(soft music) - [Announcer] This is a production of South Dakota public broadcasting.

(upbeat music) - Good afternoon.

And this is live coverage of South Dakota public Broadcasting's coverage of the South Dakota legislature and today's state of the state address.

I'm Cara Hetland and Lee Strubinger is joining me now, Lee, a little profile of what's going to happen today.

- Yeah, a few things we can expect from the governor's state of the state address today would be a little bit about a $200 million proposal for workforce housing.

It's gonna be a big topic this year.

Another proposal that the governor is gonna bring is about statewide water and sewer infrastructure.

She's also gonna talk about federal dollars for some childcare programs.

And I think we can also expect to hear about various bills aimed at blocking certain concepts in education.

One of the things that lawmakers are also going to spend a lot of time this year talking about is cannabis.

Remains to be seen if the governor is gonna talk about that, she has been opposed to recreational cannabis laws in the past, that was voted in by the voters in the 2020 election.

Lawmakers did spend the summer talking about that, so remains to be seen what happens with that bill and where it will go, and if it'll end up on the governor's desk.

All that's expected to come up this year and I think the governor will definitely be talking about that today during the state of the state.

- And we heard in the budget address that there's quite a lot of money to spend.

And so there'll be some wrangling over some additional dollars that let words unclaimed or under allocated by the governor's budget address as well.

- Yeah.

Talk to any lawmakers, especially those on appropriations and the easy sessions are the ones where they don't have any money to spend.

When they have money to spend that's when kind of the wheeling and dealing takes off.

Every, there's a hundred and, 105 over a hundred different ideas of what to do with money.

Every area has its own concern.

And so all those ideas are gonna come out to play this year.

It's the second year in a row where there's been a pretty big surplus.

A lot of that is due to federal money that came in with COVID stimulus packages.

So we'll see what lawmakers end up doing with that money.

A lot of it is aimed at those infrastructure projects that the governor is going to be talking about today.

It'll just be interesting to see what the final product really looks like.

Again, the state of the state is the governor's grand vision for how she wants this session to go.

But again, these bills to go through the legislative process before they reach her desk.

- And we now have a gavel in then we'll take it down to the floor for the start of this joint session.

- Joint session of the house and Senate will come to order.

Today leading us in prayer is Reverend Craig Wexler from the Peer for Peer ministerial association.

And the speaker of the house will lead the pledge.

- We begin with a brief reading from Romans chapter 13, "let everyone be subject to the governing authorities "for there is no authority "except that which God has established.

"The authorities that exist have been established by God.

"Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority "is rebelling against what God has instituted "and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves "for rulers hold no terror for those who do right.

"But for those who do wrong, "do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority?

"Then do what is right, and you will be commended.

"For the one in authority is God's servant for your good."

The Lord be with you.

- And also with you.

Let us pray.

Gracious God, your sovereignty is powerful and right, your sovereignty has allowed all of us to be called and elected into this space and this time.

Remind all who hear that your will outweighs that of any individual person or movement.

We live in a time and space in which our country has become more polarized than it has been in decades.

But where there's polarization, we pray for unity, where there is worship of the self or worship of conflicting identities remind us that our identity is in you and you alone.

We are all created in your image and it is our brokenness and individualization that continues to drive us apart.

But not today.

Today, almighty God as we stand here together in this room, man and woman, young and old, Republican and Democrat, but most importantly, Christian God fearing and South Dakotan, I pray for all of the authority that your sovereign rule has been allowed into this space.

We pray for governor Noem and her continued leadership.

Bless her words, bless her work.

Bless her support staff, bless her family.

We pray for our senators and representatives, their families and the constituents they serve.

We pray for our judges of the core to continue to discern and interpret justice on the laws that are created in these halls.

Give them grace and wisdom.

We pray for every staff member in this building who keeps the work in these coming weeks, moving forward.

And finally, we pray for all other leaders in government across this nation, outside the borders of this great state, give them wisdom and humility and insight into the true needs of this country.

Not the personal agendas that continue to drive us apart, but the ideals of what created this country in the first place, 246 years ago, faith, peace, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Come Lord Jesus, come.

It is in your name.

We pray.

Thanks be to God.

Amen.

- Amen.

- [All] I Pledge allegiance to the flag of the Untied States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, Indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

- The Secretary of the Senate will please call the roll for the Senate.

- [Secretary] Senator Bolin, Breitling, Cammack, Castleberry, Crabtree, Curd, Diedrich, Duhamel, Duvall, Foster, Frye-Mueller Greenfield, Heinert, Hunhoff, Johns, Johnson, Klumb, Kolbeck, Maher, Nesiba, Novstrup, Otten, Rohl, Rusch, Schoenbeck, Schoenfish, Smith, Stalzer, Steinhauer, Sutton, Symens, Tobin, Wheeler, Wiik and Zikmund.

We have a quorum, Mr. President.

- Thank you.

Chief Clerk of the House will please call the roll of the house.

- [Clerk] Representatives Anderson, Aylward, Bartels, Barthel, Beal, Blare, Bordeaux, Chaffee, Chase, Cwach, Davis, Dennert, Derby, Deutsch, Drury, Duba, Finck, Fitzgerald, Goodwin.

Greenfield, Lana, Gross, Hansen, Haugaard, Healy, Hoffman, Howard, Jamison, Jensen Kevin, Jensen Phil, Johnson Chris, Karr, Keintz, Koth, Ladner, Lesmeister, Marty, May, Mills, Milstead, Miskimins, Mortenson, Mulally, Odenbach, Olson, Otten Ernie, Overweg, Perry, Peterson Kent, Peterson Sue, Pischke, Pourier.

Randolph, Reed, Rehfeldt, Reimer, Schneider, Smith Jamie, Soye, St. John, Stevens, Thomason, Tidemann, Vasgaard, Weis, Weisgram, Wiese, Willadsen, Wink, York, Speaker Gosch.

Mr. President, there is a quorum.

- Thank you, Chief Clerk.

Madam secretary.

- Senator Cammack moves that a committee of three in the part of the Senate and a committee of five on the part of the house be appointed to escort the honorable Kristi Noem, governor of the state of South Dakota to the rostrum.

- Second.

- Second.

- Comments on that motion.

Hearing none, all in favor will say aye.

- [All] Aye.

- Pose nay?

Motion carries.

That committee is senators Schoenbeck, Cammack and Heinert.

And house member representative Hansen, Ken Peterson, Johnson, Smith, and Lesmeister.

Well ladies and gentlemen, it is my privilege today, and my honor to introduce our friend and governor Kristi Noem.

Three years ago, I stood here excited about the potential the next four years would bring.

Little did we know what was coming just down the pipe.

In that time our state has faced historic flooding, a global pandemic and an economic boom resulting from the path that we took.

We may be the only state in the nation for which unprecedented times is a positive meaning.

We have exceeded our potential through our challenges, and we must now be prepared to bring South Dakota, into a new era of prosperity.

In a few moments the governor will present her state of the state address.

We'll get an update on the successes we have shared as a state.

We also hear captivating stories about the families and the business owners and the public servants who make South Dakota the best state in the nation.

When folks from other states ask me, how is it that South Dakota has managed to emerge so strong?

I tell them it's simply two things.

First of all, and foremost is our people.

The strength of our people are the most, are our most enduring characteristic.

It has and will continue to serve us well.

And number two, our governor.

She trusted our people and they have lived up to that trust.

And so I wanna say it is an honor to serve with each one of you in a common goal of lifting up South Dakota.

