There was a column published yesterday in Inforum papers in North Dakota by Scott Hennen, who notes how South Dakota is tarnishing it’s reputation as a place where people want to do business when the state changes the rules after someone has a project in process by the rules that had been set:
South Dakota once gained a reputation as one of the most business-friendly states in the U.S. due to your pro-business policies and low taxes.
and..
But that great reputation is all being threatened by a group of misguided Republicans who have been duped by big-money lawyers and extreme environmental groups. They have taken over your legislature and your state party. They are standing in the way of President Trump’s “America First” energy agenda, which relies on infrastructure.
Gov. Larry Rhoden shared great wisdom when he warned legislators against changing the rules in the middle of the game. His plea to keep South Dakota open for business is being disregarded.
and..
A national energy company, GEVO, has invested $200 million already in a planned $1.63 billion plant in Lake Preston, S.D. Because of your toxic political environment, founder Dr. Patrick Gruber told me he may have to move the plant. “I have to go convince people from Wall Street to invest in South Dakota. How can I do that in a place that changes the rules of the game after we’ve started and spent money?”
Instead of being a land of economic opportunity, South Dakota is quickly becoming the place where value-added agriculture goes to die.
We’ll see how this all plays out, but as usual, I suspect we’re going to be our own worst enemies.
So sad. The SDGOP is now controlled by special interest groups. We need an overhaul of our political system so that true Republicans get control of the steering wheel. Too bad we aren’t going to get open primaries.
Funny he mentions Rhoden talking about not changing the rules. All he had to do was veto that thing. I can’t see him as anything but a coward now.
Sure looks like Larry valued actually being elected Governor next go round over a carbon sequestration pipeline.
Ok. So basically you’re saying he doesn’t actually have integrity. In one session, he says one thing, and when the winds change he says another. It’s really not just about carbon sequestration. It’s about the message it sends to everyone wanting to do business here now, and in the future. Lost just about all respect for him. If he would have been against it from the beginning that’s one thing. But this was him clearly caving to the loudest voices
I totally understand what you are saying. I am simply pointing out the likelihood of what made him change his mind. I never stated that I didn’t agree with you on the integrity side. He likely took note of what happened in the last primary election, and decided he didn’t want to be yet another incumbent ousted because of perceived wrongdoing by a private company. Whether or not that perception is valid.
With gevo now owning Net Zero Richardton, i wouldn’t be surprised if they move everything to north dakota.
Fun fact, the GEVO plant was initially going to be built in South Dakota without a carbon sequestration pipeline. Everything proposed was based off carbon credits secured through regenerative agriculture. There still is no mention of the requirement or necessity of a carbon sequestration pipeline to achieve this on their website. So if GEVO moves their plant, you can once again, thank Summit for destroying that opportunity for South Dakota. If they never show up, GEVO is built, as planned, in South Dakota.
Ummm… no. While it may be true that gevo might not need the pipeline, this has everything to do with how our state treated the pipeline and the message it sends. This wasn’t about eminent domain laws and reform. If it was, they would have went with melhaff’s proposal. This was about sending a message to “green” energy and by affiliation, ethanol. If gevo relocates it is entirely the fault of the moron legislators that we elected who intentionally mislead people or were do dumb to understand what was happening.
If Gevo relocates it is also 100% Summit’s fault. If they stay off Bossly’s property and especially don’t enter his house and shop on video, none of the new legislators fighting this project get elected.
You clearly believe the lies being told…do you honestly believe strangers walked into someone’s house??? It 100% never happened!! The employees of Summit Carbon have been nothing but respectful of us & our property! The whole thing with Bosley has gotten so blow into nothing but lies by an over paid Attorney & Bosley is enjoying his 15 minutes of fame from it…
Fox Business did a story on this. When you get National attention because of a private company’s actions, you’re gonna have a hard time overcoming that. You can think he was lying all you want, that doesn’t change the fact that Summit’s actions are what caused the downfall of the South Dakota leg of the pipeline. Just because you had a great interaction, that doesn’t automatically mean everyone else did. That goes both ways, so I do believe that you did have a good interaction. I can’t refute it, so I will take your word for it.
