Rounds, Welch Lead the Deliver for Democracy Act to Help Local News Overcome Persistent Issues with USPS 

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.) today announced that they have reintroduced the Deliver for Democracy Act. This legislation would help rural newspaper delivery by incentivizing reliable service from the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) for periodical publications and limiting excessive rate increases. Rounds and Welch first introduced this legislation in the 118th Congress in May 2024.

In recent years, USPS has raised rates for periodicals under the guise of increased efficiency and improved service. However, despite this promise, local news continues to face persistent delays in delivery of their products.

“Local journalists work hard every day to deliver news on a timely basis, and the U.S. Postal Service should too,” said Rounds. “Periodical rates have cumulatively increased by over 40 percent since August 2021. Meanwhile, the Postal Service’s on-time delivery performances have not improved, leaving local journalists to pick up the slack by handling delivery on their own in order to make certain their readers receive papers on time. Our common sense legislation helps protect rural newspapers and consumers from unjustified price hikes by making certain the Postal Service is held to a standard for on-time deliveries.”

This legislation is cosponsored by Senators John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). The Deliver for Democracy Act is led in the House by U.S. Representatives Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.) and Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.).

The Deliver for Democracy Act is endorsed by the South Dakota NewsMedia Association, the National Newspaper Association and News/Media Alliance.

“Thank you to Senator Rounds for reintroducing the Deliver for Democracy Act and continuing to fight for a Postal Service that is sustainable and responsive,” said Dave Bordewyk, Executive Director of the South Dakota NewsMedia Association. “The members of our association grow anxious by the day worrying about the service reliability and the skyrocketing costs associated with delivering their newspapers to subscribers all across our state and the nation. The legislation proposed by Senator Rounds offers a way forward for the Postal Service and we fully support it.”

“Local journalists play a critical role in keeping millions of Americans informed, but right now the postal system’s unsustainable rates and unreliable service are endangering many of our members. If something doesn’t change soon, they may be pushed out of business, and residents of communities both large and small will see a loss of quality news and information. We thank Senator Welch and Senator Rounds for their leadership and support for the Deliver for Democracy Act,” said Danielle Coffey, News/Media Alliance President and CEO.

BACKGROUND:

The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006 established an inflation-based cap to annual price increases for all market-dominant postal products, including periodicals. In January 2021, the U.S. Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) finalized regulations that established three additional forms of rate authority, including one for non-compensatory classes of mail such as periodicals and package services. Under those regulations, USPS is provided an additional two percentage points of rate authority for any class or product of mail where costs exceed revenue. Since then, USPS has maximally exercised that authority and raised periodical postage rates by over 40%.

Despite such significant rate increases, however, the Postal Service has routinely failed to meet periodicals’ basic needs and achieve the 95% on-time delivery performance standard outlined in its 10-year plan. As a result, local news outlets, which must already navigate other existential challenges, are simultaneously subject to high distribution costs and poor service.

The Deliver for Democracy Act would:

1. Require USPS to either achieve at least a 95% on-time delivery rate for periodicals or an improvement of at least 2 percentage points to unlock its 2% surcharge authority for that class of mail;
2. Direct the USPS to annually report to the PRC on its progress in including on-time delivery data for newspapers in its periodical service performance measurement; and
3. Instruct the Government Accountability Office to conduct a study and submit a report to Congress on options for alternate USPS pricing schemes to improve the financial position of periodicals.

Rounds has been a leader on improving USPS services in South Dakota. In April 2024, Rounds sent a letter to USPS Postmaster General Louis DeJoy urging USPS to avoid downsizing or significantly reorganizing mail processing operations in South Dakota. Rounds then introduced the Postal Processing Protection Act in June 2024, legislation that would require USPS to consider consequences for rural areas during their closure or downsizing review process in order to protect rural mail processing facilities. Rounds recently reintroduced this legislation in the 119th Congress. As a result, USPS paused the downsizing of mail processing facilities in Huron and Sioux Falls.

Click HERE to read full text of the bill.

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Gov. Rhoden Signs Public Safety Bills into Law

PIERRE, S.D. –  Today, Governor Larry Rhoden signed five public safety bills into law, including HB 1230, which heightens penalties for distribution of fentanyl.

