Category: Uncategorized

Gov. Noem Proclaims “Shine a Light, Breaking Bread Week” to Honor Israel and the Jewish People

PIERRE, S.D. – Today, Governor Kristi Noem proclaimed the week of December 11, 2023, as “Shine a Light, Breaking Bread Week.” This week honors the State of Israel and South Dakota’s friendship with the Jewish people. You can read the full proclamation here.

“South Dakota has a long history of being allied with the State of Israel and the Jewish people,” wrote Governor Noem in her proclamation. “Since the October 7 attack on unarmed civilians in Israel, antisemitic incidents have increased here in the U.S.”

The State of South Dakota has long stood with the State of Israel. In 2020, Governor Noem issued an Executive Order to prohibit South Dakota Executive Branch Agencies from contracting with entities boycotting Israel. Governor Noem also declared the week of November 28, 2021, “Antisemitism Awareness Week” and proclaimed February 24, 2022, “Israel Relations Day.”

“’Breaking Bread’ embodies the essence of sharing culture, finding common ground, building community, and preserving traditions,” continued Governor Noem. “South Dakota remains committed to ensuring all people feel safe to share culture, discuss their beliefs openly in their communities, and are welcomed in our state.”

This week – the week of December 11, 2023 – is “Shine a Light, Breaking Bread Week.”

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It seems as if some legislators don’t have enough to do.

Bringing back an issue that few cared about the last time it was rehashed, State Senator Reynold Nesiba is noting he wants to create a commission to create a new design for South Dakota’s State Flag, because 2 or 3 people don’t care for it:

Sen. Reynold Nesiba, D-Sioux Falls, was inspired by Schultz’s suggestion and is considering introducing legislation in January. The bill is still being drafted, but would likely create a commission made up of legislators, governor-appointed members, tribal leaders and South Dakotans with expertise in history, art and tourism to help pick the new flag.

and..

“The South Dakota flag is an objective failure in every use: People aren’t using it to show how proud they are of South Dakota. Non-South Dakotans couldn’t pick it out of a group of other state flags from a distance,” Green said. “So redesign it. You have nothing to lose, but you have everything to gain.”

and..

Flags don’t have to follow the “good flag, bad flag” rules, said Scot Guenter, a professor of American studies at San Jose State University and an academic vexillologist — though he does consider them practical guidelines.

What matters is not just that the flag is “pretty” but that the flag is meaningful and connected to the group identity of the people the flag represents.

Read the entire story here.

If Nesiba wants to remove God and Mount Rushmore from the State Flag, that’s his own business. He can fly whatever flags he wants, but it doesn’t mean that the rest of us have an interest in it.

Hopefully that albatross of an idea will quickly be sent to the 41st day in the South Dakota Legislature, to be ignored for another decade before another Democrat brings it up again.

Here’s an interesting note. Recall the incident with the Minnehaha County Auditor Leah Anderson, where on Monday December 5th, she was attacking the vendor for the county’s election equipment, claiming she wasn’t adequately trained, and was sharing the meeting with a special interest group which she’s affiliated with, and hiring at least one employee from…

Minnehaha County Auditor Leah Anderson had a contentious meeting Monday with the vendors of the county’s election software, in which she claimed the company wasn’t properly training her on the equipment, repeatedly criticized South Dakota Secretary of State Monae Johnson and revealed near the end of the meeting that a group of at least two dozen of Anderson’s supporters had been listening in to the hour-long call — unbeknownst to the rest of the participants.

and..

Anderson was joined by Mike Mathis, an elections coordinator for the county who has been involved with South Dakota Canvassing Group, an election security group that has called for banning machines and electronics from the voting process, as well as preventing mail-in voting and ballot harvesting. Mathis said at an Aug. 2, 2022 meeting of the Minnehaha County Commission that he had “no confidence” in the state’s elections.

Read that all here.

Well, very curiously, the very next day Anderson was in front of the Minnehaha County Commission requesting a 14.5% salary increase, claiming that she’s been “performing well in her position.”

