Bills to
Watch
by Christopher Dodson,
Executive Director, North Dakota Catholic Conference
February 7, 2005
As I write this, the North Dakota Legislative Assembly has
met for 23 days. Legislators have introduced 932 bills and
64 resolutions. Since the deadline for introducing bills,
except in special cases, has passed, that number will
probably hold.
The North Dakota Catholic Conference is tracking about 200
of those bills and resolutions. Many concern matters that
could impact the state’s Catholic health care
facilities or Catholic schools. Although important, these
types of legislative proposals don’t attract much
public attention.
Appropriation bills are also important. They sometimes get
public attention, but many find it difficult to follow or
significantly contribute to their development. These bills
specify all the expenditures a government agency can make
during the next biennium. Education, law enforcement,
corrections, public health, tourism, economic development,
human rights enforcement, water projects, and human
services are all examples of programs that are dependent
upon what is done to the appropriation bills.
From a Catholic perspective, perhaps the most important of
these appropriation bills belongs to the Department of
Human Services. These programs affect the most needy and
vulnerable among us. Health care for the poor, assistance
to needy families, guardianship services, long-term care,
adoption, protection for children and vulnerable adults,
and services for the mentally ill, the addicted, and the
developmentally disabled are just some of the programs
whose fate and success rests with what the legislature does
with the Department of Human Services appropriation budget.
In Catholic teaching, the ultimate test for the
state’s budget is how it impacts the least among us.
Rather than asking only how does it affect us personally,
we need to ask how does it affect those who are most in
need, especially those who do not have the resources to
lobby for themselves. The Department of Human Services
appropriation bill, therefore, deserves our attention.
Some bills require an appropriation, but must first pass as
a separate bill. Here are several important bills of this
type:
SB 2409 – This bill would establish an alternatives
to abortion services program. If the state has programs to
discourage activities like tobacco use, alcohol abuse,
pollution, and unsafe driving, and programs to encourage
activities like tourism, economic development, and
conservation, why can’t it have a program to
discourage abortion and encourage life?
SB 2027 – This bill would help fix a broken indigent
defense system. Poor individuals accused of a crime should
have competent and fairly compensated legal counsel. This
is not only a constitutional right, but also reflects
Christian principles of justice dating back to the Old
Testament.
SB 2221 – This bill would cover the legal costs
needed to provide a guardian for a developmentally disabled
person. Some developmentally disabled individuals can
function outside of an institution with the help of
guardian. Catholic Charities of North Dakota provides this
service and the state recognizes the need to reimburse some
of the costs. However, before a person can have a guardian,
a petition must be filed and heard by the court. No funding
for these actions currently exists. This bill would fix
that.
SB 2349 – This bill would establish an office for
Faith-based and Community Initiatives to help faith-based
and community organizations access state, federal, and
private funding for community projects.
Want to help? Consider doing just this: Send an e-mail or
call your state senator and express your support for one of
these bills.
Or: Call or e-mail your state representatives and ask them
to remember the poor and vulnerable in the Human Services
appropriation budget (HB 1012.)
The numbers and e-mail addresses are available by calling
1-888-635-3447. You can also download or request a
legislative directory from the North Dakota Catholic
Conference (http://ndcatholic.org; 1-888-419-1237.)
If you want to do or find out more, check out the North
Dakota Catholic Conference web site.