“I will always prioritize public safety – it’s a key part of keeping South Dakota strong, safe, and free,” said Governor Larry Rhoden. “By signing these bills today, we continue to fight crime and protect our communities. And we will take a firm stance against the fentanyl crisis that is killing far too many Americans.”

Governor Rhoden also signed the following four bills into law:

• SB 64 revises provisions related to the establishment of an initial parole date;
• SB 115 revises a provision related to sexual contact with a child under eighteen;
• HB 1012 clarifies the status of the Statewide One-Call Notification Board as an agency administered by the Department of Public Safety and the duties of the Board; and
• HB 1096 prohibits eligibility for a suspended imposition of sentence for certain rape offenses.

Governor Rhoden has signed 151 bills and VETOED one this legislative session.

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This is one that is not going to build unity among the members of the South Dakota Republican Party.

The South Dakota Property Rights and Local Control Alliance is led by Jim Eschenbaum. Or at least, according to the South Dakota Secretary of State, with a screenshot taken today by yours truly:

Right there. Chair Jim Eschenbaum, Treasurer Tina Mulally. Interestingly, that would be the same chair and treasurer for the South Dakota Republican Party:

I also believe Phil Jensen’s wife Janet (now party Vice Chair) is in the thick of the property rights group.

Why do I bring this up? Because Eschenbaum’s SD Property Rights Group JUST released a scorecard and of the 32 Republican Senators, Eschenbaum gave 12 of them “F” failing grades, including Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff. 

Literally, the new South Dakota Republican Party Chairman just attacked half of the Republicans in the Senate, and gave ammunition to their opponents for the next election, including attacking the Senate Majority Leader.

Eschenbaum, just handed ouf F’s to Arch Beal, Casey Crabtree, Sydney Davis, Randy Diebert, Helene Duhamel, Steve Kolbeck, Senate Republican Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff, Paul Miskimins, Tim Reed, Steph Sauder, Kyle Schoenfish and Glen Vilhauer. Mike Rohl and Larry Zikmund were given D’s.

I have to say handing out an “F” grade to Arch Beal with one hand and asking him to make a donation with the other one is probably not going to sit well with Arch. Especially coming from the same guy who declared on Tuesday how he was an Obama voter in 2008 & 2012.   (Eschenbaum may very well get a poke!)

I can’t help but wonder if there’s going to be a Republican party by the time Obama supporter Jim Eschenbaum is done with it?

Johnson, Riley Introduce Bill to Lower Egg Prices 

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representatives Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.), Josh Riley (D-NY), Pat Harrigan (R-NC), and Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-MI) introduced the Lowering Egg Prices Act. The bill would help lower the cost of eggs for consumers, provide relief to poultry farmers, and cut through bureaucratic red tape.

“Eggs are an important staple for American families and businesses,” said Johnson. “While we search for solutions to stop the spread of the avian flu, we must take steps to bolster our egg supply and lower prices. Reversing this Obama-era regulation would make hundreds of millions of eggs available in the market, easing the crisis and the burden felt by consumers. We need more yolks for folks.”

“Families across Upstate New York are struggling to make ends meet because the grocery bills are too high,” said Riley. “The Lowering Egg Prices Act is a common-sense, bipartisan bill to take unnecessary regulations off the books, put hundreds of millions of eggs on the market, and lower your grocery bill.”

“The FDA’s rule is a textbook example of government overreach making life more expensive for hardworking Americans,” said Harrigan. “For 15 years, this unnecessary regulation has forced businesses to throw away 400 million perfectly good eggs every single year. That’s over 6 billion eggs wasted—eggs that should have gone to breakfast tables, school lunches, and food banks. There is no public health benefit here, just pure bureaucratic nonsense that’s driving up costs. This bill stops the waste, lowers prices, and restores common sense.”

“The consistently rising cost of groceries continues to make things exceptionally hard for families in Michigan, and we need to do something about it. One solution we’re putting forward is to get more eggs into the supply chain, which will bring down the prices you see at your grocery store,” said McDonald Rivet. “We have to use every tool in the bag to put more money back in the pockets of working Michiganders.”

Background:

Federal regulations from the Obama Administration require farmers to refrigerate eggs immediately after they are laid. But that rule does not distinguish between table eggs (which are raw products that need to be refrigerated), and breaker eggs (which are pasteurized for use in everyday grocery products like salad dressing, cake mix, and pasta). This has forced chicken farmers to throw away nearly 400 million perfectly good eggs each year. That rule didn’t make sense when it was enacted, and it makes even less sense now, at a time when egg prices are too high and supermarket shelves are too empty.

