If you recall the disastrous mess South Dakotans had on their hands with Slick Rick Weiland’s Initiated Measure 22 this session, we were faced with a new set of laws which made felons out of people for being married to the wrong person. Not to mention that the measure had been noted as unconstitutional by Judge Mark Barnett as it was challenged by a group of lawmakers.

It ground a lot of legislative business – and interactions between constituents and lawmakers – to a halt as legislative leaders came up with a multi-pronged solution. One of these solutions was proposed by Democrat State Representative Karen Soli of Sioux Falls who offered a a State Government Accountability Board plan, which found bipartisan support among her colleagues on both sides of the aisle.

In recent weeks, Argus Leader reporter Dana Ferguson wrote an article attacking the soli measure, as the headline screamed that the “Ethics Bill Lost Teeth on Way to Law Status.”  This past weekend, Democrat State Representative Karen Soli responded with an opinion article of her own, and pointed out why the Argus Leader was off base in it’s criticism:

A few weeks ago, the Argus Leader published an article titled, “Ethics Bill Lost Teeth on Way to Law Status.” As the author and prime sponsor of House Bill 1076, An Act to create a State Government Accountability Board, I want to correct several misconceptions included in the article.

and..

During the 2016 session I was involved in the creation of a bill proposing an ethics board that was defeated in committee. I wanted this bill to be directed toward misconduct in the executive branch, to be strong and effective, and to pass in a bipartisan manner. I am very grateful that this happened.

During the first weeks of the session I worked with the state’s Republican leadership to strengthen and refine the proposal. Since other bills were being brought to improve the oversight of legislators (Senate Bill 151), HB 1076 filled the gap of holding the executive branch accountable, including elected officials such as the Governor, Secretary of State and hundreds of employees in multiple departments. Once IM22 was repealed, Republicans became even more interested in supporting the accountability board.

In my many visits with our state’s leaders I discovered another motivator for their support of this bill – they were heartbroken and disturbed by the GearUp and EB-5 scandals. They were concerned about the lives lost, as well as the public money diverted from good causes, such as helping young Natives go to college.

If there were something we all could do to prevent this kind of thing from happening again, they, with me, believed we needed to do it.

and…

This important legislation has created a much-needed and strong ethics committee for the executive branch of our state government. It deserves accurate reporting. A better title for an article on the development of the new State Government Accountability Board in this year’s legislative session would be, “Great Strides Made Toward Ethical Accountability in State Government.”

Read the entire article here.

Interesting how in the headlines, the Argus Leader blasted the needed changes by stating “Ethics Bill Lost Teeth on Way to Law Status,”  and uses a vanilla “My Voice: State Government Accountability Board defense” on the response from the measure’s author.

Check out the article from Representative Soli. It’s worth your read.

I’m finally back at SDWC headquarters, in uniform (I’m in my basement wearing my jammies) after a long day on the road from Missouri, where my wife scattered her late mother’s ashes on Table Rock Lake, in an area where her parents lived for many years as part of their retirement.

In a weekend where my wife remembered her mom, who worked for several years at the Argus Leader when they lived in Sioux Falls, it’s fitting that I take a moment to honor the two mothers that influence me the most significantly.

Of course, the first is my mom, Kay, pictured here before I was around at the World’s Fair in Queens, NY.   Mom passed away from Breast Cancer right before Thanksgiving in 2000, after her cancer metastasized throughout her system.

Mom’s only education past high school was a vocational nurse’s training program, but in addition to being a Registered Nurse (and later a school nurse for the Pierre Public School system) she was a savvy businesswoman who made up for what she lacked in formal education by working hard and teaching herself.  Over the years, she ran two small businesses in Pierre, an antique store and an auction company, and as her oldest, I was often drug along for the ride (whether I liked it or not).

From mom I learned a lot of things. Lessons about hard work (I pale to her energy, but I’m as much of a workaholic as she was), running your own small business, as well as other pieces of knowledge she tried to pass on to me. In her last five years, after she had first been diagnosed with cancer and was horribly ill from chemotherapy, she even demanded I follow her commands on how to butcher a deer – right there on her kitchen table – because it was something she thought I should learn.

She also taught me lessons about life. When it was time for an auction sale, she was known at times to hire people who might be down on their luck, because there’s dignity in work, and equal to her needing the help, it helped them.

Mom grew up as a child of divorce in the 40’s and 50’s when most didn’t do that, and I think that there were times when they didn’t have a lot of money, or stability, until my grandmother married her third husband, who I knew as my grandfather until the day he died.