By the time the average voter realizes how destructive this legislative session has been, it will be too late. Companies interested in making long term investments in South Dakota will have already decided to make those investments in other states.
They have decided. Closed for business. Remarkable. Leadership in the SD legislature and Dakota Rural Action have gotten exactly what they wanted. Think about that.
They only got what they wanted because Summit entered Bossly’s house/shop on video. Nothing changes that fact.
Lies!!! That NEVER happened…it’s a story that has been blown up by an over paid Attorney & giving Bosley his 15 minutes of fame…if it were remotely true, there would be lawsuits & the video would be made public. Just because you read it on Facebook doesn’t make it truth!!
The video is on youtube. Fox Business did a national story on it. It remains entirely Summit’s fault that the pipeline didn’t get constructed.
I think any other company could have gotten the pipeline accomplished in South Dakota. Summit bungled the entire South Dakota campaign from the get go. Once the Bossly incident occurred, they could have begun damage control, but instead they doubled down. Not to mention all the counties that had Summit officials lying to their faces every month, getting caught in those lies, and then simply switching out new representatives for the next monthly meetings with either a new set of lies, or just a new mouth telling the same lies. If you want to blame anyone for this project failing, blame Summit.
These same republicans that you are criticizing, were only able to be elected because of the overwhelmingly bad taste Summit left in the people’s mouths. Perhaps Summit was incorrectly led to believe, by Kristi Noem, and or her cohorts, that she had much greater influence on the state than she ultimately proved she had. Maybe that is why Summit was so confident that they could simply shrug off the Bossly debacle. Even if Kristi led Summit to believe this, the blame still falls on Summit. If you have been tasked to get a pipeline pushed through a state, perhaps you shouldn’t rely on what said State’s Governor tells you. Perhaps you should make sure every base is covered from any and all angles, instead of becoming complacent or combative to the numerous catastrophic public relation disasters you created in your wake.
Maybe instead of dumping large sums of money into political campaigns trying to keep SB201/RL21 on the books, Summit should have recognized that bill didn’t secure the pipeline’s existence in South Dakota anyway and used those funds to either up the voluntary easement amounts or simply begin trying to repair landowner relations. Maybe they should have looked into if using the right of way would have been a feasible option once they account for the money saved on both legal and political battles.
I continually see people criticizing our state’s citizens and newly elected representatives for something that was CLEARLY not their fault. The sooner we can all blame the ONLY individual entity that should be catching flak for this disaster, which is undoubtedly Summit, the sooner we can try to heal the huge division in our state, that SUMMIT, and no one else, has caused.
Control what you can control. The people, collectively, control elections. Legislators, collectively, control the legislature. Summit controls their actions. Legislators, and or our citizens, didn’t create Summit’s public image. Summit did. Remember that and what it may have ultimately cost our state. ALL the fingers should be pointing in the same direction, and the right direction is certainly not at our citizens or legislators.
Legislators exploited this to their benefit. I’m amazed you are trying to give them a pass.
Legislators exploited what to their benefit? Legislators who had ties to ethanol plants and tried to get the project completed so they would profit from it? Or legislators that would somehow profit by Summit failing? Either way, Summit is to blame. If they don’t go into Bossly’s house/shop on video, and Noem doesn’t reply to Bossly with the idiotic “Do you want me to fight all your battles for you?!?” comment, I think the project is completed. That was the turning point. That was what allowed people across the entire state and even nation to form their own opinion on Summit and ushered in the new wave of legislators. It’s still on Summit.
Yeah, let’s ignore the fact that legislators opposed to the bill have been spreading misinformation like wildfire and blame Summit. Can any of you EVER accept responsibility? Ever?
