The Dickinson Press
Democratic secretary of state candidate Corey Mock says Republican incumbent Al Jaeger is partly to blame for the troubles of a proposal to repeal North Dakota’s pharmacy ownership restrictions. Mock and Jaeger spoke Wednesday in Bismarck at a candidate forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters. A voter initiative to repeal North Dakota’s pharmacy ownership law was kept off the November ballot because the petition didn’t include a list of sponsors. Jaeger rejected the measure and the Supreme Court affirmed his decision.
A proposed North Dakota ballot measure that requires state lawmakers to read bills before they vote on them will be turned in to the secretary of state on Tuesday. Jerrol LeBaron has been promoting the measure, and he says retired Bismarck businessman Dave Wolfer has agreed to be chairman of the initiative’s sponsoring committee. The measure says lawmakers have to certify that they’ve read a bill before they vote to approve it. Finished versions of bills also have to be posted on the Internet for at least four days before there’s a final vote.
A proposed state constitutional amendment would create a fund to hold monies from a recent tobacco settlement. A ballot measure that provides more state support for tobacco prevention will be trumped by this amendment if it passes.