
No committee transcript or vote record was provided, so there is no direct evidence of debate or partisan sentiment in the available materials. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears to reflect a policy interest in expanding student mental health and guidance support, particularly for younger children, while also acknowledging workforce limitations through flexible compliance language. The fact that the bill ultimately failed suggests it did not secure enough support to advance.
The main policy tension in HB 1449 is between expanding access to school counseling services and the practical difficulty of staffing those positions, especially in smaller or rural districts. Supporters would likely favor the added counseling requirement for elementary students and the documentation rules that encourage districts to make real recruitment efforts. Potential opponents or skeptics would likely focus on the cost, feasibility, and labor-market challenges of requiring districts to meet a counselor ratio for K-6 students, even with the bill’s allowances for career advisors, shared services, contracted services, and virtual counseling.