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Legislative Tracking

North Dakota Legislative Tracker

A North Dakota bill tracker follows bills in the North Dakota Legislative Assembly, a 94-member House of Representatives and a 47-member Senate, and alerts you when a bill is introduced, heard in committee, amended, voted on, or acted on by the Governor.
Ajay Jayagopal

A North Dakota bill tracker, also called an ND legislature bill tracker, follows bills in the North Dakota Legislative Assembly, a 94-member House of Representatives and a 47-member Senate, and alerts you when a bill is introduced, heard in committee, amended, voted on, or acted on by the Governor.

North Dakota legislative tracking covers the whole path from introduction to the Governor's desk. Every bill receives a public hearing, a recorded committee vote, and a floor vote, and the Legislative Assembly meets in regular session only every other year, so the work is concentrated in a short window. The main options are the Legislative Assembly's own Bill Tracking System, its Legislative Daily app and video, free public trackers, and multi-state platforms such as Billflo. People also search for this as North Dakota legislature bills, North Dakota Senate bills, or North Dakota House bills. The right choice depends on how many bills you follow, how many people share the work, and whether you need analysis and reporting.

North Dakota Legislative Assembly at a Glance: House, Senate, and Members

QuestionAnswer
Where does it meet?Bismarck, at the State Capitol
What is it called?The North Dakota Legislative Assembly, made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The official site is ndlegis.gov.
How many members?141 in all: 94 in the House and 47 in the Senate. The state has 47 legislative districts, each electing one senator and two House members, according to the Legislative Assembly's members page.
How long are the terms?Four years in both chambers, with elections staggered between odd-numbered and even-numbered districts. Members take office on December 1 of even-numbered years. Ballotpedia lists a limit of eight years for the House, and I did not confirm the Senate figure.
Which Assembly is sitting?The 69th Legislative Assembly, which met in regular session in 2025 and in special sessions in 2026. The 70th Legislative Assembly meets in regular session in 2027.
North Dakota legislature makeupRepublicans control the governorship and both chambers. Ballotpedia shows a 42-5 Republican majority in the Senate and about 82 to 83 Republicans in the 94-seat House. Of the seats, 24 Senate seats and 46 House seats are on the November 3, 2026 ballot, so refresh the counts after the election.
How do I find my ND state legislators?The Legislative Assembly's site has a members page for each Assembly. I did not confirm an address-based lookup tool.
Where is the official record?The Legislative Assembly's Legislative Bill Tracking System and each bill's Bill Page, which shows the title, versions, actions, video, and testimony
Where are sessions broadcast?The Legislative Assembly publishes video of floor and committee proceedings at video.ndlegis.gov, and bill pages link to video. I did not confirm which meetings are live.
Are these the same as North Dakota's members of Congress?No. See the section below.

North Dakota State Legislators vs. North Dakota's Members of Congress

Searches such as "North Dakota congressional districts," "North Dakota senators," and "North Dakota representatives in Congress" often mix two different bodies. The North Dakota Senate and House meet in Bismarck and write state law. North Dakota's delegation in Washington, D.C. writes federal law.

BodyWhereWho
State legislatorsNorth Dakota Legislative Assembly, Bismarck47 state senators and 94 House members
Members of CongressCongress, Washington, D.C.2 U.S. senators and 1 U.S. representative, who represents the whole state because North Dakota has a single at-large congressional district

I did not confirm the current members of North Dakota's delegation. Use the Senate site and the House's Find Your Representative page to confirm your members, because the 119th Congress ends in January 2027. Billflo covers state and local government, not Congress.

Why You Need a Tracker for North Dakota Bills

North Dakota's Legislative Assembly meets in regular session only in odd-numbered years, and for no more than 80 legislative days in the biennium. The 2027 session is tentatively scheduled to run from January 5 to April 30, 2027, according to the Legislative Branch's site. In that window, the Assembly handles the state's budget and a large volume of bills, each of which gets a hearing and two separate days of reading.

