Strengthening the U.S. Drought Monitor
By Sen. John Thune

South Dakota’s farmers and ranchers are as smart and hardworking as they come. For many of them, the work they do to help feed the world is part of their identity – it’s what makes them tick. Their job isn’t exactly a typical nine-to-five gig, though. If you ask them, the work never really ends. Early mornings. Late evenings. Weekends. Holidays. Extreme weather. There are no days off. It’s this unique way of life and its never-ending challenges that gives farmers and ranchers such an interesting perspective when it comes to understanding and helping develop the federal policy that affects their industry.

No one knows agriculture policy and what it needs better than they do, which is why with their help, for the last 14 months, I’ve been introducing multiple legislative proposals that would update and modify several titles of the farm bill. Many of these legislative ideas were directly inspired by the feedback I received from folks in South Dakota’s agriculture community. I take their advice seriously and appreciate that they’re always willing to engage and provide thoughtful advice to me and my staff.

Throughout this farm bill rollout, I’ve hosted several events with South Dakota farmers and ranchers to keep this conversation going. In April, at an event in Rapid City, I heard from several ranchers who were concerned by inaccurate and inconsistent precipitation data and drought designations. While not directly related to the farm bill, after learning more about it, their concerns were well-founded.

For example, early this spring, after last year’s drought in West River, the U.S. Forest Service determined that its federal grasslands had been too dry, and as a result, the stocking rates needed to be reduced. The U.S. Drought Monitor, a weekly comprehensive assessment of rainfall and soil moisture conditions throughout the country that’s used to determine when and where drought-related assistance is needed, classified those same areas as not dry enough for ranchers to be eligible for certain grazing loss disaster and insurance assistance. The two U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) program determinations were at odds with one another and, understandably, led to confusion and frustration.

After hearing these concerns, I returned to Washington and put pen to paper. I knew there had to be a way to make the Drought Monitor a more accurate and effective tool for both members of the agriculture community and policymakers.

As a result, I introduced a pair of bills that I think would help address the issues these ranchers recently raised by ensuring that USDA uses accurate and consistent data in administering programs that are similarly designed to help the agriculture community.

The Improved Soil Moisture and Precipitation Monitoring Act of 2018 would provide tools and direction to USDA to help improve the accuracy of the Drought Monitor. My bill would, among other things, require all of the agencies within USDA that use precipitation data to determine livestock grazing loss assistance and stocking rates to coordinate with one another. This streamlined approach is a pretty common-sense idea, if you ask me.

I also introduced a bill that would strengthen and improve the Cooperative Observer Program (COOP) of the National Weather Service (NWS). The Commerce Committee, which I chair, has jurisdiction over NWS, among many other federal agencies. The bill would support state-coordinated programs that provide data for the Drought Monitor and other weather programs. COOP is a volunteer-run organization and is the nation’s largest and oldest weather network. The information they collect can be very helpful in learning more about weather patterns and developing federal policy.

I’m continually thankful for everything South Dakota’s farmers and ranchers do for our communities and can say with certainty that these are not the first, nor will they be the last pieces of legislation that move through the halls of Congress thanks to the suggestions, input, and support from folks throughout the state. Not surprisingly, and this is a great example, most of the truly good ideas come from far outside of the Washington Beltway!

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U.S. Economy is Improving Thanks to Pro-Growth Policies
By U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.)

The United States economy is looking up, thanks to the pro-growth policies implemented by the current administration and this congress. Since President Trump took office, 3 million new jobs have been created. Nearly 800,000 jobs have been created just since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was enacted in January.

Our economy is growing at a faster rate than previously expected. Prior to the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected that the U.S. economy would grow 2.1 percent in 2018. Now that tax reform has been signed into law, CBO changed their outlook and now predicts that it will grow 3.3 percent this year. This is great news for employers wanting to grow their businesses and for employees looking for higher wages or new jobs.

