Welcome to the Capitol–Let’s Have a Look Through Your Bags

Capitol Checkpoint: All visitors are now required to enter through the north doors and submit to a search

The 2020 Legislative Session opened on Tuesday, January 14th with the Governor’s State of the State address. Due to the KXL Water Permit Hearings taking place simultaneously, DRA staff was not able to attend Governor Noem’s address, though we did visit the Capitol to apply for a new security pass.

In the past month, new security measures have been installed in the Capitol, funneling all visitors into the north entrance, past the Highway Patrol office and through a security room with bag searches and pat-downs.

Now, with all visitors being funneled through the same doors, larger groups are hard-pressed to fit everyone inside while they wait to go through the search.  This will be especially problematic on days like yesterday, where wind chills reached 25 below zero and busses with visiting schoolchildren and carloads of leaders from faith communities throughout South Dakota coming for Interfaith Day began filing in the north doors simultaneously.

Short Weeks Now May Mean Short Tempers Later

The week was furthered shortened when the House & Senate determined on Thursday afternoon that, with bad weather expected East River, they would cancel all committee hearings Friday morning and gavel in/gavel out at 9am to get everyone on the road early. With a 37-day session this year, any curtailment of the full day of work may mean things get especially testy and overloaded at the end of session in mid-March.

Several bills have been filed so far, and on Wednesday afternoon, DRA’s Legislative Committee met for the first time this session to go over what we’re watching. This year’s Industrial Hemp bill has been filed, along with a couple of Ag Land Taxation bills, and a few related to initiative & referendum and voter registration. DENR is looking at better bonding for oil & gas wells and to finally get an appropriation to clean up the Cedar-Spyglass mess up in Harding County. SD Dept of Ag is also proposing some rule changes related to pesticide application and licensing that some members are watching closely.

State of The Tribes & Great Sioux Nation Tribal Address

Crow Creek Sioux Tribal Chairman Lester Thompson delivers the State of the Tribes address Thursday as Lt. Gov. Larry Rhoden looks on

Thursday was a full day this week, and staff sat in on the PUC’s budget address to the Joint Committee on Appropriations for the morning. Following that, in the early afternoon, the State of the Tribes address was given by Crow Creek Tribal Chairman Lester Thompson in the House of Representatives, then several Tribal presidents and chairmen then made their way to the Wakpa Sica Center for Reconciliation in Fort Pierre for the Great Sioux Nation Tribal Address.

The Tribal Address had a packed house–organizers kept bringing in more and more chairs as more and more people arrived. Legislators attending numbered about a dozen total–the vast majority of them Democrats. DRA Staff gave up her chair for Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg since we felt it was critical for him to be in the room and hear what the tribes had to say. Focus of the talks included issues around the pipeline, jurisdictional issues, ways for the State and Tribes to better work together, and above all Tribal Sovereignty.

Legislative Committee Watching for Several Bills

We had about a dozen bills on our watchlist as of this Wednesday, but no doubt that will expand greatly as we move further into the session. We are still waiting on the updated “Riot Booster” bills to be filed, as well as an Oil Spill liability bonding bill. Any DRA member interested in participating in the Legislative Committee is welcome & encouraged to do so. We meet every Thursday afternoon by phone at 4pm CT (3pm MT) during the session to go over bills we’re watching, negotiations we’re involved in, and strategy on various issues.

Contact Lobbyist Rebecca Terk at rebeccat@dakotarural.org or call (605) 697-5204 x260 with questions or to be put on the committee.

DRA’s work at the Legislative Session is 100% funded by members like YOU!
Please consider an investment in our legislative fund by visiting: https://www.dakotarural.org/organize/legislative-session/
Or, you can mail donations to us at PO Box 549 Brookings, SD 57006

Thank you!