North Dakota Monitor

A worker is pictured at the Chrysler plant in Toledo, Ohio. The Buckeye State’s automobile industry could be hit particularly hard by President Donald Trump’s ongoing trade war with Canada. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war with Canada is creating headaches for Republicans ahead of November’s midterms as high prices remain a top concern among voters. Responding to Trump’s increased tariffs, Canadian officials have said they’re deliberately targeti

Energy drinks and soda sit in a refrigerator at a retail store in Bismarck on Aug. 27, 2026. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor) North Dakota was set to ban people from using federal food assistance to buy candy, soda and other sugary drinks starting this month. The federal government, which has encouraged states to adopt such policies, then abruptly asked the state to postpone until Nov. 1 just days before it was set to take effect. This delay could give North Dakota a chance to

Balconies of an apartment building are seen Sept. 8, 2026, in Bismarck, N.D. (Photo by Jack Dura/North Dakota Monitor)The only fair housing organization in the Dakotas has furloughed some of its staff due to the delay of a crucial federal grant. The Grand Forks-based High Plains Fair Housing Center has been awaiting the $425,000 Fair Housing Initiatives Program grant since May. Executive Director Michelle Rydz said she and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development were getting ready t

The U.S. Supreme Court on April 9, 2026. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)The hotly contested U.S. Postal Service rule restricting mail-in voting usurps Congress’ authority, as well as states’ power to administer elections, more than 250 current and former members of Congress said in a filing to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday. All 47 members of the U.S. Senate Democratic Caucus, 199 current House Democrats and 15 former House Republicans signed the friend-of-the-court brief opposi

President Donald Trump has targeted Canadian aircraft manufacturer Bombardier in his trade war with Canada. In this photo, an Air Canada Express Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft departs Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. (Photo by Getty Images/Yassine Bahammou)WASHINGTON — Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on American goods kicked in Tuesday, escalating a trade war with one of the largest U.S. trading partners that President Donald Trump continued to antagonize over the holiday weekend. Trump poste

Elementary school kids go through the lunch line. Cuts to the nation’s largest food assistance program may cause students to lose access to free breakfast and lunch. (Photo by Marcus Constantino for West Virginia Watch)Cuts to the nation’s largest food assistance program will likely spill over into schools, causing students to lose access to free breakfast and lunch. More than 1 million American children have lost access to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, following a rece

The Burleigh County Courthouse is pictured on Thayer Avenue in Bismarck on March 13, 2024. A bill to be considered by North Dakota lawmakers next year aims to ensure the state doesn’t become a safe haven for frivolous lawsuits meant to curb free speech. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)A bill to protect people from getting dragged through court for exercising their free speech could go before North Dakota lawmakers in January. Sometimes people who speak out in the public interest are tar

Interstate 94 snakes through Valley City, North Dakota, an area that has a lower speed limit than most of the state's interstate highways, which went to an 80 mph speed limit on Aug. 1, 2025. (Photo by Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor) North Dakota state troopers wrote fewer speeding tickets on stretches of interstate highway that went up to an 80 mph speed limit in 2025, but some areas where speed limits were reduced saw a spike in citations — especially at Dickinson.  North Dakota’s top highway

Members of Virginia Professional Firefighters association hold signs during their biannual convention in May to protest Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s veto of collective bargaining legislation. New research found a significant spike in labor union membership, but growth is highly dependent upon state politics. (Photo by Charlotte Rene Woods/Virginia Mercury)Labor union membership continues to climb in the United States, though the increase remains sharply divided by the politics of individ

Vegetables and lettuces at a grocery store in Michigan. A summer of food recalls, including the record-shattering cyclosporiasis outbreak tied to iceberg lettuce that has sickened thousands, has raised many Americans’ fears of contracting a foodborne illness. (Photo by Jon King/Michigan Advance)Jalapenos. Frozen berries. Beef. Alfalfa sprouts. A summer of food recalls, including the record-shattering cyclosporiasis outbreak tied to iceberg lettuce that has sickened thousands, has raised many Ame

