“If wishes were fishes, we’d all cast nets into the sea.” – borrowed from a Scottish Nursery Rhyme.

There are many people out there who think educators deserve more money in their paychecks. As Bob Mercer writing for the Rapid City Journal notes today, the Blue Ribbon Panel notes that teacher raises are possible. It’s just that pesky part of paying for it which causes headaches:

Teacher raises are possible in the next few years, a state education task force said on Wednesday, but members left out something important: where the money would come from.

Public school teachers in South Dakota might see their salaries increase $8,000 to $10,000 apiece over the course of three to five years under goals discussed by the governor’s Blue Ribbon task force on teachers and students.

But the panel of educators, legislators and businesspeople didn’t specify the tax package to generate the $80 million to $100 million that would be necessary. The members said they hoped to have financial data at the next meeting on Oct. 1.

and…

Where the task force might head in its deliberations on Oct. 1 isn’t clear. Financial information will be brought back, such as estimates of costs and possible sources of tax revenue.

Some members want changes in the state funding formula. Some want efficiency requirements. Some want school boards to face new limits on the amounts of non-obligated cash that they hold. Some want compensation tied to mentoring. Some want property-tax relief. Some want capital-outlay tax levies on property changed.

Read it all here.

As noted, there’s no shortage of proposals out there for more revenue. You have everything from Paula Hawks advocating for a state income tax since early in her House tenure, and earlier this year, Republican House member Lee Schoenbeck opined over how a proposed summer tourism tax could fill the gap.

But who out there thinks that – especially in an election year – legislators are going to pass $100 million in new taxes for teacher salaries?

Alternatively, I know Lee’s not afraid to propose bold solutions. But will Paula put her name on the sponsorship line for a state income tax, or is she just a lot of talk now that she’s running for Congress?

Paying teachers more is easy. But paying for it is the ultimate question to be faced.

What are your thoughts? Do we need to do it? And Is it going to take a new tax?

Thune, Stabenow Praise CMMI Decision to Evaluate Value-Based Insurance Design

WASHINGTON, D.C.— U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) today praised the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) for establishing a Medicare Advantage (MA) demonstration program to evaluate how value-based insurance design (V-BID) could reduce copayments and coinsurance for certain high-value medications and services for some MA enrollees with specific chronic conditions. CMMI’s decision comes just months after Thune and Stabenow introduced legislation that highlighted this need.

“I applaud CMMI’s effort to solve a central challenge in reforming America’s health care system — testing policy solutions that lower the cost of health care while simultaneously improving patients’ health outcomes,” said Thune. “With V-BID, both patients and taxpayers win, demonstrating that it’s possible to improve the value of care delivered when money is spent in a more targeted, effective way.”

“Testing this new, innovative model is an important step towards lowering the costs of critical services and helping Medicare patients better manage their chronic illnesses,” said Senator Stabenow. “This model is rooted in work being done at the University of Michigan and will help people with chronic conditions get the treatments they need for the best overall value. I look forward to seeing this program expand nationwide to help improve quality of care and lower insurance costs for even more seniors.”

V-BID is an insurance design concept that reverses the current one-size-fits-all approach to cost-sharing by embracing the simple, yet transformative idea that prices for prescription drugs and services should be structured to motivate patients to make healthy choices. When patients forgo high-value medications or health care services due to cost, they are more likely to suffer adverse; and often serious events that could have been prevented, ultimately driving up the cost of care. Studies show that reducing or eliminating copayments for high-value prescription drugs can increase their utilization, and ultimately improve clinical outcomes and lower health care expenditures.

CMMI will allow participating MA plans the option to use V-BID benefits to lower copayments and coinsurance and offer supplemental benefits. This will encourage the use of specific, evidence-based medications or clinical services and/or specific high-performing providers. To protect seniors, it also explicitly prohibits plans from increasing copayments or coinsurance to discourage use of services.

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From KDLT News:

Commissioners say their decision was based on issues that came up before and during the fair, but they wouldn’t disclose any details under the argument that it is a personnel matter.

Pfeifer says commissioners told her their decision came after she forgot to order two trophies out of over 100 and didn’t submit two grant applications. She says she submitted the applications and “didn’t do anything wrong.”

You’d think that working for the Brown County Commission is a tough gig, with the fair manager being fired for forgetting to order a couple of trophies. But contrast that with the IT Director for the county, who seems to have weathered storms, and is currently in the middle of another one.

From You Tube, Matt Deilke, testifying in front of the Brown County Commission, set up this camera so his testimony could be memorialized and shared:

Republican Commissioner Rachel Kippley indicated to the Aberdeen American News that she plans to look into the issue further. What do you think?

