After getting back from down South, I’ve been spending a bit of my time lately working on Senate Bill 190, specifically with mind to amending the measure which was written by insurance companies. We had phenomenal coverage in the Argus Leader this morning, with an above the fold, top of the page story.

The bill had huge problems, because as the measure was written by insurers, only 2 people in the entire state could provide reimbursable services to the over 850 estimated kids with Autism, and it capped those services at levels lower than what was recommended by the legislature’s own study.  (The bill also has other problems, but sometimes you need to pick your battles).

There was good testimony from parents, including my better half. And testimony from insurers which ranged from some that I thought as productive and good to utterly contemptible.

But in the end, legislators cut to the quick, and recognized that limiting services to 2 people in the state was not very productive, and they went for the limits recommended by the study. They asked good questions, and generally had a genuine concern for the bill doing as it should – helping disabled kids.

In other words, sometimes these guys representing us in Pierre can get it right.

And House State Affairs did a commendable job this morning, as they passed an amended Senate Bill 190 on a near unanimous basis, and sent it to the House floor.

Noem to Introduce Legislation Offering More Flexibility for Local School Meal Programs

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Kristi Noem today announced plans for legislation that reduces federal mandates on school meal standards, including the more stringent whole grain requirements that went into effect in July 2014 and the Target 2 sodium requirements set to be implemented in the coming years.

“Current school lunch standards create a one-size-fits-all model that doesn’t work for our kids and places costly and senseless burdens on school districts – especially smaller school districts,” said Noem.  “We all want our kids to be healthier, but we need to give our schools flexibility at the local level to ensure the standards work for the students it’s intended to serve.  As a mom, I want to make sure the school meal program my kids participate in is rooted in science-based nutrition plans and includes food that they’re actually going to eat.  After all, my kids don’t get the nutrients if it’s left on the plate.”

Rep. Noem introduced her initial Reducing Federal Mandates on School Lunch Act in December 2013.  This updated version of the bill includes new provisions to address concerns with the Target 2 sodium levels and whole grain requirements.

“It’s essential that kids get nutritious and filling meals while at school, but new standards have taken a step too far, resulting in many students choosing unhealthy alternatives outside the school lunch program,” said Sandi Kramer, Child Nutrition Director of the Yankton School District in South Dakota. “We are proud to support Rep. Noem’s Reducing Federal Mandates on School Lunch Act.  As a mother whose kids go to school in a very small school district, she understands the challenges schools will face in serving healthy and appetizing options to students under these new requirements.  With her bill, nutrition remains a priority, but it’s done in a way that’s going to work in the real world.”

The Reducing Federal Mandates on School Lunch Act will be introduced in the coming weeks.  The legislation would:

• Allow schools to maintain the previous whole grain requirements.  Without this change, 100 percent of the grains that schools would be required to serve students would be whole-grain rich, pushing items like tortillas and pasta largely off the menu.  Rep. Noem’s bill would restore the requirement back to 50 percent, meaning half of the grains served would be required to be whole-grain rich.
• Maintain Target 1 sodium requirements.  Absent a change, schools would have a difficult time serving healthy foods that include milk, cheese, meat and other foods with naturally occurring sodium.
• Give administrators flexibility on some of the rules that have increased costs for school districts, including the school breakfast program, a la carte options, and school lunch price increases.
• Make the USDA’s easing of the meat and grain requirements permanent through law, rather than regulations.  This would give certainty to schools that they’ll be allowed more flexibility in serving meats and grains while still staying within calorie maximums.

###

Rounds Statement on Netanyahu Address

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today made the following statement following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress:

“I thank Prime Minister Netanyahu for taking the time to address us today on our shared goal of stopping Iran from its nuclear ambitions. Our relationship with Israel transcends both time and political theater, and we must continue to work together to defeat our enemies which seek to destroy us. A nuclear Iran threatens the entire world and cannot be allowed to get nuclear weapons. I encourage the President to carefully consider the Prime Minister’s remarks today as he moves forward with his Iranian policy.”

 ##

AFP SD Director Ben Lee Discusses Stealth Tax Increase on KELO Radio

One Penny Sales Tax Proposal Would Result In More Than $150 Million In New Taxes

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Americans for Prosperity South Dakota Director Ben Lee appeared on KELO Radio to discuss a bill that could increase sales taxes in South Dakota by $150 million. AFP South Dakota has been engaging its network of activists, encouraging them to reach out to their legislatior and urge them to vote NO on this dangerous legislation.

Excerpt from the interview: “South Dakota’s economic advantage is our low tax structure…Any time we consider significant tax increases we’re threatening that and we’re threatening our economic advantage…If every city chose to take take advantage of the ability to add an additional 1 penny sales tax, that would result in more than $150 million in new taxes, which would be far and away the largest tax increase in South Dakota history… This bill has been under the radar and we don’t think enough folks have been talking about it. So we wanted to shine a light on it and talk about how we don’t believe this is good tax policy for South Dakota.”

You can listen to the full interview here.