By Amy Dalrymple | Editor
North Dakota Superintendent Levi Bachmeier, left, and superintendent candidate Tracy Foss, right, check the camera locations next to Plain Talk Podcast hosts Rob Port, center-left and Chad Oban, center-right, at Bismarck State College on Oct. 13, 2026, before beginning their debate. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)
By Michael Achterling
Candidates for superintendent of the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction discussed teacher bonuses, tech in the classroom and funding public schools during a debate this week.
The debate hosted by Plain Talk Podcast co-hosts Rob Port and Chad Oban featured Superintendent Levi Bachmeier, a former business manager for West Fargo Public Schools who is running in his first statewide election, and Tracy Foss, a teacher with more than two decades of classroom experience from middle school to college students.
MORE DEBATE COVERAGE: Agriculture commissioner candidates Doug Goehring and Vern Thompson also participated in a Plain Talk debate. Check out the Monitor’s coverage on our website at 4 p.m. today, or in Saturday’s newsletter.
Bishop William Barber, of Repairers of the Breach, spoke alongside voting rights advocates from Common Cause, the ACLU, Indivisible, State Voices and others, at a press conference outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)
By Ashley Murray
The No Kings movement that has brought millions to the streets across the United States three times since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term is staging its next event at the polls.
Organizers across hundreds of advocacy groups will pull together thousands of events nationwide Saturday to encourage early voting in this year’s midterm elections. Voting is already underway in dozens of states, and roughly 5.1 million ballots – both in-person and mail – have been cast, according to the University of Florida’s Election Lab.
North Dakota has seven No Kings events planned Saturday in Fargo, Grand Forks, Devils Lake, Valley City, Jamestown, Bismarck and Dickinson.
The U.S. Capitol on April 9, 2026. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)
By David Lightman
Suddenly there’s hope for cutting the reams of red tape that can make getting new energy projects a seemingly endless slog.
Top Republican and Democratic senators have unveiled a 417-page bill to overhaul the approval process, a pathway for what’s known as “permitting reform.” A debate is likely when lawmakers return for their lame-duck session in November, though getting to a finish line anytime soon won’t be easy.
Reformers will have to fight environmental groups, who tend to appreciate today’s detailed, often lengthy process for reviewing energy projects. They worry that streamlining reviews will make it easier for energy-gulping and air-and-water-polluting projects to proceed.
By Jacob Orledge
A pipeline spill released thousands of barrels of an oilfield byproduct in McKenzie County, state regulators said Thursday.
The pipeline operated by Tallgrass Water spilled an estimated 3,402 barrels, or 142,884 gallons, of produced water on Wednesday. Produced water is a byproduct of oil production, sometimes called saltwater or brine, that can cause significant environmental damage.
“We’re treating it as a larger spill, but I don’t anticipate this one to be a long-term cleanup,” said Bill Suess, manager of the Department of Environmental Quality’s spill investigation program. “It seems to be fairly isolated.”
|
North Dakota gives certain low-producing oil wells a tax break intended to help them keep operating, but the designation is permanent even if a well later produces much more oil.
Monitor reporter Jacob Orledge joins host Craig Blumenshine to discuss his recent reporting, which found that North Dakota is on pace to miss out on about $66 million this year in tax revenue from wells that no longer meet the criteria for the tax break.
A Closer Look with the Monitor is a partnership with Prairie Public's Main Street.
EARLIER ND MONITOR NEWS AND COMMENTARY
North Dakota insurance commissioner posts premium rate changes for next year | North Dakota Monitor Staff
FROM STATES NEWSROOM
A sign for a camp site managed by the U.S. Forest Service in the Ashley National Forest is pictured on July 19, 2026. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch)
By Katie McKellar
A federal judge has issued a preliminary ruling blocking the Trump administration from moving the U.S. Forest Service’s headquarters from Washington, D.C., to Salt Lake City while the rest of the lawsuit over the relocation plays out in court.
In the order signed Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria, in California’s northern district, granted a stay on the move, writing in the order that Congress has put restrictions on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s “ability to reorganize without congressional buy-in.”
South Dakota lawmakers ask voters to approve investing unclaimed property proceeds in a trust fund | South Dakota Searchlight
Iowa landowner group says property rights is still a major election issue | Iowa Capital Dispatch
Thanks for reading North Dakota Monitor. Did you know our weekend digest is also free? Sign up here. And if you enjoyed today’s edition, please forward to a friend. Increasing our readership helps us cover more news.