It’s Time to Turn the Page on Obamacare
By Sen. John Thune

I can’t think of a more personal aspect of someone’s life than that of his or her doctor-patient relationship and the decisions they make together. Whether it’s a routine exam or a serious surgery or treatment, each decision – however large or small – can have a lasting effect on an individual and his or her family. The most important and fundamental part of this, of course, is first having access to affordable health care so these relationships can be built and the care can be delivered.

It would be an understatement to say that America’s health care system has been on a bit of a rollercoaster ride over the last eight years. I’ll be the first to admit that health care in the United States wasn’t perfect before Obamacare was implemented, but it certainly didn’t make it better. For many Americans, it got worse.

Fixing our health care system is too important to get wrong, which is why I’m working with my colleagues in Congress on a plan that would correct some of Obamacare’s greatest shortcomings, like its high premiums and limited choices. The first step in this process, though, is ripping out the old law root and branch. Leaving it intact would be like treating a broken arm with a Band-Aid, two ibuprofen, and a pat on the back.

The American Health Care Act (AHCA), which was recently introduced in the House of Representatives, is a good foundation from which we can work to turn the page on Obamacare. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the AHCA would meet two of my top priorities: It would reduce premiums (by 10 percent) and increase choices. The AHCA would also cut taxes by $883 billion, reduce the federal deficit by $337 billion, and make major entitlement reforms that would save taxpayers another $880 billion. 

While this bill represents a great start, I’m working on a proposal that would make it even better. I believe that by making some common-sense adjustments to the bill’s tax credit, we can deliver more targeted relief to Americans who need it the most. My plan would simply apply an age and income test to the tax credit, ensuring low-income Americans and seniors receive more robust assistance. 

Reforming America’s health care system isn’t easy, nor should it be. But by focusing on the best policies that deliver the best results, we can finally help reduce the cost of premiums, increase access to affordable care, and create a system of which both doctors and patients can be proud. That’s what I’m fighting to achieve.   

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Need Help With a Federal Agency? Give Us a Call
By Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.)

In the United States Senate, much of our time is focused on crafting and debating legislation, attending committee meetings and making sure federal policies are working for South Dakota families. But we also spend a great deal of time helping South Dakotans who are having difficulties dealing with a federal agency. It is a lesser-known but equally-important service that allows us to act as a liaison between you and the federal government. Washington is so broken and our federal bureaucracy has grown so large that individual needs of American citizens are too often lost in a sea of red tape. Our goal is to work with federal agencies to identify your issue and fix it. 

Over the past two years, working with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) on behalf of South Dakota veterans has been the most common situation we’re asked to help with. We have assisted countless South Dakota veterans navigate the Veterans Choice Act and other VA programs here in South Dakota, while simultaneously seeking changes to federal policy that will improve the care they receive under the current law. We also work frequently with the VA to obtain overdue medals and awards for veterans and their families. I have been able to present a few of those medals to South Dakota veterans firsthand as I’ve traveled around the state. It is a very special honor to recognize these vets, with their family and friends in attendance, and say thank you to them for their service to our country. 

In addition to helping veterans get the benefits and services they have been promised, we have also been able to bring families together by helping individuals get visas or expedited passports. We also help people access social security benefits, file tax returns, work with the Indian Health Service (IHS) and make sure that federal agencies are treating citizens fairly and with the respect and attention they deserve. I am very proud of the work we are doing to help South Dakotans who feel like they have been left behind by the federal government and have nowhere else to turn.

Our South Dakota offices are located in Sioux Falls, Pierre, Rapid City and Aberdeen. Our staff members who handle casework are available every week day, either in person, by phone or by email. You can find the contact information for our offices on my website, www.rounds.senate.gov. My team works closely together across the state and in Washington, and we strive to provide a timely response to everyone who contacts us, particularly if it is an urgent matter in which we are able to intervene.

We take our work on behalf of South Dakotans very seriously, and I am pleased that we’ve been able to help so many constituents already since setting up our office two years ago. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you are experiencing difficulty dealing with a federal agency. We are here to help. 

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A Diversity of Issues Impacting Agriculture
By Rep. Kristi Noem

I love what Bridger Gordon, a student from Whitewood, SD, wrote about agriculture: “Agriculture encompasses – and enhances – the entire environment, harnessing soil, water, sunlight to produce food, habitat, employment.” That observation helped Bridger win a national essay contest this year, which came with a $1,000 prize and a trip to Washington, DC, to celebrate National Ag Day on March 21.

Bridger is right. The impact of agriculture is expansive, which is why America has offered producers a safety net for decades in the Farm Bill. While the deadline is still more than a year away, work on the next Farm Bill is already underway. Hearings have begun and I’m working closely with Ag Committee Chairman Conaway to be sure South Dakota producers have the support they need.

The 2014 Farm Bill was one of the most reformed we’ve seen. It maintained strong risk-management programs, strengthened the livestock disaster program, and invested in ag-related research. But improvements are needed. I’m working on legislation, for instance, that would streamline the process for wetland determinations, ensuring producers get a timely response and have an efficient path for appeals.

