No Surprise Tax Bills for COVID Relief Workers By Sen. John Thune As New York struggled with tens of thousands of coronavirus cases, medical professionals from across the United States headed to New York City to help. Their work was crucial to New York’s efforts to contain the pandemic and undoubtedly helped save lives. And in May, […]
Senate to Focus on Families, Economy in Next COVID-19 Bill By U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) When the Senate goes back into session the week of July 20, one of the proposals we’ll be working on is a “phase four” coronavirus relief package. The last coronavirus relief bill we passed back in March—the CARES Act—included […]
Randy Seiler must be getting tired of Governor Kristi Noem winning. Nationally recognized and lauded among our Nation’s Governors for her message to “Trust your citizens” and “don’t ‘lay down mandates.” We have some of the lowest rates of covid in the nation and in the face of a national economic crisis, a $19.1 million […]
South Dakota Closes the 2020 Budget Year with a $19 Million Surplus State’s Total Reserves Increase to $193 Million PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota closed the 2020 budget year on June 30 with a surplus of $19.1 million, Governor Kristi Noem announced today. Although total revenue finished $7.9 million lower than adopted estimates, the state […]
Former District 30 State House Candidate Florence Thompson, fresh off of her defeat in the District 30 Republican House Primary, is back “flossie-splaining” based on her extensive knowledge in epidemiology: Florence Thompson, president of South Dakota Parents Involved in Education and a retired school psychologist, said the media is hyping up the coronavirus and that […]
Johnson, Cuellar Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Support Meat and Poultry Producers Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Representatives Dusty Johnson (R-SD) and Henry Cuellar (D-TX) introduced the Direct Interstate Retail Exemption for Certain Transactions (DIRECT) Act. This legislation will allow state inspected meat to be sold across state lines through e-commerce, allowing small producers and processors more […]
Thune, Smith Introduce Bill to Ease Application Process for the Impact Aid Program During COVID-19 Pandemic WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) today introduced the Impact Aid Coronavirus Relief Act, legislation that would allow school districts participating in the Impact Aid Program to use their student headcount from the 2020-2021 […]
Investing in the Future of Agriculture By Sen. John Thune Unlike the majority of the economy, which was thriving before the coronavirus pandemic, the agriculture economy had been struggling for a while. Low prices, extended trade disputes, and natural disasters had meant a tough few years for farmers and ranchers even before the coronavirus hit. […]
Thune Introduces Bill to Advance Rural Broadband Services “It is critical that South Dakotans in every corner of our state have reliable broadband services.” WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and the Internet, today introduced the Rural Connectivity Advancement Program (RCAP) Act of 2020, legislationthat would […]
South Dakota Maintains AAA Credit Rating PIERRE, S.D. – Moody’s Investors Service announced they have reaffirmed South Dakota’s AAA Issuer Credit Rating, the highest rating available, with a stable outlook. “Forcing state government to live within its means is a fundamental tenet of my administration,” said Governor Kristi Noem. “Between our high credit rating, low taxes, […]