Legislative Update from Bread for the World

Advocates,

It’s not just HB1069 (Senate floor on Wednesday). There are more bills that mess with citizens rights to initiative and referendum. THEY ARE ALL IMPORTANT.  This alert tells where things stand. Look for your legislators’ names and write personal messages! Let them know we expect any replacement of IM22 to be AS STRONG AS IM22.

—>Email. The format is firstname.lastname@sdlegislture.gov

—>Phone messages during legi days: Senators 605-773-3821, Rep’s 605-773-3851

Here are anti-voter bills, ie, bills that interfere with our citizens’ rights to initiative and referendum:

Senate floor (=ALL Senators):

Wed.Feb.1:  OPPOSE  HB1069. It repeals all of IM22. Oppose this repeal of what the voters approved! Respect the will of the people. Honor our state motto “Under God, the People Rule.”

Be sure to mention: There is no “emergency.” The use of the emergency clause is an attack on the power of the people.

Senate State Affairs committee has these 5 bills. Wow, 5!

Senators Bolin, Curd, Ewing, Heinert, Langer, Maher, Netherton, Al Novstrup, Sutton

SB54, WHAT TO SAY ABOUT IT: Its new campaign finance rules are NOT strong enough to justify overturning the voters’ will. But it turns out IF we don’t get to keep IM22, then we need it, in which case the committee needs to make it as strong as the campaign finance reforms in IM22.

OPPOSE SB67. It increases number of petition signatures required to place constitutional amendments on the ballot. An initiative for the next election would need 88% more signatures! This attacks the initiative process.

OPPOSE SB77. It attacks the initiative process by requiring fiscal analysis, even to get started. It makes it harder to do petitions. It causes delays and clutters the ballot.

OPPOSE SJR2. It would make it harder for us voters to amend the state constitution. It requires 60% approval rather than a simple majority. But note: it is ALREADY harder to amend the constitution because twice as many petition signatures are required. SJR2 reduces the power of the people.

OPPOSE HB1035. It takes away the opportunity for petitioners to challenge rejection of his/her petition  with the election official, forcing rejected petitioners to turn directly to costly court challenge. This is not fair to citizens, who may have good reason to point out irregularities on a petition, but may not have the means to go to court.

House Commerce Committee

Rep’s Beal, Gosch, Lana Greenfield, Hawley, Johnson, May, McCleerey, Mills, Pischke, Rounds, Steinhauer, Willadsen, Zikmund

OPPOSE HB1090. It messes with the 36% payday loan rate cap that voters approved by 76%. Don’t give lenders any wiggle room to resume charging triple-digit annual interest.

House State Affairs Committee has these bills.

Rep’s Bartling, Beal, DiSanto, Don Haggar, Hawley, Heinemann, Latterell, Lust, Mickelson, Kent Peterson, Qualm, Rhoden

HB1073, WHAT TO SAY ABOUT IT: It is too lax. Ask the committee to make it as strong as the lobbyist gift ban in IM 22.

OPPOSE HB1074. It violates free speech rights while making fundraising and bookkeeping practically impossible for ballot question committees.

OPPOSE SB59. It delays enactment of voter-approved measures from approximately one week after the election to July 1 of the coming year, making it easier for the Legislature to amend or repeal any initiative before voters can see those measures in operation. If it were amended to read January 1, rather than July 1, it would be acceptable. Another option would be to require the initiative itself to specify the start date. But as it is, SB59 is an attack on our citizen rights to initiative.