We also must make sure commodity programs work as they were intended. I’ve heard many concerns about how ARC-county was administered, so we’re looking at possible improvements there.

Changes to conservation programs, like CRP, are also being discussed. During the last general sign up, only 101 acres were accepted into CRP in South Dakota even though producers submitted applications for thousands more. The numbers don’t add up.

In addition to the Farm Bill, I want to make the regulatory environment work better for agriculture. Already, Congress and President Trump have delayed, suspended, or reversed more than 90 Obama-era regulations, including many impacting rural South Dakota. The president announced steps to roll back the controversial Waters of the U.S. rule, for example, just weeks after I sent a letter urging him to do so.

I’ve also been in touch with the administration on the importance of maintaining a strong Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), which helps get ethanol and biodiesel into gas pumps around the country. This is something the Obama administration often fell short on, but I’m encouraged by the Trump administration’s repeated commitments to the RFS.

We’re also working on comprehensive tax reform. In 2015, we permanently extended Section 179, which many use when purchasing equipment. I’ve also been supportive of a $1-per-gallon tax credit for biodiesel to help decrease our reliance on foreign oil and increase support for American-grown fuels. More must be done though.

In the House’s blueprint for tax reform, we’re looking to lower tax rates for small businesses, simplify the tax code, and repeal the taxes that make it more difficult to pass an ag operation from one generation to the next (this includes the death tax).

While ag policy is largely dictated by Congress, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a lot of influence too. I was pleased to see former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue nominated as USDA Secretary. Sonny and I have hunted pheasants together many times. I know he understands our industry because he’s lived it. He was raised on a row-crop farm, became a veterinarian, and at one point even ran a grain and fertilizer business. I’m looking forward to being able to work with him on South Dakota priorities.

I am incredibly proud to represent so many farmers and ranchers, the very people who – as Bridger Gordon observed – grow the world’s food, preserve our local habitat, and provide employment for more than 120,000 people in South Dakota. Thank you for all you do.

Looking Back On A Successful Legislative Session
A column by Gov. Dennis Daugaard

Friday, March 10, was the last day of the main run of the 2017 Legislative Session. Although the session was more “low profile” than in some past years, we can all be proud of our legislators’ hard work.

South Dakota balances its budget every year, and the Legislature overcame very slow revenue growth to pass a structurally balanced budget again this year. I was very pleased that we were also able to find a way to offer small inflationary increases to K-12 schools and many Medicaid providers.

Perhaps the most important legislation this year received the least attention: a package of bills relating to the South Dakota Retirement System. Unlike many states, South Dakota’s pension plan is 100 percent funded. This year, retirement system trustees unanimously recommended legislation to secure our strong footing decades into the future – and it passed the Legislature with bipartisan support and only five dissenting votes.

The Legislature also kept its commitment to South Dakota voters to deal with IM 22, which a judge enjoined from taking effect due to its numerous constitutional problems. A package of replacement bills includes a bipartisan bill sponsored by Democratic Rep. Karen Soli to create a Government Accountability Board to investigate ethics complaints. Other bills reinstated a ban on gifts from lobbyists to elected officials, new whistleblower protections and enhanced ability to prosecute conflict-of-interest cases.

We also took action to confront the scourge of meth. We are adding more treatment capacity for meth addicts, imposing tougher penalties on probationers or parolees who use drugs, educating young people about the dangers of meth and encouraging first-time drug offenders to complete treatment to break the cycle of abuse.

A task force convened by the Chief Justice brought important legislation to help our state do a better job of identifying and responding to mental health issues in the criminal justice system. This will allow counties to handle these cases more quickly and avoid lengthy, unnecessary, expensive jail stays for those affected.

The Legislature also approved the construction of a new state animal diagnostic and research lab at South Dakota State University. This lab is crucial to protecting our public safety and our state’s livestock industry. I was very pleased that the ag community and legislators found a way to finance this project, despite the tough budget year, without using new state general funds.

We also made progress in open government. BoardsAndCommissions.SD.gov will become a mandatory portal for all state boards and commissions to post their meeting notices, agenda, minutes and other materials. The Legislature also approved the public release of police booking photos, or “mugshots,” for felony cases.

Many other important pieces of legislation passed this year: bills allowing for the sale of state lands and buildings that are no longer needed, a bill to strengthen laws to respond to a potential protest emergency, legislation to create a new Board of Technical Education, and a bill to improve primary care, especially in rural areas, through more independence for nurse practitioners.

Our legislators accomplished all of that, and much more, in just nine short weeks. South Dakotans can be proud that we have a part-time, citizen Legislature. They are not “career politicians.” This session, the average state legislator had four years of legislative experience, and 29 of the 105 had never served in the Legislature at all. They are our friends and neighbors, and they take time away from their jobs and families to come to Pierre and serve our state.

If you see one of our state legislators in the next few weeks, please thank them for their hard work and for a job well done.