And I'm grateful to be partner with a governor in her steadfast leadership.

Together we've worked to keep our state safer, stronger, and healthier.

The future is bright for South Dakota and together we can keep our state on a path to success and responsible growth.

Will the Sergeant at arms please announce the arrival of the governor.

- [Man] As we all welcome in the new year, let's all please welcome the honorable governor Kristi Noem.

(audience applauds) - Thank you.

Thank you.

Lieutenant Governor Rhoden, Mr. Speaker, members of the house and Senate, chief justice Jensen Supreme court justices, constitutional officers, and my fellow South Dakotans.

I am honored to stand before you today as the governor of a state that is proudly leading the nation.

We are leading with a talented workforce.

We are leading with growing our businesses.

We are leading with strong schools.

We are leading with freedom, limited government, fiscal responsibility, and a commitment to defending the values that have made our country great.

I am proud to report that the state of South Dakota is stronger than it has been in our 133 years.

(audience applauds) That did not happen because of what government did, that happened because of what government did not do.

And it is because of our people.

Two years ago, we made a decision in the middle of a global threat.

We chose not to compromise our values.

We kept businesses, schools and churches open.

We did not decide who was essential and who wasn't.

And we chose freedom and personal responsibility over mandates and lockdowns.

We took steps to safeguard the public health, but we also trusted people and we made decisions that were best for them and for their families.

We did what was right, and we were attacked for that decision.

Today we are thriving because we upheld our principles.

Our economy is strong.

We have one of the lowest unemployment rates in the entire country.

South Dakota saw new families and new businesses move here from other states.

From July 2020 to July 2021, South Dakota's population grew nine times faster than the national average.

While places like California and New York and Washington DC are losing population.

And the reason why is no secret, people want to live somewhere that respects them, that respects their freedoms.

They want to share in our quality of life that we have.

And they're coming here because they want to be like us.

Last year we were ranked number one state in the nation for helping our workforce and small businesses get through the pandemic.

(audience applauds) We've had record tourism numbers and we've created opportunities for success for everyone.

Now no group is succeeding in higher numbers than women in South Dakota.

During the pandemic South Dakota was top three for the smallest negative impact on female workers.

And we're also one of the top 10 best states for women to live and to work.

And I am very proud that South Dakota is one of the top five states for providing career opportunities for working moms.

Now we are seeing inspirational testimonies from women like our very own State Senator Jessica Castleberry.

Now I am so grateful that she is allowing me to tell her story to all of you today.

15 years ago, Jessica suddenly found herself, a single mother with three little kiddos with mouths to feed and only $3 in her checking account.

She went to visit a credit counselor to get some advice on what she might do to improve her situation.

Now Jessica shared her dreams of getting a business degree, of becoming a business owner someday.

And that woman responded to Jessica by saying that there was no magic wand that was going to make her dream come true.

Well that didn't sit very well with Jessica.

She went and she bought herself a magic wand.

And she kept it close to remind herself that she could make her dreams come true, regardless of whatever others thought was possible.

Now through hard work, Jessica Castleberry, she advanced her education and she launched her career.

And this year she celebrated the 11th anniversary of her business in Rapid City, which has three commercial locations.

To this day, that magic wand sits in her office as a reminder of all that's possible.

Now Senator Castle... You got to clap for her.

Go ahead.

(audience applauds) Senator Castleberry's story is in good company right here in this Capitol.

In fact, all of these legislators have inspirational stories that have led them to where they are today.

And that is what's so special about South Dakota.

The representatives and the senators in the state legislature truly do reflect the people of South Dakota.

They understand the challenges and the hardships and the loss.

Today you are going to hear more stories about the amazing people of our state who have faced and overcome adversity.

And I believe that you will find inspiration in their stories and it will give you hope and excitement for the days ahead.

Now, the South Dakota people work together to navigate the pandemic.

Over and over again we were recognized as one of the best states in the country because of our willingness to trust each other.

Other states took different course.

They locked down, they closed up businesses.

They shut schools.

They mandated masks.

Their economies and their people are paying the price.

They have suffered and it didn't have to happen.

Unfortunately, we're starting to see it happen all over again in some states.

But here in South Dakota, we do have new challenges, new barriers to the American dream.

We see inflation rising.

Washington is threatening to raise taxes and it piles on more debt and spending.

It's getting harder for families to put food on the table, gas in the car and keep their lights on in their homes.

The world economy is changing too.

We're seeing new technologies, emerging industries and international competition.

We must be ready.

And on top of that, our children, our history and our values are under attack.

These threats are already here.

We're seeing it in our schools and in our communities.

It's happening in the news, on TV, on social media.

And it is what is being taught to some of our children.

It is up to us to defend our values and to prepare for the future.

So today I'm gonna talk to you about the state of our great state.

How we're succeeding and the steps that we're taking together to preserve what we have and to grow even stronger.

Now we can make that happen by remaining true to the principles that made America so great in the first place.

And that made South Dakota the greatest state in the union.

Thomas Jefferson famously outlined our founding ideal of the declaration of independence.

That all men are created equal.

That they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights and among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Jefferson continued by reminding us why government is here in the first place, to secure those rights not to grant them.

Our rights come from God, not from the government.

And government must remain limited to serve its proper role in securing those rights.

(audience applauds) It's no mistake that when Thomas Jefferson wrote those famous words, that life came first.

Government's most fundamental role is to defend the lives and the safety of the people.

And that includes the rights and the lives of unborn children.

Over the last decade abortions have dropped sharply in South Dakota.

In 2020, the total number of abortions was down approximately 80% from a decade before.

(audience applauds) Now that's something to celebrate and it's thanks in part to the policies that some of the legislators in this room have passed.

You have proven that abortion does not need to be a divisive issue.

Last year, every single legislator supported my bill to guarantee protections for unborn children with down syndrome.

And I look forward to the day when all unborn lives are protected.

The Supreme court has a historic opportunity to make that a reality.

And as soon as Roe V. Wade is overturned, our state laws are ready to protect every unborn child here in South Dakota.

But until then... (audience applauds) But until then, we can still take steps to protect South Dakota children today.

There's more we can do.

Every human life is unique in a truly beautiful way from the moment that they're conceived.

It isn't long before they have their own unique heartbeat too.

Science tells us that after conception that any heart child's heartbeat starts at six weeks.

Any abortion at that point start stops that heartbeat.

It stops that life and it stops that gift from God.

Today, I am asking all of you to protect the heartbeats of these unborn children.

I am bringing legislation to ban all abortions once a heartbeat can be detected.

(audience applauds) Last year, I signed an executive order, banning telemedicine abortions in South Dakota.

Today I'm asking all of you to ban telemedicine abortions in state law.

Chemical abortions happen when a woman ends an unborn life with a pill.

These procedures are four times more likely to cause a woman getting an abortion to end up in the emergency room.

Chemical abortions are dangerous.

And I am asking all of you to take action to protect South Dakota women from this dangerous procedure.

Now we can also protect lives by expanding access to adoption and to foster care.

This past year 262 South Dakota children found their forever families and 135 children were placed in a legal guardianship.

All children deserve to grow up in a family where they're loved and protected.

When I stood at this podium for my first state of the state in 2019, I promised to talk about foster care at every single opportunity I could.

And since then we have made tremendous progress.

We have launched our Stronger Families Together Initiative with the department of social services.

Along with America's Kids Belong and South Dakota Kids Belong.

