Governor Dalrymple of North Dakota signed legislation that grants massive emergency funding to counties and cities statewide in order to bolster the lagging infrastructure.
On Monday, the ND Senate unanimously approved SB 2103 for roads and other critical infrastructure throughout the state with the bulk of the resources allocated to its oil producing counties. The $1.1 billion is in addition to a $2.3 billion infrastructure spending package that is already in place.
The bulk of the money is targeted to fix roadways and bridges that have not been able to keep up with the increased traffic of heavy oil field equipment that the shale boom has brought to the Bakken area. Many of the region’s oil-producing counties still use hundreds of miles of gravel roads as main transportation routes often seeing as many as 1,000 vehicles a day, compared to fewer than 50 before the boom. Lawmakers hope this legislation will improve the infrastructure for what is hopefully another 20- to 25-year production in the play.
“Speaking with the Dickenson Press, Watford City Mayor Brent Sanford said, “The traffic flow will be better. It will be safer. So this is really a great investment for public safety.”
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Senate bill 2103 allocates the nearly $1.1 billion as follows:
- $450 million for the Department of Transportation
- 300 million for the state’s top 10 oil-producing counties
- $140 million for cities within the top 10 oil producing counties
- $8,750,000 to school districts in oil-producing counties
- $215 million for hub cities: Williston, Dickinson, Minot and Watford City.
- $112 million for non-oil-producing counties.
- $16 million for townships in non-oil-producing counties.
Read the entire bill at legi.nd.gov