BY: JEFF BEACH

KILLDEER, N.D. (North Dakota Monitor) – A North Dakota investor says the purchase of a financially-troubled meat company is progressing with a percentage of the profits being used to pay back investors in the alleged Ponzi scheme over several years. 

Wylie Bice of Killdeer, who is among those who lost money by investing in Texas-based Agridime, told the North Dakota Monitor that a price has been agreed upon to buy the company. 

“Our offer is reasonable,” Bice said. 

But several steps remain before the deal can close. 

The court-appointed official overseeing the company said in a July 8 update on Agridime.com that federal law requires three separate appraisals for each parcel of property being sold, “which is not a quick process.”

The update did not say a deal has been reached, but when it is, it would be submitted to the court for a 30-day review and objection period before it can close. 

Bice said the final agreement would likely include a percentage of the profits of the company be used to pay back investors over a designated period of years. 

“There’s always a chance they might get more than they had invested if things go really good,” Bice said. 

Investors in several states, including a high-concentration in North Dakota, lost millions of dollars by investing in Agridime. Agridime bought cattle, had them brought up to market weight at feedlots and processed in retail cuts of meat. The company then direct-marketed the beef through its website. 

It also sold investments in calves, promising as much as a 30% return on investment without having to do the work of ranching. 

The Securities and Exchange Commission in December accused the company of operating as a Ponzi scheme by taking money from new investors to pay off previous investors instead of investing that money into cattle. 

The North Dakota Securities Department said a Killdeer-based sales agent, Taylor Bang, earned $6 million in commissions from illegal cattle investment contracts through Agridime. 

Bang told the North Dakota Monitor in December that the figure was “way high.” 

While it is under investigation, a slimmed-down version of the company has continued to operate as American Grazed Beef. 

Bice said that if the deal is approved, he and his partners would likely keep the American Grazed Beef name. 

The investments in calves, however, would not be a part of the business plan. 

“No, I don’t think they’ll fall for that twice,” Bice said. 

Bice, Bang, and other North Dakota investors lost an estimated $40 million in the Agridime scheme. 

Overall, investors in at least 15 states are out an estimated $191 million. 

The July 8 update also says investors should be notified by the end of the month with a calculation of what they are owed. 

Investors will have 30 days to review these calculations and notify the court-appointed receiver  of any issues. 

“There were approximately 40,325 transactions made by Agridime between 2021-2023, and it took a bit of work in the company’s bank records to determine what amounts were being paid to whom,” the update said. 

It also said a motion will be filed with the court outlining the forensic accounting analysis of Agridime between 2021 and December 2023. The motion “will provide insight into the company’s operations during that time period and whether the company was paying returns on older investor contracts with money received from new investors.”

BISMARCK, ND (kxnet) — Members of the North Dakota Rural Water Systems Association (NDRWSA) celebrated their 50th Anniversary on Tuesday, July 16, at North Dakota’s Gateway to Science in Bismarck.

The association was established with a mission to ensure that all North Dakotans had access to affordable and clean drinking water. It was founded the same year that the 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Gerald Ford.

Since then, the NDRWSA has helped many rural areas across the state with funding and construction of water systems, giving clean and affordable drinking water to many North Dakotans living in rural communities across our state.

“So, even after 50 years, there’s still people out there, in Rural North Dakota that are hauling water. There’s still people in small communities that drink sub-standard water,” said Eric Volk, Executive Director of NDRWSA.

Volk says the association still has more important work to do in the coming years to ensure other rural communities are not forgotten. “There’s partnerships out there, between the State of North Dakota, the Federal Government, and the local entities. I think we all can accomplish our goal,” of expanding access to more rural communities he said.

Volk adds that a little over 300,000 people in North Dakota receive their drinking water from rural water systems, that serve 268 towns across the state.

By Mary Steuer (North Dakota Monitor)

BISMARCK, N.D. (North Dakota Monitor) – Lawmakers are reviewing the Legislature’s workplace harassment policy following a rise in complaints to the North Dakota Ethics Commission.

