1.    A proposed plan for combining or separating county elective offices, or redesignating a county office as elective or appointive, must be based on an analysis of each affected office, which may include an analysis of:

Terms Used In North Dakota Code 11-10.2-03

  • Organization: includes a foreign or domestic association, business trust, corporation, enterprise, estate, joint venture, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, limited partnership, partnership, trust, or any legal or commercial entity. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
  • Person: means an individual, organization, government, political subdivision, or government agency or instrumentality. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
  • Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
  • written: include "typewriting" and "typewritten" and "printing" and "printed" except in the case of signatures and when the words are used by way of contrast to typewriting and printing. See North Dakota Code 1-01-37

a.    The existing office organization, functions, and procedures established for providing governmental services; b.    The proposed office organization, functions, and procedures; and

c.    How the proposal may improve the effectiveness and efficiency of county government and its responsiveness and accountability to local citizens.

2.    The analysis may be performed as part of a study process initiated pursuant to chapter 40-01.1.

3.    A proposed plan for combining or separating county elective offices, or redesignating a county office as elective or appointive, may include provision for:

a.    The selection, powers, duties, functions, qualifications and training, terms, and compensation of the affected county offices, notwithstanding any other law; b.    Selection, transfer, reassignment, or termination of personnel associated with each affected office; c.    The election or appointment of a county manager, notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 11-09; d.    Transition in implementation of the plan, including elements that consider the reasonable expectations of current officeholders such as delayed effective dates for implementation at the end of a current term or a future term, upon the occurrence of a vacancy, or on a date certain; e.    The limited application or temporary implementation of the plan, including provisions that permit implementation on an experimental or pilot basis such as the expiration of the plan on a date certain in the future, required reapproval of the plan by the electors at a future date, or a phased-in implementation of different components of the plan; and

    f.    Any other provision deemed necessary for combining or separating the offices or redesignating an office as elective or appointive.

4.    A plan may not propose to diminish the term of office for which a current county officer was elected, redesignate that elected office during that term as appointed, or reduce the salary of the office for that term. The plan may not diminish the general responsibility of county government to perform any function or provide any service that is required by law to be performed or provided by county government.

5.    A proposed plan may not diminish the future term of office, or redesignate an elected office as appointed, with respect to any person who, on August 1, 1993, holds an elected county office and continues to hold that specific office for future terms on an uninterrupted basis. This subsection does not apply after January 1, 2002, or if the person holding the affected office consents in writing to the proposed plan and files that written document prior to the scheduled implementation of the plan with the district court for the county.