If Summit doesn’t go into Bossly’s house/shop ON VIDEO, and then Noem doesn’t just brush Bossly off, this pipeline happens. It’s the only reason these people were able to be elected. Did you happen to see any of the states where the pipeline will still be going in have totally diabolical public relations disasters that ended up on national television? Do you think maybe that’s why the pipeline is still happening in said states? So whether RL21 passed or failed is entirely moot. It didn’t guarantee the pipeline would be constructed anyhow. Summit made their own bed. Not our citizens or legislators.
I see you ignored the opposition lying repeatedly to just make the same point over and over again. Lovely.
Because the lying portion of it is immaterial. There was a National story on Fox about this interaction. I didn’t see Summit put out a statement or try to sue Bossly over this. If they did, I sure don’t remember hearing about it. The only entity that could have made sure that interaction didn’t happen, is Summit. Nothing changes that.
You haven’t been paying attention. These legislators lied and lied again to make RL 21 about eminent domain so they could win their spots in the legislature. Now, they aren’t even being transparent about this. Now, instead of chanting “no eminent domain for private gain” they have changed it to “No eminent domain for non-essential private developers”. Laughable. They are hypocrites. No one who leads with integrity does any of these things.
So then why did Summit put all that money into the “Yes on RL21” campaign? It makes my argument that Summit should have gone a different angle look even better. SB201 was available online to the entire nation. The only summaries I saw on RL21 hid the fact that the dispersion model would be kept private, and almost no one mentioned that it regulated all linear transmission facilities and not just carbon pipelines. So exactly who is being hypocritical here? If Summit stays out of Bossly’s house/shop, there is likely no platform for these lesser known Republican’s to step on and have a voice. So, once again, SUMMIT’s actions allowed all of this to happen. SUMMIT IS TO BLAME. If you want recourse, go after them. That’s where the blame lies.
What district do you represent? This reeks of a politician deflecting. I can agree that summit has blame. They did a poor job at the outset. But don’t for one second act like ALL the blame should be placed on them. This is the biggest bunch of manipulative opportunists that I have ever seen in Pierre. And that’s saying something. Good legislators could have healed this AND saved the deal.
If Summit doesn’t enter into Bossly’s house/shop on video, and gain national attention in doing so, the pipeline is constructed and likely none of the incumbent’s would have lost in the primaries. That is the fatal flaw. Summit, and only Summit, are to blame for this.
Your delusional!! The stories your sharing about Summit are only half truths! Yes, they came here thinking it would be easy like most pipelines in most states…sadly even after pausing & starting over, the over paid Anti pipeline Attorney has found the loud overreactive Anti progress South Dakota minority to get on his band wagon. If it weren’t for the lies & threats by the oposition group, more landowners would be more vocally in favor of the pipeline. I have worked with Summit & myself & my land have been treated with nothing but respect. The oposition group & legislators they bought should be ashamed of themselves for what they have done & how they have acted. Governor Rhoden only signed HB1052 because he’s a coward & was threatened!
It doesn’t matter if you think my stories are only half truths, just like it doesn’t matter that I think your opinion is likely swayed because you likely had a significant monetary benefit coming directly to you if they completed this pipeline. What matters is why Summit failed. Summit failed because of the Bossly incident that gained National traction. You can’t blame anyone else but them.
The Bosley “incident” did NOT happen as you think!! The lies about this are out of control! Ask people who were there…I did. Maybe Bosleys Attorney should have done his job & let Bosley know the survey crew was coming & maybe Bosley shouldn’t have threatened to shoot anyone…Then the security wouldn’t have had to be there in such force.
Summit did regroup…reroute & work harder at better relationships! They even let a lot of people go who were being accused on being heavy handed
Summit was very quiet when it came to SB201/RL21. If right of way use was an option, I sure would think they would have done it. There is a loud dishonest oposition group that have told any lie needed to get what they want!
I’ll take these guys seriously about free enterprise when they build this pipeline without federal tax credits. This is not a real business, it’s a federal boondoggle.
