21.0533.02000
Sixty-seventh
Legislative Assembly HOUSE BILL NO. 1186
of North Dakota
Introduced by
Representatives Nehring, Fegley, Porter, Thomas
1 A BILL for an Act to create and enact sections 11-28.3-15 and 11-28.3-16 of the North Dakota
2 Century Code, relating to ambulance service districts; and to amend and reenact sections
3 11-28.3-01, 11-28.3-02, 11-28.3-03, 11-28.3-04, 11-28.3-05, 11-28.3-06, and 11-28.3-07,
4 subsection 1 of section 11-28.3-08, sections 11-28.3-09, 11-28.3-12, 11-28.3-13, 11-28.3-14,
5 subsection 6 of section 40-01.1-04, subsection 11 of section 44-04-17.1, subdivision q of
6 subsection 1 of section 54-10-14, sections 57-15-30.2, 57-15-50, 57-15-51.1, 57-39.2-26.1, and
7 subsection 21 of section 58-03-07 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to ambulance
8 service districts.
9 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF NORTH DAKOTA:
10 SECTION 1. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-01 of the North Dakota Century Code is
11 amended and reenacted as follows:
12 11-28.3-01. Territory to be organized - Petition.
13 Whenever twentyfifty qualified electors, or if there are fewer than fifty qualified electors, fifty
14 percent of the qualified electors, as determined by the vote cast in the last preceding
15 gubernatorial election, residing in any rural territory, equivalent in area to one township or more
16 not presently served by an existing emergency medicalambulance service district, elect to form,
17 organize, establish, equip, and maintain a ruralan ambulance service district, theythe qualified
18 electors shall signify their intention by presenting to the county auditor of the county or counties
19 in which the territory is situated a petition setting forth the desires and purposes of the
20 petitioners. The petition shallmust contain the full names and post-office addresses of the
21 petitioners, the suggested name of the proposed district, the area in square miles [hectares] to
22 be included therein, and a complete description according to government survey, wherever
23 possible, of the boundaries of the real properties intended to be embraced in the proposed rural
24 ambulance service district. A plat or map showing the suggested boundaries of the proposed
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1 district shallmust accompany the petition, and the petitioner also shall also deposit with the
2 county auditor a sum sufficient to defray the expense of publishing the notices required by
3 sections 11-28.3-02 and 11-28.3-03. Provided further that any city located within the area,
4 whether such city has emergency medical services or not, may be included in the rural
5 ambulance district if twenty percent or more of the qualified electors residing in the city sign the
6 petition.
7 SECTION 2. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-02 of the North Dakota Century Code is
8 amended and reenacted as follows:
9 11-28.3-02. Election in affected counties.
10 When a petition is filed in the office of the county auditor pursuant to section 11-28.3-01, the
11 county auditor shall determine and certify that the petition has been signed by at least
12 twentyfifty qualified electors, or if there are fewer than fifty qualified electors residing in the
13 territory, fifty percent of the qualified electors voting at the last general election for governor
14 andeligible voters residing within the boundaries of the proposed district. If the proposed district
15 is situated within two or more counties, the county auditor of the county wherein most of the
16 petitioners reside shall confer with the other affected county auditors for the purpose of
17 determining the adequacy of the petitions in all the counties affected.
18 If the county auditor or county auditors determine that the petitions submitted are adequate
19 according to the provisions of this chapter, the question of whether the rural ambulance service
20 district shallis to be formed and organized shallmust be submitted to a vote of the qualified
21 electors residing in the proposed district at the next ensuing countywide special, primary, or
22 general election. The election provided for by this chapter shallmust be conducted in the same
23 manner as other county elections are conducted, except as otherwise provided by this chapter.
24 SECTION 3. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-03 of the North Dakota Century Code is
25 amended and reenacted as follows:
26 11-28.3-03. Notice of election.
27 In addition to the usual requirements of notices of election, the notice for an election at
28 which the question provided for in this chapter will be voted upon shallmust include a statement
29 describing the boundaries of the proposed rural ambulance service district, expressed,
30 wherever possible, in terms of the government survey, a statement setting forth a
31 specifiedmaximum allowed mill levy for the proposed district, which levy shallmay not exceed
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1 the limitation in section 11-28.3-09. The notice of election shall also must state the voting areas
2 in which the question provided by this chapter will be on the ballot.
3 SECTION 4. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-04 of the North Dakota Century Code is
4 amended and reenacted as follows:
5 11-28.3-04. Form of ballot - Vote required to approve.
