By Amy Dalrymple | Editor
“When someone works really hard to find recovery, it’s not fair that they get duped by going to the gas station and all of a sudden they’re spending $80 to $100 a day. That’s a drug habit.” - Dr. Melissa Henke, chief medical officer for the Heartview Foundation, on the risks of kratom and related substances.
Michele Gunderson of Mandan speaks during a meeting of the Kratom Working Group on Aug. 12, 2026, behind a photo of her son, Nick Gunderson, who died in Montana of an accidental kratom-related overdose in 2019. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)
By Jack Dura
North Dakota lawmakers are grappling with how to restrict kratom and related products after a stream of testimony Wednesday from people including a concerned mother, a smoke shop owner, medical professionals and others with varying views on the substance the governor recently banned.
The Legislature’s Kratom Working Group heard the testimony as it works on legislation for a September special session Gov. Kelly Armstrong has called for the Legislature to enact kratom restrictions.
A key lawmaker said he supports a total ban on 7-OH and other synthetic derivatives of kratom.
“In my mind, my consensus is that we have to as a legislative body 100% ban synthetic kratom,” said Rep. Pat Heinert, R-Bismarck, a co-chair of the working group. He told the group he supports setting an age restriction of 21 and other guardrails on natural kratom, with more time to deal with kratom issues in the upcoming 2027 legislative session.
Sen. Brad Bekkedahl, R-Williston, speaks during a meeting of the Legacy and Budget Stabilization Fund Advisory Board on August 12, 2026. (Photo by Jacob Orledge/North Dakota Monitor)
By Jacob Orledge
Preliminary estimates project North Dakota lawmakers will be able to spend nearly $900 million from Legacy Fund earnings during the 2027 legislative session.
The $894 million is a preliminary estimate presented to lawmakers Wednesday by Retirement and Investment Office staff. It would represent a roughly 30% increase from what was received for the 2025-2027 biennium.
The Legacy Fund earnings, the portion of the Legacy Fund that is available to be spent, represents 8% of the Legacy Fund’s average value over five years.
That five-year average value is projected to be around $11.2 billion. The Legacy Fund has grown from roughly $8 billion in 2022 to slightly more than $15 billion as of May 31.
A woman uses the TikTok app. (Photo by Thicha Satapitanon/Getty Images)
By Michael Achterling
North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong on Wednesday lifted a ban on TikTok for state-owned devices, citing a change in ownership for the social media company.
The TikTok ban for state government devices had been in place since a 2022 executive order from then-Gov. Doug Burgum. The prohibition aimed to safeguard the state’s cyber infrastructure and citizen data from the China-based technology company ByteDance, which owned TikTok.
Armstrong’s office announced he is rescinding that order because the app has come under the control of a majority-owned, American-led consortium. The order does not affect a North Dakota University System policy.
EARLIER ND MONITOR NEWS AND COMMENTARY
FROM STATES NEWSROOM
By Jacob Fischler
The Trump administration on Wednesday renewed its request to the U.S. Supreme Court to quickly decide a case over an executive order restricting voting, a day after a Massachusetts federal judge expanded an injunction on the order nationwide.
The Tuesday order from U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani that blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order from taking effect anywhere in the country makes the administration’s request to the Supreme Court more urgent, U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote.
“The district court’s new order confirms the urgent need for this Court to grant the stay of the permanent injunction and to explain its rationale for doing so,” Sauer wrote.
Election Day is Nov. 3, less than three months away.
Minnesota primary breaks turnout record with over 1.1 million ballots cast | Minnesota Reformer
Federal appeals court protects longer petitioning time for South Dakota ballot questions | South Dakota Searchlight
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