In Congress, we’re building on this momentum by advancing legislation that rolls back costly, onerous regulations on small businesses, small-to-medium-sized financial institutions, farms and ranches so they can get back to work for their customers instead of focusing valuable time, energy and money on compliance. The president recently signed into law the bipartisan Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act, of which I am an original sponsor.

This new law begins to undo the unnecessary regulations placed on smaller, local banks and credit unions under the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act—financial institutions that had nothing to do with the 2008 crisis. Making sure families and businesses have access to credit when they need it is critical as we work to grow a healthy American economy, and relieving smaller financial institutions from costly, burdensome regulations frees them up to do what they do best: serve their customers and support their communities.

The Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act includes seven provisions that I authored. Some of these include the Home Mortgage Disclosure Adjustment Act, which provides small banks and credit unions with data reporting relief, as well as a measure to provide relief from Dodd-Frank capital rules to banks and local governments that issue debt so banks can count high-quality municipal bonds toward capital requirements. It provides relief from the enhanced supplemental leverage ratio—or eSLR—for custody banks that service mutual funds and state and local pension plans. It also includes my provision to streamline federal rules to help small, local federal savings associations, or thrifts, expand their ability to offer loans to more families and businesses without going through a costly charter conversion process.

The law also includes a provision from my Community Bank Access to Capital Act that would make it easier for banks with less than $3 billion in assets to raise capital and grow. Another important provision included in the law is the Protecting Veterans Credit Act, which protects the credit of veterans who are awaiting reimbursements from the VA Choice program. Lastly, the law includes rural appraisal relief for instances when borrowers apply for a loan less than $400,000 and have difficulty finding a qualified appraiser—which is a fairly common occurrence in rural areas in South Dakota.

This new law, in addition to tax reform and the other pro-growth economic policies we’re advancing, will continue to boost business in America, and result in more jobs and higher wages. When businesses aren’t tied down by heavy-handed federal regulations, they are free to be innovative and reinvest into the economy.  And when smaller, local banks and credit unions don’t have to spend the majority of their time and money on compliance, they can focus on providing services to their customers. The economy is improving because the era of government-knows-best policy is finally coming to an end.

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No Matter How Small
By Rep. Kristi Noem

Abortion is not health care. Abortion is not family planning. Abortion is the intentional ending of an unborn baby’s life, and I’m thrilled we finally have a president who recognizes that and has made protecting the unborn a priority.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration proposed ending Title X family planning funding for abortion providers, like Planned Parenthood, and redirecting those resources into health centers that do not promote or perform abortions. I am very proud to stand with him as he brings back this Reagan-era rule.

The defunding of Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers is an issue I’ve been working on for some time. Most recently, I reached out in a letter to President Trump urging him to make the Title X change and explaining that taxpayers should not be subsidizing the abortion industry. According to a recent Government Accountability Office report, Planned Parenthood receives roughly $60 million annually in family planning funding. This is wrong. Taxpayers should not have to bear the abortion industry’s financial burden – directly or indirectly.

Despite false claims, President Trump’s announcement will not take a penny from women’s health. Instead, it extends those same dollars to clinics and centers that offer full, life-affirming care to women from the moment of conception on. In many areas, these centers far outnumber Planned Parenthood clinics. In South Dakota, there are six federal qualified health centers operating in 45 service sites, but only one Planned Parenthood center. To say that we must fund Planned Parenthood or deny thousands of women care is a false narrative. We can support women’s health without supporting abortion providers.

President Trump’s announcement builds on much of the pro-life work we’ve done in recent years. In early 2017, for instance, he signed legislation I cosponsored that empowered states to withhold Title X funding from abortion providers. His most recent announcement allows us to go a step further.

I also worked to help introduce the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act, which prohibits taxpayer-funded abortions as well as taxpayer-funded subsidies for healthcare plans covering elective abortions. A 2016 Government Accountability Office study showed abortions were paid for with federal dollars through Obamacare exchanges, which we had previously been told would not be the case. According to the Susan B. Anthony List, “Under Obamacare, as many as 111,500 additional abortions per year could be heavily subsidized by taxpayers.” That is unacceptable, and the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act would fix it. While the House has passed it, the Senate has not taken it up at this point.

