State of South Dakota secondary Archives: on Government Reform
Billie Sutton:
Clean up entrenched system & champion good government
I championed good government measures in the state senate, including proposals with bi-partisan support that would help restore integrity in government and campaigns. I sponsored and passed a transparency measure to help clean up the mess.
Cleaning up an entrenched system is never easy. A host of other reform measures I proposed were rejected by a system rigged in favor of the status quo, leaving loopholes for government mismanagement and a festering influence of money in politics.
Source: 2018 South Dakota governor candidate website SuttonForSD.com
May 2, 2018
Brian Bengs:
Signed U.S. Term Limits pledge
U.S. Term Limits praises 2022 U.S. senate candidate for South Dakota, Brian Bengs, for signing the pledge for an amendment to term limit Congress. The U.S. Term Limits amendment pledge reads, "I pledge that as a member of Congress,
I will cosponsor and vote for the U.S. Term Limits amendment of three (3) House terms and two (2) Senate terms and no longer limit."
Source: U.S. Term Limits on 2022 South Dakota Senate race
Nov 22, 2021
Daniel Ahlers:
Establish commission for legislative redistricting
Ahlers is currently leading a petition drive to ask voters on the 2020 ballot whether an amendment should be added to the
South Dakota Constitution establishing a commission to complete the legislative redistricting that occurs every decade after the census.
Source: Argus-Leader on 2020 South Dakota senate race
Sep 26, 2019
Daniel Ahlers:
Filed bill for commission to establish legislative districts
Ahlers seeks to create a commission that will establish legislative districts, rather than the legislature doing its own districting. "Redistricting by a commission takes the politics out of it," Ahlers said. "A non-partisan redistricting commission
ensures the district lines are drawn fairly and represent the communities they serve. The reason this comes as a constitutional amendment is the power to redistrict is delegated and defined within the state constitution."
Source: Pierre Capital Journal on 2020 South Dakota Senate race
Aug 27, 2019
Dennis Daugaard:
Better Government Red Tape Review: eliminate 26,000 words
The "Better Government" initiative aims for less regulation, more openness, and more efficiency. This isn't glamorous, but it's important, and we've made progress this year.Let's talk about less regulation. Conversely, the proliferation of laws and
regulations. State government agencies have a tendency toward more laws. But we must push back. That's why I'm proud that our Better Government Red Tape Review had another strong year, finding obsolete and unnecessary statutes and rules that can be
eliminated. Last year, we eliminated 177 sections and over 26,000 words from the statutory code and the administrative rules. This year, we will propose eliminating 650 sections and more than 78,000 words.
Many executive orders are signed by governors
without a sunset clause, and technically remain in force long after their purpose has been served. I will be rescinding over 100 executive orders, dating back as far as Gov. Archie Gubbrud, and we are going to examine other executive orders as well.
Source: South Dakota 2013 State of the State Address
Jan 8, 2013
Dennis Daugaard:
Red Tape Repeal: remove 4,000 obsolete laws & rules
I've talked about a "Better Government Initiative"--a constant effort to make state government more efficient, more open, and accessible. First, we continue to work on "red tape repeal" efforts.
Over the past six years, we have proposed and you have passed a repeal of over 4,000 sections of obsolete or unnecessary laws and rules, accounting for nearly 470,000 words.
Source: 2017 State of the State address to South Dakota Legislature
Jan 10, 2017
Gordon Howie:
Photo ID for voting
Question topic: People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Howie: Strongly Disagree
Source: Faith2Action iVoterGuide on 2014 South Dakota Senate race
Sep 30, 2014
Jay Williams:
GOP's 2013 government shutdown caused S.D. suffering
As a child, when I behaved badly, my Mom would admonish me not to be a "dog in the manger". She related the fable in which the dog, who could not eat the oats in the manger, nonetheless lay in the manger to prevent the horse from eating. With his dogged
steadfast refusal to let the horse eat, both the dog & the horse starved to death.Mom's admonition not to be a "dog in the manger" is especially relevant today. John Thune's party, with his participation, engages in classic dog-in-the-manger behavior.
In 2013, John Thune's party was responsible for shutting down the Federal Government in an attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act. John Thune participated in this government shutdown while farmers and ranchers in western South Dakota were
suffering from the effects of an historic blizzard and were in need of the government's help.
Thune and his Republican Senate cohorts refuse to even hold hearings on the President's Supreme Court nominee, thus leaving the court short handed.
Source: 2016 South Dakota Senate campaign web JayWilliams2016.org
Apr 1, 2016
Jay Williams:
Campaign spending is out of control
John Thune has spent the past twelve years raising millions of dollars for his campaign, but Jay hasn't had that chance. Jay has spent his time working hard for the people of South Dakota.
Instead of building a war chest for himself, Jay has brought millions of dollars into the South Dakota economy with his small business.
Campaign spending is out of control, but this is South Dakota's chance to prove what really matters.
When Jay gets to Washington, he'll fight for a campaign finance system that doesn't favor Washington insiders and that limits the influence of corporate and ultra-wealthy contributers.