Which brings to mind a lesson she made a point to make about family. When I was engaged, she told me to never bring a complaint about my wife to her. She said that there are good times and bad in a marriage. And as her son, she would always take my side, whether I was right or wrong, because that’s what parents do. She pointed out a cousin whose wife always ran to her parents to complain about him. And eventually, instead of encouraging them to work things out, her parents pushed her to divorce.

There are lots of people who have challenging times in their marriage, and plenty that end in divorce. But, as my mom intended to impress upon me, if you can avoid stacking the deck against success by not encouraging your family’s opposition your spouse over simple disagreements or minor issues, I consider that to be fairly sound advice, especially after celebrating my 25th anniversary last year with my wife.

Speaking of my life-partner, and mother of my seven children, my wife Michelle is of course the other mom who influences me greatly. Among many things, the quality I most admire about her is her lifelong desire to learn, continually improve, and to try to elevate her craft and skill in her field, in her case, education.

During our relationship (we were engaged after about 2-3 weeks), she’s gone from Special Education teacher at Elk Point, to Dept of Ed employee in the Office of Special Ed, to State Director of Special Ed, to Director of Special Ed for a School District (it paid more than the State of SD job).  And now this fall, she’s fulfilling a goal she’s had for many years, which is to return to the classroom to teach the next generation of Special Educators as a college professor at Augustana University. If all goes as planned, she’ll also be “hooded” at the December graduation ceremony at USD as “Dr. Powers.”

It’s not easy being a career-minded woman, who puts up with me, is the mother of seven children, active in the community, active in professional associations, all at the same time she’s worked on and completed a Masters Degree, a Specialist in Education Degree, and as of this December, a Doctoral Degree.

Back when we lived in Pierre, I remember a friend relating a story where her daughter was complaining about her college workload, and this woman’s retort to her child was, “Michelle Powers is working full time, is in the middle of her master’s degree, just played last month in the orchestra of the play, and is down at the hospital having her fourth child. Don’t complain to me about your workload.”

While my mom was a person possessing a high school education, as well as a Catholic voc-ed nursing certificate, and my wife has several degrees, they were/are both remarkable mothers to me, as at the same time they raised large families, they both had that same super-human energy, and a hunger to continue reaching for knowledge, to improve, and to reach new goals.

In remembrance of my Mom, Kay, and my wife, Michelle. Happy Mother’s Day.

Rep. Kristi Noem gave the commencement speech at Western Dakota Tech’s graduation today, sending the school’s graduates off into the
world.

Once a South Dakotan, Always a South Dakotan
By Sen. John Thune 

By now, most folks across the state probably know that South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSM&T) President Dr. Heather Wilson was recently confirmed by the Senate to serve as the next secretary of the U.S. Air Force. I proudly supported her nomination, as did Republicans and Democrats from all corners of the country. The strong bipartisan support for her nomination is emblematic of her long list of qualifications for the job.

I’ve known Dr. Wilson for nearly 20 years, and while she wasn’t born in South Dakota, she’s a South Dakotan through and through. We’re all sad to see her leave, but our loss is America’s gain, and the airmen who defend us around the world couldn’t ask for a better or stronger leader.

Heather is no stranger to the Air Force. Her service began decades ago as a cadet at the Air Force Academy, where she earned the status of Distinguished Graduate. No Air Force Academy graduate has ever served as secretary of the Air Force, so Heather will be making history as she assumes her new leadership role, too.

During the Cold War, Heather served as an Air Force officer in the United Kingdom and in Brussels. After retiring from the Air Force, Heather continued to serve the nation by joining President George H.W. Bush’s National Security Council staff, where she focused on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and conventional arms control. In 1998, Heather was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. She served on the Armed Services Committee and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence at various points during her 10-plus years in Congress.  

Most recently, Heather lived and worked in Rapid City, leading one of the premier science and engineering schools in the country. She played a key role in applying cutting-edge technologies that were developed at SDSM&T to help solve B1-B Bomber maintenance issues at Ellsworth Air Force Base, which is not far from campus. I know I can speak for the men and women at Ellsworth and the SDSM&T community by saying we’re excited for Heather and what’s to come.

It’s pretty easy to see that while she no longer wears the uniform, the Air Force never really left Dr. Wilson. That sense of service has carried her from her early days as a cadet to now becoming the 24th secretary of the Air Force. She’ll be a tremendous asset to our national security team because she’s seen these issues from every angle – as a cadet, national security aide, policymaker, and educator.

South Dakotans are proud of Dr. Wilson’s successful career and are thankful for everything she’s done for her community and our state. We wish her the best of luck as she returns to public service in Washington, D.C., and will always remind her, once a South Dakotan, always a South Dakotan.