I need faith based organizations, church leaders, business leaders, other community organizations to come alongside me in your hometowns and support those who choose to adopt or to foster children.

In South Dakota, we support and we serve other people.

My parents instilled that in me from a very young age.

We helped struggling families put food on the table and to keep the lights on.

I also had the opportunity to grow up with a foster brother.

I remember my parents telling me years later that they wished that they would've had more tools, more information that they would have had more training so that they could have helped him, helped him adjust better to becoming a part of our family.

Now, today we have people in the room who can provide that kind of help.

We have the leadership of South Dakota kids belong.

If you would stand and you are with us here today, would you please thank them for all their work that they provide helping families going through crisis here in our state.

(audience applauds) And while we're on the subject of foster care today, I want to highlight a family that has been providing foster care for 22 years.

Rodney and Peggy Anderson have adopted nine children out of the foster care system, and they have fostered many more.

They've dealt with childhood trauma and connected their foster kids with professionals that can help them.

Rod and Peggy give kids a place to live.

But more than that, they give them a home where they're loved and where they're cared for.

Now one of our families special services specialists had this to say about the Andersons.

"This family is by far the most resilient, knowledgeable, "fantastic, flexible, amazing family "that I've ever worked with.

"They go above and beyond.

"They're always putting the children in their home first.

"They have some of the toughest kids "that I've ever had in my caseload, "and yet they handle them with patients and with grace.

"We are so incredibly lucky to have them as foster parents."

I would like to have Rod and Peggy please stand.

And three years ago, I created the governor's heroism award to honor South Dakotans who went above and beyond.

South Dakotans who save lives.

They're heroes for how they've changed these kids is lives.

And this year I'd like to recognize Rodney and Peggy Anderson with the 2022 governors heroism award.

Let's thank them and every foster parent.

(audience applauds) With more foster families like Rod and Peggy, we're going to be able to help even more children and families in the years to come.

Now another way that we can advance life in South Dakota is by giving our people healthcare options close to home.

Many South Dakotans live on farms, ranches, and in small towns.

No matter where you live in our state, you should have access to the highest quality care available, and you should be able to get the medical help that you need.

So we're increasing flexibilities to bring health care directly to our patients.

I signed legislation to address this and my budget this year expands tele-health to our emergency responders so that they are available to them in a time of crisis, no matter where you live.

For years emergency services in small towns across South Dakota have been largely run by volunteers.

Today we have a volunteer ambulance crew with us from Oneida.

Would you please stand.

The Oneida ambulance service has been in operation since 1956.

In 2000 they were named the South Dakota emergency medical service of the year.

They won that award again in 2020 and to win an honor twice like this is a testimony to their hard work, and to their training.

They complete hours and hours of training to become emergency medical technicians and ongoing trainings as well.

And they answer calls across Sully county.

They do it all as volunteers.

Their dedication to saving lives and taking care of their fellow South Dakotans is inspirational.

Will you please help me thank them for their service to the people in their area.

(audience applauds) Now unfortunately our emergency responders are getting fewer and fewer.

Many have gotten older and less people are stepping up to volunteer.

We must reverse this trend and we need to recruit more volunteer firefighters and emergency responders.

And we need to support them with modern tools.

My budget does that.

I look forward to working with all of you to get these wonderful folks, the equipment and the training that they need.

For over a year we have offered free at home COVID tests to the people of South Dakota.

Last week, I announced that I ordered 1 million new tests to be delivered to even more locations in our state.

Every single citizen in the state of South Dakota will have the access to get a free COVID test in their home community.

Now president Biden had promised this action but has failed to do so.

The state is going to continue to work together, to take care of our people.

Our healthcare workers worked hard to help us take care of folks and to keep us within our hospital capacity.

Our systems monitored people from home and they ensured their safety while keeping beds available.

To our nurses, our doctors, our healthcare professionals, we are getting you more help.

We've invited more healthcare professionals to come and live in South Dakota.

We've made it possible for out-of-state licenses to be recognized so they can come here and get right to work.

And when they come here, they will have the opportunity to work for some of the greatest systems in the country.

Healthcare workers in South Dakota have faced perhaps the greatest challenges of their career over these last two years, I am amazed by their efforts and I am so grateful for how they have sacrificed to serve others.

(audience applauds) Another problem we need to address is addiction and mental illness.

And we are doing that through our targeted treatment and prevention initiatives.

While overdoses have been skyrocketing across the country, in South Dakota overdose deaths have dropped by 19%.

(audience applauds) Now there's more work to do.

In 2022 we will launch a statewide behavioral health campaign, continue to focus on fighting meth and raise awareness about available resources.

These efforts are saving lives.

Now unfortunately, we're seeing that increased drug activity from the border is making its way into our communities.

Counterfeit fentanyl is a serious problem, and we can thank our law enforcement agencies who are working to keep this poison off of our streets.

Now as for mental health, my budget creates regional behavioral crisis centers.

These centers will help us get people appropriate care more quickly and close to home.

This will help relieve the pressure on law enforcement and emergency rooms.

I take our citizens health seriously.

I don't make these decisions lightly.

And when we create a new policy, we're going to do everything that we can to get it right the first time from day one.

Our state's medical cannabis program is one example.

It was launched on schedule, according to the timeline that was passed by the South Dakota voters.

I know there will be some debate about this program this session.

My focus is making sure that South Dakota has the safest, the most responsible and well-run medical cannabis program in the country.

Now together we can make protecting lives our priorities so that all South Dakotans can enjoy our God-given gift of Liberty.

The second unalienable right of the declaration of independence.

There is one freedom that is a fundamental point to our nation's founding.

It is the freedom to worship.

In the preamble of our state's constitution we express gratitude to all mighty God for our civil and religious liberties.

And we begin here today in this chamber with a prayer asking for God's grace and his guidance.

Yet in our public schools, prayer is absent.

It's forbidden.

I am introducing legislation that will allow for a moment of silence at the beginning of each school day.

Now students can choose to reflect on the upcoming day.

They can have a quiet moment, but they also can exercise their first amendment right to pray.

We will protect the freedom to worship and we will re-instill a right, that has been absent in our schools for far too long.

(audience applauds) Another fundamental Liberty is the right of individuals to provide for themselves and for their families.

Government at times of abuses its power and it interferes with that Liberty, but never in our history have we seen government shut down Liberty, such as we saw during the pandemic.

State after state imposed mandates and lockdowns, they closed businesses and churches and America is still suffering the consequences.

Other states told people that they weren't essential.

They picked winners and losers.

And we here in South Dakota kept our doors open.

Ace hardware in Sioux falls is a great example of a thriving business in South Dakota.

They weathered the worst days of the pandemic without laying off a single employee.

They innovated quickly, they protected the health of their staff and their employees and their customers.

And they continued their passion for quality service and customer care.

Similar success stories can be found time and time again around our state.

And here with us today is a young woman named Alyssa Knicks.

She's a small business owner in Sioux falls.

And Alyssa was born and raised there in Sioux falls and started working in retail and fashion when she was 16 years old.

In February 2018, she took out a loan to purchase a women's clothing boutique.

That had been a lifelong dream for her.

She is proud to sell clothing and accessories that make women feel confident about themselves at all budget levels, for all occasions.

Alyssa was, she was nervous when the pandemic hit.

She didn't know what the future had in store, and she didn't think that she could keep her business going if she was going to be forced to close.

Now I heard about Alyssa store from my daughters.

So I decided just to stop in one day when Brian and I were running errands down in Sioux falls.