ELECTED DEPARTMENT HEAD SALARY

Carey Deaver, Human Resources Director, gave a briefing on elected officials salary history and requested direction from the Commission for future action to be taken on December 19, 2023. An elected official salary history, a comparison of department head salaries and an elected official market summary and assistant department head salary were provided. Further discussion will be held during the December 19, 2023, meeting. Auditor Anderson addressed the Commission about the salary for the Auditor. Public comment was received from, Larry Fossum, Cindy Meyer, and Gary Meyer.

Read that here.  And you can watch it here, starting at about 44:25.

Performing well? No shame on the Auditor Leah Anderson’s part, is there?

It is noteworthy that the County Commission does have the power of the purse to rein in the auditor from her election conspiracy ways.

Maybe instead of increasing her salary, they need to reduce it to the value they’re receiving? Because it sure seems like she’s more concerned with serving the needs of the SD Canvassing Group than she is with the taxpayers.

Let them pay her, since they seem to be getting the most value from her serving in that office.

South Dakota Must Strengthen DUI Laws in Wake of Rising Incidents with SAFE ROADS Act
by State Rep. Mary Fitzgerald
District 31, Lawrence County, SD

Drunk driving continues to be a dangerous problem in South Dakota. Data collected from 2021 shows that 5,654 people were arrested in South Dakota for DUI, this was an increase of 12.7% from 2020. The data also showed that twenty four percent of intoxicated drivers were repeat offenders. It’s clear the threat to public safety is both real and growing.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conducted a study by gathering information from states regarding repeat DUI offenders. It showed that one out of eight drunk drivers involved in fatality related crashes had been arrested for drunk driving within the last three years.

In January 2024, I’ll introduce a bill before the South Dakota State legislature to eliminate “presumptive probation” for a third offense felony DUI. Right now, offenders will receive a presumption of probation for this crime. This puts our families at risk when we travel on our roads and highways.

My bill further addresses an inconsistency with our DUI laws. As it stands, the law requires a mandatory two-year prison sentence for a fourth DUI offense, yet a conflicting statute (SDCL 22-6-11) allows for “presumptive probation” for the same crime. My intention is to correct this error by adding that a fourth offense DUI to the list of crimes that are not eligible for presumptive probation; that was the original intent of the law.

Our government’s duty to safeguard its citizens is paramount… and this includes the prevention of avoidable tragedies on our roads and highways. It’s the core obligation of government to protect its citizens and this responsibility includes the prevention of repeat drunk driving crimes.

Rep. Will Mortenson Seeks Re-Election to District 24 House of Representatives

FORT PIERRE, SD – Republican Rep. Will Mortenson announced his intention to run for re-election to the state House of Representatives in District 24, which covers central South Dakota.

“For the last three years, I brought a common sense, conservative approach to the Legislature,” said Mortenson. “I have worked hard, been willing to take firm stands, and always kept my focus on improving South Dakota for generations to come.”

During his time in the legislature, Mortenson has been a recognized leader in supporting education, cutting taxes, and fighting for ag producers and landowners. In his second term, Mortenson was elected by his colleagues to serve as Majority Leader of the Republicans in the House of Representatives.

“South Dakota still works,” noted Mortenson. “While other states have gone off the rails, South Dakota has stayed steady. If you send me back to the Capitol, I’ll work every day to keep our state on track.”

Mortenson, 35, is an ag business and estate planning attorney in Fort Pierre. He is active in the a cow- calf operation in northwestern Stanley County. Mortenson is an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and a lifelong resident of central South Dakota. He and his wife, Shuree, live in Fort Pierre with their two children: Augie and Jules.

Mortenson plans to preview the 2024 legislative session and announce his re-election bid at a campaign kick-off event on Thursday, December 14 from 5 – 7 PM at the St. Charles on Capitol Avenue in Pierre. All interested voters are welcome.

