§ 54-06-33 — Employer-paid tuition

Each state agency, department, or institution may establish rules or policies to provide
employer-paid costs of training or educational courses, including tuition and fees, within
budgetary constraints. Executive branch agencies having employees in classified service are
subject to rules adopted by North Dakota human resource management services and approved
by the state personnel board and the legislative management's administrative rules committee.
Any other state agency, department, or institution of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch
may adopt rules or policies to ensure uniformity and consistency in state government.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each executive branch state agency, department, or
institution, except an institution of higher education, having employees who are not in classified
service and establishing rules or policies for employer-paid costs of training or educational
courses, including tuition and fees, shall submit the rules and policies to the office of
management and budget for review and comment, and after addressing any comments of the
office of management and budget, shall submit the rules and policies to the legislative
management's administrative rules committee for approval. Within sixty days after the close of
each biennial period, each state agency, department, or institution providing employer-paid
costs of training or educational courses, including tuition and fees, under rules approved by the
administrative rules committee, shall file with the office of management and budget a report
indicating the total employer-paid costs of training and educational courses, including tuition and
fees. Within ninety days after the close of each biennial period, the office of management and
budget shall submit to the legislative council a report summarizing this information. An employee
who receives employer-paid tuition reported under this section who leaves employment with the

state within two years of receiving the tuition must repay tuition received under this section on a
prorated basis. An expenditure for employer-paid training or educational courses, including
tuition and fees, under this section is deemed to be made for a public purpose and may not be
construed as a gift for purposes of section 18 of article X of the Constitution of North Dakota.