North Dakota School Boards to Give New Public Comment Law a Test

(Adobe Stock via Prairie News Service)

(By Mike Moen. Prairie News Service) – As North Dakota schools welcome back students, the boards overseeing their districts have a new state law to comply with dealing with public comments at open meetings.

The law took effect Aug. 1 and requires all local governing bodies, including school districts, to allow residents to speak at every regular meeting. Supporters said the change is needed because they felt some boards around the state were too restrictive.

Amy De Kok, executive director of the North Dakota School Boards Association, said the new law comes at a time when there is great pressure on those deciding local education matters.

“Communities are asking tougher questions about funding, lawmakers are adding more and more strings to the dollars that they provide,” De Kok outlined. “We are still hearing largely, I think, on a national stage, calls for reform of public education.”