HB 1423 — Summary (North Dakota)
Title: An Act to amend and reenact subsection 5 of section 65‑05‑07 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to benefits for adaptations to real estate and motor vehicles; and to provide for application.
Status / Timeline
- Introduced: November 20, 2024
- Passed by both chambers (House vote: 86–4; Senate vote: 45–1) and enrolled.
- Signed by the Governor and filed with the Secretary of State (filed 04/03/2025).
- Applies to qualifying expenditures made on or after the Act’s effective date.
Purpose / Intent
- To increase the lifetime dollar caps available under the statute that authorizes the state workers’ compensation–related “organization” to fund permanent home modifications and specially equipped motor vehicles for injured employees, and to clarify application of those benefits.
Key Provisions
- Amends subsection 5 of NDCC § 65‑05‑07 to change benefit limits for catastrophically injured employees:
- Home adaptations (permanent additions, remodeling, adaptations to real estate): increases the lifetime cap from $75,000 to $150,000.
- Motor vehicle adaptations (cost‑effective, specially equipped vehicles or vehicle adaptations deemed medically necessary): increases the lifetime cap from $150,000 to $200,000.
- Lifetime limit: each dollar cap is expressly for the life of the injured employee and applies regardless of any subsequent claim.
- Prohibitions and authority:
- The organization may not purchase real estate.
- The organization may not pay vehicle insurance or routine vehicle maintenance, but may fund vehicle/adaptation replacement purchases within the lifetime cap.
- The organization may establish criteria/factors for determining medical necessity and cost‑effectiveness of a vehicle or adaptation.
- Non‑catastrophic cases: the organization may provide these same benefits for injured employees who have not sustained a catastrophic injury if it determines, because of exceptional circumstances, that the benefits would be cost‑effective and appropriate.
- Application clause: the Act applies to qualifying expenditures made on or after the Act’s effective date.
What / Who is Affected
- Primary beneficiaries: employees meeting the statute’s definition of a “catastrophic injury” (see NDCC chapter 65‑05.1) who are eligible for state‑authorized adaptations to their home or vehicle.
- The “organization” referenced in §65‑05‑07 (the statutory entity administering these adaptation benefits) will implement the changes and may experience increased program expenditures.
Potential Impact
- Direct effect: larger lifetime benefit caps for permanent home and vehicle adaptations for catastrophically injured employees; more flexibility to fund vehicle replacements.
- Fiscal: increased program costs to the administering organization (higher per‑claim maximums), dependent on the number and needs of qualifying claimants. The bill does not specify dedicated funding offsets.
- Administrative: the organization may need updated procedures and criteria for determining necessity, exceptional circumstances for non‑catastrophic claims, and for tracking lifetime usages.
Notes
- Earlier draft language in some committee documents proposed indexing the caps annually to the Consumer Price Index; the enrolled text fixes the caps at $150,000 (real estate) and $200,000 (vehicles) and applies them prospectively as described above.