While I was there, Alyssa and I chatted about the weather.

We talked about horses, which we both love, and we talked about 4-H because we're both 4-H leaders.

Now during our visit, Alyssa started to get tears in her eyes.

And she told me that if our state had made different decisions the last two years that had not trusted her, she didn't know if her store or her dream would still be alive.

Her lifelong dream would have come to an end.

She was so grateful she was respected by her government and she was thankful to still be able to serve her customers.

Alyssa's American dream is alive and well in South Dakota, because we trusted small business owners like Alyssa and Ace hardware to find ways to survive.

Every other state in this country ordered some businesses to close.

That didn't happen here in South Dakota.

Alyssa, I'd like to ask you to please stand.

And she's got her lovely mother Barb with her as well.

And I wanna thank you.

I wanna thank you for your love for people and your willingness to share your story.

So many little girls dream of growing up and owning their own business striking out on their own, and they look up to you.

Thank you for your strength for not giving up on your dream.

And would you all please join me in giving Alyssa a round of applause.

(audience applauds) One way we can continue to expand Liberty is by remembering that government should not make it harder to have a career.

My department of labor is eliminating barriers to employment, and they're partnering with others to promote job training and matching students with the best career for them.

I wanna give you a few examples.

In 2021, the department of labor worked with the department of education and schools across the state to provide South Dakota week of work.

This week included job fairs, job shadowing opportunities, and visits by professionals to classrooms to share their experiences in communities across the state.

For example, Hanson school, hosted 40 guest speakers representing 16 different career areas.

Now we have partnered with Dakota state university to create a future workforce finder tool.

We're expanding the up-skill program to the South Dakota women's prison and other career fields to get workers trained for in demand jobs.

And we're partnering with adult education providers across the state to offer more options for adults to achieve their GED and to help them in their career.

We are focused on expanding opportunities and Liberty, not regulating it away.

And South Dakota's job market continues to be a national leader as a result.

But in order for us to defend Liberty, government must remain limited.

And part of how we do that is through our budget process, through our commitment to fiscal responsibility.

I wanna assure every South Dakotan of this, we will not use one time money, whether federal or state dollars for ongoing expenses or new programs.

It would be irresponsible to create or to expand in any ongoing program with one time dollars.

Now, a month ago I reported to you that exceptional revenue growth that South Dakota has enjoyed is because of the steps that we took here in South Dakota.

Since that time we have received even more great news, which I am prepared to share with you all today.

In addition to the estimates that I gave you back in December, our economy is even stronger than we expected.

Ongoing general fund revenues were $20.8 million higher than the revised estimates from December.

So far, so far this fiscal year we're $116 million above ongoing legislative adopted estimates.

That is fantastic news.

(audience applauds) We should return a portion of these strong revenues to the people of South Dakota.

So I am announcing three proposals today, to cut taxes and fees for hardworking men and women right here in South Dakota.

First of all, let's eliminate fees associated with starting or renewing a business with the secretary of state in South Dakota.

In 2020, the theme of my state of the state was open for business, and we are continuing that commitment today.

We are already among one of the best business friendly states in America and with this step, we will make it even easier to do business here.

We will not charge you to open or maintain a business in South Dakota.

And let's also eliminate all fees for concealed carry permits in the state.

(audience applauds) You know what, we're gonna pay for the federal background checks too.

To exercise your second amendment right in South Dakota, you won't have to spend a penny (audience applauds) Three years ago Constitutional Carry was the very first bill that I signed as governor.

We guaranteed the right of our people to keep and to bear arms.

Together we will continue to defend this key constitutional Liberty.

And finally, although we don't have a lot of taxes in South Dakota, we've been looking for them.

I'm gonna propose that we eliminate one that is incredibly ridiculous.

Did you know that we have a bingo tax?

(audience laughs) So this is largely a tax on elderly populations and our veterans.

I'm proposing that we get rid of the bingo tax and that's just the beginning.

(audience applauds) Financially, we see the impact of protecting Liberty in South Dakota, but unfortunately our personal liberties are under attack as well.

But that attack is not coming from our state.

It's coming from the Biden administration in Washington DC right now.

I always promised you that I would protect our state from overbearing federal intrusion in our daily lives.

So we took action.

South Dakota has joined four lawsuits against the Biden Administration's unconstitutional vaccine mandates, and we are winning in court.

(audience applauds) This issue has advanced to the United States Supreme court and oral arguments were heard last week.

The COVID vaccination should be a choice, and we should reject the efforts that we're seeing in other parts of the country to divide us into two classes.

(audience applauds) We need to reject what they're trying to do by dividing us into the vaccinated and the unvaccinated.

Unvaccinated Americans are still Americans.

We live in a free country.

(audience applauds) We live in a free country and we are free to make our own decisions.

The government does not get to make them for us.

I'm bringing legislation this session to protect the people's right to a medical and a religious exemption from COVID vaccines, just as my executive order did for the state employees.

And we are also going to recognize natural immunity.

And I hope that you will support that bill.

(audience applauds) From day one it has been my priority to focus on the next generation of South Dakotans.

Our way of life here is special, but so are our natural resources, and they need to be protected as well.

Teddy Roosevelt once said "of all the questions that can come before this great nation "there is none which compares an importance "with the great central task of leaving this land "an even better land for our descendants than it was for us.

Now, we take that message to heart here in South Dakota, we take care of our natural resources because we want them to be available for our kids and for our grandkids.

US news and world report ranked South Dakota, in the top three for natural environment.

And top three for the least pollution.

We are nearly four times higher than the national average for using renewable energy.

One of the first priorities I outlined as governor was the Second Century initiative.

This initiative raises money to support pheasant habitat, trap predators who threaten our pheasant populations and to educate South Dakotans about our wildlife and our land.

It helps preserve our state status as a top destination for pheasant hunting.

The second century initiative has benefited hunters while also supporting our farmers and our ranchers.

They're improving water and soil quality and they're enhancing opportunities for all those who enjoy the outdoors.

Last year we raised $1.4 million for the Second Century Habitat Fund.

And these dollars go directly into expanding habitat acres across South Dakota.

We also raised almost five and a half million dollars with the habitat stamp.

And between those efforts we have added more than 10,000 acres of habitat for our wildlife.

We've created additional public access acres and for fishing and for hunting.

And we've completed hundreds of habitat improvement projects on existing public lands.

Habitat is our economy too, and hunting and fishing adds $1.3 billion to the state economy.

As a result South Dakota is the number one state for licensed hunters per capita.

We've seen an 8% increase in sales for resident combo hunting and fishing licenses.

And we've also seen a 16% increase in out of state small game licenses over the three year average.

we also have had big increases in youth hunting, including a record increase of youth participation in the Nest Predator Bounty Program.

Youth fishing licenses and small game licenses grew by 23% for residents and 83% for non-residents.

More of our kids are becoming interested in the outdoors.

Now meanwhile, our state parks saw a 10% for park entrance licenses over last year's historic record with an estimated 8.5 million visitors.

We plan to add more campsites at Custer State Park to expand our ability to host people from in and out of state.

And since 2015, we have seen an increase of nearly 100,000 camping nights reserved throughout the state park system.

I am hopeful that you will support those projects.

We have a... (audience applauds) And we have a fantastic army of volunteers who work at our parks each and every year.

This past year, we had 443 volunteers log a total of 103,000 hours of service.

And I am so grateful for all of those folks who volunteer to welcome people to our state parks.

Because we trusted in Liberty people chose to visit our state by the millions.