###

A Big Win for South Dakota Veterans
By Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.)

South Dakota veterans and doctors who participate in the Choice program received some good news recently. Late last month, President Donald Trump signed into law legislation that includes a provision of a bill I introduced which, in essence, makes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) the primary payer for services under the Choice Act.

This is important because now veterans will no longer have to pay higher health care costs when they seek care at a non-VA facility when using the Choice Act. This is especially great news for those who live in rural areas, as it will make sure that their cost of visiting a physician is the same regardless of if they see their own local doctor under the Choice Act or travel to get care at a VA facility. It is also a win for doctors in the private sector who serve our veterans, as it will eliminate the bureaucratic reimbursement process so they can get paid in a timely manner by the VA when they care for veterans under this same act. 

The intent of the Choice Act, which is to provide relief to those facing long appointment wait times and those who live far from VA facilities, had been undermined because of higher out-of-pocket costs to veterans and reimbursement issues for providers. By eliminating the so-called ‘secondary payer clause’ and essentially making the VA the primary payer under the Choice Act, South Dakota veterans will no longer be forced to pay more for health care services they receive in the community than they would for the same care at a VA facility.

In addition to hearing from veterans, our office has heard from doctors who were struggling to be reimbursed for the care they had provided. We heard from one doctor who was waiting up to nine months to be reimbursed by the VA and was owed millions of dollars. In one case, a hospital had refused to accept referred veterans for physical therapy due to non-payment from the VA. They simply can’t afford to see patients when they know there is a strong chance they will not be paid for services rendered. The intent of the law is good, but the manner in which the ‘secondary payer’ provision was originally written failed both our veterans and the private-sector doctors who treat them under the Choice program. I’m glad we were able to fix this section under the extension, and I will work to include the fix as a permanent component of Choice in the future.

My staff and I heard time and again of the hardship caused by the ‘secondary payer’ provision. My interest in introducing this legislation was a direct result of the feedback we received from South Dakota veterans, their families and medical providers in South Dakota. I thank them for alerting us to this glitch in the system, and I look forward to working with the VA on its implementation. Our veterans make incredible sacrifices for our freedoms; they shouldn’t have to worry about reimbursement issues for the care they have earned upon retirement.  

###

Supporting Local Law Enforcement
By Rep. Kristi Noem

Like many South Dakotans, I’m used to walking around town and seeing our local police officers working hard and keeping us safe. With National Police Week starting on Sunday, I’d like to take this time to say thank you to all of the men and women who serve in our state and across the country. I also want to help provide them with the necessary tools needed to combat the dangerous issues they face on a daily basis. 

I recently visited the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office, where I toured the jail and participated in a ride-along with deputies in order to see the challenges they face firsthand. Sheriff Mike Milstead and I spoke at length about the issues his deputies’ face and the ways I can be of assistance.

The rate of violent crime in South Dakota has nearly doubled over the last 10 years. According to Sheriff Milstead, Minnehaha County alone has seen a 17% increase in violent crime this year as opposed to the same time last year. Every week, newspapers across the state report on drug busts, violent crimes, and an influx of gangs. These aren’t just stories. According to local law enforcement, a high percentage of violent crime cases involve drugs. In order to better assist our law enforcement at home, I’ve asked the Department of Justice to step up its efforts to combat drug trafficking in our state.

In South Dakota people are getting addicted to drugs being channeled into our country illegally, such as meth and heroin. Sheriff Milstead informed me that he believes more than 90% of the meth and heroin comes from south of the border. It is critical for the federal government to support the efforts of our local law enforcement by halting the flow of drugs across our border.

I am proud to cosponsor several pieces of legislation to help address this acute need. The SMART Act authorizes the deployment of up to 10,000 more National Guard personnel and a number of new technologies to secure the border.

Another bill I support helps us catch up with drug traffickers’ tactics. Many times, drug traffickers utilize “spotters” while they cross the U.S.-Mexico border. These people help them avoid law enforcement. Under current law, spotting is not actually a criminal offense. The bill, called the “Transnational Criminal Organization Illicit Spotter Prevention and Elimination Act,” would change that.

These bills will help us protect our border and in doing so, will provide assistance to our local law enforcement as they fight against drugs and violent crime in South Dakota. We must realize that attacking the problem at the source is the best way to solve it.

Our local law enforcement are an integral part of the fabric of our community. They are our neighbors, our friends, and even our family. We owe them our unwavering support. This week, as we celebrate their service to our communities, state and nation, I hope you’ll thank one of your local men or women in uniform for what they do every day.

