Category: Uncategorized

From the South Dakota Banker’s Association, a good review on why some of the opposition to HB 1193 is misguided …at best:

Before we wrap up this session, I find it imperative to set the record straight and correct the false claims being made regarding HB 1193, “An Act to Amend Provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC).”

To understand what the bill aims to do, it is important to understand the UCC and its purpose. The UCC is the product of law commissioners from each state who serve together on the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) to develop uniform, model acts, or state laws, for adoption by state legislatures. It is not federal law, nor is it developed by the federal government. Let me be clear, these 2022 amendments to the UCC are drafted by the ULC for adoption in states across the nation, and by doing so, it keeps Congress from imposing federal laws into areas where states should be sovereign.

The UCC serves as the backbone of United States’ commerce, giving all Americans the legal infrastructure necessary to have confidence when conducting business in South Dakota and across state lines. The UCC provides commercial law for broad categories of transactions: the sale or lease of goods, negotiable instruments, bank deposits and collections, funds transfers, letters of credit, documents of title, investment property, and secured transactions in personal property. The UCC has been in place in South Dakota (SD) since the 1960s, and adoption of the UCC by every state has allowed the development of strong interstate markets.

The UCC has been revised in SD and by other state legislatures over the years at the recommendation of the Uniform Law Commission and American Law Institute to reflect the economy’s shift from a largely goods-based economy toward an economy that includes services, software, and information-based transactions. The latest updates, the 2022 amendments, will accommodate and “identify” emerged and emerging technologies such as distributed ledger technology (known as “blockchain”), and artificial intelligence. The amendments were drafted over a multi-year process with many open sessions. These amendments bring the UCC into the digital age by adding a new Article addressing digital assets and providing commercial law rules for the transfer and leveraging of virtual currencies and certain other digital assets. Adoption of the 2022 UCC amendments by all states will bring uniformity and clarity to the current law and allow certainty when transacting business with digital assets across state lines. Nothing in the UCC 2022 amendments prevents anyone from deciding what means of exchange to use or what transactions to enter.

and..

Here are the facts: The opposition to HB 1193 is claiming that the updated UCC is, “…the greatest threat to our personal liberty and privacy we’ve faced in a generation.” This belief is simply untrue and misguided. The UCC establishes interstate commerce, allowing the playing field of the market to remain fair, level, and as South Dakotans can attest, open. Failure to adopt the 2022 amendments jeopardizes South Dakota’s ability to remain competitive in commerce and fair market trade, negating everything we’ve stood for in South Dakota for decades. You can “bank on” the facts, not the political theatre.

Read the entire article here.

Just caught this announcement. Republican Clay County State’s Attorney Alexis Tracy is moving to the Attorney General’s office starting on June 1.

Clay County State’s Attorney Alexis Tracy to Join South Dakota Attorney General’s Office

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley has announced that Clay County State’s Attorney Alexis Tracy has been hired as an assistant attorney general for his office.

“Alexis Tracy has proven herself to be a well-balanced attorney who can handle both criminal and civil cases,” said Attorney General Jackley. “Her experience will serve this office well.”

Tracy has been an attorney for 17 years and has been a prosecuting attorney for more than 16 years. She was first elected as Clay County State’s Attorney in 2016 and was re-elected in 2020.

Alexis currently serves as President of the South Dakota State’s Attorney’s Association; and serves on the Legislative Committee for the Association.  Since 2017, she has served as part of STOP (Services, Training, Officers, and Prosecutors), a grant-funded multidisciplinary state training team providing curriculum and education to prosecutors, law enforcement, and victim advocates in response to crimes of domestic violence and sexual assault.  Alexis was appointed to the South Dakota Open Meetings Commission in 2019.  She is a member of the National District Attorney’s Association and the Clay County Child Protection Team.

“I want to thank the Clay County Commission and the people of Clay County for the opportunity to serve them,” she said. “I look forward to serving them, and the rest of South Dakota, in this new capacity.”

Alexis Tracy is scheduled to join the Attorney General’s office in Sioux Falls June 1.

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Thune Discusses Disastrous Situation at U.S. Southern Border

“Border Patrol agents told me that not only do they not feel supported by the Biden administration, they feel like the Biden administration has actually impeded their ability to do their jobs.”

