North Dakota Lawmakers Utilize AI to Expedite Bill Review Process
North Dakota is leveraging artificial intelligence to assist lawmakers and legal staff in managing the increasing volume of legislation introduced during each session, potentially leading to more informed and efficient policy decisions.
The North Dakota Legislative Council has implemented an AI tool based on Meta’s open-source Llama 3.2 1B Instruct model to review and summarize draft bills. During preparation for the 2025 session, the system processed 1,089 bills, revisions, and final versions – a task that traditionally requires months of staff time. The project was developed entirely on-premises using Ollama software and secure local hardware, ensuring the confidentiality of draft legislation.
“We’re very open to technology at the Legislative Council,” said Emily Thompson, director of the council’s legal division. “It’s just a matter of making sure it’s vetted and tested, and we’re really proud of our reputation for providing quality, accurate documents.” The council, with just 45 permanent staff including a nine-member legal team, estimated the AI saved approximately 1,380 hours of legal labor in preparing for the upcoming session. For context, the state legislature meets for 80 days every two years. The North Dakota Legislative Branch provides further information on the state’s legislative process.
Meta has highlighted North Dakota’s initiative as a case study in government innovation, noting it is among the first states to utilize open-source AI to enhance legislative operations. “We’ve already started pointing other leaders to North Dakota’s Legislative Council to follow their example,” stated Meta spokesperson John Bockstanz. The AI currently creates draft summaries for legal experts to review and refine, and the council plans to expand its AI applications to include a chat tool, video summarization, and automated legislative update dashboards by the 2027 session. Meta AI details their open-source initiatives.
Officials stated the goal is to free up legal staff to focus on more complex legal analysis and ensure lawmakers have access to clear, concise summaries of proposed legislation earlier in the session.
