North Dakota school drill law

What drills does North Dakota require?

North Dakota requires each public and nonpublic school to conduct fire, tornado and other emergency or disaster drills, including lockdown drills.

The drill statute itself sets no drill count or schedule; the whole section only requires each public and nonpublic school to conduct fire, tornado and other emergency or disaster drills, including lockdown drills. The count comes from the fire code (below).

What about the fire code?

A state rule, N.D. Admin. Code § 45-18-01-04, adopts the 2021 International Fire Code, with exceptions and modifications. None of North Dakota's listed modifications changes the code's Chapter 4, which covers emergency planning and drills. Under the adopted code, required evacuation drills must be held at the intervals in its drill table, or more often if needed so all occupants know the procedure. For school buildings (Group E, the fire code's term for schools), that table sets fire and evacuation drills at monthly, with all occupants taking part. A school's first evacuation drill of each school year must be held within 10 days of the start of classes. In a September 4, 2024 article, the State Fire Marshal wrote that his office and fire chiefs clarified in August 2018 that the fire code calls for monthly evacuation drills in schools, four a year of them fire drills. This is the Fire Marshal's reading, not rule text. The Department of Public Instruction tells schools the Fire Marshal Division requires at least four dedicated fire drills a year; its note cites the older 2015 fire code edition. The state fire marshal or a designee must inspect each nonpublic school at least once every three years.

Who's covered?

The drill duty covers both public and nonpublic schools.

What has changed recently?

In 2011, House Bill 1215 amended the drill section to require lockdown drills at schools, and the Governor signed it. As introduced in 2025, HB 1363 would have added cardiac emergency response plan drills to the drill section. As enacted, HB 1363 instead created a new section on cardiac emergency response plans and did not amend the drill section. HB 1363 was enacted: the Governor approved it on May 1, 2025, and it was filed with the Secretary of State on May 2, 2025. Starting with the 2027-28 school year, each public and nonpublic school must develop a cardiac emergency response plan for the district's crisis management plan. This is a plan, not a drill. None of the measures from the January 2026 and September 2026 special sessions amends the drill section or mentions school drills.