Submitted Photo Gov. Doug Burgum, right, and U.S. Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, center, get a close look at a B-52 bomber at Minot Air Force Base Sept. 1.

BISMARCK – It was a year to be remembered. When Gov. Doug Burgum delivers his State of the State Address to the Legislature on Tuesday, he will have much to reflect on.

“The historic health and economic challenges of the past year remind us of North Dakotans’ strength, resiliency and ability to overcome adversity. This inspired our administration to work even harder on behalf of the citizens of our great state, and we are filled with gratitude every day for the opportunity to serve,” Burgum said in a release this past week.

Burgum will deliver the 2021 State of the State Address at 1 p.m. in the House chamber of the Capitol. The address will be livestreamed from the Governor’s Office website at www.governor.nd.gov.

The 67th Legislative Assembly convenes Tuesday.

In a review of the year, the governor’s office released information stating that Burgum, re-elected in November to his second four-year term, advanced his five strategic initiatives during the past year: the Main Street Initiative, Behavioral Health and Addiction, Transforming Education, Tribal Partnerships and Reinventing Government. The administration also dealt with spring flooding that was estimated to have caused more than $40 million in damages to roads and other public infrastructure in 21 counties in eastern North Dakota.

But it was the coronavirus pandemic that dominated the state’s response efforts in 2020.

COVID-19 response

State agencies began working with key federal and local partners weeks before the state’s first confirmed case of COVID-19 on March 11 in Ward County. Two days later, Burgum declared a state of emergency in response to the public health crisis.

On March 15, the governor, in coordination with the state superintendent and state health officer, ordered schools closed to in-person instruction, triggering a process that saw educators and school administrators design and implement a comprehensive distance learning plan by April 1.

State agencies stepped up in numerous ways:

– The North Dakota Department of Health Laboratory scaled up from running 197 COVID samples per day to running 7,500 per day. Near the end of December, the lab has produced results from more than 850,000 COVID tests in addition to its routine public health testing. Of the last 400,000 COVID samples, 97 percent returned results in less than 36 hours after arriving at the state lab and 65 percent were resulted in less than 24 hours.

– On Nov. 19, the pandemic response became the North Dakota National Guard’s longest-ever operation in North Dakota, surpassing the 2011 Souris Valley flood response. The Guard saw its first COVID-related activation on March 16.

– Since the launch of the Public Health Hotline on March 12, more than 67,000 calls have been answered by nearly 30 team members six days a week. The team reports a low 1.3-minute average wait time.

– Within 48 hours after Burgum declared a state of emergency, North Dakota Information Technology enabled roughly 7,000 state employees to work remotely. Within weeks, NDIT implemented a scalable COVID testing and contact tracing system that helped eliminate manual data entry and saved significantly on staffing resources.

– The Governor’s Office, Department of Public Instruction, Dakota Carrier Network, NDIT and the Broadband Association of North Dakota worked together to identify homes without internet connectivity, offered service to 2,000 homes in rural North Dakota and set up numerous wi-fi hotspots in school and community center parking lots. North Dakota received national recognition from Education Superhighway for these connectivity efforts.

– The health department and NDIT created informational dashboards for citizens and decision-makers that White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx praised as one of the best in the nation.

– The Department of Human Services implemented a myriad of resources to support citizens during the pandemic. These included the Emergency Rent Bridge to provide temporary rental assistance to eligible renters experiencing a loss of household income; SNAP Emergency Assistance; a Childcare Emergency Operating Grant; Project Renew, a crisis counseling assistance and training program; and a temporary shelter program. In addition, the State Hospital in Jamestown has cared for 74 COVID-positive patients this year.

– The health and human services departments partnered with the National Guard, long-term care providers and hospitals to create the Vulnerable Population Protection Plan, recognized as a model for other states.

– Through the Emergency Commission and the Legislature’s Budget Section, the state allocated $1.25 billion in Coronavirus Relief Fund dollars from the CARES Act, with 30 percent going toward public health and safety, 29 percent to economic support for individuals, 25 percent to economic support for businesses and 16 percent to continuation of government services. With no additional staff resources, the Office of Management and Budget managed the allocation, distribution and reporting of the money, which was roughly equivalent to one-quarter of the state’s two-year general fund budget

– Job Service North Dakota experienced a record volume of unemployment claims, with more than 200,000 claims filed, which is 180,000 more than in all of 2019. Job Service paid out a record $900 million in unemployment insurance. More than $400 million was allocated from the $1.25 billion in CARES Act money to maintain solvency and replenish the Unemployment insurance Trust Fund trust fund.

– Workforce Safety and Insurance established emergency coverage for certain frontline workers and processed hundreds of claims for COVID 19 exposure and infection. WSI assisted the Department of Commerce with a $2.5 million grant to provide first responders and frontline health care workers financial assistance for COVID-19 related expenses and assisted Job Service in processing unemployment claims.