Source: 2016 South Dakota Senate campaign web JayWilliams2016.org
Apr 1, 2016
Joel Dykstra:
Voted to restrict campaign donations
Dykstra voted for HB 1048 (Bill Passed 47-23): An act to reform certain campaign finance requirements & to establish certain fines & penalties.- Limits individual contributions to candidates for state office to $4,000 per year.
- Limits individual
contributions to legislative candidates to $1,000 per year.
- Limits individual contributions to political action committees and political parties to $10,000 per year.
- Disallows anonymous contributions or contributions disguised as gifts.
Source: South Dakota state legislative voting records
Feb 13, 2007
John Thune:
Don't put Washington in charge of state elections
[S.1, "For The People Act" would] put the federal government--instead of states--in charge of elections. Democrats have been pushing election legislation for multiple years now.This radical legislation would provide for a massive federal takeover of
our electoral system, chill free speech, and turn the Federal Election Commission--the primary enforcer of election law in this country--into a partisan body. This radical legislation would undermine state voter ID laws; spend taxpayer dollars on
political campaigns; and make it easier for those here illegally to vote.
And, most of all, it would put Washington, not state governments, in charge of elections--for no reason at all. Zero reason. There is no systemic problem with state election
laws. And state election officials do not need Washington bureaucrats dictating how many days of early voting they should offer, or how they should manage mail-in ballots.
[See details of H.R.1/S.1]
Source: Press release on 2022 South Dakota Senate race
Sep 22, 2021
Kristi Noem:
Summoned employee who denied daughter's license
Just days after a South Dakota agency moved to deny her daughter's application to become a certified real estate appraiser, Gov. Kristi Noem summoned to her office the state employee who ran the agency, the woman's direct supervisor and the state
labor secretary. Noem's daughter attended too.Kassidy Peters, then 26, ultimately obtained the certification in November 2020, four months after the meeting at her mother's office.
A week after that, the labor secretary called the agency head, Sherry Bren, to demand her retirement, according to an age discrimination complaint Bren filed against the department.
Bren, 70, ultimately left her job this past March after the state paid her $200,000 to withdraw the complaint.
Source: Washington Post on 2022 South Dakota Gubernatorial race
Sep 27, 2021
Kristi Noem:
Eliminate fees for starting or renewing a business
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 the most business-friendly states in America, and with this step, we will make it even easier to do business here.
Source: 2022 State of the State Address to South Dakota legislature
Jan 11, 2022
Nancy Turbak Berry:
$4000 limit on individual campaign contribution
Senator Turbak Berry voted YES on HB 1048, Campaign Contribution Reform. The Bill Passed the Senate 24 - 11. Synopsis: Vote to pass a bill that places restrictions on campaign contributions. Highlights: - Limits individual contributions to
candidates for state office to $4,000 per year
- Limits individual contributions to legislative or county candidates to $1,000 per year
- Limits individual contributions to political action committees and political parties to $10,000 per year
Source: South Dakota state legislative voting records
Feb 22, 2007
Rick Weiland:
Congress should fight for people, not for big donors
[The four candidates debated at Dakotafest in Mitchell; they] discussed reforming campaign finance. Democrat Rick Weiland said, "People want honesty. They want to believe they are sending someone to Washington DC who is going to fight for them and not
the big donors that are bringing them to the dance."Weiland says he wants to restore honor to Congress. "We've got a government whose approval rating is less than 10 percent. It's because they are not representing the people anymore."
Source: KSFY/ABC News on 2014 South Dakota Senate debate
Aug 27, 2014
Steven Haugaard:
We need transparent leadership, not CDC/White House dictates
We need leadership that is truly transparent. We need a governor who will reject the politics of fearmongering, who will disclose all of the data, who will have cutting edge discussions about actual solutions, taking into consideration real scientific
evidence, not merely the dictates of the CDC or the White House.There are very few, if any, parts of government at any level that need to be kept shrouded in secrecy.
and ensure that elected leaders are not granted a special protected status going forward.
Source: 2022 South Dakota Gubernatorial website SteveHaugaard.com
Feb 22, 2022
Kristi Noem:
So many serious election integrity concerns in 2020 election
Two days after Election Day in 2020, Noem baselessly claimed on Twitter that Trump was fighting "rigged election systems" and hinted that there were issues in "Democrat-run" states. Then, in an ABC interview that aired five days after the election,
Noem asserted that "dead people voted in Pennsylvania" (the number of such cases turned out to be tiny, and at least three involved registered Republicans) and referred to Michigan "computer glitches that changed Republican votes to Democrat votes" (in
reality, a single, conservative county's human error in reporting unofficial results had been quickly corrected). On Twitter, Noem added a reference to unspecified "illegal activity" in Nevada and declared that there were "so many serious election
integrity concerns."Noem attended Biden's inauguration in Jan. 2021 and acknowledged to reporters that "we now have President Biden" but also saying "I think there's lot of people who have doubts" about whether the election was fair and transparent.
Source: CNN on 2020 Election Denial: 2022 South Dakota Governor race
Sep 9, 2022
Page last updated: Feb 18, 2023