North Dakota also has features that reward close attention. The Legislative Assembly can also meet in special session, and it did so twice in 2026: from January 21 to 23, on funding from the federal Rural Health Transformation Program, and from September 2 to 4, on a framework for kratom products. The Governor has three days to act during session, but a veto after adjournment may not be subject to an override, a point the Legislative Council has analyzed from both sides. The Governor can also veto individual items in an appropriation bill.

North Dakota Legislative Session: Dates, Length, and Deadlines

QuestionAnswer
When does the next session begin?The 70th Legislative Assembly's regular session is tentatively scheduled to begin January 5, 2027, according to the Legislative Branch's site and the Legislative Council's deadline calendar. By the Constitution, the Assembly convenes on the first Tuesday after the third day in January in odd-numbered years.
How long is the session?No more than 80 legislative days in the biennium, which the deadline calendar marks as April 30, 2027, though the end date is tentative
Is there a session in 2026?No regular session. The 69th Assembly met in special sessions on January 21 to 23 and September 2 to 4, 2026.
What are the deadlines?The Legislative Council publishes a 2027 legislative deadlines calendar. Under the 2023 Senate rules, no bill could be introduced after the thirteenth legislative day, with exceptions, and after the fifty-third legislative day, all bills under consideration had to be placed on the calendar for second reading and final passage. New rules are adopted at the start of each session, so check the 2027 rules.
Can bills carry over?I did not confirm how pending bills are treated at the end of a session. Because regular sessions are two years apart, check the rules before relying on an earlier bill.
MilestoneDate
January 2026 special sessionJanuary 21 to 23
September 2026 special sessionSeptember 2 to 4
General electionNovember 3, 2026
New members take officeDecember 1, 2026
2027 regular session (tentative)January 5 to April 30, 2027

How a North Dakota Bill Becomes Law

The route below follows the Legislative Council's How a Bill Becomes Law guide and Legislative Branch Function and Process page. The rules for each Assembly are adopted at the start of its session, so check the current rules.

StageWhat happensWhat a tracker should capture
1. IntroductionBills can be introduced by legislators, standing committees, the Legislative Management, and state agencies, boards, and commissions. A bill is numbered and read for the first time, and assigned to a committee by subject matter.Bill number, introducers, and committee referral
2. Public hearingEvery bill must have a public hearing before a committeeHearing date and testimony
3. Committee voteThe committee votes publicly. It can report the bill favorably, unfavorably, with or without amendments, without recommendation, or ask that it be rereferred to another committee.Committee report and vote
4. FloorThe Constitution requires every bill to be read on two separate days. The full chamber votes, and a bill must pass by a majority of the members-elect.Amendments and roll call
5. Second houseThe other house repeats the process. If it amends and passes the bill, the bill returns to the house of introduction for concurrence.Passage in each house and concurrence
6. Conference committeeIf concurrence fails, a conference committee of three members from each house is appointedConference report and final votes
7. Enrollment and GovernorThe enrolled bill goes to the Governor, who signs it, vetoes it, or lets it become law without a signature. The Secretary of State attests the signature and files the bill.Deadline and action taken

Timing rules that affect your calendar.

  • During session, the Governor has three days to act. If the Governor does nothing, the bill becomes law. A veto and its message must be returned to the house of origin within three days.
  • After adjournment, the Governor has 15 days, excluding Saturdays and Sundays. A bill not acted on becomes law.
  • A veto is overridden by two-thirds of the legislators in both houses, and the house of origin votes first. A 1991 Attorney General opinion held that the Legislative Assembly cannot override a veto issued after adjournment, while a Legislative Council analysis argues it could reconvene, so this point is not settled.
  • Under North Dakota Supreme Court reasoning, a veto is final once the bill is returned to the house of origin, and the Governor cannot withdraw it.
  • The Governor may veto items in an appropriation bill while approving the rest, and the unvetoed portions become law.