We didn't just keep the open sign on, we rolled out the welcome mat for visitors.

We broke records for visitors spending, visits to our state parks and so much more.

More people came to Mount Rushmore last year than ever in our history.

Countless families made South Dakota their travel destination and because of our world-class hospitality, we can be sure that many of them will come back.

(audience applauds) Now freedom and Liberty are about self-determination and the right to achieve.

To reach our fullest potential.

But there is a troubling movement in our society today.

Our young girls are having their freedom to achieve taken away by schools and organizations that are changing the rules of the game in competition.

When our kids participate in sports and activities, they learn valuable lessons like teamwork, perseverance, hustle.

For many activities it may not matter whether the participants are male or female, they're on an equal playing field.

If they're in debate, theater or academic competitions to name a few, but for other activities, the playing field is not equal.

Allyson Felix is an American track and field star.

She's won 25 Olympic and world championship medals, including 17 gold medals.

The most of any track and field athlete ever, male or female.

She specialized in the 400 meter race with a lifetime best of 49.26 seconds, yet hundreds of high school aged boys have run faster times than that.

Common sense tells us why?

Boys and girls bodies are biologically different.

In South Dakota only girls can play in girls sports today, according to the executive orders that I signed almost a year ago.

But I am introducing, and I hope you will support a bill that will be the strongest law in the nation.

Congress passed title nine years ago to guarantee that girls have a level playing field on which they can succeed to ensure their Liberty to achieve.

They can win high school championships, maybe earn scholarships, maybe even go on to play professional sports.

We need to protect the freedom of our young girls to go out there and to do it.

Now success in America is by no means a given, but if you work hard and you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything.

That's the American dream and that's the pursuit of happiness and what it's all about.

But there is a new ideology taking hold of our country and it redefines our culture.

It rejects the American dream.

It tells children that our country is racist.

It divides us based on the color of our skin.

It teaches a distorted view of our history, and it undermines the foundation of our society.

We must act now to protect the American dream, to preserve the pursuit of happiness for future generations.

Now over 30 years ago in his farewell address, president Ronald Reagan asked the nation an important question, are we doing a good enough job teaching our children what America is and what she represents in the long history of the world?

He reminded us that we need to educate our kids and our grandkids that quote "America is freedom.

"Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, "freedom of enterprise and freedom is special and rare.

"It's fragile, and it needs protection."

President Reagan was right.

We have to make sure that our children know America's promise and we have to teach them the true and honest history of our country.

In state after state, school after school, children are being exposed to radical political ideologies, like critical race theory.

And we're not going to let that happen here in South Dakota.

(audience applauds) Our state supports opportunity for all.

We don't teach our children to be divisive and organize them into separate groups based on their skin color.

I'm bringing legislation this year to enshrine these values and to protect our students from hatred and division.

And schools are where children learn the consequences of making mistakes and the hard work of success.

By the same token, they should learn from both America's triumphs and our mistakes.

And then they learn the overwhelming benefits of working together to fix those mistakes so that we can all share a brighter future.

As we update our social studies standards, they must reflect America's true and honest history.

Native American history will be a part of that.

Our tribal culture and our heritage is essential to who we are as a state.

And it must be balanced and woven into the full context of American history and civics.

Today, I'm proud to be joined by a friend of mine and a hero in his own rate.

Dr. Ben Carson and his wife Candy are with us today.

If you would please stand.

(audience applauds) Despite the challenges of his childhood, Dr. Carson grew up to become one of the most accomplished surgeons in American history.

His story is the American dream, and he followed it up with a career in public service.

Today, Dr. Carson continues to advance the values that make America so special through his work at the American cornerstone Institute, which just launched an online learning platform called Little Patriots to teach children about our country's founding principles.

Additionally he has been instrumental in the work of the 1776 action.

Last year, they released the 1776 pledge as a part of the nationwide effort to restore honest and patriotic education in our K-12 schools.

I was proud to be the first candidate for public office in the nation to sign that pledge.

And Dr. Carson joined me in co-authoring an op-ed, which outlined that decision.

I applaud his efforts to ensure that all of our kids and our grandkids understand and they love our nation's history and our values.

So please once again, join me in thanking Dr. Carson and Candy for being here.

(audience applauds) The pandemic was very hard on school children across the country.

South Dakota was recently ranked first in the nation for the least amount of learning loss among students during the pandemic.

And because our students were in their classroom for all of the last school year, our kids saw positive outcomes in their learning.

In 2021, six of our schools were nationally recognized for excelling in the classroom.

Arlington and Pinedale elementary schools, Gettysburg middle school and or O'Gorman high school, Bishop O'Gorman Catholic schools were all named national blue ribbon schools, Explorer and Platte Geddes elementary were both named national distinguished schools and will be honored next month at the National Elementary and Secondary Education Act Conference.

It is wonderful to see our elementary schools leading the nation in education.

But we're also seeing success at the middle and the high school level as well.

Jobs through America's Graduates programs also known as JAG is working very well here in the state.

We brought this program to South Dakota with legislation in 2019.

This program focuses on helping students who are at high risk not to graduate.

It has been tremendously successful at putting students on a path to graduation and future success.

In the last two years the JAG program enrollment has grown by 50% and three new schools have been added.

Today South Dakota's JAG programs have seen a nearly 100% graduation rate from program participants.

And this year the Lyman school board added its first JAG program.

Students took advantage of opportunities to work with local and statewide volunteer organizations, others explored cutting edge careers in healthcare and cybersecurity.

And we have seen students not only make a change in their attitude about school, but they also think about their future beyond high school and their place in their communities.

JAG is helping these students at risk of dropping out.

It's helping them achieve graduation and to be ready for their futures.

And more school districts should look at bringing JAG into their communities.

As the world economy changes, South Dakota needs new skills and it needs new training to be prepared for the careers of the future.

South Dakota is number one in the nation for the graduation rate in two-year college programs.

And we are in the top 10 for higher education.

We are expanding the cybersecurity program at Dakota state university with a $30 million investment.

And the freedom scholarship that you supported last year that is changing the lives of South Dakota students who didn't have the opportunity to further their education because of economic circumstances.

Together we'll continue setting our students up for a brighter and a happier future.

But we cannot enjoy life, liberty or the pursuit of happiness if we are not safe in our streets, in our schools, at our businesses or in our homes.

Our way of life, our civil society depends on the brave men and the women of law enforcement.

We respect law and order in South Dakota, and we will continue to support those who uphold the law and they keep our streets safe.

Today we have with us law enforcement officers who have all recently moved to South Dakota, would you please stand.

(audience applauds) Please stay standing when the riots, no, you guys can sit.

I want them, I want them to stay sanding.

When the riots and the violence started in this country, months and months ago, we launched a nationwide campaign to recruit law enforcement officers to move to our state.

We wanted every police officer in America to know that if they wanted to live somewhere where they were appreciated and respected, then come to South Dakota.

Hundreds of law enforcement officers responded to our invitation and we are so proud to be known as the state that stands and defends the people who put their lives on the line every day to keep our communities safe.

And we are also free to pursue our American dream because of the men and the women in our armed forces who defend our country at home and abroad.

Could we have any members of the South Dakota national guard, please stand and join the officers that are currently standing.

Thank you.

(audience applauds) Our South Dakota stay standing.

You guys can sit again.

(audience laughs) Our South Dakota national guard continues to demonstrate excellence.

The 114th fighter wing and Sioux falls earned the prestigious spots trophy for most outstanding air guard unit yet again in 2021.

