Category: Uncategorized

Thune: Don’t Jeopardize South Dakota Tourism Industry by Halting Important Work Visas

-Letter demands DHS, DOL reach an immediate agreement on H-2B Visa Program-

 

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary (DHS) Jeh Johnson and U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Secretary Thomas Perez calling on the agencies to reach an immediate agreement on issuing important seasonal employment work visas (H-2B) critical to the South Dakota tourism and construction industries. The loss of these employees would have a significant impact on South Dakota’s economy. Last week, DOL began halting all H-2B labor visas after a federal judge ruled the agency was stepping outside its statutory authority.

 

“Bureaucratic red tape at the Departments of Labor and Homeland Security is jeopardizing South Dakota’s tourism and construction industries,” said Thune. “I’ve heard from several businesses across the state concerned that this standstill in H-2B visas could threaten their ability to fill important seasonal positions ahead of the upcoming tourist season. These agencies have the ability to fix this visa issue before it becomes a problem for industries across the nation, and the time to act is now. I’ll continue to stay in close contact with the DOL and DHS and remain committed to working with South Dakota businesses to get this problem resolved.”

 

The text of Thune’s letter is below:

__

 

March 9, 2015

 

The Honorable Thomas Perez

Secretary of Labor

Office of the Secretary

U.S. Department of Labor

200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room S-2018

Washington, DC 20210

 

The Honorable Jeh Johnson

Secretary of Homeland Security

Office of the Secretary

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Washington, DC 20528

 

Secretaries Perez and Johnson:

 

It has come to my attention that the Department of Labor (DOL) has ceased processing H-2B visa requests following an injunction by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.  South Dakota relies heavily on H-2B visa holders serving as seasonal employees supporting the tourist industry throughout South Dakota, including the Black Hills.  Without the ability to hire such seasonal workers for the upcoming tourist season, many local businesses will be severely impacted, and some may be unable to operate.  H-2B visas are also essential to the construction industry in South Dakota, which contributes significantly to my state’s economy. 

 

It is my understanding that this issue can be resolved if the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issues delegation authority for H-2B visas to DOL or if DHS and DOL issue joint H-2B visa regulations together.  I would encourage you to pursue one of these solutions as soon as possible so that employers can prepare for the upcoming tourist season.

 

I would appreciate a response once you have determined the best solution for resolving this issue.

 

Sincerely,

 

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today joined 52 colleagues in expressing concern for a new proposal that would severely limit access to rifle ammunition primarily used for sporting purposes. This class of ammunition is protected from prohibition under a 1986 Law Enforcement Officer Protection Act exemption. The framework, proposed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), would set arbitrary guidelines for determining whether certain ammunition meets the 1986 law’s “sporting purposes” exemption. As a result, access to rifle ammunition long considered to be primarily used for activities such as target shooting and hunting could be limited.

 

In a letter to ATF Director Todd Jones, the senators assert that the new framework defies the intent of Congress when it passed the 1986 law. They also question ATF’s authority to establish such a framework and express concern for its impact on Second Amendment rights guaranteed in the Constitution.

 

“Second Amendment rights require not only access to firearms but to bullets,” the senators write. “If law-abiding gun owners cannot obtain rifle ammunition, or face substantial difficulty in finding ammunition available and at reasonable prices because government entities are banning such ammunition, then the Second Amendment is at risk.”

 

Text of the letter is below.

 

 

March 9, 2015

 

The Honorable B. Todd Jones

Director

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives

99 New York Avenue, N.E.

Washington, DC  20226

 

Dear Director Jones:

 

We take issue with the “ATF Framework for Determining Whether Certain Projectiles are ‘Primarily Intended for Sporting Purposes’ Within the Meaning of 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(17)(C),” to which ATF sought comment on February 13, 2015.

 

Congress in 1986 passed the Law Enforcement Officers Protection Act (LEOPA).  It did so to protect law enforcement officers from a particular category of bullets – those that could be fired from handguns and pierce police officers’ body armor.  Because rifle ammunition could also pass through police body armor, and some rifle ammunition could be fired from handguns, LEOPA protected common rifle ammunition by exempting from its scope projectiles “which the Attorney General finds [are] primarily intended to be used for sporting purposes.”

 

The “Framework” does not follow LEOPA.  Without any support, it purports to create an “objective” test never before applied for delineating which projectiles are “primarily intended to be used for sporting purposes.”  ATF will exempt a “.22 caliber projectile … if the projectile weighs 40 grains or less AND is loaded into a rimfire cartridge,” and will exempt other forms of ammunition if they are “loaded into a cartridge for which the only handgun that is readily available in the ordinary channels of commercial trade is a single shot handgun.”  But even if a particular projectile satisfies these novel tests, ATF proposes to “retain[] the discretion to deny any application for a ‘sporting purposes’ exemption if substantial evidence exists that the ammunition is not primarily intended for such purposes.”

