Data Centers and Property Taxes Top NDFB Annual Meeting Agenda

North Dakota Farm Bureau will hold its 84th Annual Meeting on Nov. 20-21 in Bismarck, with private property rights, data center development and property tax relief expected to dominate delegate debate.

Voting delegates at the Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center will consider resolutions that originated at the county level and advanced through District Resolution Meetings. Policy adopted at the meeting guides NDFB's advocacy in Bismarck and Washington, D.C. Resolutions with national implications move forward to the American Farm Bureau Federation Annual Convention, set for Jan. 8-13, 2027, in Charlotte, North Carolina.

NDFB President Val Wagner, who farms and ranches near Monango in south-central North Dakota and is in her first year as president, said the data center question is reshaping a long-standing pillar of the organization's policy work.

"I don't know if you've heard the words data center, at all, but, you know, we have some really hot button items that, I think, it'll be interesting to see what the conversation is around private property rights and how that all comes into play," Wagner said.

Monango sits near Ellendale, where Applied Digital operates a data center — a proximity that has brought the issue home for many members in the region.

What does the property rights debate change?

Wagner said local sentiment is shifting toward a more proactive stance, and the state board has been wrestling with how to frame the question itself.

"When we're talking about private property rights, are we talking from the outside of your property, looking in? Or are we talking from the outside of your property, looking out?" she asked. "What does that look like, and how do we have that conversation?"

She cautioned against a purely reactionary posture. Her test for consistency: swap the words.

"If you take the words 'data center' out, and you put the word animal agriculture in, if your tone is going to change, then maybe we need to have a further conversation about what that looks like," Wagner said.

That consistency argument extends to local zoning. "If we demand that there's a process in place for agriculture, then we need to demand that there's a process in place for others as well," she said, adding that members should ensure zoning frameworks are in place rather than simply opposing development outright.

Property taxes return to the agenda

Property tax relief is the second hot-button issue Wagner expects. NDFB held county-level meetings on the issue ahead of the convention, and Wagner said the findings should drive discussion on whether the local property tax cap has worked and where problems remain.

"What we're setting for this next year isn't just the roadmap for the next 12 months. It really sets our organization on where we're going to be in the future," she said.

The meeting also includes the Collegiate Discussion Meet Final, an evening social and the Scholarship Live Auction. Members will elect leaders to the NDFB State Board of Directors and several committees during district caucuses over lunch on Nov. 21, with the weekend closing at the annual banquet and entertainment from country artist Dallas Pryor & The Lazy Wayne Band.

Registration is open online at eventleaf.com/e/ndfb-annual-meeting, and the resolutions delegates pass in Bismarck will set the organization's lobbying priorities through the 2027 legislative cycle.