Summary — North Dakota HB 1178 (2025)
Title: An Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 15.1‑07 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to school districts allowing students to leave campus to vote in elections.
Status / Key dates
- Introduced (filed): November 12, 2024. Filed with Secretary of State: March 14, 2025.
- Legislative action: Passed both chambers (House and Senate) during the 69th Legislative Assembly.
- Signed by the Governor / Became law: June 20, 2025. Effective date: immediately upon signature.
Primary sponsors (as listed in the bill)
- House: Representatives Novak, Hager, Murphy, J. Olson, Schreiber‑Beck, Swiontek
- Senate: Senators Boehm, Cory, Mathern
Main purpose and intent
- To ensure that students who are legally eligible to vote (referred to in the bill as “qualified electors”) have a formal, uniform opportunity to leave school campus to cast a ballot in general, special, or primary elections by requiring each school district to adopt a written policy permitting that absence.
Key provisions
- Mandatory district policy: Each school district must adopt a policy that allows a student who is a qualified elector to leave campus to vote in any general, special, or primary election.
- Policy flexibility: The statute permits districts to include reasonable conditions in the policy, for example:
- Limiting the length of time a student may be absent from campus to vote, and/or
- Specifying a designated time window for students to leave to vote.
- No additional requirements or penalties are specified in the text (e.g., no state‑level enforcement mechanism or funding tied to compliance is included).
Who is affected
- Primary: Public school districts (obligated to adopt the policy) and students who are qualified electors (eligible to vote).
- Secondary: School administrators (implement policy and manage attendance), teachers (schedule/class time considerations), and election officials (potentially coordinating times/locations).
Potential impacts and considerations
- Voting access: Low‑barrier measure intended to facilitate voter participation among eligible student voters (typically those 18+ and registered).
- Administrative: Minimal fiscal impact is expected — districts must draft and adopt a policy and address scheduling/attendance logistics. No funding or reporting requirements are specified.
- Practical issues: Districts may need to reconcile the new policy with existing attendance rules, carpools/transportation, and verification of voter eligibility; the bill does not address parental consent, transportation, or absentee voting alternatives.
- Legal definitions: “Qualified elector” is used but not redefined in this section; districts and schools will rely on North Dakota election law to determine eligibility.
Procedural/timeline notes
- The requirement is immediate on enactment: districts must adopt such a policy going forward. The bill does not prescribe a deadline by which districts must adopt the policy after the law took effect; local boards will set implementation timelines consistent with local procedures.
Bottom line
HB 1178 creates a statewide requirement that each North Dakota school district adopt a policy allowing eligible student voters to leave campus to vote, while permitting districts to set reasonable conditions (time limits or designated voting times). It is a straightforward, low‑cost measure intended to improve student voter access with implementation and logistics left to local school districts.