LGBTQ+ pride flags. LGBTQ+ adults are more likely than other adults to miss healthcare appointments due to cost or other reasons, according to a new survey by health policy research group KFF. (Photo by Susan J. Demas/Michigan Advance)LGBTQ+ adults are more likely than other adults to miss healthcare appointments due to cost or other reasons — with a third reporting their health worsened as a result, according to a new survey by health policy research group KFF. Among the 2,640 LGBTQ+ adults sur

Election workers sort ballots at Contra Costa County's election operations facility on May 27, 2026 in Martinez, California. (Photo by Benjamin Fanjoy/Getty Images)A U.S. Postal Service rule restricting mail-in voting, like the executive order from President Donald Trump that spurred it, is unconstitutional, U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani said in a Friday order extending a freeze on the policy. The Trump administration quickly appealed the order to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Talw

Olympian David Hearn, center left, walks out of District of Columbia Superior Court with his attorneys after a hearing on Sept. 4, 2026. (Photo by Ariana Figueora/States Newsroom)WASHINGTON — A District of Columbia Superior Court judge Friday seemed inclined to bar any new felony charges against former Olympian David Hearn, after the Trump administration accused the Maryland man of damaging part of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. D.C. Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman raised concerns about

Sisters watch as a skid-steer loader pulls a tree in Highmore, South Dakota, on June 29, 2026, after a severe storm that morning. The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced it will reimburse eight South Dakota counties and three tribes for storm-related infrastructure fixes. (Photo by Meghan O’Brien/South Dakota Searchlight)State leaders are breathing a sigh of relief that the Trump administration’s threats to eliminate the Federal Emergency Management Agency have subsided.  But experts s

An uncompleted portion of the North Dakota Military Gallery rests on the Capitol grounds in Bismarck on Aug. 26, 2026. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)The stalled Military Gallery is primed to restart construction as early as next week after legislation providing a financial lifeline cleared the House Friday. House lawmakers voted 71-22 to approve a new $20 million loan and remove restrictions from  $15 million in already allocated state funds. The governor signed the bill Frid

Members of the North Dakota House of Representatives participate in a special session of the Legislature on Sept. 4, 2026. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)North Dakota’s Legislature passed a bill Friday to allow but regulate natural kratom and ban synthetic products. Lawmakers stopped short of completely banning all kratom, but state officials said it will remain unavailable in North Dakota until the new regulations are implemented. The votes ended a three-day special session R

The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 9, 2024. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom)The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to overturn a lower court and allow it to enforce a U.S. Postal Service rule restricting mail-in voting. The trial judge, Indira Talwani of the U.S. District of Massachusetts, prejudged the rule before it was final when she issued a temporary restraining order last month and upheld it last week, U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote. The rule o

Karen Kost took part in the North Dakota primary election early voting available June 3, 2026, at City Hall in Casselton, North Dakota. (Photo by Dan Koeck/North Dakota Monitor)WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said earlier this year he’d “do anything necessary to make sure we have honest elections” this fall, declining to rule out sending the National Guard or federal law enforcement officers to polling locations throughout the country. Those comments came a few months after Trump casually an

Sen. Michelle Axtman, R-Bismarck, speaks on the Senate floor during a special session of the Legislature on Sept. 3, 2026. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)Two bills with different approaches to restricting kratom in North Dakota cleared their first hurdles Thursday in the Legislature, but they appear to conflict and might complicate the special session as lawmakers look to leave Friday. House Bill 1628, which would allow but strictly regulate pure-leaf kratom for people 21 and

Bill Peterson, director of the State Historical Society of North Dakota, gives a tour of the unfinished Military Gallery to state lawmakers on Sept. 2, 2026. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)The North Dakota Senate passed a $20 million construction loan to restart work on the stalled Military Gallery, though several are disappointed no one is being held accountable for the project’s failures.  Members approved Senate Bill 2407 by a vote of 39-8 on Thursday during a special sessi