Click here or on the picture above to watch the video.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today spoke on the Senate floor about his recent trip to the Rio Grande Valley at the U.S. southern border.

Casey Crabtree’s Weekly Column: Listening to Constituents

MADISON–The second to last workweek in Pierre found lawmakers focusing on the issues I most often hear about from the people of District 8–lower taxes, workforce development and public safety. Throughout the past several weeks, I have heard ideas and concerns from people throughout the region, and I am proud that the Senate has delivered on its promises.

I am committed to passing tax relief to South Dakotans this year. On Wednesday, I proposed a property tax rebate for South Dakota homeowners. HB 1141 would offer South Dakota homeowners up to $425 in property tax relief each year. If passed by the House and approved by the governor, this amounts to the largest tax relief in South Dakota history at $104 million per year. The Senate and House are also continuing discussions on sales tax reduction. Based on strong revenue projections, I believe we can get the state’s obligations and let our residents keep more of their money in their pocket.

South Dakota’s economy is cooking. But we need more workers to keep the engine roaring, especially well-trained, highly-skilled people. That’s what I regularly hear from the leaders of small businesses and large operations alike. This week, the Senate approved HB 1039 National Guard free tuition at 100 percent at state universities and technical colleges. We are still in discussions to freeze tuition at state institutions. These are top priorities for me because they are important to South Dakota’s future.

On Thursday, the Senate concurred with the House’s changes to the Truth and Sentencing Bill (SB 146). Supported by police chiefs, sheriffs and mayors, this bill aims to keep violent criminals off the streets and protect South Dakota families.

The Madison Elementary School 4th graders and Deubrook High Schoolers visited the Capitol this week and learned about the legislative process. It was great to see these future leaders show such interest in how the state government operates. I was also honored with a visit from my parents, Ken and Cinda, this week. Two District 8 students concluded two-weeks of service as legislative pages. A big thank you to Greta Larson from Lake Preston and Gabrielle Rebelein from Sioux Valley High School. Both represented their families and schools well during their time in Pierre. Thank you!

Next week (this week) is the final workweek for the 2023 legislative session, and we are on track to pass a balanced budget with some incredible one-time investments in the future of the state. As the session winds down, I continue to be confident that South Dakota’s best lie ahead.

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Attorney General, DCI Rule Rapid City Police Officer Shooting Justified

PIERRE, S.D. — South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley has announced that a Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) review has determined that a Rapid City Police officer was justified in the shooting death of a man during a hostage situation on Feb. 3, 2023.

“This was a fast-moving, tense situation where the suspect presented a clear and present danger to the public and the officer,” said Attorney General Jackley. “Only when the suspect ran at the officer with a knife in hand, did the officer fire their weapon.”

The incident began when the officer responded to a reported armed robbery in progress at a Rapid City business. When the officer arrived, they encountered Erik James Wright outside of the business holding a clerk at knife point.

Wright separated himself from the hostage but refused the officer’s commands to drop the knife. Wright ran towards the officer with two knives in his possession and was shot multiple times by the officer. Police officers rendered medical aid to Wright who was transported to a Rapid City hospital where he later died.

Video and audio recordings, interviews of officers and witnesses, and examination of evidence by the South Dakota Forensic Laboratory corroborated the findings of DCI investigators and the officer’s account that they faced a clear and present danger and that there was danger to the public and police. Wright had alcohol in his system and was on parole after being released from prison in January, 2023.

The Attorney General and the Division of Criminal Investigation would like to thank the Pennington County State’s Attorney’s Office, the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, the Custer County Sheriff’s Office, the South Dakota Highway Patrol, and the South Dakota Forensic Laboratory their assistance. The Rapid City Police Department cooperated with the investigation.

The summary of the incident can be found here.

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In the middle of legislative proceedings, again, Senators Pischke and Frye-Mueller attempted a nutty motion to convene a committee on discipline and expulsion to attack Senator Lee Schoenbeck for “Disparaging comments,” again, as part of the investigation of JFM for her creepy comments to a legislative employee.

Predictably, it died for lack of a second. Again.