The Lowering Egg Prices Act will fix this problem by overturning the Obama regulation and putting hundreds of millions of breaker eggs back on the market.

Read full bill text here.

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Gov. Rhoden Signs Education Bills into Law

PIERRE, S.D. –  Today, Governor Larry Rhoden signed four education bills into law.

“We are investing in our state’s talented students. They are the future of our workforce and the future of South Dakota,” said Governor Larry Rhoden. “As kids grow up here in South Dakota, it is my hope that they will have the opportunity to pursue their dreams and make a difference right here in our home state.”

Governor Rhoden signed the following four education bills into law:

• SB 70 modifies the maximum sparsity benefit a sparse school district is eligible to receive;
• HB 1039 amends the programs reimbursing a teacher or school counselor for earning national board certification;
• HB 1040 reduces the state’s contribution to a subsidized high school dual credit program; and
• HB 1114 makes an appropriation for the purchasing of equipment to support the South Dakota Board of Technical Education.

Governor Rhoden has signed 146 bills and VETOED one this legislative session.

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Senator Mike Rounds’ WEEKLY ROUND[S] UP: March 10-16, 2025
By US Senator Mike Rounds

Welcome to the Weekly Round[s] Up! We’ve reached the end of a 10-week in-session work period. This is the longest continuous stretch that the Senate has been in session in over 15 years. During this time, we’ve confirmed 21 out of 22 of President Trump’s cabinet level nominees and kept the government open and funded. On Friday night, we passed a continuing resolution (CR) to avert a government shutdown and keep it open until the end of this fiscal year. While I believe we should always aim to fund the government through regular order appropriations, a government shutdown would be detrimental for our country. This CR makes certain our troops and other essential personnel get their paychecks. More on this and the rest of my week in my Weekly Round[s] Up:

South Dakotans I met with: The Rapid City Youth City Council; South Dakota members of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists; Tommy Ibrahim, President and CEO of Sanford Health Plan; the School Nutrition Association of South Dakota; South Dakota members of the Livestock Marketing Association; representatives from South Dakota Impact Aid schools; a group of small business owners from South Dakota; South Dakota members of the International Dairy Foods Association; South Dakota members of the National Association of Secondary School Principals and the National Association of Elementary School Principals; Chairman J. Garret Renville and leaders of Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate; and Matt Brakke, New York Life insurance agent from Pierre.

South Dakota towns represented: Artesian, Belle Fourche, Beresford, Bonesteel, Box Elder, Bullhead, Chamberlain, Colman, Custer, Dupree, Estelline, Fairfax, Geddes, Harrisburg, Hurley, Huron, Kenel, Martin, Milbank, Mitchell, New Underwood, Pierre, Pine Ridge, Rapid City, Sioux Falls, Spearfish, Sturgis, Timber Lake, Wall, Winner, Woonsocket and Yankton.

Other meetings: Alexander Yui, Taiwan’s Ambassador to the United States; Travis Hill, Acting Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Lt. Gen. Maria Barrett, Commander of U.S. Army Cyber Command; David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs; Robert Dussey, Togo’s Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mauro De Lorenzo, Executive Director of the Strategy and Policy Council in the Office of the President of Rwanda; Gen. Michael Langley, Commander of U.S. Africa Command; and Mark Rutte, Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). I spoke at an event hosted by Punchbowl News on space policy, which you can watch here. I also attended our weekly Senate Bible Study, where our verse of the week was Psalm 111:10.

Hearings: I attended three hearings this week. We had one closed hearing in the Select Committee on Intelligence. We had one hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee to discuss the Military Health System, which you can watch a clip of here. We also had one hearing in the Banking Committee to discuss housing policy. Watch that clip here.

Classified briefings: I had one classified briefing as part of my work on the Senate Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Cybersecurity.

Votes taken: 25 – We confirmed one more cabinet level nominee this week: Lori Chavez-DeRemer to lead the Department of Labor. In addition, we voted to keep the government open and running through the end of the fiscal year.