For the fifth time in 15 years.

And the Brookings based 152nd won the Walter T. Kerwin, Jr.

Readiness Award, the fourth straight year that a South Dakota guard unit has been named the best national guard unit in the country.

(audience applauds) Our guard has stepped in to help with everything asked to them, storm recovery, firefighting, drug stops, COVID medical support, and of course, helping to secure our nation's borders and ensuring our shared defense.

We are also the proud home to many veterans.

Could I ask all of our veterans to please stand and join the others?

(audience applauds) Our department of veterans affairs has earned a five star rating from the centers for Medicare and Medicaid, the highest level possible.

The Yankton School District won the 2021 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom award.

One of just 15 nationally given out.

The opening of the state veteran's cemetery in Sioux falls has given us a dignified final resting spot for eligible veterans and their spouses.

Our efforts to pass laws to honor our veterans are being noticed.

South Dakota has been named the number one state in the nation for veterans to live and to work.

South Dakota honors those who answer the call to serve.

The men and the women that we've recognized here today from law enforcement, national guard, our military, our veterans, they put their lives on the line to defend life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Please join me in thanking them for their sacrifices and their service to our great state and the United States of America.

(audience applauds) Thank you.

It wasn't just law enforcement that moved to South Dakota.

Thousands of new residents made the move.

Our state is top three in the nation for inbound migration according to United Van Lines.

Georgie Borman is a native of Washington state who was fed up with the lockdowns, fed up with not being able to go to church, fed up with ever-changing rules as she describes it.

In Washington her family had to restrict capacity at their cafe.

They had to wear a mask everywhere that they went, even when other people were around and Georgie had had enough.

She decided that she was gonna make a change.

She took a road trip to the Black Hills and as she was driving home to Washington, she said, I don't want to go back.

She wanted to move to South Dakota, but she also wanted to stay close to her family.

So the family came too.

Her kids, her grandparents, her aunts, her uncles, all the family followed.

Eventually South Dakota gained dozens and dozens of new residents from a family that loved freedom and was tired of tyranny.

More are still planning to come.

And the only home that they had ever known was Washington state, but it didn't feel like home anymore.

And they fell in love with South Dakota.

Many people who moved here brought their businesses with them big and small.

Acer technologies chose Rapid City as the location for their new Gigafactory.

After a nationwide search, they considered what every other state in this country had to offer, and then they chose South Dakota as the best place to expand their business.

They'll create 400 new good paying high-tech jobs in the process.

Albany farms moved the headquarters of its food manufacturing operations from Los Angeles to Belle Fourche.

(audience applauds) That's a little bit of a culture change.

(audience laughs) This new facility will give wheat farmers a new place to sell their product and to bring in more than 500 jobs.

Businesses that have always called South Dakota home have also expanded.

10 South Dakota businesses were named among the fastest growing in the nation earlier this year.

Furniture Mart USA is doubling its campus in Sioux falls, creating 650,000 square foot facility.

North Sioux city is adding over 300 acres to their industrial park to host many new businesses.

And they're preparing to build 300 new career homes to support that growth.

Black Hills Harley Davidson, listen to this Black Hills Harley Davidson led the world in Harley sales.

(audience applauds) In fact, no Harley Davidson dealership anywhere has ever seen the revenue that Black Hills Harley achieved in 2021.

And that was driven by our strong economy, by tourism, maybe the visitors to the Sturgis motorcycle rally.

(audience applauds) And it was driven by the work ethic of the men and women who run this dealership.

Black Hills Harley is not just a record setting motorcycle desk dealership.

In the middle of a dangerous wildfire earlier this year, near Rapid City, black Hills Harley allowed their store, their parking lot, their property to be used as a headquarters for the fire response.

They gave our firefighters and our first responders free use of their facilities, and they didn't want anything in return.

No matter how these businesses got here or got started, they're thriving because here in South Dakota, the government gets out of the way.

It allows them to grow and to innovate and it helps where we can.

We are free here in South Dakota, but we can't take that freedom for granted.

President Reagan reminded us, freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.

We didn't pass it on to our kids in the bloodstream.

It must be fought for protected and handed on for them to do the same or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children's children what it once was like in the United States when men were free.

In South Dakota, we protect freedom and we will pass it onto our children.

And we will not allow freedom to go extinct.

That's what it means to be a South Dakotan.

We work together to help our communities grow, thrive, remain safe, strong, and healthy.

We support our local businesses and they support us in return.

And we set an example to the nation for how we do business, how we approach public policy and how we interact with each other each day.

We are blessed to be living in South Dakota.

The state of our State is the strongest it has ever been, even with so many challenges in the world around us.

But our state isn't measured by one snapshot in time.

It is our duty to ensure that it is strong for generations to come.

Let's work together this session to keep the doors of opportunity open for our people.

And to guarantee the promise of life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

So may God bless you.

And may God bless the great state of South Dakota.

Thank you.

(audience applauds) - Please be seated.

Madam secretary.

- Senator Cammack moves that the joint session be dissolved.

- All in favor of the motion will say aye.

- [All] Aye.

- Opposed nay?

Motion carries, joint session is dissolved.

- 2022 legislative session here in Pierre.

Some of the highlights from her speech.

She really focused on the declaration of independence theme with life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Announcing a plan to prohibit abortions in the state after six weeks of pregnancy.

The governor honored some foster families and is asking for more churches and agencies in the state to help support them.

Asking for legislation to allow medical or religious exemptions from COVID vaccines for all South Dakotans.

Also talked of and asked for support for a moment in silence in schools and blocking some certain theories being taught in schools as well.

The governor proposed some tax cuts saying the economy is strong and asked for tax cuts for registering new business or renewing existing businesses with the secretary of state.

To eliminate concealed carry permits and background check fees and to eliminate tax on bingo.

She called that tax ridiculous actually.

And the governor paid tribute to law enforcement, national guard members of veterans in the state and acknowledged new businesses.

I'm Cara Hetland and Lee Strubinger is joining me as well and we're going to get some reaction from legislative leaders.

He is on the floor right now with Senator Troy Heinert and we have more lawmakers getting in place as well.

And we'll go to Lee on the floor.

- [Lee] I'm standing here with Senate minority leader Troy Heinert, a Democrat out of Mission.

Senator, what was your reaction to the governor's speech?

- [Troy] I was glad to hear that we're doing so well financially.

I was a little disappointed that, it wasn't recognized that we've had billions of dollars pumped into this state by the federal government, that has helped quite a bit.

- What are some of your caucuses ideas about what to do with that money?

- Well, it seemed to me like, that the talk was kind of that COVIDs over and, this is going to be money for, for lots of other things, but when you look at the papers and when you talk to people in the communities, COVID is coming back and we need to make sure we recognize that this is still an issue and there are going to be some problems yet.

- One of the things that the governor brought up and there were many, but one of the things that the governor brought up was about education.

And I know there was a task force over the summer to look at social studies curriculum.

She said during her speech, that native American history would be included in the new standards.

What are your thoughts as she kind of outlined that proposal today?

- Well I watched that take place this summer and it was really sad that, at the 11th hour, those standards were pulled.

And that was after a consensus by that entire group.

So I hope that she's serious.

I think it would, there's plenty of us that would like to be part of that conversation.

As we talk about native history in this state, then there needs to be an honest conversation of what that means to be native in this state.

- One of the things that the governor has been working on behind the scenes and the legislature, is about workforce housing.