The policy, which dates back to 2018, outlines a process for reporting and investigating allegations of sexual harassment or discrimination-based hostility. It covers not just lawmakers, but legislative staff as well as third parties like lobbyists and media.

According to Emily Thompson, director of Legislative Council’s Legal Division, no allegations have been filed under the policy since it was adopted.

Still, she said the buzz surrounding recent complaints filed with the Ethics Commission prompted legislative staff and lawmakers to reevaluate the policy. The goal is to make sure the Legislature is prepared to handle harassment complaints if and when they do come up.

“When looking at the Ethics Commission and all of the different complaints that have been arising in media attention, we took a closer look at our policy against workplace harassment,” Thompson told members of the Legislative Procedure and Arrangements Committee last week.

The Legislature adopted the rules ahead of the 2019 session in wake of the #MeToo movement, said Sen. Kathy Hogan, D-Fargo, who helped spearhead the policy.

“I went to find out what our harassment policy was, and we didn’t have one,” Hogan said in a Friday interview.

The policy puts legislative leadership in charge of receiving harassment complaints. There’s also a complaint form and a checklist to guide officials through the intake and investigation procedures.

Hogan said she’s interested in revising the policy to allow some complaints to be resolved informally, like through third-party mediation. That could help address minor disputes between members of the Legislature that don’t warrant a full investigation, she said.

“How do you screen the cases, the initial reports, to try and resolve them at the lowest level?” Hogan said. “That’s the kind of issue we’re beginning to look at now.”

Rep. Zac Ista, D-Grand Forks, proposed adding a provision to allow complaints that don’t clearly state violations of the harassment policy to be dismissed.

There also was discussion over whether the policy should include greater protections for people accused of unfounded complaints. Currently, any records related to complaints would become public after the complaints are investigated, or within 75 days after the complaint is filed, Thompson said.

“What would happen if a review panel determined the complaint was frivolous, and the potential damage for reputation by it not being confidential?” said House Majority Leader Rep. Mike Lefor, R-Dickinson.

Lefor questioned whether the complaint process should more closely mirror the Ethics Commission’s, which keeps most complaints confidential unless they are substantiated and the accused has an opportunity to appeal.

House Minority Leader Rep. Josh Boschee, D-Fargo, said it may also be worth exploring confidentiality protections for people who come forward to report potential harassment

“I can share that in at least one instance, maybe two, where people came forward concerned about this type of behavior,” he said. “They stopped from moving forward with the process once they found out it was going to become public at some point.”

Committee chair Sen. Jerry Klein, R-Fessenden, indicated the committee would work with Legislative Council on draft revisions to the harassment policy before its next meeting this fall.

The last time the policy underwent revisions was after the 2021 expulsion of former Rep. Luke Simons from the statehouse related to harassment allegations, Hogan said.

The Legislature added a provision requiring a panel of lawmakers to review the complaint within 48 hours after it is submitted, for example. Hogan said the committee is now considering softening that deadline.

“We wanted to be really aggressive,” she said. “We might have gone too far.”

The Legislature also expanded its mandatory harassment training, which takes place before each session, Hogan said. According to an agenda on the Legislature’s website, the 2023 training was an hour and 45 minutes and was combined with presentations on legislative ethics. That included a 15-minute presentation for legislative leaders tasked with receiving potential complaints.

Although there had been allegations of inappropriate behavior involving Simons dating back to 2018, no formal harassment complaints were ever filed, The Bismarck Tribune reported in 2021.

Legislative Council Director John Bjornson had kept notes about his discussions with staff about Simons.

In a February 2021 note, Bjornson wrote: “Clearly there is a major reluctance to file a formal complaint because they believe there is a lack of support from legislators for staff regardless of the knowledge that certain legislators are habitual offenders of decency,” the Tribune reported.

In a Monday interview, Bjornson said he’s hopeful the Legislature’s climate has improved in the wake of Simons’ expulsion.

“I think that people saw that there is some degree of discipline for someone that acts inappropriately,” he said. “We have not had any complaints filed, so it’s hard to tell.”