From Politico:

CAN CORINNA DELIVER? — “She’s a f—ing unicorn.” That’s what a Democratic strategist told me when we spoke yesterday about Corinna Robinson, an unknown 51-year-old former career Army U.S. major who did two tours in Iraq, supported post-9/11 combat operations in Afghanistan and who moved in January to Florida via a Pentagon job and Brookings congressional fellowship to support the counter terrorism program at Joint Special Operations University at U.S. Special Operations Command in Tampa. Oh, she’s a pro-gun Democrat and mother of three biracial young men who all live in Florida. And now she’s talking to state and national Democrats about taking on Rep. Brian Mast, the combat wounded veteran in FL-18 who voted with his party to dismantle Obamacare but wouldn’t immediately explain his vote.

Read it all here.

SD Reaches Lowest Ever Infant Mortality Rate
A column by First Lady Linda Daugaard:

It has been six-and-a-half years since Dennis was first elected, and since then a number of things have changed in our lives. We have become grandparents, and our five grandkids – all age four or younger – brighten our days and amuse us to no end.

A number of things have changed in South Dakota as well. On May 1, the state released new data which shows more South Dakota babies are celebrating their first birthday.

In 2012, South Dakota had a relatively high infant mortality rate of 8.6 deaths per 1,000 live births. Our rate was higher than the rates in surrounding states of North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Montana and Nebraska.

We’ve made progress since then, and in 2016, South Dakota reported its lowest ever rate of infant deaths: 4.8 deaths per 1,000 births. That’s a drop by nearly half since 2012.

In 2011, Dennis asked me to chair the Governor’s Task Force on Infant Mortality. In our research, we found three major contributors to infant mortality: tobacco use, lack of prenatal care in the first trimester and unsafe sleep practices.

Research shows babies in South Dakota are twice as likely to die before their first birthday if their mothers smoke during pregnancy. The new data shows an improvement over the 2011 numbers, with 3.3 percent fewer pregnant women who smoked during pregnancy.

Along with abstaining from tobacco products, it’s critically important for expectant mothers to seek the care they need during the first trimester. In South Dakota, 72.7 percent of women received prenatal care in the first trimester last year. That’s also an improvement from the 2011 percentage. I found it was easiest to remember the ABCs of safe sleep: ALONE, on their BACKS and in a CRIB.

Also before baby is born, expectant parents should learn about safe sleep practices. Infants need to sleep on a firm surface covered by a fitted sheet. Pillows, blankets, toys and crib bumpers should not be in the crib. Babies need to be placed on their back and it’s best for them to sleep in light clothing in a smoke-free environment. Family members and other caregivers also need to know about these important practices.

Since the task force issued its findings, I’ve been traveling around the state to talk about the avoidable causes of infant mortality and to gain support for the South Dakota Cribs For Kids program. Under this program, private organizations and donors have partnered with the Department of Health to provide Safe Sleep Kits to families without a safe sleep option that show a financial need. The kit includes a portable crib, crib sheet, sleep sack, informational DVD, children’s book and pacifier. So far, 7,915 parents and other caregivers have received these cribs. 

It’s wonderful news that more babies are celebrating their first birthdays. If we continue to promote safe sleep guidelines for infants, help pregnant women stop smoking, and remind expectant mothers about early and ongoing prenatal care, we can support that encouraging trend. 

Learn more about healthy pregnancies and safe sleep guidelines at the Department of Health’s Website: ForBabySakeSD.com.

-30-

And a beautiful Saturday morning to you from Lake of the Ozarks in Southern Missouri! I’m here for a quick trip so my wife can spread her mother’s ashes after her passing last year, so it’s a weekend of family obligations and driving for me.

Although, there are worse places to have family obligations than Table Rock Lake.

Big changes are afoot at the Family Heritage alliance. First and foremost, is the resignation of Dale Bartscher who has led the organization for many years, who is apparently leaving to pursue other opportunities.

An email came out tonight, noting in part:

Dale Bartscher has tendered his resignation. Dale is looking forward to a few weeks of rest and relaxation and then will be pursuing new career opportunities. As most are well aware, Dale’s unparalleled energy, enthusiasm, and networking skills catapulted the FHA organizations into a prominent role in South Dakota public policy and faith based activism. For that, we and this great state will continue to be grateful.  

The boards are also enthusiastic to announce some big changes in the rest of our leadership team. Ed Randazzo, who has served this organization faithfully for the last two years as our Public Policy Advisor, will assume the role of Director of Legislative Operations and will function as Chief of Staff. We anticipate Mr. Randazzo bringing to bear his exceptional knowledge of public policy and his many relationships across our state as we enhance our critical work in South Dakota’s political arena.

Stay tuned for more!