Legislative Session
The first thing you need to know is that roughly 750 bills have been filed this legislative session, as of the writing of this email. Based on past sessions, that means we still expect at least 250 more bills until we have the total set of bills that will be under consideration! Nevertheless, let me quickly fill you in on some key bills that are already in committees and will be under consideration shortly.
| Bill Number | Subject | FPA-ND Position
(For/Opposed) |
Link to Bill |
| SB2176 | Reimburse parents for COVID home instruction costs | For | https://www.legis.nd.gov/assembly/67-2021/documents/21-0600-01000.pdf
|
| HB1298 | Fairness in Women’s Sports (girls should only need to compete against biological girls) | For | https://www.legis.nd.gov/assembly/67-2021/documents/21-0140-01000.pdf
|
| HB1281 | Tax credit for public and private instruction | For | https://www.legis.nd.gov/assembly/67-2021/documents/21-0794-01000.pdf
|
| HB1369 | Education Empowerment Program (similar to Education Savings Accounts) | For | https://www.legis.nd.gov/assembly/67-2021/documents/21-0211-04000.pdf
|
| SB1415 | Allowing Assisted Suicide | Opposed | https://www.legis.nd.gov/assembly/67-2021/documents/21-0649-01000.pdf |
While this is certainly not a comprehensive list of pro-family bills we are engaging on, they represent some important ones that you should be aware of. As you can see, many of the key bills Kansas Family Voice of North Dakota is watching and supporting are in the education arena, and there are more education bills still to come!
In addition to these bills, there will be bills related to taxation of church property, sexual orientation, protection for religious organizations to practice their faith during emergency declarations, and more.
March for Life
The second thing you should be aware of besides current bills, is that the University of Mary is hosting a March for Life event at the State Capitol on January 29, with Kansas Family Voice of North Dakota being a partnering organization for this event. There will be a rally with a program at the Capitol steps from 12:30 pm-1:00 pm. The short program will be followed by the centerpiece of the rally: a moment of silence in recognition of the 62 million lives lost to abortion. You can also participate online, since it will be streamed on Real Presence Radio (app available at the link below).
You can find out more about this event at: https://www.umary.edu/events/nd-march-for-life.php. We hope to see you there!
For Life,
Mark Jorritsma
President & Executive Director