6 The ballot on the question of forming a ruralan ambulance service district must be in
7 substantially the following form:
8 Shall (name of taxing district or districts) levy a tax of not to exceed _______ mills for the
9 purpose of forming a ruralan ambulance district?
10 Yes ☐
11 No ☐
12 If a majority of all the votes cast on the question of levying a tax and forming a ruralan
13 ambulance service district are in favor of such a tax levy, then the formation of the district is
14 approved.
15 SECTION 5. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-05 of the North Dakota Century Code is
16 amended and reenacted as follows:
17 11-28.3-05. Notice by county auditor of meeting to organize district.
18 If a ruralan ambulance service district is approved as provided in this chapter, the county
19 auditor of the county in which the proposed district is located shall issue notice of a public
20 meeting to organize the rural ambulance service district. The notice shallmust be given by
21 publication once a week for two consecutive weeks, the last notice appearing seven days
22 before the date of the meeting in a newspaper of general circulation within the proposed district.
23 The notice shallmust be addressed to all qualified electors residing within the boundaries of the
24 district, shall describe the boundaries of the district, and shall state the date, time, and place of
25 the meeting. If the district is located within two or more counties, the county auditors of the
26 counties shall confer and set the date, time, and place of the meeting and shall cause the
27 publication of the meeting notice in each of said counties.
28 SECTION 6. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-06 of the North Dakota Century Code is
29 amended and reenacted as follows:
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1 11-28.3-06. Organization - Board of directors.
2 At the time and place fixed by the county auditor for the public meeting as provided in
3 section 11-28.3-05, the qualified electors present who reside within the boundaries of the district
4 shall proceed to organize the district. Permanent organization must be effected by the election
5 of a board of directors consisting of not less than five nor more than ten residents of the district.
6 The board of directors shall meet as soon after the organizational meeting as possible to elect a
7 president, a vice president, and a secretary-treasurer. All directors and officers must be elected
8 for two years and hold office until their successors have been elected and qualified, except that
9 at the first election the vice president must be elected as provided in this section for a one-year
10 term, and one-half, or as close to one-half as possible depending upon the total number of
11 directors, of the directors elected at the first election after July 1, 1977, must be selected by lot
12 in the presence of a majority of such directors to serve one-year terms. A district may specify in
13 its bylaws a specified number of directors within the limitations in this section, provided each
14 township or group of townships receives equal representation on the board with respect to the
15 regions. The bylaws also may allow for a combination of regional directors and at-large
16 directors. If a vacancy occurs in a board position due to a resignation, a special meeting must
17 be called and held within sixty days of the resignation for the purpose of electing a director to
18 serve the remainder of the term. All officers and directors shall serve without pay, except the
19 secretary-treasurer, who may be paid a salary determined by the board of directors.
20 SECTION 7. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-07 of the North Dakota Century Code is
21 amended and reenacted as follows:
22 11-28.3-07. Regular meeting to be held - Special meeting.
23 A regularAn annual meeting of the electors who reside within the boundaries of a district
24 shallmust be held in the first quarter of each calendar year, and special meetings may be called
25 by the board of directors at any time. The secretary-treasurer shall give notice of the annual
26 meeting by one publication in a legal newspaper of general circulation in each county in which
27 the district is situated. The meeting shall be held not less than seven nor more than fourteen
28 days after the date of publication of the notice. With proper notice as required under section
29 44-04-20, the board of directors may call special meetings as necessary.
30 SECTION 8. AMENDMENT. Subsection 1 of section 11-28.3-08 of the North Dakota
31 Century Code is amended and reenacted as follows:
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1 1. Develop a general emergency medical service program for the district.
2 Notwithstanding section 57-40.6-10, the board of directors shall determine response
3 areas within the district boundaries and notify appropriate public safety answering
4 points and the state department of health determined response areas.
5 SECTION 9. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-09 of the North Dakota Century Code is
6 amended and reenacted as follows:
7 11-28.3-09. Emergency medical service policy - Levy - Financial report.
