opinion

Rep. Roscoe Streyle, R-Minot, is right about one thing. When it comes to his House Bill 1181, which would change the way North Dakota fills vacant U.S. Senate seats, "the reason for this bill is very simple." But Streyle's wrong about the "very simple" reason he ascribes —...

When he was governor, John Hoeven appointed Kevin Cramer to the Public Service Commission in 2003, Cory Fong to tax commissioner in 2005, Adam Hamm as insurance commissioner in 2007 and Doug Goehring as agriculture commissioner in 2009. When Hoeven went to the U.S. Senate in 2010,...

I am writing in an attempt to cast the maximum shame possible on the North Dakota House Education Committee regarding its rejection of House Bill 1461. This bill would have mandated a stop to our state’s participation in the federal Common Core curriculum being rammed down our throats...

The slowdown in North Dakota's Oil Patch is not a sky-is-falling calamity. Despite a spate of hand-wringing and worry, the evidence on the ground thus far is that the oil and gas industry and oil-impacted communities are weathering an oil price collapse that has not translated into...

The Saturday, Jan. 31, Jamestown Sun contained the Stutsman County Commission meeting agenda with no mention of a Jamestown/Stutsman Development Corp. loan, but by Monday morning three little words appeared on the online version, “JSDC loan request.” Were the taxpayers about to...

There is a lot of discussion going on across the state when it comes to the proposed legislative surge funding. Some talks won't be in favor of the bill.

Discrimination is not a North Dakota value. Plain and simple. We do not value our friends being fired for reasons that have nothing to do with job performance; we do not value our family members being turned away from housing opportunities; and we do not value our neighbors being...

Bravos from The Jamestown Sun

I would caution people before signing the Two Rivers Activity Center petitions that are going around and before voting yes on this facility if the required amount of signatures are obtained. How much extra monthly money do you have to contribute to this facility? First of all, everything...

North Dakota should raise taxes on tobacco products. The state's tax is among the lowest in the nation (44 cents on a pack of cigarettes); indeed lower than some of the major tobacco-growing states. Raising the tax, which has been at an embarrassing low level for decades, comports...

The North Dakota Legislature should not approve House Bill 1084, a bill that would end sobriety checkpoints by not allowing law enforcement to stop a vehicle without reasonable suspicion that laws are being violated. North Dakota has a troubling relationship with alcohol consumption....

I want to weigh in on the debate over allowing guns in schools. This comes from a perspective of 37 years in education as a teacher, coach, principal and a central office administrator. I have been in smaller towns in North Dakota like Pingree, Rolette and Glenburn and larger towns...

Helping keep schools safe is the goal of legislative efforts in North Dakota to expand concealed carry. Rep. Dwight Kiefert, R-Valley City, is sponsoring House Bill 1195 (passed in the House) to allow trained, licensed school personnel to carry concealed weapons on campuses with...

When considering whether to relax North Dakota's Sunshine Laws, lawmakers must ask themselves this question: Will the change leave North Dakota better off? In almost all cases, the lawmakers rightly have thundered, "No." But there are a few exceptions, each clearly spelled out...