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(Editor – i’m a little pokey with this notice, but I had to work yesterday. -PP)

Noem to Host Town Hall in Watertown Saturday

Watertown, S.D. – Rep. Kristi Noem will host a town hall in Watertown on Saturday, March 18, at 10:00AM-CT. Saturday, March 18, 2017

WHAT: Town Hall with Rep. Kristi Noem

WHEN: Saturday, March 18 – 10:00AM-CT

WHERE: Watertown Police Department, Community Room (128 North Maple Street, Watertown, SD)

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Today, as promised, Governor Dennis Daugaard vetoed House Bill 1072, (An act to repeal and revise certain provisions relating to permits to carry a concealed pistol) commonly known as the bill to allow permitless carrying of concealed firearms.

From the Legislative Research Council:

March 17, 2017

The Honorable G. Mark Mickelson
Speaker of the House
500 East Capitol Avenue
Pierre, SD 57501

Dear Mr. Speaker and Members of the House of Representatives,

I herewith return to you House Bill 1072 with my VETO.

House Bill 1072 is an Act to repeal and revise certain provisions relating to permits to carry a concealed pistol.

The proponents of House Bill 1072 did not testify about problems that exist with our current permitting laws in the bill’s hearings. I am unaware of a single instance in which a person who could lawfully possess a gun was denied a permit to carry a concealed pistol. Our permit laws are effective in screening people who are not eligible to carry a concealed weapon. Over the last three years, Minnehaha and Pennington Counties have turned down nearly 600 permit applicants who were disqualified due to mental illness or due to violent or drug-related crimes. It is for this reason the South Dakota Sheriffs Association, the South Dakota Police Chiefs Association, the South Dakota State’s Attorneys Association, and the South Dakota Fraternal Order of Police all opposed House Bill 1072.

Proponents of this bill argued that our state concealed carry laws infringe on the Second Amendment right to bear arms. I respectfully disagree with that notion. As Justice Antonin Scalia wrote in his majority opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller. “There seems to us no doubt, on the basis of both text and history, that the Second Amendment conferred an individual right to keep and bear arms. Of course the right was not unlimited, just as the First Amendment’s right of free speech was not.” As an example of a lawful limitation Justice Scalia states that “prohibitions on carrying concealed weapons were lawful under the Second Amendment..”

As a longtime member of the NRA, I support the right to bear arms. South Dakota’s current permit process is simple and straightforward, and permits can be obtained in a matter of minutes. It is paramount that our state protect the rights of our citizens while at the same time protecting the lives of our citizens. I believe our current laws appropriately protect both interests, and I ask that you sustain my veto.

Respectfully submitted,
Dennis Daugaard
Governor

He also vetoed House Bill 1156 – an act to allow a concealed pistol in the capitol with an enhanced concealed pistol permit.

Thoughts?  (Don’t be shy. I’m sure you have a few.)

From KELO-AM, Mike Huether is apparently setting high goals for himself as Mayor of Sioux Falls:

Huether is shrewd. He came in knowing that I was going to ask about his future plans. I ask him every time he’s here. He knew precisely what he was saying.

If Huether has any serious intention of running for governor, we should know soon as he would have to begin fundraising fairly quickly.

It wouldn’t surprise me to see Huether set his sights on the U.S. Senate seat of Mike Rounds, which comes up in 2020.

If so, it would certainly explain why Huether is in no rush to announce his future plans.

Read it here.

I’m not sure Huether can depend on both Mike Rounds and Donald Trump being completely unpopular in 2020, much less being able to win as an independent on top of it.

Thoughts?

And a hearty Irish St. Patrick’s Day greeting from the SDWC!

At least, a 64% Irish greeting, according to my Ancestry.com Ethnicity Estimate, as we all celebrate the contributions that Irish culture and the descendants of Irish Immigrants made to our great nation.

Just a couple of snippets from my Irish story for your entertainment and amusement…

In 1855, my great great grandfather Nicholas Powers emigrated to America in the Boston Area, where he was a paper mill worker. His Wife, Honora Walsh, was an Irish maid who could neither read or write.

They had a pile of kids, 8 exactly, many of whom survived to adulthood. Their son Richard was a Cigar Mill worker, much petter paying and more prestigious than the paper mill.

Of Richard’s sons, Edward died a day or so after being born of “cellulitis” of his boy parts. Another son, Joseph, literally died at the dinner table one night at age 22 of Rheumatic fever, according to my grandfather.  Plop, right there.  (This is starting to sound like a Frank McCourt Biography)

The sole surviving son, my grandfather Charles, taught for a couple of years, became an attorney, and was eventually named as the attorney & lobbyist in New York State for the American Automobile Association.

On my mother’s side, one branch of my Irish heritage includes my 12th Great Grandfather, Sir Francis Bryan. He was an English courtier and diplomat during the reign of Henry VIII.

His nickname was the Vicar of Hell, for his rakish sexual life and his lack of principle.  Which obviously was not a hinderance in Henry the 8th’s court.

Sir Francis was made Lord Chief Justice of Ireland during the reign of Edward VI. He died at the age of 60, and it is said he was likely poisoned by my great, great Grandmother, Lady Joan Fitzgerald, because she wanted to (and eventually did) marry her cousin.

Think “Game of Thrones” kind of power politics.

 

From Facebook: