If you hadn’t caught it, State Senator Al Novstrup is celebrating another trip around the sun today.

Go to his facebook page, and give him some good cheer from his friends at dakotawarcollege.com!

From facebook, former State Representative Fred Deutsch is going to be giving a presentation tomorrow in Sioux Falls against the proposed Assisted Suicide Act. (Otherwise known as ‘not killing grandma’)

Make a point to show up and learn about the pitfalls of passing laws to allow people to kill themselves and their loved ones. Aside from the obvious.

Remember: the life you eventually save may be your own!

From the Argus Leader:

Gov. Dennis Daugaard on Thursday said he’ll support a proposal to ban out-of-state money to South Dakota ballot measure campaigns.

And…

“I’m hopeful that that will have some success and I might just help him out,” Daugaard said.

The Republican governor clarified that he would likely be willing to provide financial backing to the ballot measure committee.

Read it here.

Interesting that the Governor is in support of the Mickelson measure, especially in light of the AG’s warning on constitutionality. 

State Senator Stace Nelson, who is apparently spending his summer trying to get as much media attention as he can, appeared on the Greg Belfrage show this morning talking about one of his favorite subjects: Himself.

That is, he was given 20 minutes to talk about how everyone else is corrupt, “people” are trying to cover things up, everyone in Pierre is in on it, and ramble on how they’re all stonewalling his efforts.

As he was claiming “a coverup is afoot” he did mention something that caught my attention from the e-mails I was furnished earlier this week.  As he was talking about himself, he spoke how earlier this year, he “put out a list of ten questions that people in my district had of Representative Kyle Schoenfish,” who Stace claims is one of the auditors that worked on Mid-Central.

A couple of problems with this claim.

First, when Stace is talking about a list of questions that “people in his District had,” as typical of Stace, that’s a obfuscation. It isn’t a list that of questions that people had. It’s a list of ten questions that one person came up with, and sent to Stace with his command to ask the questions of Schoenfish:

Just so you can read it a little better, I’ve blown up the mail header for the e-mail of questions…

As I was noting his inexplicable inclusion in a mass e-mail from Nelson earlier this week, Stace Nelson’s witch hunt against Representative Kyle Schoenfish appears to be directly at the request of former Democrat Legislator Frank Kloucek.

The other prolem with what Nelson is shoveling, as recognized by the GOAC committee, is that despite Nelson’s marching orders from Kloucek, there’s one little problem with Nelson trying to carry out his mandate.  By all indications, Kyle Schoenfish has nothing to do with the audit.

In fact, when appearing in the media over the past several months, Nelson may have flat out lied when he claimed that Schoenfish was conducting the audits under the supervision of his father, or that he was “one of”‘ the auditors working on the mid-central audit.

Except for Nelson continuously making the claim, and trying to question him at Kloucek’s behest, there’s yet to be any evidence presented to show that Kyle was specifically involved in the audit.

Which makes Nelson’s e-mail tantrum the other day even more understandable.

Because if people start realizing that Nelson’s pressing the attack against Kyle Schoenfish is little more than Stace (at Franks Kloucek’s request) attacking a political rival – they’re going to start to wonder how many of his other wild-eyed claims wither in the light.

Attorney General Explanation Released for Constitutional Amendment Regarding Initiated and Referred Measures

 PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announced today an Attorney General Explanation for a proposed constitutional amendment has been filed with the Secretary of State. This explanation is for a revised amendment submitted by the sponsor. The Attorney General Explanation for this prior version of this  amendment was filed June 5, 2017. The explanation will appear on a petition that will be circulated by the sponsor of the amendment. If the sponsor obtains a sufficient number of signatures (27,741) by November 6, 2017, as certified by the Secretary of State, the amendment will be placed on the ballot for the November 2018 general election.

The amendment is entitled “An initiated amendment to the South Dakota Constitution regarding initiated and referred measures.”

Under South Dakota law, the Attorney General is responsible for preparing explanations for proposed initiated measures, referred laws, and South Dakota Constitutional Amendments. Specifically, the explanation includes a title, an objective, clear and simple summary of the purpose and effect of the proposed amendment and a description of the legal consequences. The Attorney General Explanation is not a statement either for or against the proposed amendment.