 

ATF would determine what amounts to “substantial evidence” and whether the “ammunition is not primarily intended for [sporting] purposes.”  The statute was not enacted to give authority to ATF to do either.  In 1986, the sponsors of the legislation were emphatic in stating that ammunition commonly used in rifles for target practice or hunting was not of the type of ammunition that the bill would ban.  ATF seems to have decided to ban ammunition types that the law did not ban, then developed from whole cloth an “objective” test to supposedly provide it with the ability to ban the ammunition types it already had selected for prohibition.

 

Earlier, ATF recognized the proper scope of LEOPA.  ATF has always granted an exemption to the M855 5.56 x 45mm cartridge from the LEOPA ban because it recognized that this ammunition fell squarely within the “sporting purposes” test.  It did so because factually, as well as legally under the legislative language, such cartridges were and are widely used by millions of law-abiding gun owners for “sporting purposes.” These cartridges are prevalent for one of the most commonly possessed rifles, the AR-15.  Congress did not, and did not intend to, ban this form of ammunition.

 

ATF’s proposed restriction of the M855 cartridge is particularly serious in light of efforts to ban other forms of ammunition.  The standards in the “Framework” would make use of ammunition containing materials other than lead more difficult.  At the same time, various efforts to ban lead ammunition are proceeding apace.  Second Amendment rights require not only access to firearms but to bullets.  If law-abiding gun owners cannot obtain rifle ammunition, or face substantial difficulty in finding ammunition available and at reasonable prices because government entities are banning such ammunition, then the Second Amendment is at risk.  An outright ban is an even more serious threat to the Second Amendment than the threat to the First Amendment’s protection of free press created by a tax imposed only on voluminous purchases of paper and ink.  See Minneapolis Star Tribune Co. v. Commissioner, 460 U.S. 575 (1983). 

 

It is not clear where ATF believes it has obtained the authority to issue general standards interpreting the meaning of “sporting purposes” under LEOPA as opposed to exempting or not exempting particular cartridges.  Nevertheless, no federal statute, including LEOPA, interferes with the ability of law-abiding citizens to obtain ammunition commonly used for such legitimate purposes as target shooting, hunting, and shooting competitions.  Nor could any such statute do so consistent with the Second Amendment.  The “Framework” should not be adopted, and ATF should not propose in the future to ban any widely used form of ammunition used by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes.

 

Sincerely,

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From KELO:

Members of the House State Affairs Committee added the idea Monday to a highway funding bill working its way through Pierre. The proposal would increase the speed limit to 80 mph on Interstate highways.

Read it here.

I’ve got a few things in Pierre that I’m going to be working on this next week, as well as following SB190.

I’m going to spending a good chunk of the week at South Dakota’s State Capitol – our cradle of democracy. (Unless you care to refer to it as South Dakota’s sausage factory, with all the lips and beaks you can grind.)

So, I’ll plan on writing you all from Pierre.

According to Johnathan Ellis, There’s a Democrat group of drinkers who quit their current drinking location because the bar also has a lingerie night:

Drinking Liberally, a Democratic group that often gets together on Fridays for adult beverages and political talk, is moving from Wiley’s to 18th Amendment starting this Friday. The reason for the move is because of “sexual insensitivity” regarding some of the promotional materials at Wiley’s.

Read it here.

So, drinking good, promotions for the businesses they drink in, bad.

They must also abandon libraries whenever the Sports illustrated swimsuit issue comes out. And television whenever it’s not turned to PBS.

Am I the only one doing an eye roll?

AFP S.D. Applauds Legislature On Stopping Penny Sales Tax

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Today, Americans for Prosperity South Dakota is applauding the State House Affairs Committee on their vote to stop the penny sales tax. Over the past few weeks AFP South Dakota has actively engaged the legislature on the issue, launching a major patch-through phone call campaign and mobilizing its network of in-state activists to contact legislators to stop what could have been the largest tax increase in state history.

AFP South Dakota State Director Ben Lee released the following statement:

“We congratulate the State House Affairs Committee on standing up for South Dakota middle class families everywhere and defeating the penny sales tax. If every city participated, it would have been the largest tax increase in state history. At a time when many South Dakota families are still struggling to make ends meet, a new sales tax just wouldn’t have been fair,” AFP South Dakota State Director Ben Lee said.

Thankfully, today legislators did the right thing for middle class workers across our great state. We thank the many activists who contacted their legislators to be sure South Dakota remains a beacon for freedom both here and around the country,” AFP South Dakota State Director Ben Lee said.

Legislators who voted to stop the bill have the appreciation of the chapter’s thousands of activists, staff and volunteers as well as the appreciation of other organizations speaking out against the measure.

According to reports this morning (This one from the Argus/Associated Press), Rapid City Mayor Sam Kooiker is going for a third term:

Sam Kooiker announced this re-election campaign Thursday.

The 40-year-old Kooiker says if re-elected he plans to improve race relations and resolve long-standing issues the city has faced in complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act. He says he also will continue his focus on the improving city’s infrastructure.

Read it here.

His second race for the office was a repeat against then Mayor Alan Hanks, with Kooiker coming out victorious. His third race, and second as mayor was against challenger and State Senator Mark Kirkeby.

There’s no word as to whether Kooiker will face a challenger in this years’ contest, which will be decided this June.