North Dakota lawmakers awarded the state's highway patrol two additional troopers for commercial enforcement and denied the agency's request for a new emergency driving track and gun range.
The North Dakota Highway Patrol will deploy the new troopers to enforce truck weight regulations in the western section of the state under the $46 million, two-year budget. Patrol officials say inspectors are swamped by an influx of traffic from oil and energy development.
Gov. Jack Dalrymple had recommended spending $3.6 million for an indoor gun range and a new driving course for emergency vehicles that would have been used by agencies from across the state.
Both projects would've been built near a landfill in eastern Bismarck, where the city is offering free land. The projects will be reconsidered in 2013.
Source: Business Week