Is the person testifying continuing a personal beef with the IT Director? Or is there trouble? Trouble with a capital “T,” which rhymes with “B,” that stands for Brown County?

From the Attorney General:

AG Jackley Warns of Sextortion Scheme Targeting State

PIERRE, S.D – Attorney General Marty Jackley is warning South Dakotans about a crime that is targeting social media sites and individuals of all ages. Predators meet individuals online, coerce them into sending sexually explicit photos or videos, and then use those images in a blackmail scheme.

The Division of Criminal Investigation has been investigating several incidents throughout the state over the past few days. The scheme begins with the predators establishing a relationship with individuals online through casual conversation, which leads to exchange and capturing of images and videos. The predators then threaten to release or distribute these materials in order to extort money.

Victims of this scheme are asked to contact local law enforcement.

There’s an easy way to prevent this type of extortion scheme: Don’t send naked pictures of yourself across the Internet.

From KELOLAND:

Dr. Annette Bosworth will hear the fate of her medical license in front of the South Dakota Medical Board on Thursday.

In May, Bosworth was convicted of perjury and filing false election petitions in her bid for United States Senate. It’s that conviction that has her medical license in jeopardy.

And…

Craig Kennedy, the attorney for the South Dakota Board of Medical and Osteopathic Examiners, said a doctor must not only be medically competent, but also ethical.

Read it all here.

Does she keep it, or lose it? I’m kind of thinking that license is gone.

Thoughts?

Russell Ray Bertram Indicted by Gregory County Grand Jury

PIERRE, S.D – Attorney General Marty Jackley announced today that Russell Ray Bertram, 63, Sioux Falls, was indicted yesterday by a Gregory County Grand Jury. Bertram was indicted on one count of first degree murder. The penalty for first degree murder is either death or a mandatory life sentence. Bertram formerly worked as a police officer in Colome and Parker and as Chief of Police in Harrisburg.

The indictment charges that on or about October 24, 2009, Bertram murdered his fiancé, Leonila Stickney, then age 26.

Bertram is presumed innocent until such time as proven guilty.

The case is being investigated by the Division of Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office.

From Today’s KCCR, it sounds like the torches and pitchforks may have to go back into the shed, as the State Bureau of Administration announced that it is changing it’s plan for Hilger’s Gulch:

Based on input from the public, the South Dakota Bureau of Administration is revising its plan for Hilger’s Gulch.

The Bureau of Administration will retain Kentucky Bluegrass in the most visible and highly-used areas of the Gulch, including Governor’s Grove and the “sled hill” area along Church Street. These areas will not be changed and will continue to be a mowed and watered bluegrass area.

and…

The main concern of Pierre residents all along has been that they want to keep the Kentucky bluegrass. Holden says lower-lying areas of bluegrass, which are too wet to be usable much of the year due to drainage and watering, will be replaced with warm season grasses, bushes, trees and wildflowers…

Read (and listen to) it all here.

Headline over at SouthDaCola:  Mike Myers to challenge John Thune?

HA HA HA HA HA HA!  Now, that’s a knee slapper! Seriously, I think Dems and liberals have run out of good options, are through mediocre ones, and are now so desperate to push anyone into running against Thune, they’ve been venturing past left field off into crazy for some time now.

Regarding any consideration of a Myers candidacy, it makes me think back to when Myers was running for Governor:

Coolest presser ever. Gov. candidate Mike Myers does 20 push-ups to Pink Floyd.

— Jonathan Ellis (@argusjellis) January 15, 2014

Move along. Nothing serious or worth considering here. Just someone randomly doing push-ups.

I don’t think it’s a stretch that Senator Thune could not only mop the floor with him politically, as Myers throws out gibberish and holds suicide re-enactments as he did during the gubernatorial race, I think Thune would beat Myers at push-ups as well.

And how bad of a candidate is Myers that we’d even have to bring “push-ups” into the conversation?

Enough said.

if you hadn’t heard, a number of people voted at the GOP booth at the state fair in a “presidential corn poll” where fair attendees offered their opinion on who they like in the 2016 Presidential contest. And you can read the full results here!

Voters were age 18+, regardless of party affiliation. As provided to me by the fine people conducting the poll, the Beadle County Republican Women…

Trump 32%
Carson 31%
Bush 5.4%
Cruz 5.3%
Huckabee 5.1%
Fiorina 4.9%
Walker 3.4%
Rubio 3.1%

Kasich 2.6%
Paul 1.7%
Christie 1.4%
Pataki 1.2%
Santorum 1.2%
Jindal .7%
Perry .5%
Gilmore .3%
Graham .2%

2976 total votes

The word I’m hearing is that without Democrats voting in the non-scientific maize plebescite, they were quite convinced that Dr. Ben Carson would’ve been the winner.

What do you think?