Better Than We Found It
A column by Gov. Dennis Daugaard:
If you visit the Capital City, you will see that the “Trail of Governors” project is placing around Pierre life-size bronze statues of every former governor. Twenty-two statues are already in place, with nine left to go.
Among the 22 statues already in place, the Trail includes former governors whom I have known personally. It also includes other governors whom I remember. Still other statues depict governors who are not so familiar: Robert S. Vessey, William McMaster, and Warren E. Green. All of these governors worked hard and achieved good things for South Dakota, but very few South Dakotans remember them today.
In the past few weeks, I’ve had several news reporters ask me, “What is your legacy?” Governors Vessey, McMaster, and Green were probably asked the same thing when they were leaving office. To some, that question might be, “For what will you be remembered?”
To me, the question is, “Will you leave this state better than you found it?” We sometimes benefit from the decisions made by our past governors, even if we don’t know their names. We shouldn’t be concerned about being remembered, but about whether our efforts have been productive and helpful.
More than anything else, I am proud that we have maintained fiscal discipline in South Dakota, and that we have taken steps to make our financial footing even stronger. South Dakota’s AAA bond rating is a recognition that our state does things the right way. We are responsible stewards of state money and state assets. We structurally balance our budget, without wasting reserves or using accounting gimmicks. I know future generations will benefit from those decisions.
When I first came into office eight years ago, our state faced very difficult times – the recession had created a deficit of $127 million. I proposed that we eliminate that deficit, in one year, by cutting expenses. We ripped off the band-aid. It wasn’t an easy thing to do, but it was the right thing to do. Many legislators showed great courage in supporting those cuts. Together we put our state back on the right track.
In the years since, we have worked together many times to make our state better. We worked to bring reform to our education system, to make our funding formula fairer, and to get teacher salaries out of last place. We fought together for sales tax fairness and led the states to a historic victory in the Supreme Court. We prioritized the maintenance and repair of our highways, our bridges, and our state buildings. We created a new state park and expanded opportunities at others. We made the largest investment in drug and mental health treatment in state history. And we made our technical institutes the envy of the nation.
We did all of that together. That doesn’t mean everyone agreed on everything that happened. But that’s part of the process. We still have a strong legislative process in South Dakota. We don’t let ideology get in the way of solving problems, and we don’t let politics get in the way of professionalism, respect, and friendship. That is why our state works and it is why our legislature works. As I near the end of twenty-two years of service in this Capitol, I hope that never changes.
-30-