What have you kind of noticed in your district about workforce housing and how do you think that, legislation could, help with that?

- Sure.

That is something that I think our caucus would support wholeheartedly.

We've been talking about workforce housing issues for a long time.

Now we have the money.

Let's put some money to it and try to get ahead of this problem.

But, in rural areas, workforce housing and affordable housing is very difficult to come by.

And with the way things are right now, it's even worse.

- I've got one final question for you, if that's all right.

It was kind of widely assumed that maybe you would run against the governor as she, seeks re-election in 2022.

I was wondering if you could tell us your term limited out of the Senate, what kind of your plans are.

- Correct.

I had all intentions of running against the governor and being a very competitive race, but I've been able to secure a position doing something, a lot of policy work, by helping tribes clear across the country, restore Buffalo back to their traditional homelands.

So that's something that's very exciting.

It's a lot of work and I'm gonna focus on that right now.

- Great.

Senator, I really appreciate your time.

- Thank you for having me.

- Cara, back to you.

- Okay well, joining me now is majority leader, Kent Peterson from Salem.

Thanks for coming here.

Talk a little bit about your reaction to the speech.

- Overall.

I thought it was just a really strong speech.

Like the governor said, the state of our state is very strong.

Our economy is doing very well.

We've come through the pandemic as well as anyone.

And so it was very nice to hear about all of the things that she's working on, but most importantly, for me, how our economy is doing.

- And so what are some of your priorities?

This was the governor's plan, but I'm just wondering what the house Republicans are planning.

- Absolutely first and foremost, we're gonna balance our budget.

We've done it every year since statehood.

And that's where we start in the end.

We've got an unprecedented amount of one-time dollars available.

And I think some of the things we have to look at is generational type investments and, the governor's proposed infrastructure, and other things like that.

Housing, workforce housing, not just workforce housing but all housing.

And so looking at the different opportunities that are in front of us to make sure that like we did last year, make some very good investments for the long-term of our state.

- Is there a lot of support to move the governor's proposal forward per all of her proposals?

Or do you think we're gonna see a lot of debate on some issues?

- I think like anything we're gonna see a lot of debate.

Anytime you see the amount of dollars that we have, this is not normal.

This is my eighth year in here.

I remember years when we'd fight over five or $10 million total.

And so you're talking a billion, billion and a half dollars unprecedented amount of money.

So, I think a lot of her ideas hopefully we'll make it to the finish line, but we'll have to see, and we'll have to go through the debate.

Obviously there's two houses and a governor and we got to get to the end.

- And how about some of the social issues that she's proposing?

- Absolutely.

The governor outlines some of the things, especially within in an abortion and the heartbeat bill, and I think she's gonna have a strong support for all of those here in the house.

Ultimately we'll see how it comes in the Senate.

And then all the other, CRT and action civics and some of those other things, they're gonna be really strong debates.

It's something we haven't seen here in South Dakota and the legislature.

So this will be the first time.

I'm interested to see how my colleagues react to all of those.

And obviously we'll have a great debate on the floor of the house and see what comes.

- An how were you personally doing your history research about what's being taught in school.

- I wanna talk to the teachers.

I wanna see what's actually going on.

I have a seven-year-old and a nine-year-old that go to public school here in South Dakota.

And so I wanna see what they're doing, what they're talking about.

We've got great schools here in South Dakota.

We've got great teachers.

And so I think we need to make sure we're doing our homework first before we make any of our decisions.

And then we'll move forward.

- All right, I wanna thank you very much for taking time and coming up.

And we're gonna go back to the floor with Leigh Strubinger.

- I'm standing here with a democratic representative, Erin Healy based out of Sioux falls.

Representative, I was wondering if you could tell me your reaction to the speech?

- Yeah, I thought it was really interesting today.

It was more of one of her more politicized speeches and addresses that I've ever heard.

We heard a lot about freedom, certain unable rights.

Those are all things that I certainly agree with, but I would just hope that that extends to all South Dakotans.

- You sit on house education.

And I was wondering there were various education proposals that the governor brought up in her speech today.

I was wondering what your thoughts were on some of those.

- Yeah, she specifically mentioned critical race theory.

I just don't think that's something that we're teaching in our schools.

I also think that it's not a great message to be sending to our teachers that they're doing something wrong that they're teaching something they shouldn't be teaching when we should really be trusting our professionals in that field.

- Earlier this week, she also announced a kind of a blocking action-based civics as well.

Is that something that concerns you or that you thought about?

- It does concern me.

I think action-based civics is really important.

It really teaches kids how to get involved in the community, how to be involved in civics related activities.

And that's just something that we should continue teaching in our schools.

Specific, especially if we want to see our kids grow up to be strong individuals who want to remain active and be leaders in their community.

- The governor also mentioned two proposals.

One of them would be a blocking medication based abortions.

And the other that she called a heartbeat bill, basically banning abortions when a heartbeat is detectable, what are your thoughts on those two bills?

- I thought it was really unfortunate to hear some of that information.

It was misinformation, chemical versions are not unsafe.

They're actually safer than an actual pregnancy.

And then regarding abortion she mentioned herself that abortions have dropped 80% in the past decade, and that we have set so many different laws into our state government that have really made abortion hard to access.

So I'm wondering why we need to take our time out of a busy short session to focus on abortion issues any longer.

What I think we need to be focusing on is access to birth control and good health care, sex education, and just the fact that we should really be trusting the provider patient relationship.

- What are some other issues that you're, that you're going to be bringing up this year or that you're watching out for?

- Yeah, childcare, obviously, that's always on my radar.

I think that we need to make sure that that $100 million is spent in a good way to ensure that all kids have good access to care while their parents are at work.

And then obviously education, excuse me, healthcare and mental health.

We need to continue to expand mental health services in our state, especially after the pandemic when we see so many people suffering.

- Representative Healy, thank you so much for your time.

I really appreciate it.

- Thanks for having me.

- Back to you, Cara.

- All right.

Joining me now here is Senate majority leader Gary Cammack.

Thank you for being here from union center.

- Thank you for the opportunity - Tell me a little bit about what you heard and what some of your priorities are.

- Well what I heard was that, the numbers bear out the fact that the governor's decision to rely on personal responsibility of the citizens of South Dakota, the numbers of the economy, and a lot of other indicators approved it's the right path to go down.

- Okay so I've heard that it's easier when you don't have money than when you do.

So is there going to be a lot of wrangling over what to spend money on?

- Yes, there is gonna be the, yeah.

When you don't have money, most folks don't even wanna make eye contact with you because they're afraid they'll become a target of a cut.

And when there's a lot of money around, everyone wants to have a discussion.

So yes, it will be, it'll be a lot of discussion.

A lot of the discussions that people want to talk about different projects as it stands right now, the federal government's got some huge strings attached to the funds.

So we're very limited in what we can spend it on now.

But if it follows the path of last year, we're going to end up with the rules changing almost weekly.

- Right.

And we have a very short time period here.

And so what are your, what's your number one priority that you wanna see happen and a key?

- Well, the number one thing is I think that even though the strings indicate that we've got to spend the money, a majority of the money on water projects and square projects, actually that's a good thing.

There's not a city in the, in the state of South Dakota that doesn't have some sewer lines that are a hundred years old, and there's not a city in the state of South Dakota that isn't, or a rural area that isn't concerned about having enough water just to supply the needs of the citizens as well as the needs of livestock and industry and right on down the road.

So it's not going to be a problem to be able to spend that money on those two things that are that's allocated to it.