North Dakota Bill Numbers and Versions

North Dakota identifies bills by a chamber prefix and a four-digit number. House bills begin with HB and Senate bills with SB, and the numbers within an Assembly are grouped, such as the 1000 series for House bills. HB 1058 appears in the 69th Assembly's index.

LabelMeaningExamples seen on the Legislative Assembly's site
HB and SBHouse and Senate billsHB 1058 (69th Assembly) and SB 2014 (2025 appropriations)
Concurrent resolutionsResolutions adopted by both houses. I did not confirm their numbering.Listed in the Bills and Resolutions index
LC numberThe Legislative Council's drafting number, shown on the bill textFor example 23.3026.03000
VersionsThe Bill Page lists each measure version, such as the introduced, engrossed, and enrolled textShown on each Bill Page
Testimony and videoSubmitted testimony and video are attached to the Bill PageShown on each Bill Page

The two houses number their bills independently, so a companion bill in the other house needs its own record. The Legislative Assembly also offers an API of static JSON files for assemblies, sessions, members, committees, bills, roll call votes, and the Century Code.

Reading a North Dakota Bill's Status: A Glossary

TermWhat it means
Legislative ManagementThe interim committee of the Legislative Assembly, which can introduce bills
Delayed Bills CommitteeThe committee that considers bills after the introduction deadline, under the 2023 Senate rules
Do pass / do not passA committee's favorable or unfavorable report
RereferredSent to another committee
ConcurrenceThe house of introduction's agreement to the other house's amendments
Conference committeeA committee of three members from each house that reconciles differences
Members-electThe total number of members elected, which sets the vote needed to pass a bill
Line-item vetoThe Governor's veto of items in an appropriation bill
Emergency measureA bill passed by two-thirds of the members-elect that can take effect on filing

When North Dakota Laws Take Effect

A law enacted during a regular session takes effect on August 1 after its filing with the Secretary of State. An appropriation measure for the support and maintenance of state departments and institutions, or a tax measure that changes tax rates, takes effect on July 1 after its filing. An emergency measure passed by two-thirds of the members-elect can take effect on filing, and a bill can specify a later date. Record each law's effective date on your tracking record, because compliance and planning often depend on it. The Secretary of State publishes signed legislative bills.

What to Track at Each Stage

Prefiling and introduction: Tracking begins with prefiled bills, as they are published to the Legislative Assembly's website. Watch for bills in your subjects, and search the text rather than only the title.

Hearings: Every bill gets a public hearing. Watch the hearing schedule and the submitted testimony.

Committee votes: Record the committee's report and vote, and any amendments.

Floor votes: A bill needs a majority of the members-elect, so check the totals as well as the result.

Concurrence and conference: Watch for a conference committee in the last weeks, when the final text is set.

The Governor's desk: Record the three-day or 15-day deadline and the action taken, including any line-item veto.

Vetoes: Watch for override votes, which start in the house of origin.

Special sessions: Check whether the Governor has called a special session, and what it covers.

Enacted laws: Record the filing date and the effective date.

Every Other Year: North Dakota Legislative Tracking Across the Biennium

North Dakota's Legislative Assembly meets in regular session once every two years, and the Legislative Management and interim committees study issues in between. All 141 members serve four-year terms, staggered so that about half are elected every two years. After the November 3, 2026 election, new members take office on December 1, ahead of the 2027 session. Because bills are drafted and studied in the interim, tracking should begin well before January.

  • Check the Assembly and session: Make sure the bill you are following belongs to the Assembly you expect.
  • Follow interim committees: The Bill Tracking System and the Legislative Daily app also track interim committee meetings, dates, and documents.
  • Follow named legislators: Alerts tied to an introducer or committee chair show interest in a subject. After the election, confirm who serves each district.

North Dakota Bill Tracker Options Compared

A North Dakota bill tracker, an ND legislature bill tracker, and North Dakota legislature bill tracking describe the same need: a dependable way to follow bills in Bismarck. There is no single correct tool. Features and prices change, so confirm current details with each provider.