AG Statement Regarding Initiated and Referred Measures by Pat Powers on Scribd

To date the Attorney General has released Attorney General Explanations for the following:

1. An initiated measure requiring students to use rooms designated for the same biological sex, and requiring public schools to provide a reasonable accommodation for students whose gender identity is not the same as their biological sex
2. An initiated measure authorizing a South Dakota-licensed physician to prescribe drugs that a terminally ill patient may take for the purpose of ending life
3. An initiated measure to legalize marijuana for medical use
4. An initiated measure to legalize certain amounts of marijuana, drugs made from marijuana, and drug paraphernalia, and to regulate and tax marijuana establishments
5. An initiated measure requiring people to use certain rooms designated for the same biological sex
6. An initiated measure to legalize all quantities of marijuana
7. An amendment to the South Dakota Constitution regarding initiated and referred measures
8. An initiated amendment to the South Dakota Constitution changing campaign finance and lobbying laws, creating a government accountability board, and changing certain initiative and referendum provisions (VERSION #1)
9. An initiated amendment to the South Dakota Constitution changing campaign finance and lobbying laws, creating a government accountability board, and changing certain initiative and referendum provisions (VERSION #2)
10. An initiated amendment to the South Dakota Constitution changing campaign finance and lobbying laws, and creating a government accountability board (VERSION #3)
11. An initiated amendment to the South Dakota Constitution changing campaign finance and lobbying laws, and creating a government accountability board (VERSION #4)
12. An initiated amendment to the South Dakota Constitution establishing open primary elections
13. An initiated amendment to the South Dakota Constitution providing for state legislative redistricting by a commission
14. An initiated measure prohibiting contributions to ballot question committees by non-residents, out-of-state political committees, and entities that are not filed with the Secretary of State
15. An initiated measure increasing the State tobacco tax and creating a postsecondary technical institute fund for the purposes of lowering student tuition and providing financial support to the State postsecondary technical (VERSION #1)
16. An initiated measure increasing the State tobacco tax and creating a postsecondary technical institute fund for the purposes of lowering student tuition and providing financial support to the State postsecondary technical (VERSION #2)

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Thune Applauds Senate Passage of His MOBILE NOW Act

“The MOBILE NOW Act, which has waited 18 months to advance through the Senate, accelerates us toward a future where extremely fast broadband is much more widely available and internet-enabled devices will play an increasingly prominent role in everything from household items to agricultural production.” 

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, issued the following statement on Senate approval by unanimous consent of S. 19, the MOBILE NOW Act, a bill to boost the development of next-generation gigabit wireless broadband services, including 5G, by ensuring more spectrum is made available for commercial use and by reducing the red tape associated with building broadband networks.

“Spectrum fuels the 21^st century’s wireless economy, and this bill will help make much more of that fuel available to the public,” said Thune. “The MOBILE NOW Act, which has waited 18 months to advance through the Senate, accelerates us toward a future where extremely fast broadband is much more widely available and internet-enabled devices will play an increasingly prominent role in everything from household items to agricultural production.”

Highlights of the MOBILE NOW Act (S.19):

Making 500 megahertz available: A 2010 executive order set a goal of making available 500 MHz of federal spectrum for private sector use by 2020. The MOBILE NOW Act makes that goal the law.

Speeding up 5G infrastructure: Next-generation gigabit wireless services, like 5G, will rely on smaller and more numerous antenna and infrastructure systems than current cellular technology. Federal agencies would have a new obligation to make decisions on applications and permit requests for placing wireless infrastructure on federal property in a timely and reasonable manner.

Spectrum assessments: The bill directs the Federal government to conduct assessments of spectrum in the 3 GHz band and in the millimeter wave frequencies to determine whether authorizing licensed or unlicensed wireless broadband services in those bands is feasible, and if so, which frequencies are best suited for such operations. Frequencies totaling more than 13 gigahertz of bandwidth will be studied, most of which are in the millimeter wave frequencies that will be critical for next-generation wireless networks, including 5G mobile networks.

Dig once: The Act facilitates adoption of safe and efficient “dig once” policies by states.  Dig once is the idea that a single conduit through which all broadband wires can be run should be laid in the ground at the same time as other below-ground infrastructure work, like highway construction. Dig once can reduce costs for deployment of broadband infrastructure.
 
National broadband facilities asset database: The bill creates a central, online inventory of federal government property assets available or appropriate for private-sector deployment of broadband facilities. Such information includes the location of buildings and points of contact for siting applications. State and local governments would be permitted to voluntarily submit information about their assets to the inventory.