That’s why these landowners are fine with an oil pipeline or a water pipeline. That’s a real business and an economic need. Carbon pipelines are not.
Fracking oil is not real business?
Don’t kid yourself. The next water line or oil pipeline will get this same level of opposition. These people (maybe you included) simply hate everything.
South Dakota. Once known as the land of infinite variety can now be known as the land where we want you to locate here but if some local whackos named Karla or Ed or Scott or Jon decide they want to change the rules good luck with that. You have just lost all your investments in the great closed state of South Dakota.
South Dakota has a rich history of kicking its self directly in the nuts!
To the extent this is a problem, Summit shares responsibility. Jared Bossly was mentioned earlier. His situation was emblematic of early efforts that galvanized sentiment against Summit. Combined with the Trump style populist movement this was a powder keg. And CO2 is not oil. Oil is a commodity that provides real energy. A CO2 pipeline represents questionable science and a liberal feel good project funded by federal tax dollars. Summit claims they’ll pay the landowner, but the longevity of the company and the tax credit are in doubt. Is SD open for business? Of course. Are we eager to be walked all over and duped? No.
Doesn’t really matter what any of us thinks about carbon. This will be about how we changed the rules to punish one company and industry. Good legislators could have salvaged this. A couple tried and were run over by the loud mouth morons we put in last election. Blame summit. Fine. Say carbon pipelines and tax credit funded projects are junk. Fine. Many of us would agree. But the legislators, and governor, handles this so poorly that we have lost all credibility. Credibility and trust that took a long time to gain with future businesses.
You are correct. It doesn’t matter what any of us thinks about carbon. Just imagine a world where Summit doesn’t enter Bossly’s building on video. A world where Kristi Noem didn’t then tell Bossly, “Am I supposed to fight all of your battles for you?!?” A world where that story doesn’t get national coverage. A world where none of incumbents lost primaries. That would be a world where South Dakota already has this project permitted and we are in the initial steps of reaping the benefits of carbon sequestration. The benefits being the tax credits. Because like you said, “Doesn’t really matter what any of us thinks about carbon.” The tax credits, i.e. money, are real.
Even Noem isn’t to blame because if Summit doesn’t open those doors, Noem doesn’t have to have that conversation with Bossly. Summit. Summit. Summit. That is who to blame.
This is a bad scenario for South Dakota. The chilling effect on economic development will stretch far beyond any CO2 pipeline. South Dakota has done this to itself before. In the 1990’s Amendment E came up after the scare of “corporate farms”. Counties followed up with over restrictive ordinances that took private property rights away through set backs. This devastated rural communities. The state went through many school consolidations and populations shrank as livestock numbers shrank. Lots of unit train terminals popped up to ship our commodities to other states that embraced development, and our kids followed. Budgets will continue to tighten, taxes will increase, wages will not and our rural communities will suffer.
bossly video?? can you post that ? I think you are full of it.
According to court documents, no one entered the house. and there was a sign on the front door that read if you have package to leave it INSIDE the door. So UPS may enter the house but if anyone else knocks on the door, a billion dollar company should be forced to do business elsewhere.
Makes total sense. :/
The opposition lied about a number of things and the freedumb caucus used it to their advantage in the primary. Such as the lie of ..’no eminent domain for private gain’……11,000 miles of hazardous liquid pipelines in SD, they are all privately owned and at some point used eminent domain to get built. It’s why you morons can heat your home in the winter, or fill your cars with gas, drink water at your lake cabin or enjoy millions of dollars in property tax revenue from a huge oil pipeline.
Pipelines across the US are owned by private industry. The government regulates pipelines, they don’t own them. It’s unfortunate how lies are spread that could be so easily proven wrong.
