The North Dakota County Commissioners’ Association is on-record supporting a change in how counties in and around the oil patch share in oil tax revenues.
The resolution supports a plan offered by Sen. Majority Leader Rich Wardner (R-Dickinson) and several other western Republican lawmakers. Right now, the counties get money through impact grants. The lawmakers are proposing that the four largest oil producing counties – Williams, McKenzie, Mountrail and Dunn Counties – would get a direct share of oil tax revenues – and would then be taken off the impact formula.
Ward County Commissioner Shelly Weppler wanted to make that more clear in the resolution.
"This would pull the top four oil producing counties off the table for impact grants, thus spreading the impact of these funds out to the outlying communities," said Weppler. "That wording is not in here."
Weppler says Ward County does not currently receive money from the oil impact fund.
Association leaders had expected a long debate on the resolution. But then, McKenzie County Commissioner Ron Anderson stepped to the microphone.
"This is fine with us," Anderson said. He was joined by other commissioners from the four affected counties. "We're all in."
The resolution passed on a voice vote.