Reallocation incentives: The Commerce Department would be directed to issue a report within 18 months on additional legislative or regulatory proposals to incentivize Federal entities to relinquish or share their spectrum with non-federal spectrum users.

Immediate transfer of funds for agencies: The MOBILE NOW Act accelerates the relocation of Federal entities by allowing existing Spectrum Relocation Fund balances to be transferred to agencies for transition efforts immediately upon completion of an auction, rather than after the actual receipt by the Fund of auction proceeds. By immediately executing their transition plans, agencies would reduce their timelines to vacate, potentially increasing auction proceeds due to the value of accelerated access to the auctioned bands.

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Rounds, Udall Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Allow All Military Women to Count Maternity Leave Toward Years of Service

WASHINGTON—U.S. Sens. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Tom Udall (D-N.M.) today introduced a bipartisan bill to make certain ​that women serving in the National Guard and Reserves can take maternity leave without worrying about how it will affect their creditable military service.

“Our men and women in uniform serve bravely and honorably in both the regular armed forces and the reserve component,” said Rounds. “Our legislation evens the playing field to make sure mothers who serve in the National Guard or Reserve receive the same maternity leave benefits as their active-duty counterparts. It will allow these new mothers to focus on their newborns without worrying about making-up missed drill periods and other duties.”

“On behalf of the more than 45,000 members of the National Guard Association of the United States, we strongly support Senator Udall and Senator Rounds’ amendment to the FY18 NDAA that would ensure Guardsmen and Reservists are entitled to the same maternity leave as their active duty counterparts,” said B.G. (Retired) J. Roy Robinson, president of the National Guard Association of the United States​ (NGAUS). “We urge the Senate to adopt this bipartisan amendment, which would guarantee paid maternity leave for the more than 150,000 women currently serving in the National Guard and Reserves. This is simply a question of fairness.”

The Mothers of Military Service Leave (MOMS) Act, makes sure that female service members of the reserve component receive creditable military service pay and points during time spent on maternity leave. The Department of Defense established new policies for maternity leave in 2016, authorizing 12 weeks fully paid maternity leave after normal pregnancy and childbirth. However, under the current law, female service members in the Reserve Component can lose out on credit for their military service and points towards retirement while they are on maternity leave. Reserve component members in inactive duty training status are still required to attend unit training assemblies, if the female service member does not perform duty within the allotted timeframe, she is in jeopardy of not receiving credit toward retirement. This amendment will make certain female service members of the reserve component receive pay and points for 12 pay periods toward retirement after normal pregnancy and childbirth.

The provision is supported by the NGAUS and the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States (EANGUS).

Rounds and Udall also intend to introduce the MOMS Leave Act as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act ​(NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2018 when that bill is debated on the Senate floor, as early as September.

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Noem, Ag Committee Listen to Producer Insight at Farm Bill Field Hearing 

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Kristi Noem today joined members of the House Agriculture Committee at a listening session on the next Farm Bill. The committee members and Noem heard from producers at Minnesota Farm Fest on a wide-range of issues, including the need for a strong crop insurance program and livestock disaster assistance.

“America’s farmers and ranchers produce the safest, most affordable, and most abundant food supply in the world. But every year, their operations are threatened by drought, flood, heat, frost, fire and more. The amount of risk is incredible,” said Noem. “The safety nets contained within the Farm Bill are critical for this reason. I am grateful to the producers who shared what’s working and what needs improving in ag policy today. Hearing from them at this stage is critical. I’d also like to thank Chairman Conaway for his early start to the Farm Bill debate and for inviting me to participate in today’s listening session.”

Noem served on the House Agriculture Committee from 2011 to 2015, helping to usher through the 2014 Farm Bill during her tenure. While continuing to work on the upcoming Farm Bill, Noem currently serves as one of the only members of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee from a rural community.

In July 2017, Noem joined Rep. Kevin Cramer and House Ag Committee Ranking Member Collin Peterson in introducing the bipartisan Wetland Determinations Efficiency and Transparency Act, which aims to make the wetland determination process more efficient, accountable, and transparent.

Later that month, she introduced the DRY Act, which would permanently allow the hay harvested on certain CRP acres to be donated to ranchers suffering from drought or fire.

Both are being considered as individual bills as well as part of the upcoming Farm Bill debates.

