March 4, 2022

Legislative Update – Week 8

Things are starting to calm down and most of the committees have had their last meetings. March 7 is the last day for a joint bill or resolution to be passed by both houses. The next three days are then reserved for conference committees and the finalization of the state budget. Lawmakers will return to Pierre on March 28 to consider any vetoed bills.

A troublesome issue facing the last four days of the main legislative session is the difficulty of finalizing the money bill. Members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committee disagree on how the authority to spend federal funds should be handled. This leads to speculation that the budget bill may not pass until veto day.

The $6 million request to design, renovate and build a multi-purpose facility at Cottonwood Field Station passed the House. Before the final action, the SB 84 had to face some challenges. House Appropriations sent the bill to the house floor with a Do Not Pass recommendation. Bills flagged out of committee with a “Do Not Pass” recommendation must receive a majority vote of the House before they can be placed on the debate schedule. Strong support from House members ended with a 54-13 vote for Do Pass and it’s up to the governor to sign off. Thank you to everyone who reached out to their representatives to ask for their support!

HB 1325 dealing with the assessment of Class 4 soils was heard in Senate Ag and Natural Resources on March 1 and was sent to the Senate on a 5-2 Do Pass motion. The bill was amended in committee and received support from SD Cattlemen’s, SD Dept of Revenue, SD Association of Conservation Districts, SD Retailers Assoc., SD Stockgrowers and the SD Izaak Walton League. HB 1325 will be heard in the Senate on March 7.

HB 1096 passed the Senate floor 25-9. SDCA would like to thank those members who reached out to Senate members to share our concerns. The uncertainty and unintended consequences of HB 1096, as expressed by the SDCA, Animal Industry Board, Farm Bureau, and other breeding organizations, remain.

HB 1092 to allocate $1.25 million for the Precision Agriculture Cybersecurity Cyber-Ag Partnership Initiative between SDSU and DSU has been approved by the Senate on a 33-0 vote and awaits Governor’s signature .

SB 53 will allocate $50 million in public funds to match $50 million in federal funds to increase workforce housing. The bill received several amendments, including a change that 70% of available funding goes to municipalities with a population of less than 50,000 and 30% of funding is made available to all municipalities.

SB 55 allocates $50 million in ARPA (federal) funding to continue expanding broadband access in South Dakota. Declaring an emergency allows the dollars to be used immediately rather than waiting until July 1st. The bill passed the House by a 65-4 vote and is awaiting the governor’s signature.

–South Dakota Breeders Association