– The Department of Commerce conducted briefings in partnership with the Greater North Dakota Chamber to provide real-time updates on federal, state and local funding opportunities for businesses and communities affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. On average, more than 1,000 individuals joined each briefing. The department developed and implemented three grant opportunities, helping more than 2,500 businesses with more than $62 million in CARES Act funds.

– The Tourism Division launched the first-ever in-state marketing and fully funded cooperative campaigns to support businesses and communities.

– The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation reduced inmate population by more than 15 percent in prison facilities and implemented strict mitigation measures against COVID-19.

– The Department of Transportation created collection sites at several locations for COVID supplies, drove trucks to deliver COVID supplies to medical facilities, enhanced the use of kiosks to improve services such as motor vehicle tab renewals, expanded the use of digital message signs to support pandemic response and increased rest area cleaning and operations.

– The Parks and Recreation Department stepped up to accommodate a 35% increase in overnight campers from May to October.

– The Game and Fish Department made adjustments to certify 1,800 students through an online hunter education course.

Reinventing government

Despite the pandemic, the governor’s office reports progress was made on Burgum’s initiative to reinvent government.

For instance, the transportation department launched a mobile app to allow users to conduct driver’s license and motor vehicle transactions on mobile devices and expanded online services. The State Water Commission installed more than 200 solar-powered remote sensing devices for hydrologic data collection. Parks and Recreation added wi-fi registration stations at all state parks.

Main Street Initiative

The third annual Main Street ND Summit was held in October, announcing two new tools to aid communities with planning and development. More than 800 participants registered for the interactive, virtual summit.

Partners in Planning

The Commerce Department implemented the Partners in Planning grant and awarded $125,000 to nine communities to create comprehensive plans, economic diversity plans or COVID-19 response plans. Vibrancy grants helped support the implementation of community need projects.

Behavioral health

According to the governor’s office, North Dakotans now receive 50% of their behavioral health services from a human service center within a community versus a clinic setting. Over the last year, behavioral health clients who received services at a human service center experienced a 53 percent reduction in arrests.

North Dakotans now have access to 24/7 mobile crisis response. The Department of Human Services provided 5,628 crisis services in 2020, with crisis psychotherapy and triage services doubling in the last three months.

The department also expanded telehealth services. The number of health providers at eight regional clinics and four satellite clinics using telehealth to deliver services grew from 71 to more than 350 in March and April alone.

Recovery Reinvented, a daylong virtual event, drew more than 3,000 online viewers.

Tribal partnerships

The North Dakota Indian Affairs Commission hosted the third Strengthening Government to Government Partnerships and Relationships Conference on Jan. 15, drawing record turnout to Bismarck State College. About 300 people registered.

Transforming education

Burgum and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Kirsten Baesler hosted the fourth annual Governor’s Summit on Innovative Education. More than 1,300 stakeholders registered to participate virtually.

North Dakota’s Center for Distance Education scaled up for the 2020-2021 school year to levels previously unimagined. During the 2019-2020 school year, CDE delivered 5,117 courses to North Dakota students, with a successful completion rate of 84%. By the end of the 2020-2021 school year, CDE is expected to provide more than 10,500 online courses to students, with a projected successful completion rate of 83%.

Nearly $2.5 million in emergency grant relief was awarded to North Dakota education entities serving K-12 students and families. The grants provide resources to support behavioral health needs of students and families, technology assistance for individuals receiving distance learning, additional staff to support student learning and tutoring services provided outside of the typical school day.

An additional $2.5 million in emergency grant relief was awarded to North Dakota colleges and universities to support modified learning and workforce training enhancements during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Other progress

Also in 2020, service improvements occurred in a variety of areas.

– Since updating eligibility criteria for home and community-based services in January, 730 individuals have been able to access services in their home, a 25% increase from 2019.

– Initial deployment of Vantis, North Dakota’s statewide network for flying UAS beyond visual line of sight, began in western North Dakota. Fifteen new UAS companies were recruited to North Dakota in the last 18 months, contributing to a 15% year-over-year industry growth. North Dakota has now invested more than $44 million to advance UAS research and development. The North Dakota Highway Patrol launched its UAS program, after becoming the first state highway patrol agency in the nation to receive an Federal Aviation Administration waiver, allowing the patrol to use drones to help document crash, aid in search and rescue operations and locate missing persons or fleeing suspects in rural or rough terrain.

– The Department of Transportation completed 193 construction projects on highways and bridges. Vision Zero Highway Safety Corridors were completed on three sections of highway across the state.

– The State Water Commission approved about $105 million this biennium for advancement of flood damage reduction projects in the Fargo-Moorhead-West Fargo metro area, Souris River basin and Sheyenne River basin.

– The Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Board of Trustees certified it had raised more than $100 million in private donations and binding pledges, triggering the $50 million endowment held at the state Land Board to support operations and maintenance of the facility after it is constructed in Medora.

– In October, intermodal rail service launched in Minot, the culmination of more than two decades of effort to gain access to intermodal transportation to reduce shipping costs for the state’s agricultural producers and other industries.