District 24 includes Haakon, Hughes, Hyde, Stanley, and Sully counties. District 24 is also represented in the House of Representatives by Rep. Mike Weisgram (R-Fort Pierre) and in the Senate by Sen. Jim Mehlhaff (R-Pierre)

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Is it time for Minnehaha county to combine a couple of county offices? Because I’m not sure there’s another mechanism for them to get rid of their crackpot of a county auditor, Leah Anderson.

As the Argus Leader is reporting, not only is Anderson hiring members of an election conspiracy group and putting them in charge of her elections, she’s hosting the same special interest group as part of her meetings with equipment vendors.

Mathis then asked if a “highly respected” person from South Dakota would be able to be present and perform their own inspection, though he did not name who that person would be. In an interview, Anderson said she knew the person’s identity but would not share it, as she had not spoken further with ES&S about the process.

and..

Mathis continued that they’d want the individual to look for modems and do an inspection of the machine.

“Both Leah and I’s reputation is totally on the line. What if it comes out years down the road that there were modems in these machines, and we never — all your studies are great. The people want somebody that they know and trust to do a study. And I do too!”

and..

And so I just want to let you know that especially Monae, you also work for the people, and you haven’t been very supportive of the people.”

At this point, Anderson rotated a nearby laptop, revealing a group of two dozen people, including Weible, who had been listening in on the call from another location, and later gave Anderson a round of applause after the call had ended.

Read the story here.

A ‘secret’ election expert? While she’s broadcasting the meeting to the special interest group she appears to be doing the bidding of? Good lord.

The Secretary of State has certainly made some unforced errors over the course of the last year, but not kowtowing to the demands of election conspiracy groups is not one of them. Especially when they have taken control of the election office in the largest county in the state.

The Minnehaha County Commission needs to do something pretty quick, because looks like their election office is heading for a crash.

Hot out of my email box, Former secretary of state employee Logan Manhart is announcing he will be a candidate for district one house.

Let’s Talk about the “Big Three”
By: Governor Kristi Noem
December 8, 2023

I recently presented my budget to the South Dakota State Legislature. It’s a budget that prioritizes people, not programs. It shows what can be done with smart, conservative fiscal policies. And it focuses on the core responsibilities of state government.

South Dakota has reaped the benefits of conservative policies. Our economy has continued to grow, but that doesn’t mean that we haven’t felt the effects of the record-high inflation brought on by federal policies. This year, as we face a more “normal” budget year, I am encouraging the legislature to do exactly what families across America are doing every single day – stick to a tight budget.

National inflation has continued to rise over the past year. State law requires that we increase funding to our K-12 schools at inflation or 3%, whichever is lower. We typically provide the same increase to our healthcare providers and state employees – together, they make the “Big Three.” Well, this year, I am recommending that we go above and beyond the legal requirement. I am proposing that we provide a 4% increase for education, healthcare providers, and state employees.

We are only going to be able to accomplish this increase if we make sure we have our priorities straight. Well, I know where my priorities lie – and it’s with the people of South Dakota.

There’s a reason why the “Big Three” is the “Big Three.” They are the ones who give back to our communities across the state. They are the ones putting in the hard work to make our state the best that it can be. And they are the ones that are creating a better South Dakota for our kids and our grandkids.

By investing 4% in our schools, we will give our school districts the money to pay teachers more. Our teachers are one of the most important factors to set our kids up for a lifetime of success. And we can retain great teachers by paying them what they deserve.

If we want to give our kids the very best opportunity to succeed, we need to set them up for a healthy future.

The 4% increase for our providers is an important step to promote good health for South Dakotans at every age and state of life. This is an increase that doesn’t pick winner and losers. Inflation is impacting all of our providers, so we should provide them all with the relief they so desperately need.

Some of our kids will want to join careers in our state workforce. We need to support our state employees who do so much for the people of South Dakota. They work every day to make this state safer, stronger, and healthier. My budget proposal gives a 4% raise to state employees so that we can continue to attract and retain the best and brightest.