Additionally, I helped lead the House in passing the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. A strong and growing body of medical research provides evidence that unborn children can feel pain at 20 weeks. Still, our federal laws allow for babies to endure the pain of a life-ending abortion. I’ve also cosponsored the Heartbeat Protection Act, which protects a baby from abortion as soon as a heartbeat is detected, and the Life at Conception Act.

There is nothing more fundamental to our society than our kids, and I often think of my own while fighting for pro-life values. One of my favorite books to read them when they were little was Dr. Seuss’s “Horton Hears a Who.” It reads: “A person is a person no matter how small.” I don’t know that there’s a better way to sum up the reason behind pro-life policy.

All life is precious – no matter how small.

In The Spirit Of Dr. Mead
A column by Gov. Dennis Daugaard: 

In the late 19^th Century, Dr. Leonard Mead served as the superintendent of South Dakota’s hospital for the mentally ill. Dr. Mead was known for treating his patients with dignity and he had a kind of compassion that wasn’t common enough for the time. When asked, he could recite the medical history and condition of each of his patients, and he designed the facilities and the grounds to be safe and serene.

South Dakota made strides under Dr. Mead’s leadership and, fortunately, we have made many, many more since Dr. Mead’s time. We’ve seen progress in diagnoses, in treatments and, more recently, in how people with mental illness are treated when they enter the justice system.

This recent progress is thanks to Chief Justice David Gilbertson’s task force on mental health. In 2017, the group brought a proposal that I signed into law which made a number of reforms to improve the identification and treatment of people with mental illness involved with the criminal justice system.

Prior to this reform, counties sent defendants to the state Human Services Center in Yankton to receive competency evaluations, which are necessary to determine whether a person has the mental capacity to stand trial. Those evaluations cost $3,333 each, and because of the high demand, defendants often waited four months to be evaluated.

The Chief Justice’s reform expanded the types of professionals who can conduct evaluations and dedicated $125,000 to reimburse counties to conduct competency evaluations locally. Now the average wait time is down to 30 days and, based on the claims submitted for reimbursement thus far, the average cost has fallen from $3,333 to less than $1,000.

Progress is also being made on other fronts. The Unified Judicial System, the State Bar and multiple state agencies are working together to roll out training for attorneys, law enforcement, first responders and other professionals within the criminal justice system who may encounter persons with mental health issues. Additionally, the Law Enforcement Standards and Training Commission will hire a crisis intervention training coordinator to promote and implement mental health crisis intervention processes within local communities throughout the state. The goal is for the criminal justice system to identify and treat mental health issues earlier. This is better for the person with mental illness, and it can also avoid costs for counties and for the state.

I am encouraged by the successes we are already seeing from these reforms. Though it is still early and the law has yet to be fully implemented, the policies are beginning to work as intended.

Still, more can be done, and I am glad the conversation on mental health continues. It won’t be just one law or one administration, legislature, chief justice, or state hospital superintendent that perfects our system. Rather, it will require the sustained effort of many over a long period of time. In the spirit of Dr. Mead, I hope our future leaders will contribute all they can in their times.

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From my mailbox, another endorsement letter from another supporter of Lance Russell’s in the race for Attorney General.

Mark Tubbs for Lance Russell by Pat Powers on Scribd

Another letter? (This might be soapbox time) This would be the third one of these I’ve gotten within 10 days. Suffice it to say that I am NOT a fan of campaign letters. Especially because you have to get people to open them to see what the message is.

I guess as a convention delegate, especially with this three-page letter and the one from the Mayor of Edgemont ten days ago. I’m not sure how this is supposed to move me to vote for Lance.  Considering this is the convention phase, when it’s always been about face-time with the candidate, mass-mailed letters with an indicia marking from Richmond, Virginia addressed to “The Powers Household” are not things that beg me to engage:

I thought the endorsement letter from Brock Greenfield (5 days ago) was a bit more germane and worthwhile because I know Brock, and am familiar with his leadership in the Legislature, but I think if I was doing it, I’d take some of these endorsements and put them to video and push them out to social media, rather than spend the money to print them and mail them.