As I mentioned earlier, I firmly believe continuing resolutions are no way to run our government funding. However, the alternative of a government shutdown – where troops and other essential personnel are not getting paid – is much worse. This CR goes until the end of September of this year, which coincides with the end of this fiscal year. I joined the Appropriations Committee this Congress precisely to prevent this process of kicking the can down the road with a series of CRs each fiscal year. I look forward to working with my colleagues to get the appropriations process done on time this year.

Legislation introduced: I introduced two bills that would strengthen Second Amendment rights for military families and full-time travelers. Both pieces of legislation, the Traveler’s Gun Rights Act and the Protect Our Military Families’ 2nd Amendment Rights Act, would amend sections of the Gun Control Act of 1968 to make exceptions for Americans with unique living situations. This includes spouses of service members and full-time travelers whose permanent residence is a private mailbox or post office box. Read more about both of these bills here.

In addition, I introduced legislation to extend the reporting deadline for Indian Health Service (IHS) patients who seek emergency care outside of IHS facilities. The IHS Emergency Claims Parity Act would extend the emergency notification requirements of IHS’s Purchased and Referred Care program from within 72 hours to 15 days. Read more here.

Medical debt resolution: I introduced a Congressional Review Act resolution to repeal the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Medical Debt Rule. Finalized with only days left in the Biden administration, the rule would ban credit bureaus from including medical debt on credit reports. In turn, banks and credit unions have a less clear credit picture of who they’re lending money to, which could force them to limit access to capital. Read more about this here.

My staff in South Dakota visited: Aberdeen and Fort Pierre.

Steps taken: 48,849 steps or 24.31 miles.

Video of the week: I joined Stuart Varney on Fox Business this week:

Rounds Urges Ag Secretary to Clarify Disaster Assistance Eligibility for Producers

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins to request the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) develop a transparent set of crop insurance requirements for disaster assistance programs. This request comes after ambiguous guidance in previous programs required producers to return a portion of disaster assistance payments.

In recent years, Congress has provided billions of dollars in supplemental appropriations to USDA to fund temporary or ad hoc programs for losses not always covered under permanent programs. Because ad hoc programs respond to different natural disasters, participating producers encounter different eligibility rules and payment structures. In Phase 2 of the Emergency Reserve Program (ERP), USDA required applicants to list “all eligible yield-based crops that could have been affected by a qualifying disaster event.” As a consequence, many producers initially believed only impacted acres had to be listed on the application, leading many producers to unintentionally list an incorrect acreage amount on their application. After USDA discovered some applicants mistakenly did not list a farm’s entire acreage, the agency caused confusion by requiring these producers to return portions of ERP 2 payments.

On December 20, 2024, Congress passed additional disaster assistance to compensate producers for natural disaster losses sustained in 2023 and 2024.

“As USDA prepares to allocate additional disaster assistance, it is my hope the agency will consider the lessons of ERP 2 when preparing for the next application cycle,” Rounds wrote. “This would entail providing farmers with a transparent set of crop insurance requirements. American farmers and ranchers are the backbone of this nation and consistently deal with a number of uncontrollable factors, including extreme weather and volatile markets. Improving disaster assistance program guidelines will provide an additional certainty for American producers.”

Read the full letter HERE or below.

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Dear Secretary Rollins,

Congratulations on your recent confirmation to lead the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). I am looking forward to working with you on issues impacting South Dakota producers.

Since the founding of our nation, American producers have worked hard to help feed the world. While American farmers and ranchers continue to experience tremendous success, the agriculture sector will always face significant risk.

During the last two years, farmers across the United States have dealt with a multitude of natural disasters. This includes severe drought, flooding and derecho weather events. In response, Congress has rightfully stepped up to provide disaster assistance to farmers and ranchers. While producers are thankful for this needed disaster assistance, USDA’s ambiguous program guidance has created real problems for some farm families.

After Congress appropriated funding for Phase 2 of the Emergency Relief Program (ERP), USDA established an application process to determine producer eligibility. USDA required Phase 2 applicants to list “all eligible yield-based crops that could have been affected by a qualifying disaster event.” As a consequence, many producers initially believed only impacted acres had to be listed on the application.

These unclear administrative guidelines have created headaches for some producers. After USDA discovered some applicants mistakenly did not list a farm’s entire acreage, the agency required these producers to return ERP 2 payments. This requirement burdened producers that were already dealing with an uncertain farm economy.

