The Bakken Conference and Expo is planned for July 16 through July 18 at the Roughrider Center in Watford City. The event is hosted by the North American Shale Magazine and will focus on oil and gas production in the Williston Basin and the latest investment strategies and innovative solutions for the near-term and long-term health of petroleum production in the region. The event will host numerous speakers, from oilfield CEOs and producers to technology leaders who can speak to the various needs and solutions for the industry in the local area. One such speaker is Kelly Armstrong, who is running for United States Congress in the State of North Dakota.
Armstrong grew up in Dickinson, North Dakota, and graduated from Dickinson High School in 1995. From there, he attended the University of North Dakota, graduating in 2001, and then attended the University of North Dakota Law School, earning his degree in law in 2003. After marrying his wife, Kelly, in 2004, the couple moved from Grand Forks back to Dickinson and the two have a son and daughter.
Armstrong has been heavily involved in his community, earning the North Dakota Bar Association’s Community Service Award, serving as a volunteer fireman for the Dickinson Fire Department, coaching softball and baseball, and has served with charitable work for various institutions like the hospital, police department, fire department, domestic violence rape crisis center, and the Teddy Roosevelt Bully Pulpit Board. Currently, Armstrong serves as president of the Armstrong Corporation, which is his family’s energy business that was founded in 1975. He is also a member of the North Dakota Senate for District 36 and serves as the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, the Justice Reinvestment Committee, and the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. He also successfully ran for President of the North Dakota GOP in 2015.
The Roundup spoke with Armstrong, who explained the important of industry in the Williston Basin.
Armstrong said, “Obviously, agriculture and industry are important to the region. What’s good for North Dakota is good for the country. We need a reliable energy grid, energy independence, and a cheap and secure food source. North Dakota is a big part of obtaining that.”
Armstrong then explained the challenges to the industry, saying, “Our three biggest challenges that our energy sector faces are workforce, housing, and federal regulation.”
Commenting on the latter, Armstrong continued, “Regulation is an executive branch function. There is some legislation moving through congress right now about regulatory reform and how it has economic impact and that is important information.”
“States should be allowed to regulate their industries,” Armstrong added. “North Dakota is very good at that. We take it seriously, and we know what we need to do here. Recently, we just got primacy on carbon capture and that was a huge victory for states rights. The issues that are involved with regulating energy are best left to the states that are developing it. And that’s not just an energy issue, but is an agriculture issue as well.”
Armstrong also explained, “We have billions and billions of dollars invested in Western North Dakota. It’s our communities dealing with that, and the people closest to it on the ground are obviously going to be better at knowing what North Dakota’s regulatory needs are.”
When asked his priorities in Congress in regard to the Western North Dakota petroleum industry, Armstrong responded, “Let us do what we do best out here. The more we can get rid of regulation, the better. We already do a good job. The single best thing we can do and I will advocate for constantly is to make sure the federal government is regulating only what they absolutely have to and not what they want to.”
The precise time of Kelly’s presentation at The Bakken Conference and Expo is still tentative, and the specifics will be announced in coming days.
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