ToolWhat it isTypical strengthTypical limitation
Legislative Bill Tracking SystemA free online tool for the public and state agencies. You create tracking lists, add bills by search or a four-digit Quick Add box, follow standing committee bills, and share lists with others.Official, free, and shareable. Tracking begins with prefiled bills.Requires a North Dakota Login ID. Confirm what alerts it sends.
ND Legislative Daily appA mobile app for Android and Apple that covers the daily schedule, committee hearings, conference committees, floor calendars, and interim meetings. Linking your tracking account filters the schedule to your bills.Official and free, with a daily schedule viewBuilt around the Assembly's own schedule
Bill Pages and videoEach bill's page shows its versions, actions, video, and testimonyFree and officialRead bill by bill
Legislative APIStatic JSON files for assemblies, sessions, members, committees, bills, roll call votes, and the Century CodeUseful for building your own trackingRequires technical work
Free public bill trackersVendor tools that let individuals follow bills at no costTopic selection and email digestsFree plans commonly limit alerts, team features, or reporting
Multi-state legislative tracking platformsPlatforms that cover many states in one product, including BillfloOne workspace for North Dakota and other jurisdictions, with analysis, collaboration, and reportingCompare North Dakota coverage and depth on a trial before purchase
SpreadsheetA manual list of billsNo cost and flexibleAccurate only as of the last update

For a broader comparison, see the best legislative tracking software.

What a Dedicated North Dakota Legislative Tracker Adds

The Legislative Assembly's tools tell you where a bill stands. Dedicated legislative tracking software adds the layer needed to act on that information:

  • Alerts across topics: Notice when a new or amended bill matches a keyword, committee, or introducer, including bills not already on your list.
  • Interim awareness: Notice when an interim committee takes up a subject before it becomes a bill.
  • One record across both houses: A watchlist that keeps a House bill and its Senate companion together.
  • One record for the team: Shared bill lists, notes, and assignments that stay with the bill when responsibility changes.
  • Version comparison: A view of what changed between versions, including after conference.
  • Summaries and analysis: Condensed explanations of long bills and answers to questions about their content.
  • Hearing coverage: Transcripts or summaries of committee hearings, not only schedules.
  • Reports: Current summaries for supervisors, boards, clients, or members.
  • Access control: Role-based permissions and audit records, which public agencies often require.

Beyond the Legislature: State Agency and Local Meetings

Decisions that affect your organization are not made only in Bismarck. North Dakota's counties, cities, school districts, tribal governments, and state agencies each hold public meetings and adopt ordinances, resolutions, and rules that may parallel or follow state legislation. Because the Legislative Assembly meets only every other year, agencies and local governments often act on a new law for many months before the next session. A state bill on a topic such as housing, education, or utilities often produces local action once it becomes law.

Organizations that follow North Dakota should decide early how far down the chain their tracking needs to reach.

  • State legislation only: Suitable when your interest is in shaping or preparing for statutes.
  • State plus local: Suitable when local ordinances and council votes affect your programs, budgets, or members.

When evaluating a platform, ask which local bodies it covers, how agendas and ordinances are collected, and how local items are alerted. Coverage of local bodies differs widely between vendors. Billflo covers state and local government.

How to Use a North Dakota Bill Tracker: A 12-Step North Dakota Legislative Tracking Workflow