Check out the Fox Business video titled “Green energy scouts survey this farmer’s property” on youtube. It’s a national news outlet, perhaps you’ve heard of it. And yes, a homeowner, or even a renter, is entitled to allow certain people inside their home and not allow others. These things are called “laws.” I am only letting you know what they are called, so you know that I know, because apparently I am a “moron” that doesn’t know how my house is heated in the winter, but you are a gentlemanly scholar who apparently doesn’t know how laws work. Now, I reckon Mr. Bossly probably wouldn’t be upset if even a long lost buddy of his opened the door and peeked his head in and yelled out for him, even if his wife was in the shower at the time. But he is allowed to be upset, even in the long lost friend scenario, if he so chooses. The difference is, the long lost friend doesn’t really have much at stake in this scenario. The billion dollar company sure does. If I am running that company, I am making damn sure every one of my employees, subcontractors, etc, are following the law to the fullest extent. Even making sure they go so far as to not touch any legal grey areas. If Summit doesn’t bungle this interaction, Kristi Noem doesn’t have to ask Mr. Bossly if she is “supposed to fight all his battles” for him. Then, none of it makes the news, and the project is likely, at the very least, permitted at this juncture. But yes, you should definitely keep blaming the people that aren’t to blame for Summit’s abysmal failure.
Surveyors shouldn’t be poking around property not subject to a survey and opening doors. But the bigger Bossly problem was the destruction of crops and tree strips in the name of a “noninvasive” survey.
4:46pm…. no video of anyone going inside his HOUSE as Bossly claimed. That’s a video of someone going in his shop, not disputing that. So quit saying ‘shower’, ‘house’, etc. it’s not true.
if a law was broken as you claim, why didn’t they get charged? Bossly could have easily reported it prior to the court hearing.
You should read the court transcript, you’d see the surveyors were not reason for the judge to opine.
You, as with many others in the opposition, get ONE side of the story and refuse to admit your narrative was false when confronted with facts. They knocked on the door, there is not crime in that. The real crime is lies were spread so people could get their 15 minutes of fame.
The next time one of your employees acts in a manner I don’t like, we’ll demand your business leave the state. Since that’s the standard you’ve now set.
So first your argument is that there is no Bossly video? Then when shown the video, you reply with a version of “Nuh Uh! I meant no video of them going in his house!” Who exactly isn’t admitting their narrative is false when confronted with facts again?
No one person demanded their company leaves the state. In fact no one has demanded that they leave the state. What the STATE said, is no using eminent domain for carbon oxide pipelines in South Dakota.
You stated that when YOU see one of my figurative employees acting in a manner YOU don’t like, “we’ll” demand your business leave the state. Who exactly is “we” in this scenario? And why do you think that YOU would get to make that decision? Are you under the impression that one person decided the fate of HB1052? If not, how is that a fair comparison?
The whole nation saw that video in one form or another. The counties elected new representatives because of that video. The state, with these newly elected representatives, then voted, by 49-19 and 23-12 I may add, HB1052 into law. It seems to me, as though you think YOUR opinion is the only one that counts.
So, in conclusion, if Summit stays out of that mans house, shop, or property all together, this project would currently be on schedule to be completed in South Dakota. I wanted the project completed. I think everyone thinks because I am blaming the people who are ACTUALLY responsible for this disaster, that I am opposed to the pipeline. That’s not the case even remotely. I just so happen to realize who the people to blame are. The rest of you just want to complain about secondary reasons and ignore the one, huge, absolutely enormous issue that caused this. That issue could have only been avoided by Summit. No one else could have prevented that from happening, but them.
We’re still very much open for business. You just don’t get to set up your lemonade stand on your neighbor’s lawn. Is this a difficult concept somehow?
Yet, when it comes to solar farms or windmill farms, you aren’t even allowed to set it up on your own lawn. Your neighbors seem to get to decide.
Over regulation in the form of setbacks for wind, solar, Animal feeding operations or other industries has absolutely closed our state to business.
How is asking one’s neighbors for permission to do something on your own land freedom?