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The Union County GOP Straw poll that we reported earlier this week hasn’t gotten past the notice of the candidates, as GOP Congressional hopeful Dusty Johnson sent out an e-mail blast this afternoon bringing it to people’s attention:

Johnson doesn’t seem to give it the same level of importance that Krebs did with her touting a newspaper poll in March that gave her a superior position, but does note that it suggests a groundswell of grassroots support… as he uses it to ask for money, as candidates are wont to do when there’s a benchmark showing one up over another.

There’s still a lot of campaign left to go, and I’m sure there will be many more newspaper and straw polls for candidates to base mailings on and to fire up the troops.

Stay tuned.

Thune’s Fifth Farm Bill Proposal Would Simplify and Streamline Federal Forest Management

“By expediting and simplifying implementation of common-sense timber management tools, as my bill would allow, we can achieve these land stewardship goals, protect our environment, and grow our economy.”

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), a longtime member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, today unveiled his fifth legislative proposal that is intended to be included in the 2018 farm bill. Thune’s bill, the Forest Management Improvement Act of 2017, would make several improvements to the forestry title of the farm bill by increasing the effectiveness of the Healthy Forest Restoration Act and improving the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which would help simplify and streamline federal forest management.

“Truly effective forest management must include overcoming the pine beetle infestations in the Black Hills and other national forests,” said Thune. “It also must include pursuing proactive land stewardship goals for habitat management, recreational improvement, road maintenance, forest health, and wildfire protection, among other areas. All of these are within reach and can be accomplished through adequate and timely management practices, including timber thinning on national forests, which generates revenue and supports jobs. By expediting and simplifying implementation of common-sense timber management tools, as my bill would allow, we can achieve these land stewardship goals, protect our environment, and grow our economy.

“I believe we should always look for ways to make federal agencies more effective and efficient,” continued Thune. “The U.S. Forest Service is excessively burdened with NEPA compliance obstacles and produces more environmental impact statements, which take longer to complete than those of most other federal agencies whose projects have longer-lasting impacts on the landscape. The changes I’ve proposed would go a long way to provide relief from unnecessary and burdensome red tape and improve national forest management.”

“This bill would allow the U.S. Forest Service to implement projects on the ground more efficiently to achieve forest plan goals and reduce the potential for catastrophic fires and mountain pine beetle epidemics,” said Tom Troxel, executive director of the Intermountain Forest Association. “I certainly appreciate Sen. Thune’s help in offering this important and helpful legislation.”

South Dakota’s Black Hills National Forest and other national forests around the country require significant maintenance to preserve and improve forest health. More than 86 million acres of National Forest System lands are at higher-than-normal risk for wildfires, insect outbreaks, or disease. By improving the existing and proven authorities of the Healthy Forest Restoration Act on additional national forest acres, it would help reduce the threat of wildfires and allow the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to proactively treat stands before they begin to die and/or deteriorate.

The Forest Management Improvement Act of 2017 would:

Expand Categorical Exclusions:

• Allow USFS to take steps to rapidly salvage dead and dying trees after wildfires, ice storms, or wind events.
• Increase categorical exclusions that are allowed under NEPA from 3,000 to 10,000 acres, which would greatly increase forest management and treatment landscapes.

Provide Greater Certainty for Project-Level Decisions Through Litigation Relief

• Expand the Healthy Forest Restoration Act judicial review provisions to all USFS vegetation management projects, except on acres where timber management is prohibited by law or the forest plan.
• Provide alternative dispute resolution mechanisms for certain projects on a pilot basis.
• Restrict Equal Access to Justice Act payments to reasonable limits for hourly reimbursement and provide stricter controls to ensure that payments do not go to losing plaintiffs or organizations that have substantial financial resources.

Thune’s bill would also create an expedited environmental review process by clarifying that agencies are only required to analyze the proposed action and a no-action alternative for environmental impact statements. It would also clarify that USFS would not be required to conduct a no-action analysis for environmental assessments. Finally, the bill would create a single good neighbor authority by eliminating duplicative U.S. Department of Interior authorities, and it would clarify congressional intent with respect to stewardship contracting.

Click here for legislative text of Thune’s latest farm bill legislation and here for additional background information.

To learn more about Thune’s 2018 farm bill, including the Soil Health and Income Protection Program, Conservation Program Improvement Act of 2017, Commodity Program Improvement Act of 2017, and a bill to improve supplemental agricultural disaster assistance programs, please visit the farm bill section on www.thune.senate.gov.

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