  1. Define scope: List your subjects, relevant committees, and introducers, and write the scope down so the team applies it the same way.
  2. Build your starting bill list from the official record: Use the Legislative Bill Tracking System, starting with prefiled bills, and record each bill number and its companion in the other house.
  3. Set alert rules: Use keywords with variants. In Billflo alerts, rules can follow bills, committees, speakers, and keywords, so that new bills not yet on your list still reach you.
  4. Review new bills daily during the session, and check the Legislative Daily schedule each morning, because hearings are added throughout.
  5. Assign an owner: One named person should review alerts, with a defined backup.
  6. Record your position and reasoning on each followed bill. In Billflo, a legislative tracking project groups the bills, notes, and documents for one issue.
  7. Watch for new versions: Billflo's bill comparison shows what changed between versions, and its answers cite the bill behind them.
  8. Mark the deadlines: Take the dates from the Legislative Council's 2027 deadlines and the 2027 rules.
  9. Follow what is said at hearings: Billflo's live session intelligence provides live transcripts, session summaries with key topics, speaker identification, and video timestamps.
  10. Report on a schedule: Collaboration and reporting in Billflo produces PDF or DOCX reports that stay current as the bills change.
  11. Check against the official site: When a status looks wrong, the Legislative Assembly's Bill Page is the authority.
  12. Follow the Governor's period and the interim: Track the three-day and 15-day deadlines, vetoes, line-item vetoes, each effective date, and the interim committees that shape the next session.

A Sample Tracking Day During Session

The schedule below illustrates how one analyst might work through a busy day. It is not tied to any specific product or date.

TimeTask
Early morningReview overnight alerts: new bills, new versions, and posted hearing notices. Discard matches that are not relevant.
Before the first hearingRead the hearing notice and the bill text, and note the introducer's amendments.
During hearingsFollow the video on the bills you track. Note who testifies and what amendments are discussed.
After hearingsUpdate each bill record with the outcome, the vote, and next steps.
End of daySend a short update with what moved and what requires action.

Common Mistakes in Tracking North Dakota Bills

Tracking only one house's bill: The House and Senate number bills independently, and a bill becomes law only when both houses pass identical text.

Reading only the title: A title may describe an earlier version. Read the current version.

Waiting for the session: Prefiled bills and interim committees shape the session, so tracking should start well before January.

Missing the introduction deadline: Under past rules, bills could not be introduced after the thirteenth legislative day except through a special committee or a two-thirds vote, so check the 2027 rules.

Counting the wrong majority: A bill must pass by a majority of the members-elect, not just of those present.

Overlooking the conference committee: If concurrence fails, three members from each house negotiate the final text.

Stopping at passage: A bill that has passed both houses is not yet law. The Governor has three days during session or 15 after adjournment.

Missing the line-item veto: The Governor can strike items in an appropriation bill without vetoing the whole bill.

Assuming an immediate effective date: Most laws take effect on August 1, and appropriation and tax-rate measures on July 1.

Treating signature as the end: A law has an effective date and may direct an agency to act. Record both.

Starter Alert Keywords for a North Dakota Legislative Tracker

Adjust these starting points for your organization, and review them at the start of each session.

SubjectExample terms
Educationschool, student, teacher, school choice, higher education, tuition
Healthhealth care, Medicaid, behavioral health, hospital, pharmacy, insurance
Artificial intelligenceartificial intelligence, automated decision, algorithm, generative, deepfake
Privacy and dataprivacy, personal information, data broker, biometric, consumer data
Labor and employmentemployer, wages, workplace, worker, independent contractor
Finance and businessfinancial services, banking, insurance, corporation, small business
Energy and environmentenergy, oil and gas, coal, carbon, water, renewable
Housing and land usehousing, rent, landlord, tenant, zoning
Agricultureagriculture, livestock, crop, farmland, rural
Taxes and budgettax, property tax, revenue, appropriation, budget
Public safetylaw enforcement, firearm, corrections, sentencing, bail
Electionselection, ballot, voter, measure, campaign finance

Test each rule against a week of alerts. If a term returns too many unrelated bills, add a committee or an introducer to narrow it. If it returns too few, add variants.

Official and Independent Sources

How to Choose a North Dakota Bill Tracker

The North Dakota Legislative Assembly rewards steady attention. It meets in regular session only every other year, every bill gets a hearing and a recorded vote, and special sessions can be called with little notice. The practical question is not whether to track North Dakota bills, but how much structure your work requires.