Lance’s ability to win elections has always been as a result of his tremendous abilities as a retail campaigner, as opposed to being a prolific mass-mailer of letters.   Instead of getting yet another letter, I’d rather hear from the candidate.

But, that’s just my 2 cents worth.

From Gordon Howie:

I hate it when the DOJ goes “Rouge.” Next thing you know, they’ll start using blush and eyeliner.

The Marty Jackley campaign hit voters with a new comparison piece mailer today… which takes a soft-sell position on the difference between the candidates.

It cites that “they have things in common, such as “wanting what is best for South Dakota, attended small schools, and are committed to public service.”

It shifts to some differences in a text heavy page.. and notes the Jackley side of the differences between the candidates.

And then it shifts back to talking about how “Kristi Noem is an honorable public servant.”

To me, it seems to lays it out there, but it’s also a light touch, versus a heavy hitting piece when they’re praising their opponent as much as they’re poking at Kristi.

What do you think?   Is this an effective approach?

From my mailbox, the Citizens for a Strong America group is hitting Congressional hopeful Shantel Krebs again on the issue of a proposed plan to install vehicle trackers for collecting taxes:

Administration to Increase H-2B Workers by 15,000 for Fiscal Year 2018

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today issued the following statement on the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) decision to allow an additional 15,000 H-2B workers for the remainder of Fiscal Year (FY) 2018, which ends September 30.

“While we would have hoped this news would have come sooner from the administration, it may still help a number of our businesses in South Dakota. South Dakota’s tourism and construction seasons are already underway, and employers across the state have been left without the temporary work they need to fully operate. While we hope today’s announcement will help, the lack of adequate help has already had an adverse impact on these small business owners’ livelihoods, as well as the entire economy of our state. Moving forward, finding a long-term fix for the H-2B visa issue is vital. As jobs are created and our economy grows, we must utilize highly effective, thoroughly vetted programs such as the H-2B program if we are to ever fully reach our economic potential.”

The omnibus appropriations bill, which was signed into law in April allowed the DHS to increase the number of H-2B visas if it is determined that the needs of American businesses cannot be satisfied in fiscal year 2018 with domestic workers.

On February 27, 2018, USCIS determined that it had received sufficient H-2B petitions to meet the full FY 2018 statutory cap of 66,000.

Starting immediately, eligible petitioners for H-2B visas can file Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker. Eligible petitioners must submit a supplemental attestation on Form ETA 9142-B-CAA-2 with their petition.

Details on eligibility and filing requirements will be available in the final temporary rule and on the Increase in H-2B Nonimmigrant Visas for FY 2018 webpage to be published on uscis.govwhen the final temporary rule is posted for public inspection.

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Trump Signs Noem-Backed Black Hills National Cemetery Act

RAPID CITY, SD – President Donald J. Trump today signed the Noem-backed Black Hills National Cemetery Boundary Expansion Act, which would facilitate a permanent land transfer of approximately 200 acres of Bureau of Land Management land to expand the Black Hills National Cemetery outside Sturgis. Noem will attend the Black Hills National Cemetery Memorial Day Service on Monday, May 28.

“This is a weekend that we’re thinking a lot about our veterans, and particularly those who made the ultimate sacrifice,” said Noem. “After years of work, I am truly grateful to secure a permanent expansion of the Black Hills National Cemetery. I thank President Trump for working with me and the South Dakota delegation to ensure veterans for generations to come will receive the distinguished and peaceful resting place they deserve.”

Under current law, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act limits transfers like this one to a lifespan of 20 years. The Black Hills National Cemetery Boundary Expansion Act would make this particular transfer permanent.

Noem introduced legislation to expand the Black Hills National Cemetery in 2015 and again in 2017. The House passed both bills, but the legislation was not considered in the U.S. Senate. With approval from the Senate earlier this year, the House once again considered the bill and unanimously passed it. Senator Thune carried the legislation in the U.S. Senate.

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