North Dakota

North Dakota lawmakers hear extensive testimony on controversial library bill

Published

10 months ago

March 18, 2025

North Dakota lawmakers hear extensive testimony on controversial library bill

BISMARCK — North Dakota lawmakers listened to lengthy testimony Tuesday, March 18, on a bill that would require schools and public libraries to hide materials with “obscene” content from minors.

Senate Bill 2307

would direct such facilities to move “offensively sexual” content out of the main area of a library to a restricted section — whether that be in a cabinet, a roped-off aisle or on a higher shelf.

Another section of the bill requires school districts, state agencies and public libraries to filter out material found to be obscene in online library resources.

If passed, entities would be tasked with reviewing, removing and/or relocating those materials by January 2026 and providing the state with a compliance report before May 2026.

Those found to be in violation of the law could lose all state funding.

The cost associated with implementing the bill is over $2 million.

Confusion around what content would be considered obscene, ways a person could file a complaint about such content, and how someone could be found guilty of violating the rules was discussed at length during a three-hour House Judiciary Committee hearing on the bill Tuesday.

Bill sponsor Sen. Keith Boehm, R-Mandan, said the bill is purely about protecting children.

“This bill is not an attack on library staff or schools,” he said. “It is a necessary safeguard against a small number of activists who exploit legal loopholes to push an agenda that does not align with the values of our families and communities.”

Boehm brought

a similar bill

during the 2023 legislative, which was passed by lawmakers but vetoed by former Gov. Doug Burgum,

who said enacting the law would have an “enormous burden” on libraries.

Sen. Keith Boehm, R-Mandan, answers questions from House Judiciary Committee members about Senate Bill 2307 during a hearing Tuesday, March 18, 2025, at the North Dakota Capitol.

Peyton Haug / Forum News Service

SB 2307 adds to House Bill 1205, enacted in 2023, which bans “sexually explicit” materials from the children’s section of a library and allows people to ask libraries to remove such content if they find it to be “inappropriate.”

Sara Planteen, a mother from Cogswell, said her concerns about materials she found to be offensive weren’t taken seriously at the local level.

“When schools fail to follow their own policies, when they dismiss parental concerns, then it is the duty of the elected officials to step in,” she said.

031825.Libraryhearing3 — Sara Planteen testifies to the House Judiciary Committee in favor of Senate Bill 2307 on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, in the North Dakota Capitol.

Rep. Mike Brandenburg, R-Edgeley, Rep. Vicky Steiner, R-Dickinson, and a family therapist also voiced their support of the bill.

Opponents then lined up to share their testimony in person, except for Kelsi LeBaron, a sixth grader from Williston, who testified remotely.

031825.Libraryhearing4 — People listen to testimony on Senate Bill 2307 before the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, in the North Dakota Capitol.

“I understand that some books deal with difficult topics, but I believe that removing them from schools and libraries will do more harm than good,” LeBaron said. “For some students, reading a certain book might be the first time they feel understood.”

LeBaron also said parents, teachers and librarians should be guiding what children read, not the government.

A librarian, a bookstore owner and the North Dakota Library Association echoed LeBaron’s plea.

They collectively characterized the bill as a costly one-size-fits-all solution that would unjustly stigmatize certain books, disproportionately impact small and rural libraries, and jeopardize First Amendment rights.

“Parents are responsible for approving content for the children, not the state. It is also not one family’s right to decide what is appropriate for other families to access,” said Gail Reiten, chair of Right to Read North Dakota.

Those who provided neutral testimony Tuesday maintained that regulating access to explicit material while fulfilling educational needs is a delicate balance.

031825.Libraryhearing6 — Rep. Jeff Hoverson, R-Minot, shows Julie Reiten, a librarian, illustrations in “Heart Stopper” by Alice Oseman, a book those in favor of Senate Bill 2307 deem “inappropriate,” during a committee hearing Tuesday, March 18, 2025, in Bismarck.

Over 370 entries of online testimony had been submitted before the hearing. Nearly 85% opposed the bill, including dozens of North Dakota libraries and individual librarians, as well as social work associations, education lobbying groups, university leaders, parents and teachers.

Those in favor were Christian lobbying groups, South Dakota-based therapists and around a dozen North Dakotans.

The committee did not take any immediate action on the bill Tuesday.

