Mills: Session wraps up

Legislative report

Posted

The 96th legislative session ended on Thursday. As expected, “money and marijuana” dominated. Regarding medical marijuana, weeks of work by many legislators ended with a fizzle, as disagreement over every proposal advanced, ended with the final vote – to do nothing. Now, short of action by the governor to propose something and call a special session, IM26 will go into effect July 1. I know that other legislators who were more closely involved in this will share more detail. For many, there is disappointment that we were not able to start with something better.

Regarding money, by South Dakota standards we have an unusual amount of it. The hard part was deciding how to spend it. Imagine a family with 105 equal votes, and you might have an idea why this is a challenge. The money your legislative “family” has to manage fits into two “buckets.”The first is what we call “one-time” dollars. These are the result of higher income (mostly sales tax) and lower expenses (paid by unexpected Fed. money) for the current fiscal year (FY21).

Senate Bill 64 has a list of “one-time” dollar items that were approved. Included in the list is $3.36 million for equipment for our technical schools; $7.8 million to upgrade the state radio system; $26 million to our state universities; $183 million to our K-12 schools; $19 million for two regional crisis diversion centers (Sioux Falls and Rapid City); and $5 million to trade/buy a new airplane.

In addition, the legislature passed bills spending $7.5 million for a new dairy research facility at SDSU; $20 million for a bio-products building at the research park in Brookings; $3 million for water quality projects along the Big Sioux River; $6 million for improving township and county secondary roads; $12 million to re-build and expand the beef building at the state fairgrounds; $19 million for a mineral industry building at SDSMT; $50 million for a needs based scholarship endowment fund; $75 million for broadband access grants; $9 million to repair state owned dams; $21 million to pay-off some technical school bonds and $20 million to upgrade the RCP&E rail line west of the Missouri. In addition, there is a long list of “smaller” projects we were able to fund.

All told, over $366 million of “one-time” dollars were allocated. All I can say is - wow!

Next years budget (FY22) is itemized in Senate Bill 195. In that $5 billion “bucket” we were able to give teachers and all state employees a 2.4% pay raise. In addition we did some targeted raises for judges, court service officers and those who serve our most vulnerable populations. In short, we were able to do a lot of good in the coming year for a lot of people.

When the gavel came down to close the session I couldn’t help but look back. One year earlier, on the day we closed the session, my mother was admitted to the nursing home. That same day, they locked the door to visitors. I never got in to see her until July 2, the day she died. I believe the isolation shortened her life. Dad passed a little over two months later. I don’t blame the nursing home for trying to protect them from COVID, but I do believe there has to be a better way. People need to stay connected to their families from their first cry to their last breath. We need to find a way to do that.

I know I am not alone. The year behind has been hard for all of us. On Tuesday, I got a vaccine and am hopeful that before long things can return to normal for you and me. I hope we remember the lessons. We have today. Take care of yourself. Love your family. Serve others. Forgive. Laugh - and smile – and thank God for life – and live it to the full.

In service to God and you,

John Mills, Representative, District 4, John.Mills@sdlegislature.gov