Boy you miss the Mark. We’re not asking neighbors for permission. Opponents say do whatever you want on your land, neighbor, but don’t think you can force me to join you.
^^ This.
No. It’s fine if it’s any other dimming carrier. But not if it’s carbon. That’s the issue I have. It wasn’t about actual eminent domain issues. It was about screwing one company/industry. And Mr. Oakes stance and poor understanding of this should cause us to all give thanks that he lost his bid for PUC.
Mmm, yes. Gotta love the ol’ “Everyone who disagrees with me is ignorant” argument.
You must have really thought the SD Supreme Court Justices were a bunch of dolts after they ruled the aforementioned pipeline does not meet the definition of a common carrier (which one can assume is what you meant by “dimming carrier”).
The court said it had yet to be proven, not that it actually did not meet the definition. That’s an important (legal) distinction.
That wasn’t the argument made at all. I don’t think you are ignorant (except when it comes to the Supreme Court ruling, as has been pointed out by someone). I understood the ruling and was fine with it. The law works as it should. They also have been taking demonstrable strides to make a case that they were fitting the definition, and if it was ever determined that they were a common carrier, they would be singled out. My issue is that you are outspokenly biased. That is an attitude that does not fit the position or best serve the people of SD.
I am, and have always been, essentially neutral on the issue of the pipeline itself. Where I’m unabashedly NOT neutral is private property rights. If that disqualifies me from serving the people of our state, so be it, I guess.
Talk about missing the mark, obviously you don’t understand zoning ordinances. They will normally give a variance if you get a percentage of neighbors to say it’s ok to build within a setback. So you can’t use your land within a setback without permission from neighbors.
Your delusional!! The stories your sharing about Summit are only half truths! Yes, they came here thinking it would be easy like most pipelines in most states…sadly even after pausing & starting over, the over paid Anti pipeline Attorney has found the loud overreactive Anti progress South Dakota minority to get on his band wagon. If it weren’t for the lies & threats by the oposition group, more landowners would be more vocally in favor of the pipeline. I have worked with Summit & myself & my land have been treated with nothing but respect. The oposition group & legislators they bought should be ashamed of themselves for what they have done & how they have acted. Governor Rhoden only signed HB1052 because he’s a coward & was threatened!
It doesn’t matter if you think my stories are only half truths, just like it doesn’t matter that I think your opinion is likely swayed because you likely had a significant monetary benefit coming directly to you if they completed this pipeline. What matters is why Summit failed. Summit failed because of the Bossly incident that gained National traction. You can’t blame anyone else but them.
Doesnt matter if I lie!
Says it all, doesnt it?
Blame whoever you want. Both sides lied to promote their agendas. The opposition is ruthless when attacking supporters of the project so they stay quiet. Real democracy in action there.
And the government reaction? Well I guess that’s a justifiable homicide of South Dakota’s future economic development.
Whole lot of emotions, not much critical thinking.
Our legislators look like a bunch of children.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6328863683112
I located the infamous Bossly video. It does not show anybody entering a house, it shows somebody looking in a garage, looking for somebody, and not finding anyone inside, leaving.
He says his wife was freaked out. Because nobody ever came to their house before, looking for a lost dog, asking for permission to track a wounded buck, trying to figure out whose farm is whose, selling fruit for the FFA, or getting a signature for a delivery.
Nope, nothing like this has ever happened before.
It happens to everybody else out in the country, but it never happened to them before.
So his wife was terrified. She was recovering from gallbladder surgery and decided to take a shower while she was home alone in the house, unlike sensible post-operative people who know it’s best, especially if you are taking narcotic pain medications, to have supervision if you want to do something like that, in case you slip and fall under the hot water.
Wake up and Turn your Bullshit Detectors on, folks.
Correct. Thank you for proving all of our points whilst providing the actual evidential video. A Summit representative, sub-contractor, and or employee entered the premises without Bossly’s permission. You even provided the link for everyone to see first hand what caused this pipeline to fail. Great job team!