8 1. The board of directors shall establish a general emergency medical service policy for
9 the district and annually shall annually estimate the probable expense for carrying out
10 that policy. The estimate shallmust be certified by the president and secretary to the
11 proper county auditor or county auditors, on or before June thirtieth of each year. In
12 the year for which the levy is sought, a board of directors of a ruralan ambulance
13 service district seeking approval of a property tax levy under this chapter mustshall file
14 with the county auditor of the counties within the rural ambulance service district, at a
15 time and in a format prescribed by the county auditors, a financial report for the
16 preceding calendar year showing the ending balances of each fund held by the rural
17 ambulance service district during that year. The board or boards of county
18 commissioners may levy a tax not to exceed the mill rate approved by the electors of
19 the district under section 11-28.3-04, and in no event exceeding. If the board wishes to
20 levy a tax in excess of that approved by the electors, the board, upon its own motion,
21 may place the question of increasing the maximum allowable mill levy for the electors
22 to approve at a regular or special election. The amount levied under this section may
23 not exceed a mill rate of fifteen mills upon the taxable property within the district for the
24 maintenance of the rural ambulance service district for the fiscal year as provided by
25 law. A ruralAn ambulance service district may be dissolved by approval of electors of
26 the district as provided in section 11-28.3-13.
27 2. The tax levied for a ruralan ambulance service district shallmust be:
28 a. Collected as other taxes are collected in the county.
29 b. Turned over to the secretary-treasurer of the rural ambulance service district,
30 who shallmust be bonded in the amount of at least five thousand dollars.
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1 c. Deposited by the secretary-treasurer in a state or national bank in a district
2 account.
3 d. Paid out upon warrants drawn upon the district account by authority of the board
4 of directors of the district, bearing the signature of the secretary-treasurer and the
5 countersignature of the president.
6 3. In no case shall theThe amount of the tax levy may not exceed the amount of funds
7 required to defray the expenses of the district for a period of one year as embraced in
8 the annual estimate of expense, including the amount of principal and interest upon
9 the indebtedness of the district for the ensuing year. The district may include in its
10 operating budget no more than ten percent of its annual operating budget as a
11 depreciation expense to be set aside in a dedicated emergency medical services
12 sinking fund deposited with the treasurer for the replacement of equipment and
13 ambulances. The ten percent emergency medical services sinking fund may be in
14 addition to the actual annual operating budget, but the total of the annual operating
15 budget and the annual ten percent emergency medical services sinking fund shall not
16 exceed the amount of revenue that would be generated by application of the
17 maximum mill levy approved by the electors.
18 SECTION 10. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-12 of the North Dakota Century Code is
19 amended and reenacted as follows:
20 11-28.3-12. Rural ambulanceAmbulance service district may enter into contract.
21 Any rural ambulance service district may enter into a contract with another rural ambulance
22 service district, or other emergency service operation, to consolidate or cooperate for mutual
23 ambulance services or emergency vehicle services, or may enter into a contract with any
24 federal, state, or local government agency for ambulance services or emergency vehicle
25 services, upon terms suitable to all concerned.
26 SECTION 11. AMENDMENT. Section 11-28.3-13 of the North Dakota Century Code is
27 amended and reenacted as follows:
28 11-28.3-13. Boundaries of ruralan ambulance service district - Dissolution of the
29 district.
30 The boundaries of any rural ambulance service district organized under the provisions of
31 this chapter may be changed in the manner prescribed by sections 11-28.3-01 through
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1 11-28.3-0611-28.3-15 or 11-28.3-16, but a change in the boundary of a district does not impair
2 or affect its organization or its right in or to property; nor does it impair, affect, or discharge any
3 contract, obligation, lien, or charge for or upon which it might be liable had such change of
4 boundaries not been made. When a boundary change is requested, the petition, notice of
5 election, and ballot must all indicate that the purpose of the election is to alter the boundaries of
6 an existing rural ambulance service district. The petition and notice of election must describe
7 with particularity both the present and the proposed boundaries of the district.
8 Dissolution of a ruralan ambulance service district may be accomplished in the manner
9 prescribed by sections 11-28.3-01 through 11-28.3-0411-28.3-15 or 11-28.3-16. The petition and
10 notice of election must state that the purpose of the election is to dissolve the rural ambulance
11 service district and must describe its boundaries. The ballot to dissolve a ruralan ambulance
12 service district must be in substantially the following form:
13 Shall (name of taxing district or districts) cease to levy a tax for the purpose of maintaining a
14 ruralan ambulance service district, and shall such district be dissolved?
15 Yes ☐
16 No ☐
17 If a majority of all votes cast on the question are in favor of dissolution, then the district is
18 dissolved thirty days after the canvass of the votes. After all debts and obligations of the district
19 are paid, any remaining funds must be deposited in the general fund of the county in which the
20 district was contained. If the dissolved district was located in more than one county, then any
21 funds remaining after all debts and obligations are paid must be divided among those counties
22 in the same proportion as the geographical area of the district in each county bears to the total
23 geographical area of the dissolved district.
24