Match the Tool to the Workload

Your situationA reasonable approach
A few bills, one personThe Legislative Bill Tracking System and the Legislative Daily app, plus a spreadsheet
Many bills, or several people sharing themA dedicated legislative tracking platform with shared records, cross-topic alerts, and reports
North Dakota together with other states or local bodiesA multi-state platform, so that one record covers every jurisdiction

Whichever approach you choose, three habits matter more than the tool. Read each new version, track the companion bill in the other house, and give one named person responsibility for reviewing alerts.

Where Billflo Fits

Billflo is an AI-native legislative intelligence platform covering all 50 states and local government, which includes the North Dakota Legislative Assembly. It addresses the problems this guide has described:

  • Versions and companions: Legislative tracking projects keep version history, and bill comparison shows what changed between versions.
  • A short, infrequent session: Alerts follow bills, committees, speakers, and keywords by text message, push notification, or email. Live session intelligence provides live transcripts, session summaries with key topics, speaker identification, and video timestamps.
  • Verification: In AI analysis, every answer cites the bill behind it, so a reader can confirm the statement against the official record.
  • Teams and reporting: Collaboration and reporting provides shared projects and PDF or DOCX reports that stay current. Role-based access, audit trails, and secure data handling support public agency requirements.

Billflo offers a free plan, and other plans are priced by agency size. It is a legislative intelligence platform and does not include grassroots advocacy, PAC management, or stakeholder relationship management tools.

For the wider workflow, read the guide to state legislative tracking, the guide to legislative tracking software, and the companion guides to California, Washington, Arizona, Massachusetts, Alabama, Arkansas, Maryland, Utah, Oregon, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa, Colorado, Nevada, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Virginia, Indiana, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisiana, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Connecticut, Maine, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Idaho, and Montana legislative tracking.

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Frequently asked questions

1. What are the two houses of the North Dakota Legislative Assembly?

The North Dakota Legislative Assembly has two houses: the House of Representatives, with 94 members, and the Senate, with 47 members. Members of both houses serve four-year terms, with one senator and two House members from each of 47 districts. It meets in Bismarck, in regular session in odd-numbered years only.

2. What is the best way to track North Dakota bills, and is there an official or free tracker?

It depends on your needs. The Legislative Assembly offers a free Legislative Bill Tracking System, where you can build shareable tracking lists and follow standing committee bills, and a free Legislative Daily app with the daily schedule. Billflo also offers a free plan. Organizations that follow many bills, share the work among several people, or need reports usually add a dedicated legislative tracking platform. Compare North Dakota coverage on a trial before choosing.

3. When is the North Dakota legislative session?

The Legislative Assembly meets in regular session in odd-numbered years, for no more than 80 legislative days in the biennium. The 2027 session is tentatively scheduled to run from January 5 to April 30. The Assembly also met in special sessions in January and September 2026.

4. How does a North Dakota bill become law?

A bill is introduced, numbered, read, and assigned to a committee, which holds a public hearing and votes on a report. The bill is read on two separate days, and each house must pass it by a majority of its members-elect. If the second house amends it, the first house concurs or a conference committee reconciles the differences. The Governor has three days during session or 15 days after adjournment, and two-thirds of both houses can override a veto. Most laws take effect on August 1.

5. What is the makeup of the North Dakota Legislative Assembly?

Republicans control the governorship and both chambers. Ballotpedia shows a 42-5 Republican majority in the Senate and about 82 to 83 Republicans in the 94-seat House. About half the seats are on the November 3, 2026 ballot, so check the Legislative Assembly's rosters after the election.

6. How do I find my North Dakota legislators and districts?

The Legislative Assembly's website has a members page for each Assembly. I did not confirm an address-based lookup tool.

7. Are North Dakota state legislators the same as congressmen or U.S. senators?

No. North Dakota state senators and House members serve in the Legislative Assembly in Bismarck and write state law. North Dakota's two U.S. senators and its one at-large U.S. representative serve in Washington, D.C. and are federal officials. Billflo covers state and local government, not Congress.

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