I have the feeling those two chuckleheads are not going to be invited back to caucus anytime soon.

After a short in-state work period back home in South Dakota, we hit the ground running in Washington as we prepared for our next five weeks in session. Now that our Capitol and Senate office buildings are back open, we’re seeing pre-pandemic levels of visitors in DC. And let me tell you – it is good to have regular South Dakotans here advocating on behalf of issues that affect South Dakota. I had lots of South Dakotans in my office this week, talking about everything from veterans to rural energy to radio and TV broadcasting. We also snuck in a couple hearings, classified briefings and speaking engagements, as well. Here’s my Weekly Round[s] Up:

South Dakota groups I visited with: Members of the South Dakota American Legion, Missouri River Energy Services, South Dakota’s Disabled American Veterans chapter, South Dakota’s NASA Space Grant Consortium and NASA EPSCoR Program, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Chairman Ryman LeBeau, South Dakota Broadcasters Association, South Dakota Department of Transportation Secretary Joel Jundt and the South Dakota Civil Air Patrol.

Meetings this past week: Gen. Paul Nakasone, Commander of US Cyber Command. I also spoke at the National Association of Benefits and Insurance Professionals Convention, as well as the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) Task Force.

I attended our weekly Senate Prayer Breakfast. Former South Dakota Senator Larry Pressler was our speaker this week. While our prayer breakfast is mainly comprised of current members of the United States Senate, we also keep the door open for former members of the upper chamber as well.

Met with South Dakotans from: Aberdeen, Beresford, Blackhawk, Brookings, Chamberlain, Chester, Dell Rapids, Eagle Butte, Garretson, Gregory, Milbank, Pierre, Rapid City, Sioux Falls, Spearfish, Vermillion, Watertown and Yankton.

Topics discussed: Opportunities for partnership between tribes in South Dakota and the federal government, artificial intelligence’s impact on the broadcast journalism industry and the ways Congress can help South Dakota’s veterans.

Legislation introduced: A bipartisan group of my colleagues and I introduced the DAIRY PRIDE Act this past week, a piece of legislation that would combat the unfair practice of misleading labeling of non-dairy products using dairy names. You can read more about that here.

I also introduced bipartisan legislation to expand veterans’ access to assisted living services. The Expanding Veterans’ Options for Long Term Care Act would create a pilot program for eligible veterans to receive assisted living care paid for by the VA. You can read more about that here.

Votes taken: 15 – most notably was our vote on Wednesday to eliminate a rule that would encourage fiduciaries of retirement investment plans to consider environmental, social and governance factors when making investment decisions. I voted to repeal this rule.

Hearings: I had four hearings: One was in the Banking committee, titled “Advancing National Security and Foreign Policy Through Sanctions, Export Controls, and Other Economic Tools.” I had the opportunity to ask the witnesses about the threat of foreign ownership of American farmland and the need for my bipartisan legislation the PASS Act. You can watch a clip of that here.

I also had a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Ukraine, as well as two hearings in the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

Classified briefings: I had two classified briefings: Our bi-weekly cyber education briefing and a Senate Armed Services Committee briefing.

My staff in South Dakota visited: Aberdeen, Fort Pierre, Kadoka, Mitchell, Piedmont, Rapid City and Wall.

Steps taken this week: 56,891 steps or 25.87 miles.

In their last weeks’ newsletter, the South Dakota Republican Party announced 2 upcoming trainings from the Leadership Institute to identify, train and mentor conservative women who want to learn leadership skills, or are considering running for public office:

Are you a Republican woman who has an interest in campaigns or in running for office in your community at some point in the future? The SDGOP is here to develop future leaders, whether you want to run for School Board or be the next Governor Kristi Noem!

Coming up in 2 weeks and hosted by the South Dakota Republican Party, The Women Leaders Series (WLS) is a forum designed to identify, train, mentor, and connect conservative women who are: already community leaders; want to learn leadership skills; or running for public office; or considering running for public office.

We will learn from experts: 

• How to develop a Winning Message
• Keys to effective Fundraising
• Expanding your reach on Social Media.