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North Dakota

Bankruptcies for North Dakota and western Minnesota published Jan. 10, 2026

Published

32 minutes ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court

North Dakota

Kaitlyn Grace Lucier, Fargo, Chapter 7

Samuel Todd Hicks, formerly known as Thomas Samuel Hicks, Fargo, Chapter 7

Teresa and Dominik Renwick, Fargo, Chapter 13

Susan Renee Fuller, formerly known as Susan R. Schaffer, doing business as Susie’s Sparkling Cleaning Service, Fargo, Chapter 7

Shannon Lynn Taylor, Fargo, Chapter 7

Jesse Patrick and Jaime Elizabeth Brown, Williston, Chapter 7

Kerri Lee Weishaar, Minot, Chapter 7

Terry Marie Moritz, Valley City, Chapter 7

Joshua Allen Sewill, Hatton, Chapter 7

Bryan Eugene Flecker, Minot, Chapter 7

Anna Marie Rahm, formerly known as Anna Marie Tanner, and Joshua Edward Rahm, Bismarck, Chapter 13

Sherri Rae Fisher, Baldwin, Chapter 13

Heather Lynn McElroy, formerly known as Heather Anderson, Grand Forks, Chapter 7

Kaitlyn Autrey, Grand Forks, Chapter 7

Michelle Lynn Miller, Fargo, Chapter 13

Kimberly Georgeann Callahan, Fargo, Chapter 13

Erin Elaine and Jose Luiz Murphy, Bismarck, Chapter 7

Shelly and Kieth Quimby, St. Thomas, Chapter 7

Minnesota

Bankruptcy filings from the following counties: Becker, Clay, Douglas, Grant, Hubbard, Mahnomen, Norman, Otter Tail, Polk, Traverse, Wadena and Wilkin.

David Howard Gilpin, Osakis, Chapter 7

Timothy Virgil Hoag, Moorhead, Chapter 7

Jason Darryl Dykhoff, Ottertail, Chapter 7

Zachary Nicholas Hodgson and Jolynn Beth Warnes, formerly known as Jolynn Beth Hodgson, Kensington, Chapter 7

Riley Matthew Hinman, Alexandria, Chapter 7

Layne Christopher Condiff, Park Rapids, Chapter 13

Thomas Beecher Hoyer, Menahga, Chapter 13

Christine Karen Jakubek, also known as Cristine Anderson, Chapter 7

Chapter 7 is a petition to liquidate assets and discharge debts.

Chapter 11 is a petition for protection from creditors and to reorganize.

Chapter 12 is a petition for family farmers to reorganize.

Chapter 13 is a petition for wage earners to readjust debts.

Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of “staff.” Often, the “staff” byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story.

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North Dakota

Hoeven, Armstrong, Traynor speak on OBBB Rural Health Transformation Fund updates in ND

Published

13 hours ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Hoeven, Armstrong, Traynor speak on OBBB Rural Health Transformation Fund updates in ND

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – On Friday, North Dakota U.S. Senator John Hoeven, Governor Kelly Armstrong and Health and Human Services Commissioner Pat Traynor explained how the state plans to use millions of dollars from the Big Beautiful Bill’s Rural Health Transformation Fund to transform healthcare across the state.

They spoke extensively about the special session to allocate the funds, and confirmed that it is still tentatively set for Jan. 21.

The Big Beautiful Bill allocated $25 billion for rural healthcare nationwide. North Dakota received $500 million for five years and $200 million for the first year. There is still another $25 billion left to be spent, and North Dakota is hoping to receive an extra $500 million.

“I truly believe that with the plan we’re putting in place and the things we built that line up with that, we’ll get a billion dollars over five years,” said Hoeven.

Federal rules require the state to lock in contracts for the money by October first— a deadline officials say is driving the need for a special session.

In the first year, North Dakota will focus on retention grants to keep existing staff, technical assistance and consultants for rural hospitals, as well as telehealth equipment and home patient monitoring.

A KFYR+ exclusive

Governor Armstrong says the special session will include policy bills tied to how much federal rural health funding the state can earn.

“We’re going to have a physical fitness test for physical education courses, nutrition education, continuing education requirement for physicians, physician assistant licensure compact—which North Dakota has been doing, dealing with that since the heart of the oil boom and moving forward—and then an expanded scope of practice for pharmacists,” said Armstrong.

Hundreds of millions of dollars could reshape healthcare in rural North Dakota, and state leaders say the next few weeks are key to receiving and spending that money wisely.

The governor says he only wants to focus on bills related to the Rural Health Transformation Program during the special session and doesn’t intend to deal with other state issues during that time.

Politicians outline plans for ND Rural Health Transformation Program

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North Dakota

North Dakota officials celebrate being among big winners in federal rural health funding

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

North Dakota officials celebrate being among big winners in federal rural health funding

North Dakota U.S. Sen. John Hoeven and Gov. Kelly Armstrong on Friday touted the success of the state’s application for federal Rural Health Transformation Program funding, which landed one of the largest per-capita awards in the nation.

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