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No earlier Sunday opening

The House has turned down measures that could have opened retail stores, liquor stores and bars earlier on Sundays.

Right now, they can’t open until noon. One bill would have had local governments decide of the retailers could open early on Sunday.

"This bill, which would allow them to open at 10 Sunday morning, would make it so that Canadians could do a lot more shopping in our communities before they headed back up north," said Rep. Marie Strinden (D-Grand Forks). "So it's not just about us being able to shop a couple of extra hours on Sundays -- it's about getting the extra revenue out of our friendly neighbors to the north."

But House Majority Leader Al Carlson (R-Fargo) said opening earlier would put even more of a strain on North Dakota's workforce.

"I challenge you to drive down any street in Bismarck and not find a 'Help Wanted' sign," said Carlson. "Go down the streets of Fargo -- "Help Wanted.'  We're having trouble filling the needs of our workforce today because of our booming economy."

The retail measure failed 62 to 30. And the bill to allow bars and liquor stores to open before noon on Sunday failed 65 to 24.