Counties want help with disaster funds

BISMARCK (AP) — North Dakota counties want to be able to dedicate more property tax money to handling disasters.

They’ll be asking the state Legislature to allow counties to raise up to five mills for their emergency funds. State law right now permits counties to levy only up to two mills. It also limits the amount of money the counties can keep in their emergency funds.

Grant County Commissioner Dan Stewart said that money can be used up very quickly. He tells North Dakota Public Radio that Grant County can keep only $100,000 in its emergency fund, and that or more can be used up after one bad snow storm.

Stewart said counties also sometimes have to complete and pay for disaster-related projects before getting reimbursed by the federal government.

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