We have the opportunity to show the world what is possible with good, conservative policies – policies that prioritize our kids and our grandkids.

I do not go to work every day for myself. I go to work to serve the people that make this state great. They inspire me. And I pray that we deliver a budget that they can be proud of – a budget that puts them first.

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Final Ballot Explanation Released For Initiated Measure To Legalize Recreational Marijuana and Create Dual-Use Licenses

PIERRE, S.D. – The final ballot explanation for a draft initiated measure, proposed by Emmett Reistroffer of Rapid City, that would legalize recreational marijuana and create dual-use licenses for medical marijuana dispensaries, has been released filed with the Secretary of State by the South Dakota Attorney General’s Office.

Attorney General Marty Jackley takes no position on any such proposal for purposes of the ballot explanation. He has provided a fair and neutral explanation of the proposed initiated measure to help assist the voters.

The proposed initiated measure would allow individuals 21 years old or older to possess, grow, sell, ingest, and distribute marijuana or marijuana paraphernalia. The initiated measure does not affect laws dealing with hemp.  The measure also authorizes the South Dakota Department of Health to issue dual-use licenses to medical marijuana dispensaries.  A dual-use license allows dispensaries to sell marijuana to persons 21 years or older.

The final ballot explanation can be found here.

If the required 17,509 valid signatures are gathered and approved by the South Dakota Secretary of State’s Office, the proposed initiated measure will be placed on the 2024 general ballot. A majority of the votes cast in the general election will be needed to pass the measure.

The Attorney General’s explanation was drafted after a review of all the comments received during the proposed amendment’s 10-day comment period. A total of six comments were received.

For more information regarding ballot measures, please visit the Secretary of State’s website.

Hohman Announces Candidacy for District 16 State Senate

CANTON–Eric Hohman today announced his candidacy as a Republican to represent District 16 in the South Dakota State Senate. Raised in southeast South Dakota, Hohman and his family have been active in Lincoln, Union and Turner counties for generations. Hohman is eager to meet area voters and is ready to hit the ground running in Pierre to advocate for the people of District 16.

“District 16 is a microcosm of our South Dakota. With rural and urban needs, industrial and agricultural needs, we need a state senator who reflects our region’s values and can listen to the needs of the constituents,” said Hohman. “I’m the proven leader most able to advocate for agriculture, schools, small towns, rural values, and fight against special interests that could disrupt our way of life.”

Eric and his wife, Mona, have two adult children—Andy and Rachel—and six grandchildren who all reside in the Canton School District. He graduated from Canton High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Business and Commercial Economics from South Dakota State University as well as a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of South Dakota.

“South Dakota has given my family and I so much. We are truly blessed,” said Hohman. “I look forward to giving back by representing my neighbors with thoughtful, principled, and conservative leadership. Now is my time to give back, and I humbly ask the voters of District 16 for their support in the 2024 election.”

Hohman’s parents—Dr. Paul and Roz Hohman—instilled in him a duty of giving back to the community. Eric served on the Canton School Board and was previously active with the Forest Hill Cemetery Board, the Canton Library Board, the Sioux Empire Red Cross Board and treasurer of the Canton Lutheran Church. He currently is active with the Jim and Caroline Deinema Canton Community Foundation, the Lutheran Church Foundation and the Depot.

During his time owning the Sioux Valley newspaper and working in the banking industry, Hohman learned the importance of accessibility, independence, transparency, honesty and keeping true to your word. To Hohman, these are crucial for long-lasting relationships. As a state senator, Eric will be a leader District 16 can be proud of because he is committed to these same principles as an elected public official.

The District 16 Senate seat will be vacated by longtime public servant Jim Bolin, who is term-limited and unable to seek re-election to the State Senate. Hohman is grateful for Senator Bolin’s leadership in the Legislature and passion for public service.

District 16 includes the majority of Lincoln, Turner and Union counties. The Republican primary election is Tuesday, June 4, 2024, and the general election is Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024.

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