South Dakota Legislative Billwatch, Mar. 1, 2016

March 1 is a busy day for the South Dakota Legislature. These are some of the important and interesting bills being considered and voted on today, both in committee and on the floor.

SB 171 is an interesting one. It was amended heavily in the Senate Health and Human Services Committee away from just another “medical” marijuana bill (i.e. another fig leaf to advance the agenda of full drug legalization) to be a bill that allows only the pill/oil form of THC for the treatment of intractable epilepsy.  Now, could drug legalization advocates use even this as a stepping stone toward full drug legalization? Of course; evil people can use virtually anything as justification for their agenda.  Could even this form of THC be misused for recreational purposes?  That could probably happen in limited circumstances. But the odds are greatly diminished in this bill over the typical “medical” marijuana pothead bill. The bill passed the Senate 20-15 and now goes before the House Health and Human Services Committee.

HB 1129 would allow a concealed pistol in the capitol and any county courthouse with an enhanced concealed pistol permit. This bill already passed the house 45-17 and now goes to the Senate Judiciary for a hearing and vote.

HB 1138 is another gun bill which calls for records to be kept on file for five years instead of four, and changes the state/local distribution formula for the concealed carry fee.

HB 1190 is still another gun bill, establishing “gold card” concealed carry permits that would provide for expedited purchases in some cases.

It must be Gun Day in Pierre today, because HCR 1009 expresses the right of South Dakotans to own and use firearms. It has already passed the House 62-4 and now goes to the Senate for consideration. Is it a good statement in favor of the right to keep and bear arms…or an opportunity for a RINO to get their vote on a pro-gun bill…or both?

SB 131, SB 133 and HB 1182  all deal with education funding.  HB 1182 is the education funding tax increase which already scraped by in the House, and now faces a vote in the Senate.

HB 1157 is a pro-life bill that would require that a doctor provide a woman additional information as a part of informed consent prior to performing an abortion.

Another pro-life bill is SB 24 which would prohibit the sale of fetal body parts and to provide a penalty therefor.

HCR 1017 recognizes the relationship between Israel and the United States, as well as South Dakota. Who could be against that, right?  Well, there were three in the House.

	Date	Committee/Chamber	Bill	Title
	3/1 7:45 AM	Senate Education	HB 1096	provide for the exemption of certain schools from a tuition limitation applied to some bordering state school districts.
	3/1 7:45 AM	House Agriculture and Natural Resources	SB 107	clarify certain safety zone restrictions on hunting.
	3/1 7:45 AM	House Health and Human Services	SB 171	authorize the limited use of certain types of medical marijuana.
	3/1 8:00 AM	Senate Judiciary	HB 1125	limit the ability of a person to obtain a concealed pistol permit related to the restoration of civil rights and to declare an emergency.
	3/1 8:00 AM	Senate Judiciary	HB 1129	allow a concealed pistol in the capitol and any county courthouse with an enhanced concealed pistol permit.
	3/1 8:00 AM	Senate Judiciary	HB 1138	revise provisions related to the enhanced permit to carry a concealed pistol.
	3/1 8:00 AM	Senate Judiciary	HB 1190	enhance customer convenience in firearms transactions, improve public safety, and provide for the issuance of an additional concealed pistol permit.
	3/1 8:00 AM	Senate Judiciary	HCR 1009	Expressing the right of South Dakotans to own and use firearms.
	3/1 8:00 AM	House Committee on Appropriations	SB 131	establish a target teacher salary and a target teacher ratio, to revise certain provisions regarding education funding, to create the School Finance Accountability Board, and to provide for certain school district reporting and penalties.
	3/1 8:00 AM	House Committee on Appropriations	SB 133	revise certain provisions regarding shared services provided by the state to school districts, the sharing of services of school district employees, the classroom innovation grant program, and educator mentoring and certification reciprocity.
	3/1 10:00 AM	House Local Government	SB 64	revise the voting authority of an alderman.
	3/1 10:00 AM	House Local Government	SB 65	revise the procedure for a municipal recall petition.
	3/1 10:00 AM	House Local Government	SB 90	ensure that members of the public are able to access and record public meetings.
	3/1 2:00 PM	Senate	HB 1157	require that a doctor provide a woman additional information as a part of informed consent prior to performing an abortion.
	3/1 2:00 PM	Senate	HB 1177	revise certain provisions concerning tax incentives for certain energy facilities.
	3/1 2:00 PM	Senate	HB 1182	increase the state sales tax, the state use tax, the excise tax on farm machinery, and amusement device tax for the purpose of increasing education funding and reducing property taxes, to provide for certain school district reporting and penalties, and to declare an emergency.
	3/1 2:00 PM	House of Representatives	HB 1183	revise certain provisions regarding the jurisdiction of magistrate courts to issue protection orders.
	3/1 2:00 PM	Senate	HCR 1017	Commending the nation of Israel for its cordial and mutually beneficial relationship with the United States and with the State of South Dakota.
	3/1 2:00 PM	House of Representatives	SB 24	prohibit the sale of fetal body parts and to provide a penalty therefor.
	3/1 2:00 PM	House of Representatives	SB 54	adopt the Elder Abuse Task Force’s statutory recommendations in order to protect South Dakota seniors and adults with disabilities from abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
	3/1 2:00 PM	House of Representatives	SB 97	provide for the automatic removal of all petty offenses, municipal ordinance violations, and Class 2 misdemeanor charges or convictions from background check records after ten years under certain conditions.
	3/1 2:00 PM	House of Representatives	SB 106	provide for the collection of sales taxes from certain remote sellers, to establish certain Legislative findings, and to declare an emergency.
	3/1 2:00 PM	House of Representatives	SB 129	establish certain suicide awareness and prevention training requirements for certain school employees based on the Jason Flatt Act.
	3/1 4:00 PM	Senate Judiciary	HB 1132	require the submission of sexual assault kits for testing.
	3/1 4:00 PM	Senate Judiciary	HB 1167	revise certain provisions regarding the use of a suspended imposition of sentence for a misdemeanor and a felony.

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Similar Posts:

• Jan. 27 South Dakota Legislative Billwatch
• South Dakota Legislative Billwatch, Feb. 24, 2015
• Jan. 24 South Dakota Legislative Billwatch
• South Dakota Legislative Billwatch, Feb. 5, 2016
• South Dakota Legislative Billwatch, Feb. 8, 2016

Bob Ellis has been the owner of media company Dakota Voice, LLC since 2005. He is a 10-year U.S. Air Force veteran, a political reporter and commentator for the past decade, and has been involved in numerous election and public policy campaigns for over 20 years. He was a founding member and board member of the Tea Party groups Citizens for Liberty and the South Dakota Tea Party Alliance. He lives in Rapid City, South Dakota with his wife and two children.

Bob Ellis

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