In this episode of Straight Talk with NDFB, host Emmery Mehlhoff visits with NDFB lobbyist Rachel Grosz. Rachel is a rancher from Mott, and a homeschooling mom to 3 kids. She previously lobbied for NDFB in the 2017 session and has been an advocate for agriculture policy on the state and federal level.

We talk about some of the bills relating to property tax, agriculture chemicals, livestock initiatives and more. Join us for this episode.

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Don’t miss NDFB’s legislative review by subscribing to Legislative Front.

Contact Government Affairs Liaison Rachel Grosz at rachel@ndfb.org or Pete Hanebutt, Director of Public Policy at pete@ndfb.org.

If you have any questions about Straight Talk with NDFB, contact us at emmery@ndfb.org

In today’s episode, host Emmery Mehlhoff visits with Senator Greg Kessel from Belfield, North Dakota. Senator Kessel farms in Belfield with with his wife and four children. Along with farming, the family is involved in small businesses and recently opened Two Track Malting Company in Bismarck.

We visit about:

• Farming in western North Dakota
• Malting grains for beer
• Value-added agriculture
• Vertical integration can help your bottom line

They talk about some of his legislation pertaining to the wheat and barley commission, converting abandoned oil wells into cattle waterers, and career programs for high school students. The podcast concludes with a conversation about the mining of rare earth elements and property rights.

To contact Senator Greg Kessel, visit https://ndlegis.gov/biography/greg-kessel

Learn more about Two Track Malting Company: https://twotrackmalting.com/

Session is drawing to a close. Be on a look-out for our session wrap-up as part of Legislative Front. Sign up for Front here: https://ndfb.org/news/signup/

In today’s episode, host Emmery Mehlhoff visits with Senator Randy Lemm from Hillsboro, North Dakota. A long-time Traill County Farm Bureau board member, Randy is a familiar name in Farm Bureau circles. He farms and ranches with his wife, Julie, and their daughter, Ellie, and her husband, Luke, and daughter, Reagan. Reagan is the 6th generation of the Lemm family on the farm.

Randy visits with us about his diversified operation, balancing time between the farm and Bismarck, and how important it is for farmers and ranchers to take time to serve in the North Dakota legislature.

Join us for this episode.

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Get to know and contact Senator Randy Lemm https://ndlegis.gov/biography/randy-d-lemm

The session is drawing to a close, so be on the lookout for our 2025 Legislative Session Report! Subscribe to our Legislative Front (https://ndfb.org/news/signup/) to learn about changes in the law that may affect you and your farming operation.

Email us at emmery@ndfb.org

In this episode, host Emmery Mehlhoff visits with Senator Janne Myrdal, who farms with her husband and children in Edinburg, North Dakota. She did not always call Pembina County her home, however. Senator Myrdal is originally from Norway and moved to North Dakota after she married a farm boy she met on a mission trip. Since then, North Dakota has been her home.

Senator Janne Myrdal talks about her long-time potato storage taxation fight, her work for equitable ag land assessment across counties, the start of the rural caucus, the importance of political integrity, and how Lutefisk is not truly Norwegian but is an American-Norwegian concoction.

Legislation addressed in this episode:

SB 2367 - Assessment of Agricultural Property https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo2367.html

SB 2039 - “Potato Warehouse Bill” Definition of agricultural property and the farm structure and improvements property tax exemption

https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-index/bi2039.html?bill_year=2025&bill_number=2039

HB 1176 - Property Tax Reform

https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo1176.html?bill_year=2025&bill_number=1176

Subscribe to our Legislative Front by visiting https://ndfb.org/news/signup/

Contact Janne Myrdal https://ndlegis.gov/biography/janne-myrdal

Contact us at emmery@ndfb.org

The Legislative Session has reconvened after crossover and Straight Talk host Emmery Mehlhoff visits with Rep Mike Brandenburg from Edgeley, North Dakota. He is a farmer and serves on the LaMoure County Farm Bureau Board of Directors and has served in the North Dakota House of Representatives since 1997.

Emmery and Rep. Brandenburg have a laid-back conversation about hauling corn to the ethanol plant, drainage policy, property tax reform, North Dakota’s fiscal outlook, and much more. Join us for this episode.

To see Rep. Brandenburg’s legislation and contact him, visit https://ndlegis.gov/biography/mike-brandenburg

Contact our host at emmery@ndfb.org

Don’t miss out on issues important to ag. Subscribe to NDFB’s Legislative Front.

In this episode of Straight Talk with NDFB, our host, Emmery Mehlhoff, continues the coverage of the 69th Legislative Assembly. The Legislature has just finished its crossover break where the bills “crossover.” During this break, our host visited with Rep. Robin Weisz from District 14.

Rep. Weisz is a farmer from Hurdsfield who, during his extended time in the Legislature, has served as chairman of both the Transportation and Human Services Committees and now serves as Speaker of the House.

Rural North Dakota is the focus of the conversation as Rep. Weisz shares his strategy to bring tax reform to all property taxpayers in North Dakota. His bill, HB 1575, seeks to bring property tax reform to residential, commercial, and agricultural properties.

Join us as we dive deeper into what your future property tax bill may look like.

Read HB 1575 here https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo1575.html?bill_year=2025&bill_number=1575

Subscribe to NDFB’s Legislative Front here https://ndfb.org/news/signup/

If you have any questions or input for the podcast, please contact us at emmery@ndfb.org.

In this season we are covering the 69th Legislative Assembly and bringing you issues that are important to agriculture and rural North Dakota. Host Emmery Mehlhoff visits with Rep. Dori Hauck from District 36. Rep Hauck is a rancher from Hebron, North Dakota, and has served in the House of Representatives since 2021. We talk about her experience and service as the vice chair of the House Agriculture committee.

We also dive into property tax issues and take an in-depth look at her legislation:

HB 1453 - Prohibiting Natural Asset Companies https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo1453.html

HB 1371 - Retired police officers https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo1371.html

HB 1207 - Districts and elections for the Beef Commission https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo1207.html

Join us for this episode.

Contact Rep. Hauck https://ndlegis.gov/biography/dori-hauck

Email Emmery at emmery@ndfb.org

Subscribe to our Legislative Front to stay up to date with issues this session at https://ndfb.org/news/signup/

In this episode, Host Emmery Mehlhoff visits with Senator Paul Thomas from Velva, N.D. Senator Thomas served in the North Dakota House of Representatives from 2021 - 2024 and was elected to the N.D. Senate last election. They discuss Senator Thomas’ new role on the appropriations committee, property tax reform, and legislation sponsored by Senator Thomas, including value-added agriculture and livestock bills.

Join us for this episode.

Read Senator Thomas’ bills:

SB 2150 - Corporate or limited liability company farming and ranching https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo2150.html?bill_year=2025&bill_number=2150

SB 2151 - A county and township bridge fund and a legacy earnings tax relief fund https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo2151.html

SB 2174 - Regulation of odors in an animal feeding operation and zoning authority over animal feeding operations in counties and townships https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo2174.html

SB 2177 - Animal agriculture facility infrastructure fund https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo2177.html

SB 2342 - Value-added milk processing facility incentive program https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo2342.html

Subscribe to The Legislative Front on our subscribe page: https://ndfb.org/news/signup/

Contact us at emmery@ndfb.org