As USDA prepares to allocate additional disaster assistance, it is my hope the agency will consider the lessons of ERP 2 when preparing for the next application cycle. This would entail providing farmers with a transparent set of crop insurance requirements.

American farmers and ranchers are the backbone of this nation. Our producers consistently deal with a number of uncontrollable factors, including extreme weather and volatile markets. Improving disaster assistance program guidelines will provide additional certainty for American producers.

I look forward to collaborating with you on this issue.

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Referring back to the SD News Watch article where the SDGOP’s New Chairman Jim Eschenbaum discussed his support for former President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012:

Eschenbaum voted for Barack Obama in 2008 because he thought electing the first Black president would help address racial tensions. He was ready to vote Republican in 2012, upset with runaway spending following the Great Recession but was unimpressed with GOP candidate Mitt Romney’s campaign and supported Obama again.

..I thought there were a couple of items worth pointing out.

Back when he was running for the chairmanship, in his letter to Central Committee members dated 1/4/25, Eschenbaum discussed how as part of his chairmanship, he noted his intent to create a conservative scorecard for telling Republicans how to vote:

7.  If the State Central Committee is on board with it, and approves it by vote, I would like to put together a committee to create a Conservative scorecard.

and..

A scorecard would inform Republican voters Statewide about who is aligning with, and protecting our Constitutional Rights and Freedoms, and who isn’t. There is no reason to keep electing politicians who don’t follow their oath and the platform. 

1/4/25 Eschenbaum Letter (you can read at link.)

But given Eschenbaum’s past support of President Obama, I also am reminded of what one pundit had to say about the 44th President:

Rush Limbaugh noted in 2015 of Eschenbaum’s guy “Barack Obama’s number one enemy is the Republican party and the Conservative movement.“

So, if Jim Eschenbaum thought so much of former President Barack Obama, who was noted as the #1 enemy of the Republican Party and the Conservative Movement, and Eschenbaum could not figure that out.. does he have the qualifications to cast judgement over who is and who is not protecting freedom as determined by the South Dakota Republican Party in South Dakota?

Just askin’

Interesting Dakota Scout article being pushed out this morning with regards to potential property tax relief being floated by Governor Larry Rhoden in the form of a new sales tax for counties:

Gov. Larry Rhoden is expected to make a recommendation to a task force convened by the state Legislature charged with coming up with further property tax relief initiatives in the coming days. And though the still-new governor isn’t yet sharing the details, he’s said it’s likely to entail creating a new source of funding for cash-strapped governments blamed for the recent escalation on homeowners’ tax bills. Chief among them — counties.

“There are a lot of different things we’re considering right now, but we want to present a bill that gives individual counties options,” Rhoden told members of the media during a recent news conference at the state Capitol.

Read the story here.

With a number of legislators who live or die on the “no new taxes”mantra, it will be interesting to see how the Governor intends to push this through.

Have you seen all the talk on Facebook about life-long Republican office holders and activists being called RINOs (a derisive term meaning Republican In Name Only) by the group that’s now in charge of the SD Republican Party?

Let’s not forget this from November, when the crazies demanded an ideological purge of the GOP..

Their efforts in trying to purge life-long Republicans might be because they wanted a new kind of Republican in there.

While the rest of us have been out trying to elect Republicans for the last 20, 30 years or more, we find out today that new SDGOP chair Jim Eschenbaum might not have been so much on board. Especially considering he explains how he was a 2~time Obama voter; In 2008 and again in 2012:

The state GOP’s executive director, Reggie Rhoden, announced he is leaving that administrative role. It could be filled by volunteers or with more involvement from county officials, said Eschenbaum…

and

Eschenbaum voted for Barack Obama in 2008 because he thought electing the first Black president would help address racial tensions. He was ready to vote Republican in 2012, upset with runaway spending following the Great Recession but was unimpressed with GOP candidate Mitt Romney’s campaign and supported Obama again.

It was Trump’s resonance in rural America, combined with the leftward drift of the national Democratic Party, that thrust Eschenbaum into the Republican ranks.

Read the entire story here.

The Democrat party drifted leftward since Obama? I tend to think it drifted leftward with Jim’s Eschenbaum’s guy.

For those who have been trying to cast those they deem as ideologically impure Republicans out of the Grand Old Party, I’d kindly suggest “you first.”