AN ACT to amend and reenact section 15.1-21-21 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to financial literacy and concepts of personal finance curriculum.
HB 1533 updates North Dakota’s financial literacy education law by revising the required personal finance concepts that school districts must expose students to. The bill keeps the core mandate that students receive instruction in financial literacy or related economics/probblems of democracy coursework, but modernizes the list of topics to emphasize budgeting and money management, saving and investing, banking and financial services, credit and debt management, income and taxation, consumer skills, insurance and risk management, college and career financial planning, retirement planning, and entrepreneurship/economic concepts.
The bill also preserves flexibility for school districts. Districts may still seek approval from the superintendent of public instruction to use other courses if they can show that at least as many students will be exposed to the required personal finance concepts, and the instruction may be delivered by the regular classroom teacher in the relevant course. In effect, the bill amends section 15.1-21-21 of the North Dakota Century Code to refresh and broaden the personal finance curriculum framework rather than create a new standalone program.
HB 1533 amends North Dakota Century Code section 15.1-21-21, changing the state’s requirements for financial literacy and personal finance instruction in school districts. It updates the statutory list of required concepts and clarifies the curriculum areas that may satisfy the exposure requirement, affecting K-12 curriculum planning, course content, and local school district compliance with state education standards.
The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the House overwhelmingly, 87-3, and the Senate unanimously, 46-0, indicating strong bipartisan agreement on the value of financial literacy education. No committee testimony or recorded debate was provided, and the voting record suggests the measure was viewed favorably as a curriculum update.
There is little evidence of substantive contention in the available record. The only likely policy issue is how prescriptive the state should be about the specific financial topics schools must cover versus allowing districts flexibility to substitute other courses. The bill preserves that flexibility, which may have helped avoid opposition. The near-unanimous votes suggest any concerns were minor and did not coalesce into organized resistance.