BISMARCK – Gov. Doug Burgum has signed legislation allowing tribal nations to enter into agreements with the State of North Dakota to share revenue from alcohol taxes on tribal lands, resolving a longstanding issue.

Under Senate Bill 2377, each of the five tribal nations in North Dakota will have the opportunity to enter into an agreement with the state to impose a single tax on alcoholic beverages sold at the retail and wholesale levels within their respective reservations. Tribal nations that adopt the alcohol tax will keep 80% of the tax revenue, while the state’s general fund will receive 20%.

Senate Bill 2377 arose from recent discussions led by Sen. Dale Patten of Watford City, the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara (MHA) Nation including Chairman Mark Fox, Tax Commissioner Brian Kroshus, the North Dakota Indian Affairs Commission, and legislative co-sponsors Sen. Jordan Kannianen of Stanley and Rep. Craig Headland of Montpelier, who chair the Senate and House tax committees, respectively.

“This bill provides a fair mechanism to share taxes generated from the sale and consumption of alcohol on the reservation,” Fox said. “The tribal share collected under SB 2377 will help develop and provide resources for addiction treatment, law enforcement, community safety, and wellness programs.”

The bill was approved unanimously in both the House and Senate. It improves upon an alcohol tax revenue sharing bill that passed in 2019 but hadn’t been utilized. The legislation also builds upon previous state-tribal tax agreements signed by Burgum in recent years.

A compact signed with MHA in 2019 and ratified by the Legislature changed how the state and tribe share tax revenue from new oil and gas activity on trust and fee lands. Legislation signed in 2021 provided a framework for the state and MHA to share tax revenue from oil wells that straddle the boundary of the Fort Berthold Reservation, while another bill in 2021 authorized the governor to enter state-tribal agreements for sales, use and gross receipts taxes.

The signing of SB 2377 on Tuesday brings the total number of bills signed this session to 108.