Two opportunities will be available for women across South Dakota to attend. The first event will be held on Friday, March 17th at the Alex Johnson Hotel in Rapid City from 9:00 AM to Noon. The second in the series will be held on Saturday, March 18th at the South Dakota Military Heritage Alliance building at 1600 W. Russell St. in Sioux Falls. (9-Noon) There will be a $10 fee for each. Pre-registration is encouraged

Classes will be taught by Emily Kertz Lampkin, a seasoned campaign professional and public affairs specialist focusing on strategic communications and issue management. With more than 15 years of experience providing strategic guidance to executives at the highest levels of government and private industry, Lampkin brings a wealth of experience in issue advocacy, grassroots and national politics, project management and communications.

Pre-registration links are available on the party’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/SDGOP 

I’d encourage anyone interested to click on the appropriate link (Rapid City or Sioux Falls), and sign up. Leadership Institute does a nice overview of what it takes to run, and provides a background if you’re thinking of being involved in a campaign.

 PIERRE, S.D. – Yesterday, Governor Noem signed the following 19 bills into law:

• SB 20 authorizes the awarding of deobligated grants in accordance with policies of the Board of Water and Natural Resources;
• SB 46 enhances the penalty for petition circulation perjury;
• SB 48 enhances the penalty for attempted first degree murder of a law enforcement officer;
• SB 52 updates certain provisions regarding the Department of Corrections and the authority of the Secretary of Corrections;
• SB 62 amends provisions regarding delivery of electronic insurance documents;
• SB 102 requires the continued maintenance of the official list of candidates prior to an election;
• SB 143 raises the revenue threshold for a required audit of a water development district;
• SB 147 changes provisions regarding the appointment of legislators to represent South Dakota in the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement;
• SB 179 revises provisions related to the South Dakota Science and Technology Authority;
• SB 188 adds a provision related to the use of a designated refrigerant;
• SB 200 authorizes participation in contracts by certain board members and employees of water districts;
• HB 1029 revises certain provisions regarding the county zoning and appeals process;
• HB 1112 modifies provisions for a statewide runoff election;
• HB 1121 expands the definition of a pesticide dealer;
• HB 1132 revises provisions regarding the duties of the medical marijuana oversight committee;
• HB 1147 provides for the organization of townships or fractions of townships;
• HB 1150 provides a medical cannabis patient a registry identification card fee waiver in certain circumstances;
• HB 1158 bans counterfeit airbags; and,
• HB 1210 modifies the use of conservation district special revenue fund monies and provides an appropriation therefor.

Governor Noem has signed 97 bills into law and vetoed 1 this legislative session.

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Senate Bill 168 to keep convicted violent rapist offenders out of the classroom sailed through both the State House and Senate this session, despite the objections of a couple of legislators who apparently were challenged in keeping rapists away from a pool of potential victims:

The bill was inspired by a situation in Newell, South Dakota. Sen. Ryan Maher, R-Isabel, who represents the area, told lawmakers that a 19-year-old who had been twice convicted of second-degree forcible rape was sitting in a classroom at Newell High School.

and..

The student is in the classroom now,” said Jason Glodt, a lobbyist representing South Dakotans Protecting Students.

and..

Some parents had already pulled their students from the school district, and Johnson had to counsel his two daughters ages 14 and 17 that if they were ever confronted by a sexual predator that they “should fight like hell.”

“A violent rapist should not be in our schools,” he said.

Read the story here at Dakota Scout.

In Senate Education Committee, Senator Tom Pischke cast the only vote against the bill and in favor of rapist rights, expressing concern over the constitutionality of the measure. However, when the bill reached the Senate Floor, Pischke flip/flopped and cast a no vote.

Yesterday on the House floor, the bill almost passed unanimously for those present.. except for Freedumb Caucus Vice-Chairman Tony Randolph, who cast a lone No vote on the House Floor on taking a 19-year-old man who had been twice convicted of second-degree forcible rape out of a school building with 14 year olds girls.

It is shocking that 2 Republican legislators would ignore several planks in the Republican platform with regards to providing a wholesome educational setting (4.2), protecting the public (7.1), and providing citizens with a crime-free environment (7.2).

Not to mention that they would vote to keep a violent rapist in a classroom with kids.