Survey Conducted to Help North Dakota State Legislature Prepare for Term Limit Impacts

The consultants pulled data and anecdotal evidence from a variety of sources, including other states in the U.S. with similar term limits.

BISMARCK, N.D. (KVRR) – The ballot measure that enacted term limits in North Dakota capped tenure in the North Dakota House and Senate at eight years each and limited the governor of the state to two terms in office.

Those lawmakers then hired Garty Consulting, LLC, to study the impact of those limits as they prepare for the first legislators to begin phasing out in 2028 and 2030.

“No two state legislatures are the same, but we did look to other states with term limits as references or examples throughout the study,” said Jolene Garty of the Garty Consulting.

The 116-page report pointed to some common headaches that come with term limits, like loss of experience among the legislative body and difficulty in finding new people to run for office.

“Some folks expressed that they don’t know what the job is, so they would never think about running,” said Erin Oban of Garty regarding the latter point.

The consultants, though, believe there are actionable moves that can be made to combat those concerns, including additional staffing, training, and resources to support legislators.

Many state lawmakers have also said that having the North Dakota Legislature meet every year instead of every two years would go a long way towards combatting inexperience.