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Letters to the Editor

Legislature failing on property taxes, school funding

Steve Moen, Minot After watching the smoke and mirrors dog and pony show in Bismarck it is obvious that the legislature has no intention of reforming the unfair property tax. No mention was made concerning the unfairness of this tax that severely burdens poor taxpayers while letting many rich taxpayers off the hook with little to no taxes. Nothing was said about the state totally funding K-12 education, which is mandated by the ND Constitution. If education isn’t funded by the Legislature all the legislators need to be charged with violating their oath of office and be fined, ...

Legislation creates roadblock to democratic process

Amy Jacobson, Executive Director, Prairie Action ND, Fargo The people of North Dakota deserve better than HCR 3003 – a proposal at the state legislature that would undermine our rights and our civic powers as citizens. This resolution, like last year’s Measure 2, is an attack on our ability to shape our future through citizen-initiated ballot measures. It’s designed to silence us by raising the voting approval threshold for constitutional amendments to 60%, making it far harder for everyday North Dakotans to be heard. Ballot initiatives serve as a vital tool for citizens to ...

Security oversight needed at missile silos

Dan Tyler, Stanley As an oilfield truck driver in the North Central region of North Dakota, I have witnessed recurring and concerning security issues involving airmen assigned to guard nuclear missile silos near Minot. These observations include airmen distracted by personal electronic devices for long periods of time, gear piled on dashboards to block direct sunlight but obstructing visibility, and, in some cases, airmen who appear to be asleep while on duty. Even more troubling is that during these lapses, service and launch hatches left open expose critical systems and ...

Hear constituents or let them vote

Vicki Voldal Rosenau, Valley City The scheming in Bismarck to spend public money for private-school tuition should have ground to a halt on Jan. 6. That’s when the release of a new statewide poll confirmed what many folks already knew: By an overwhelming majority, the people of North Dakota do not want their tax dollars paying for private-school vouchers. North Dakota United sponsored the DMS Research poll, which surveyed 600 North Dakota voters and showed 68 percent opposing the idea. Moreover, the polling showed 67 percent of voters do support increased state funding for ...

Curbing emissions offers benefits

M L Berg, Minot In the middle of 2024, Senator Hoeven spoke out against ‘radical environmentalism.’ Earlier that year, former Governor Burgum, in a televised interview in connection with a conference, referred to the topic of climate change, as, in effect, a fad. We know climate change is, in fact, not a fad, but a function of physical and chemical processes in nature intensified by the release of tremendous volumes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere due to human activity. As for Senator Hoeven’s ‘radical environmentalism,’ it should be remembered that there was ...

DoD nominee lacks qualifications

Bob McNamara, Upham To be honest I don’t believe our senators, nor most of the others, really care about the defense department. They care far more about the money the DoD brings into ND via two significant air bases and other units than they do the military itself. I’d also say senators love to tell you how they have such a solemn duty to advise and consent; mostly when the opposite party is nominating. When it is their party they more often tend to just nod their head for nominations. There is now a great opportunity for our senators to show themselves. Pete Hegseth has been ...