And I think a lot of good things can come from this because this has been a long time coming in without these funds, we would probably would have been another 20 years accomplishing a lot of them so.

- Are you concerned we're entering passively into a drought season and are you at all concerned about what that's gonna do with water projects.

- Being involved in agriculture and being a fourth generation rancher in mid county, you're always concerned about drought, always.

But there's no one, the folks that are in agriculture are the ultimate pessimists and the ultimate optimist.

So with that, absolutely we're gonna, we're going to focus on spending these dollars wisely so that we can get water to the municipalities as well as the rural areas.

So it's important stuff.

- All right, well I wanna thank you Senator for taking time and coming on and we look forward to hearing more from you in the days ahead.

Thank you very much, Lee, back to you.

- [Lee] I'm standing here with a Republican representative Steve Haugaard is Republican from Sioux falls.

Representative Haugaard, what was your reaction to the governor's speech today?

- Well the reaction is that we have great people in the state of South Dakota.

So that's what makes our state great place to live and great opportunities here.

Some of the things the governor brought out, it's a reflection of the fact that people independently did what they to do to make it through the pandemic.

In fact in South Dakota, we received all the federal money that we were intended to receive out of the cares act.

We received that April of 2020, but we could not get that out the door to help businesses until sometime late in the fall or into the following year.

So those dollars were held back unnecessarily.

They should have been out the door to help businesses survive instead of just propping up, some that were on the ropes by that time.

So that was an issue.

The medical vaccine discussion, the result of what could have been and what should have been, we should have had a special session.

And we should have given the people in the state of South Dakota enough cover that they could have protected their jobs.

Many people had contacted me, indicated that they had no options.

Could we please have a special session?

I asked the governor for a special session back in September of this year to address the vaccine mandates.

We couldn't get it.

And the state of South Dakota the fact is, orders and demands of businesses do a variety of things, whether it's workers' comp or it's hours or whatever it might be.

This was one thing we could have done to help those people maintain their jobs, or at least have some traction if they needed to sue for retaining their employment or retaining the retirements or other benefits.

So we should have done those things.

And like I say, South Dakota has done well, but on top of that, we've received more money, more federal money per capita than any other state in the nation.

Over this past year, we've received 8.32 times as much money as in a normal year, far ahead of any other state.

So we outpaced, the other states in that regard as well.

And that's not something that we should claim as a mantle of honor, but instead, we should recognize that as a state that's beholden to the federal government, we will be responsible to address all those issues that come with, rules and regulations.

So those are some concerns that I have.

A lot of these initiatives that are discussed, they're a lot deeper than the surface discussion that you might have, whether it's critical race theory or it's vaccines or whatever it might be.

The critical race theory for example, that's not a curriculum per se, that's woven into the fabric of how some people teach and we need to address that.

And those are things that need some special attention.

Plus we heard some comments about the native Americans.

Instead of giving lip service, we should develop a better relationship and maintain that relationship.

And that part of that is, the curriculum that would be in the schools.

So that people all across the state understand the rich heritage that we have of native Americans, as well as the immigrants.

So those are some of the things that stood out to me.

- Yeah.

And then she also mentioned that you plan on, that you're challenging Nome for the governor's seat this year.

What are some legislative priorities of yours as you head into the session?

- Well, some of the issues that we're facing, especially for my committee appointment is on appropriations.

So we're looking at how are we spending money and how can we chart a course down the road that's actually going to affect better policy, such as corrections.

This past year there was a reaction to some emails, some issue about employee wages at the penitentiary.

So the response was to fire the warden, the last person that should have been fired.

But, we need to put money where our policies should be directed.

And that's one of those areas.

I didn't hear anything about probation services or parole services, we need more attention there.

And that's been an ongoing problem for years.

We should try to keep people, away from the prisons as much as possible.

And part of that is better supervision early on and even supervision after they leave the penitentiary.

So those are some issues we need to give attention to.

And as far as other priorities, there's a whole span of things, but right now this year, we need to keep track of how we're going to allocate these funds.

Probably the best way to do that would be to reserve as much as possible into trust funds, and to hold those back for dry times that we might see a head.

This incredible inflation and the change in the whole economic perspective across the nation needs attention now.

We need to be proactive and hold back on some of these funds, because the fact is this is all federal debt.

And so as we spend it, we need to be recognizing, this is, this is burdening our children and our grandchildren.

And when we talked about some form of tax relief, our taxes might not have percentage-wise ratcheted up, but when the property values rose this year, everybody's taxes went up.

There should be some response to that.

We need to hold those levels down to where people can actually afford to retain their farms, ranches and their homes.

- Great.

Thank you so much for your time.

I really appreciate Representative Haugaard Cara, back to you.

- All right.

Thank you very much.

And joining me now is house minority leader, Jamie Smith out of Sioux falls.

Jamie, thanks so much for being here.

- Glad to be here.

- So tell me a little bit about your overall reaction to the speech.

- Here was an opportunity for the governor to bring us together again, and it just seemed to divide again.

And so it was, from a Republican standpoint, I'm sure it was a really good speech on just how conservative can I be but it, I don't think suits South Dakota, well today, many of the things that she brought up in that speech.

- So tell me some of the things that you are most opposed to, that you're going to work really hard to make sure that they don't happen.

- Part of it isn't necessarily even opposition it's just the tone.

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

There's something I believe we all are for.

And it's using those concepts then to bring forth this conservative agenda for our state.

When we talk about freedom in the state of South Dakota, freedom, your freedom ends when your behavior influences negatively on me.

And so people they make these choices when she talked about being so free that mandates on vaccines and things like that.

What we have to remember that your behavior influence, impacts my safety and my freedom, okay.

So, wearing masks, all the things that divide, I think keeping the schools open was great.

She talked about that and I think that's important.

I think that's the safest place for many of our kids throughout our state, but while they're in school, we need to do everything we can to make sure that those students are safe when they go back and forth to their families for example.

When it comes to telling our teachers what curriculum to follow and those types of things as a state, I think that's an overreach.

I don't think we need to do that as a state.

I think we should have the freedom to educate if you're an educator for example.

When we, again, dividing us on abortion issues, that's a very divisive issue, very personal issue.

And there she goes for it in the speech.

A vulnerable population, trans kids in our state again, a very vulnerable population in our state, people that are just trying to fit in.

And we have to go there in this speech today to tell about the state, that is doing well financially and economically, but never once was mentioned the reason for that, and that's the influx of federal dollars that we have flowing through our state right now because of the federal government that she then condemned for their actions in this speech.

- So just give me just a quick highlight of what some of your priorities are to see this.

- I think some of our priorities are the same.

It just depends on how we message that.

And when it comes to workforce, for example, that she touched on you bet we need workforce.

And what we need for that is training.

And she talked about that and we can talk about that and agree about that.

We can also talk about within that workforce supports that we can give that, and I believe government can do that.

And that would be like the childcare initiative that we're bringing forward to support those working parents in the state of South Dakota.

I would have liked to heard that the brought forward focus in a bipartisan way that these are things we can do together rather than down this road of how conservative can I be.

- All right, Jamie Smith.

I wanna thank you for taking time and coming on the program, and we will hear more from you later this week on South Dakota focus.

So thank you so much for coming on the air today.

And that'll conclude our live coverage here on South Dakota public broadcasting of the state of the state address here in Pierre.

(upbeat music) I'm Cara Hetland and for Lee Strubinger and all of us from South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

Thank you for joining us today.